Fiat 500 Pop Door on 2040-cars

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FCA's new Heritage HUB showcases 250 rare Fiats, Lancias and Alfa Romeos

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) has opened a new facility near Turin, Italy, dedicated to preserving and celebrating the company's Italian brands, as well as the historic cars each has created. It's bigger than the average Costco, and it houses more than 250 pieces of automotive art, some of which have never been publicly displayed. It's called the FCA Heritage HUB. The HUB building is itself a piece of history. FCA restored the old Officina 81 in Via Plava of the historic Mirafiori industrial district on the south side of Turin. At 161,459 sqare feet (the average Costco is 145,000 sq ft), it's a massive open space that allows for both business and pleasure. In the rafters, photos and text tell the timeline of Mirafiori, but the floor focuses on Fiat, Lancia, Abarth, and Alfa Romeo. Although part of the space is dedicated to the "Reloaded by Creators" vintage restoration sales department, the portion we're interested in is shown in the massive gallery above. FCA says it has more than 250 vehicles on display, and some have never been shown. The "central area," which explores cars from 1908 to 2008, is separated into eight themes, each of which has eight cars. The eight areas include Archistars, Concept and Personalized Cars, Eco and Sustainable, Epic Journeys, Records and Races, Small and Safe, Style Marks, and The Rally Era. Some of the cars featured at the new shop include the Lancia Lambda, the Fiat 500 Topolino A, the Fiat 130 Familiar, the Fiat X1/23, the Fiat Ecobasic, the Fiat Campagnola AR 51, the Fiat 1100 E, the Fiat 124S, the Lancia Delta HF Integral Group A, the Fiat S61, the Lancia Alfa Sport, the Lancia D50, the Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo, the Lancia LC2, the Lancia Augusta, the Lancia Ardea, the Fiat ESV 1500 and 2000, the Fiat Barchetta, the Lancia Aurelia B20, the Lancia Fulvia HF 1600, and the Lancia Stratos HF. Check out the gallery and below videos to see the full extent of what the HUB has to offer. Featured Gallery FCA Heritage Hub View 47 Photos News Source: FCA Alfa Romeo Fiat Lancia Automotive History Classics FCA fiat chrysler automobiles

Ram boss says not to expect midsize pickup in America

Remember that mysterious midsize four-door pickup FCA was spotted testing recently? It may be sold as a Fiat in markets overseas, but don't expect it to join the Ram lineup in North America. At least not according to the latest word from the truck brand's new boss. Speaking with Automotive News at the New York Auto Show, Ram CEO Bob Hegbloom outlined four criteria for a successful midsize pickup, particularly in the North American marketplace: they have less capability than a fullsize truck, but return with a more compact form, lower price and considerably higher fuel economy. "I've been able to develop a strategy to come up with three of the four," said Hegbloom, but "I haven't seen anyone who can deliver on all four." Smaller and less capable are easy, but getting both the price and the fuel consumption down at the same time is where it gets tricky. As it is, a Ram 1500 with the diesel engine and rear-wheel drive delivers 29 miles per gallon on the highway, which is already more than the 27-mpg rating on the midsize Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon. But Hegbloom figures that in order to justify a midsize pickup, American buyers would expect at least 35 mpg on the highway, and in order to do so, FCA would have to employ some trick tech, which would in turn raise the price beyond an attractive level. The last time Chrysler offered a midsize truck in America was with the Dakota that was discontinued in 2011. Ford similarly ceased offering the Ranger in North America in 2012, leaving the new Colorado and Canyon to take on the Toyota Tacoma and Nissan Frontier in the compact/midsize pickup market in the US. With the prospect of a Ram version apparently off the table, then, Fiat's midsize four-door pickup is likely take on the likes of the Volkswagen Amarok, Mitsubishi Triton and Toyota Hilux in markets like Europe and South America. But like those trucks, it will likely never see the inside of an American showroom.

Junkyard Gem: 2012 Fiat 500 Pop

FCA just announced that the Fiat 500 hatchback and convertible get the US-market axe after this year, not even a decade after the car reintroduced us to the Fiat marque. I've been seeing crashed 500s in big American wrecking yards for years now, but now some non-crunched examples are showing up on my junkyard journeys. I decided that I'd commemorate the rise and fall of the 500 by photographing this giallo 2012 500 Pop, found in Denver. According to an industry person who wishes to remain anonymous, Fiat was short on automatic-equipped 500s for 2012 (the first model year of North American sales), so a few hundred of the early Pop-trim-level cars got yellow or red paint and these black stripes and badging to help them move off the showroom floors despite their sales-killing third pedals. Soon after, the Fiat 500 Stinger appeared. I don't know why anyone wouldn't have preferred this car with the manual transmission, but reality dictates that little economy cars with three pedals can be virtually unsellable once they get some miles on the clock. This 500 has some body damage (that might have happened after it got to the junkyard) but looks pretty clean overall. Sold new in Colorado, will be crushed in Colorado seven years later. The Multi-Air four-banger in the '12 500 generated 101 horsepower, which wasn't much for a 2,500-pound car (by 21st-century standards). For commuting purposes, though, it was fine, and the 5-speed made it reasonably fun. Pop was the cheapest trim level for the 2012 500, so the interior didn't offer much snazz beyond the body-colored dash panels. Now that these cars have become so cheap, it's time to consider the most crazy-per-dollar junkyard engine swaps for them. Think a narrow-angle turbocharged V6 would fit in a 500? This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The next wave of Italians has come to America … and they've come to party.