2012 Fiat 500 Abarth on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Spitballs flying between Nissan and Fiat

At the 2012 LA Auto Show, Fiat brand chief and recently crowned marketing genius, Olivier François, attempted to distance the Fiat 500e from other electric vehicles, asking rhetorically, "Isn't ugliness the worst kind of pollution?" Nissan has apparently taken issue with these comments, feeling slighted for what it considers digs at the Leaf's styling. In a recent interview with Automotive News, Nissan's marketing chief Simon Sproule shot back, "Let's face it, Fiat has not shied away from controversial styling themselves," he continued, "many would describe many of their products as visual pollution." Ouch.
Sproule says that while the 500e is a "me-too" product, made only to appease US emissions regulations, the Leaf is a serious effort at producing an EV. The Nissan marketing boss points out that the Japanese automaker has invested billions in EV development and production facilities, while Fiat will lose $10,000 on every 500e sold.
However sales of the Leaf in the US are down five percent. Nissan sold just 8,330 Leaf's so far this year, but Sproule contends that it has less to do with styling, and more with the charging infrastructure. Sproule also thinks that Nissan hit a balance between styling and practicality with the Leaf: "It's still very recognizable as a five-seat hatchback, fully functioning, absolutely competitive with the packaging of the Golf of any other mainstream vehicle." For a segment where efficiency is king, isn't that what matters most?

Junkyard Gem: 1980 Fiat 124 Spider with slushbox

The original Fiat 124 Sport Spider sold like crazy in the United States, with its cheap price tag, raucous-sounding Fiat Twin Cam engine, cool Pininfarina lines, and happy convertible top. They were finicky and fragile, and they broke frequently, so most of them ended up under tarps in driveways and back yards. I have been crawling around in wrecking yards for 34 years now, and the numbers of discarded, never-going-to-get-around-to-this-project 124 Spiders in those yards have remained pretty constant; I see a half-dozen or so junked examples every year, year after year. What I had never seen before now, however, is a Fiat 124 Sport Spider with an automatic transmission. Sure, this car had an optional GM-sourced slushbox available, just as the MGB had a Borg-Warner automatic option, but a car buyer during the Malaise Era generally understood that the only reason to get a flaky, impractical European sports car was for the joy of driving something so lightweight and nimble. Bolting an automatic to one was like chaining a urine-soaked phone book to a jackrabbit. I never believed that anyone actually got the automatic, but here's proof that at least one buyer did. Actually, 80 horsepower in a Fiat with an automatic would be slightly less miserable than 62.5 horsepower in an MGB with an automatic. So there's that. Related Video: Featured Gallery Junked 1980 Fiat 124 Sport Spider in Denver junkyard View 15 Photos Auto News Fiat fiat 124 spider

FCA CEO Mike Manley will take undefined new role after PSA merger

MILAN — Fiat Chrysler Chief Executive Mike Manley will remain with the new group set to result from a planned merger with French rival PSA-Peugeot, Chairman John Elkann said on Wednesday. In a letter to Fiat Chrysler (FCA) employees on the day the two companies announced a binding agreement for a $50 billion tie-up to create the world's fourth-largest carmaker, Elkann said he was "delighted" that the combined group would be led by current PSA CEO Carlos Tavares. "And Mike Manley, who has led FCA with huge energy, commitment and success over the past year, will be there alongside him," he said. He did not say what position Manley would hold. Elkann — who will chair the new group — said there was still much to be done to complete the merger. "Over the coming months we must work tirelessly and determinedly to fulfill all the approval requirements needed to finalize the commitment we have signed," he said. Related Video:     Hirings/Firings/Layoffs Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM Citroen Peugeot FCA PSA merger Mike Manley carlos tavares