2019 Fiat 500x Pop on 2040-cars

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2023 Fiat Topolino unveiled as tiny, city-only electric runabout

Fiat took a trip to the heritage well to launch its own version of the quirky Citroen Ami unveiled in 2020. Called Topolino, the electric two-seater (it's not legally considered a car) shares its basic proportions with its French sibling but features a retro-inspired exterior design. The name wasn't chosen randomly: Topolino (which means "little mouse" in Italian) was the nickname given to the original 500 built between 1936 and 1955. The first-generation model's contribution to the project stops there. Designers instead drew inspiration from the second-generation 500 to differentiate the modern-day Topolino from the Citroen-branded model, and we'd argue the front end is even more retro than the new 500's. It's characterized by a pair of small, round lights, smaller turn signals, and a piece of trim shaped like a metal bumper. Thick ropes replace the doors while creating a visual link between the Topolino and the beach-friendly 500 Jolly and 600 Jolly built by Ghia, among other coachbuilders, from the 1950s to the 1970s. Fiat hasn't released photos of the back end yet, and it's keeping the interior under wraps for the time being. The seats look a lot like the Ami's, however, and we're expecting most of the interior changes will be trim-related. Similarly, the Italian brand isn't ready to publish technical specifications. For context, the 1,070-pound Ami measures 95 inches long, 55 inches wide, and 60 inches tall; it fits in the back of a Ford F-250 Super Duty equipped with the longer of the two available cargo boxes. Power comes from an electric motor that draws electricity from a 5.5-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack to make eight horsepower. Driving range checks in at about 45 miles, which underlines the model's positioning as a low-speed, city-only vehicle, and if you keep your foot down you'll eventually reach a top speed of 27.9 mph. These riding mower-like specifications place the Topolino in the quadricycle segment. Built in Morocco, the Fiat Topolino will go on sale in select markets in the coming months. Pricing hasn't been announced but it's of little interest to us, because nothing suggests this tiny EV will receive clearance to travel to the United States. Across the pond, it's reasonable to assume pricing will start in the vicinity of ˆ10,000 (about $10,700). Keep an eye out for it the next time you're on a Mediterranean island. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences.

How Fiat explains its disastrous J.D. Power quality scores

Back in the '60s and '70s, Fiat didn't exactly have an enviable reputation for quality. Of course, lack of quality and a tarnished brand reputation eventually saw the Italian automaker flee the market, only to return with the 500 and the larger 500L in the last few years. However, if J.D. Power's Initial Quality Survey for 2014 is to be believed, modern Fiat products haven't improved quite as much as we might have hoped. Fiat thinks that there is a very simple explanation for its poor performance on the annual list, though.
J.D. Power's IQS looks at flaws among autos in the first 90 days that customers own their new vehicles. In 2014, Fiat wasn't only dead last, it was at the back of the pack by a significant margin. The company's cars tallied 206 problems per 100 vehicles (PP100) compared to a national average of 116 PP100. Even Jeep, the survey's second-to-last finisher, had 146 PP100. Fiat's performance was pitiful.
However, it can all be explained, at least according to US Fiat boss, Jason Stoicevich, who spoke with Ward's Auto. He qualifies the results by stating that the survey came at a particularly bad time for the brand. It produced very few 2014 500 models to allow extra time to introduce the updated 2015 version. That meant that about 91 percent of its vehicles surveyed were examples of the 500L, "which is a new car where there are always quirks to work through," said Stoicevich to Ward's. With only one model providing data, it skewed the results. Of course, that's all well and good, but it suggests that the larger 500L is even more problematic than the overall brand's 206 problems per 100 vehicles.

Fiat Beast of Turin fires up, vows to kill all in its path of destruction

The roadways, racetracks and lawns of Goodwood have seen a lot of varied machinery over the years. But few if any can match the Beast of Turin for outright raunchiness and brutality. The vehicle in question is a Fiat S76, built in 1911 to do nothing but go fast in a straight line, contesting the era's outright land-speed record. It features a monstrous 28.5-liter four-cylinder engine churning out 290 horsepower that propelled what would become known as the Beast of Turin to a top speed of around 140 miles per hour, which was downright crazy for that era. Now restored to running condition, the Beast of Turin is set to hit the Goodwood Festival of Speed this June. But before it does, Charles March – Earl of March and Kinrara and lord of Goodwood House – took a ride in it around his estate on a date no less suitable than Friday the 13th of March. Witness the mayhem in the video above. News Source: Goodwood Road & Racing via YouTube Fiat Automotive History Racing Vehicles Classics Videos Goodwood autoblog black