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Fiat announces an all-EV transition by 2030

Today, multiple European publications are reporting that Fiat boss Olivier Francois said that Fiat will become an EV-only brand.  Stellantis is talking a big game about its EV future. The new mashup of car brands initially made the claim that by 2030, 70% of Europe sales and 35% of U.S. sales will be of all-electric vehicles. Fiat going all-electric will help accomplish this goal. “Between 2025 and 2030, our product lineup will gradually become electric only. This will be a radical change for Fiat,” Francois says. ItÂ’s tough to pinpoint exactly what that means for the U.S. market, as Fiat is only hanging on by a shred here. The only 2021 model year car it sells now is the 500X. Both the 500L and 124 Spider are listed on FiatÂ’s website, but both are 2020 model year vehicles that arenÂ’t being renewed. The regular 500 is long gone, and thereÂ’s no indication that the redesigned electric-only 500 is on its way. If the U.S. does get to enjoy FiatÂ’s electric future one day, it could very well be with totally new and different models than what we see now. The crossover-like 500X is the only model to make it through FiatÂ’s recent purging, so another small, electric crossover could make sense in the U.S. later this decade. Of course, thatÂ’s assuming Fiat keeps a foothold in America. Francois provided a reasoning for announcing the switchover now. “The decision to launch the new 500 – electric and electric alone – was actually taken before Covid-19,” Francois says. “Even then, we were already aware that the world could not take any more compromises. We were reminded of the urgency of taking action, of doing something for the planet Earth.” We suspect StellantisÂ’ view on moving toward EVs heavily influenced the decision, too. Small EVs are all the rage these days in Europe, and FiatÂ’s lineup is packed full of small cars. The next reasonable guess at a new Fiat EV would be a production version of the Centoventi Concept. ItÂ’s FiatÂ’s interpretation of an electric Panda, and Fiat says its theoretical range maxes out at 310 miles. Of course, thatÂ’s only a concept, and it was revealed far before Stellantis was formed. WeÂ’ll only know how this will play out in time, as Fiat gave itself nearly a decade to transition from gasoline to electric cars. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Second-generation Fiat 500 grows up, goes electric, gets posh

Going to the design well to reinvent an icon is difficult, especially when it's one of your greatest hits, so Fiat walked a thin line as it developed the first new 500 since 2007. Unveiled online, the hatchback is just as huggable as its predecessor — which is sticking around — and it honors tradition while embracing cutting-edge technology. Motorists long nourished on a diet of value-packed, bargain-priced Fiat models are in for a rude surprise. The new 500 rubs elbows with respected luxury cars, at least on paper, and it has morphed into more of an Instagram-friendly fashion statement than a genuine people's car. Stylists brought its retro-inspired design into the 2020s without completely reinventing it. It's still shaped like the 500 you're familiar with, though it's a little bit longer and wider than before and its wheelbase gains about an inch. Its front fascia wears a unmissable 500 emblem flanked by bright trim, its headlights are mounted higher and integrated into the hood, and its door handles are chiseled into the body. Out back, the vertical lights return with a more sculpted design. The line-up will ultimately include the quasi-convertible shown here, a hardtop, plus a wagon called Giardiniera and envisioned as a modern interpretation of the eponymous long-roof sold from the 1950s to the 1970s. Bigger changes welcome the passengers into the cabin. The driver sits behind a two-spoke steering wheel and a configurable, 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster, while a 10.25-inch touchscreen propped up on the dashboard displays a new version of the well-regarded Uconnect infotainment system. It looks decidedly more upmarket than the 500 it replaces, though it's difficult to tell without seeing in person and sitting in it — thanks, coronavirus. Fiat made the new 500 all electric, all the time. It's built on a 42-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack that zaps a 118-horsepower electric motor into motion. Its maximum driving range checks in at 199 miles, though the Italian firm obtained that figure by putting its city car through the optimistic WLTP testing cycle. It takes nine seconds to reach 62 mph from a stop, it has a 93-mph top speed, and plugging it into an 85-kilowatt charger fills 80% of the battery in 35 minutes. Alternatively, you'll need to wait 14 hours for a full charge if you plug it into the same household-spec outlet you use to keep your phone and your laptop juiced up.

2020 Fiat 124 Spider Abarth Review | Miata Arrabbiata

The Mazda MX-5 Miata is one of our favorite sports cars, and it’s hard to imagine how it could be improved – especially after Mazda added a revvier, more powerful engine for 2019. That presents a potential issue for its platform mate, the 2020 Fiat 124 Spider, which hasnÂ’t received a similar update. So we spent some time behind the wheel of an Abarth version on the road and on a track to see if thereÂ’s a reason to choose it over its new-and-improved twin. While itÂ’s unchanged for 2020, the 124 AbarthÂ’s engine does the lionÂ’s share of the work charming the driver. The 164-horsepower 1.4-liter turbocharged inline-four is no longer more powerful than the MiataÂ’s 181-hp 2.0-liter naturally aspirated engine, but the Abarth remains the torque king, packing 184 pound-feet to the MiataÂ’s 151 lb-ft. More importantly, the Abarth makes its power down low, feeling punchier at low rpm and taking far less work with the shifter to keep it in the power band. ThatÂ’s particularly nice around town when you might not want to push the car to redline repeatedly. The trade-off is that it feels much less exciting near redline, and the throttle response is lethargic compared with the snappy Mazda engine. And on a racetrack, that extra precision and power at the top end makes for a more rewarding experience. Besides user-friendly torque, what sets the 124 Spider Abarth from the Mazda is the sound. The Abarth is the only 124 available with the special Record Monza exhaust, and it makes the Fiat growl and snarl like only Italian cars can. And of course, itÂ’s all the better when you drop the top, expediting the sound to your ears. It makes the car feel more expensive and unusual than it is. Now, the Miata has its own more refined purr thatÂ’s lovely, too, but the FiatÂ’s soundtrack is giggle-inducing at every drop of the throttle. Capping off the powertrain is the FiatÂ’s transmission that I found to be just a bit better than the ND MiataÂ’s. It has heavier, more mechanical shifts that arenÂ’t as notchy as the MiataÂ’s. ThatÂ’s still a compliment to Mazda, though, as the FiatÂ’s transmission comes from the previous-generation NC Miata. It was chosen to handle the turbo engine's torque. The only complaint is the bizarrely shaped shift knob that never felt comfortable regardless of my grip. The AbarthÂ’s styling is another point of differentiation.