SPECIAL: New FIAT 500C on the web

theautochannel.com

TURIN – July 3, 2009: The new Fiat 500 was launched in unforgettable style on 4 July 2007. Since then, the second generation of the model that has symbolised the history of Italian cars has
quickly conquered everyone’s hearts. On July 4, alongside the launch of the Fiat 500C, the model will mark its second birthday with a series of events, running until July 7, which will involve
the major European cities and five customised Fiat locations up and down Italy.

In Italy, the celebrations get under way tomorrow through a unique initiative in partnership with Rai. The Rai Uno, Rai Due and Rai Tre channels will simultaneously and frequently broadcast a
special collection of short films, old clips and sketches dedicated to the Fiat 500. The television event will end during prime time on Rai Uno with a special edition of “Porta a Porta”,
entitled “50 years of a winning Italy”. The show will cover half a century of Italian style, of which the Fiat 500 is certainly among the most loved and established symbols in the world. 

Hosted by Bruno Vespa and Milly Carlucci, and broadcasting live from Rome, L’Aquila and Turin, ………… 

girlracer.co.uk

Fiat 500C first drive      

Fiat 500C How lucky can you get, launching a new convertible in heatwave Britain?  But we all recognise you make your own luck and Fiat have really turned around their business worldwide,
but particularly in the UK where a new managing director has shaken up the dealer network into recognising today’s customers demand a quality service if they are to come back to the brand.

And in fairness Fiat the manufacturer has done its part with the introduction of the right new cars at the right price at the right time. There is no better evidence of that new model planning
than the Fiat 500C, the convertible that arrived in the UK this week as Britain melts.

The Fiat 500 two door city car launched 18 months ago has been a huge success for Fiat with 15,148 of them being sold last year and over 20,000 will be delivered this year.

Due to supply restrictions around 1,500 500C convertibles will be coming to the UK this year, a third of them already spoken for, and next year around 2,500 500Cs will be available……….

independent.co.uk/

Fiat lifts the lid on the new 500C

By David Wilkins

Wednesday, 1 July 2009

Fiat’s strong selling 500 hatchback has been joined by this new open-topped version just in time to catch the best of the summer.

The 500 C isn’t quite a full convertible; rather it has a very long folding roof that slides right back to the top of the boot opening, leaving the car’s side-windows in place, an arrangement
inspired by the fabric roof of the original 1957 500. Fiat is asking an apparently stiff £3,000 premium for this car, a differential that merely serves to emphasise what excellent value
the standard hatchback is.

autocar.co.uk

Fiat confirms four US 500 models

03 July 2009

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Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has confirmed the US will get four versions of the Fiat 500.

The hatch, convertible and Abarth models available in the UK will all be sold in America, and Marchionne has confirmed there will be a baby estate model, too.

Marchionne also suggested that the 500 would be the only car Fiat would sell in the US.

He said: “All of those cars will be coming to the US. Fiat will be known in the US purely in terms of its 500 car.”

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Fiat recently bought a 20 per cent stake in the Chrysler group and it plans to introduce smaller, more fuel efficient cars to the ailing manufacturer’s model line-up.

Currently, the most fuel efficient car in the Chrysler group’s range is the Dodge Caliber which averages around 30mpg.

bloomberg.com

Chrysler to Sell 4 Fiat 500 Models in U.S., CEO Says 

By Mike Ramsey and Sara Gay Forden

July 2 (Bloomberg) — Chrysler Group LLC, the U.S. automaker run by Fiat SpA, will sell four models of the Italian carmaker’s 500 subcompact in the U.S., Chief Executive Officer Sergio
Marchionne said.

Chrysler, which emerged from bankruptcy on June 10, will eventually sell a convertible, wagon and sporty version called the “Abarth” in addition to the four-seat subcompact in the U.S.,
Marchionne said in an interview on June 30. While the base 500 will go on sale next year, he didn’t say when the other models will be available.

“All of those cars will be coming to the U.S.,” Marchionne said. “Fiat will be known in the U.S. purely in terms of its 500 car.”

Fiat, based in Turin, Italy, owns 20 percent of Chrysler Group, and is sharing vehicles and technology with the U.S. car company in exchange for ownership. Fiat said it sold 190,000 of the
small cars, which are about the same size as Bayerische Motoren Werke AG’s Mini.

cnet.com

July 3, 2009 5:00 AM PDT

4 versions of Fiat 500 here in ’11

by Automotive News 

BALOCCO, Italy–Chrysler will build and sell four versions of the tiny Fiat 500 in North America starting in 2011: a hatchback, convertible, station wagon, and sporty hatchback.

A fifth model–a small, four-wheel-drive SUV–also is possible.

They will wear the Fiat brand, and no longer-term plans exist for other Fiat-badged models here, the company said.

Roberto Giolito, designer of the 500 and head of styling for the Fiat brand, confirmed the plans here last week at the launch of the 500C convertible.

The sporty hatchback is the Abarth version of the 500 hatchback, the popular 2008 European Car of the Year that Chrysler/Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne calls “our iPod.”