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All Fiat 500 production moving to Poland by 2015?

With the next-generation Fiat 500 expected to debut in 2015 with more of a global presence, there is a growing possibility that production of the cute little hatchback will be consolidated to a single plant in Poland. According to Automotive News Europe, Fiat plans to end production of the 500 in Toluca, Mexico, which is expected to better fill Fiat's European production capacity, free up more North American capacity and create a single Fiat 500 design for all markets.
Currently, Fiat builds two similar but structurally different 500 models for Europe and North America, and assembling just one version at the Tychy, Poland would allow it to cut costs for development of the new car. This would also help fill some of the capacity void that Tychy has suffered in recent years, building just 300,000 units last year compared to more than double that in 2009. The report says that while Chrysler's North American production capacity is near its limit, Fiat's European plants will be used to meet increased demand before a new plant is built in North America. As for Toluca, there is no indication as to what vehicle Chrysler would replace the 500 with at this facility, which also builds the Dodge Journey.

Trump to meet with CEOs from Ford, GM, and FCA

In the wake of his inauguration, President Donald Trump is set to meet with the CEOs of Ford, General Motors, and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Tuesday morning to discuss jobs, the North American Free Trade Agreement, and potential tax cuts. Trump has been highly critical of American automakers for shipping jobs to Mexico and has threatened to impose heavy import fees on foreign-made vehicles. Trump has threatened to dissolve NAFTA in order to encourage automakers to manufacture cars in the US. Automotive News and Crain's Detroit Business are reporting that the group is set to discuss how to bring more auto industry jobs back to the US. Under NAFTA, many automakers, both foreign and domestic, have moved vehicle production out of the States to Mexico in order to cut costs. White House spokesperson Sean Spicer said Trump is looking forward to the meeting and discussing how to bring jobs back to America. Dismantling NAFTA would be a major blow to automakers. Trump blasted Ford during his campaign for manufacturing in Mexico, but FCA and GM also have factories south of the border. Earlier this month, Ford nixed plans for a $1.6 billion plant in Mexico, instead investing $700 million into an existing facility. At this year's Detroit Auto Show, the unspoken theme was America and American manufacturing. Expect the automakers to fight to keep NAFTA alive. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News - sub. req., Twitter Government/Legal Plants/Manufacturing Fiat Ford GM FCA Mexico NAFTA

MoMA displays a classic Fiat 500 at its Good Design exhibition

The original, rear-engined Fiat 500 is a design icon thanks to its distinctly recognizable rounded shape and diminutive size. Millions were made from 1957 to 1975, plenty survive, and the car has received not one but two revivals, first in 1991 in the form of the literally named Cinquecento and then with the 2007-present, retro-styled "Nuova" 500. But it's the original that's still worth celebrating, and a new exhibition at New York's MoMA museum is doing just that. The industrial design exhibition, The Value of Good Design, displays an F series 500 as an "expression of form following function." The rear-engined 500 of 1957 was well-timed as Italy rose from the ruins of war and families needed an affordable car that could fit four -- and the 500's spacious packaging was found handy enough to warrant strong sales. And choosing a 500 didn't mean you would need to give up style, especially as a folding fabric roof made the 500 good for sunny weather outings as well (while also saving a bit of steel). Recently, Fiat's small-car know-how has been in the spotlight at various exhibitions. At the Grand Basel show in Switzerland, Italian design professor Paolo Tumminelli celebrated a beat-up, original Fiat Panda as "The very last car made for people, the last surviving witness of a time when the car was still serving humans -- and not the other way around." That is certainly true of the 500 as well, along with its successors, the 600 and 126 models. The below promotional Fiat video from 1957 shows just how cool the 500 was when it was new. MoMA's The Value of Good Design runs from February 10 to May 27. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.