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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.

Abarth 695 Biposto revealed as quickest Fiat 500 yet

The Fiat 500 is supposed to be a budget model - something you can pick up with less than twenty grand to your name. But once Abarth gets its hands on it, all bets are off. The Scorpion brand is charged with getting the most performance it can out of budget-oriented vehicles like the Cinquecento and Punto, and that's just what it's done with the new 695 Biposto.
Billed as the "fastest street legal Abarth ever" (quickest?) and unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, the 695 Biposto packs a 1.4-liter turbo four that's been tuned to produce 190 horsepower - a good thirty more than the already entertaining Fiat 500 Abarth we get in the United States. With a robust power-to-weight ratio - the highest in its class, according to the Italians - the 695 Biposto can hit 62 miles per hour from a standstill in just 5.9 seconds, more than a second quicker than the US model.
Now if you saw the name Biposto and figured out that means just two seats, you're spot on: in its campaign to trim excess fat, Abarth has ditched the rear bench and replaced the front seats with a set of Sabelt racing buckets with four-point harnesses anchored where the rear seats would be. The fixed plexiglass front side windows do their part, too. It's also been fitted with adjustable shocks, an MXL digital data recorder, a titanium rear roll bar, Brembo brakes and 18-inch OZ alloys.

Dodge, Jeep and Ram could soon be owned by Chinese automakers

For the past several years, Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne has made it widely known that the automaker he helms is up for grabs. First, he sent an email to GM CEO Mary Barra, who immediately refused to even discuss a merger. Later, Marchionne set his sights on Volkswagen. That too was swiftly rebuffed. It seemed like no global automaker was remotely interested in a partnership. Now, Automotive News reports that several Chinese automakers have come calling, only FCA isn't ready to answer. At least not yet. The news broke this morning that a major Chinese automaker had made an offer to purchase FCA for slightly above market value. FCA refused, saying the offer wasn't quite generous enough. It's unclear which automaker made the offer, but Automotive News says there's more than one interested party. FCA representatives have recently traveled to China to meet with Great Wall Motors, while Chinese representatives were seen at FCA corporate headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich. The Chinese government has a lot of money invested in local automakers. It's putting pressure on these automakers to expand globally, including to the United States. As it stands, it's a matter of when a Chinese automaker will start selling cars here, not if. Purchasing an established automaker with a wide range of products and a huge dealer network would do wonders in giving the Chinese a foothold here. Sure, Geely owns Volvo, but a luxury automaker doesn't have nearly as much reach as a more mainstream company like FCA. This seems like the best case scenario for both a Chinese automaker looking to move into the U.S. and for FCA, at least from a business standpoint. The latter doesn't seem to have any other interested parties. It will be interesting to see how FCA would sell a deal like this to the public. We're not sure everyone will be happy with Dodge, Jeep and Ram falling under Chinese ownership. FCA didn't turn down the Chinese because they didn't like the idea. It turned down the offer because there wasn't enough money on the table. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News Earnings/Financials Alfa Romeo Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM