Fiat Gives Birth To A New Bambino And Celebrates The 50th Anniversary Of The Original!
The new Fiat 500 has arrived in what is probably the largest national celebration ever seen for a new car, with street parties, fireworks, concerts and parades not just in Fiat's home town of Turin, but right across Italy, marking not just the birth of a new car, but also the 50th birthday of an Italian icon, the original Fiat 500.
The new 500 arrived on the exactly 50th birthday of the original car, 4 July 2007, and owners of the original car gathered in Italy from around the world, behind the wheels of their beloved original 500s, the car which, just 12 months ago, was voted the sexist car of all time.
The original 500 became an automotive icon thanks to its seamless blend of design and technology that made it a timeless benchmark for small cars in terms of space utilisation - big inside, small outside - performance and economy, as well as quality of styling gifted by Dante Giacosa that is elegant, loveable and timeless. It also arrived as Italy rose from the Second World War and the 500 became a symbol for the re-birth of a nation and a celebration of the joy of life rediscovered.
The new Fiat 500 therefore, has a great deal to live up to.
For this reason the new 500 is much more a styling exercise, something that looks like the original but which fails to capture the ethos and rasion d'etre of the original. The new 500 takes Fiat's unique expertise in small cars, which enabled it to create the original 500 and follow it with a whole series of class-leading small cars right up to today's Fiat Punto, to produce a car that is compact on the outside, but spacious inside, safe and economical, a car that has minimal impact on the environment, yet at the same time provides joy and happiness for its owner, a car that is truly loveable, for it looks, for its brain and for its very soul.
Now that the Fiat 500 has arrived in Europe, the anticipation now starts to build for its arrival in Australia, where the passion for the original car was no less than it was in Europe.
The 500 will arrive in Australia in March 2008, fitted with the two top engines, the 1.3 JTD Turbo Diesel and the 1.4 petrol engine. In anticipation of the launch, Fiat Australia has launched a special new area of its web site - www.fiat.com.au - with new information on the 500 added weekly as the local launch date approaches.
Full details and prices for the Australian specification Fiat 500 will be announced when the new 500 arrives in March 2008.
Register now to be amongst the first to know as news breaks.
The new Fiat 500 has arrived in what is probably the largest national celebration ever seen for a new car, with street parties, fireworks, concerts and parades not just in Fiat's home town of Turin, but right across Italy, marking not just the birth of a new car, but also the 50th birthday of an Italian icon, the original Fiat 500.
For this reason the new 500 is much more a styling exercise, something that looks like the original but which fails to capture the ethos and rasion d'etre of the original. The new 500 takes Fiat's unique expertise in small cars, which enabled it to create the original 500 and follow it with a whole series of class-leading small cars right up to today's Fiat Punto, to produce a car that is compact on the outside, but spacious inside, safe and economical, a car that has minimal impact on the environment, yet at the same time provides joy and happiness for its owner, a car that is truly loveable, for it looks, for its brain and for its very soul.
