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Junkyard Gem: 1975 Fiat 124 Sport Spider

Fiat sold the two-seat convertible version of the 124, the Sport Spider, in North America from the 1968 through 1982 model years. After that, Pininfarina continued to build and sell the 124 Sport Spider through 1985. Like the similarly cheap and fun MGB, plenty of these cars were sold, and huge numbers remain in back yards, garages, and driveways across the continent. Those unfinished projects continue to get evicted, which means I see a good half-dozen discarded 124 Sport Spiders in junkyards every year, about the same quantity now as you'd have seen 30 years ago. Here's a once-snazzy tan '75, spotted in Denver. Fiats became somewhat mainstream in the United States during the early 1970s, with the extremely cheap 128 stealing plenty of Beetle and (a bit later) Civic sales. The 124 Sport Spider competed directly against the MGB, and both types once served as commonplace daily drivers all over the country. In 1975, the 124 Sport Spider cost $4,703 ($23,140 today) and had 86 horsepower to move its 2,320 pounds. Meanwhile, the MGB cost $4,249 and weighed just 2,287 pounds … but was issued a mere 62.5 horses by British Leyland. The Fiat Twin Cam DOHC straight-four was decades more modern than the MGB's elderly (but quite sturdy) pushrod BMC B engine. If this is the original engine, it displaced 1,756cc. There's enough rust to scare off would-be restorers, but this car could have been put back on the street at fairly low cost. Naturally, I brought a vintage Italian film camera — a Bencini Comet II, circa 1951 — to photograph this vintage Italian car. You can tell a sports car owner is serious when you see studded snow tires on the car. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The car so good, it made you hallucinate romantic drives with Rolls-Royce owners. Featured Gallery Junked 1975 Fiat 124 Sport Spider View 17 Photos Auto News Fiat Automotive History Convertible fiat 124 Junkyard Gems

Fiat Chrysler joins open pool with Tesla to avoid paying EU emissions fines

According to a report from the Financial Times, Fiat Chrysler has agreed to pay Tesla "hundreds of millions of euros" in order to pool their fleets together in Europe. This move will reportedly allow FCA to use Tesla's zero-emission vehicle sales to offset fines it would have to pay for failing to meet European Union carbon emissions rules, which fall to 95 grams per kilometer starting next year. According to the report, FCA joined a so-called open pool with Tesla on February 25. The electric car company created the pool and gave other automakers "the chance to join" three days prior. The pool will be valid "for several years," according to Julia Poliscanova, a senior director at the Transport & Environment lobbying group. Toyota and Mazda apparently created a similar pool on the same day, but that agreement doesn't elicit quite the same eyebrow raise since Toyota owns a five-percent stake in Mazda. It's not clear exactly how much money FCA will pay Tesla through this arrangement, but similar deals have been part of Tesla's financial strategy for years. FT reports Tesla earned more than $100 million by selling electric vehicle credits in the United States last year and close to $300 million the prior year.

Fiat's Centoventi Concept previews an electric Panda city car

The Fiat Panda is about to be born again. Fiat has presented the Centoventi EV concept at the Geneva Motor Show, and it bears the look of a future Panda redesign. Going with "ABC," as Fiat says, "Affordable but Cool," the Centoventi stands for Fiat's 120th anniversary. It kicks Fiat's long-awaited EV transformation into motion, building on the time-honored basic mobility aesthetics that have served Fiat so well in earlier years. The design of the Centoventi is similar to the utilitarian, super-basic look that the 1980 Panda rode on when it was revealed, blending that into the small five-door hatchback dimensions of more recent Pandas. There are numerous styling cues dating back to the original "141" Panda — the enormous, unpainted, city-suitable boxed arches are covered in a similar subtle ribbing as the 1980 Panda's lower body. The bumper lights are squares similar to the Panda's headlights, and the Italian flag stripe on the front is offset just like the grille on the Panda. The dashboard is another throwback to 1980: the classic, super-simple Panda instrument cluster has been rethought for 2020 with full digitalization and smartphone connectivity, but it still retains the same shape. And there are open-roof options, just like with the classic Panda. The Centoventi has suicide doors with no B pillar. We would expect the eventual production version to do away with this for crashworthiness reasons, but in the interests of showing off the modular, sneaker-like interior, it probably serves the concept well. Only Fiat can compare the car's interior to a Crocs shoe and successfully pull it off. And the customizable sneaker attitude encompasses the entire car: The idea is that the car is just a "blank canvas," produced in just one version and color, and the customer can choose the colors and style of the roof, the bumpers, the hubcaps and additional wraps, fitted by the dealer. The roof options comprise a polycarbonate top, an opening canvas one, a roof with an integrated cargo box or one with a solar panel setup generating power to cool the car's cabin. The battery packs continue with the modular theme. The basic battery of the EV is good for 62 miles, but those can be multiplied, with a servicing garage adding more batteries for a maximum range of 310 miles. One add-on battery fits under a seat, and it can be charged at home, in the style of an electric bike.