NF500 / fiat group

The award-winning Fiat 500, which has received countless honours this year, adds an extra important one this weekend – its first birthday celebrations.

Although it only arrived in the UK in January this year, the popular supermini was first launched in Italy on 4 July 2007, and the Fiat Group is celebrating its anniversary with a series of bold, elaborate parties across the world, including the UK.

The date of this landmark occasion is especially significant as last year’s Italian launch of the car was exactly 50 years after the original introduction of Dante Giacosa’s classic post-war 500.

The UK party, hosted by TV presenter Alex Zane, is called the Fiat 500 PicNic and takes place at Alexandra Park, North London. It’s designed to be a traditional British summer outdoor gathering, but with a special 500 twist.

With invitations extended to more than 5,000 specially-invited Fiat 500 drivers and potential owners, this Saturday’s (5 July) PicNic initiative, which was conceived to share the passion and emotion of the huge Fiat 500 community, will feature live music, delicious Italian food and drink, outdoor games, big-screen sports coverage and special ‘chill-out’ zones for participants.

The London event is part of a series of global parties celebrating the hugely successful first year of Fiat’s iconic city car. Athens, Budapest, Copenhagen, London, Milan, Munich, Palermo, Paris, Rome, Rotterdam, Tokyo, Valencia, Hel, Liège, Zurich, and Cape Town are the chosen cities that, either in parks or on beaches, will welcome thousands of people brought together by the new car.

Music, art, and fun are the ingredients which will guarantee a successful event involving new Fiat 500 owners and those who are still waiting to get one (222,000 have been ordered so far).

This is a global initiative that we in Britain are delighted to be involved in,

says Andrew Humberstone, managing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK.

It is everything that the new Fiat 500 stands for – fun, excitement, freedom and the knack of bringing people together in a great atmosphere – and I am sure the event will be a great success.

The London party will feature four special themed zones – Energy, Entertainment, Chill and Children. The Energy Zone offers outdoor games, fun races and a volleyball competition, while in Entertainment there will be live music, jugglers, a giant screen and Fiat 500 interactive car configurators to try.

The Chill Zone is designed for relaxation with Tai Chi, head massages and hammocks all available, and the Children’s Zone will feature face painting, street theatre and games.

Those clever bods with calculators (or crystal balls, or both) who predict future used car prices for the motor trade have altered and improved their estimations on the value of the Fiat 500 in three years.

The predicted residual values on some 500 models have increased from 42 per cent to 46 per cent of original list price. That equates to a positive adjustment of more than £350 on the car’s value on a typical three year/30,000 mile contract. For buyers funding the car through contract hire or personal contract purchase (PCP) that should reduce rentals by more than £20 per month.

As is often the case in the motor trade, the entry level model, the Fiat 500 1.2 Pop is rated as having the best residual value at 47 per cent after three years.

The residual value guides have reacted positively to the success of the 500 and have increased their used predictions accordingly. This is good news for those who have already bought one and it should help reduce monthly costs,

says Adam Pumfrey, fleet and remarketing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK.

The 500 has also generated a great deal of interest from small and medium sized companies for test drives as it offers drivers a high profile company car that is low on fuel use and CO2 emissions.

From 15th to 18th May, Abarth will be taking part in the 26th edition of the ‘Mille Miglia 2008’, a historical re-enactment of the ‘finest race in the world’, to quote Enzo Ferrari.

Abarth will have its own exhibition space at the Mille Miglia Paddock in the Fiera di Brescia, home to the world premiere of the ‘500 Abarth Assetto Corse’: the small yet powerful car due to feature in track races from next year, designed to rekindle the spirit of the ‘595 Abarth’, a car created by Fiat and engineered by the mechanical genius of Karl Abarth. To bring home this point, an historic 595 Abarth will be displayed side by side with the new car, along with a new 135hp 500 Abarth model, which will go on general sale from next July.

Abarth’s participation in this event, so unique and packed with tradition, symbolises its strong relationship with the past and significant link with the origins of the brand. Abarth cars from 1949 (the year when Abarth & C. SpA was set up) to 1957 (last edition of the 1000 Miglia race) were the stars of what has now become one of the most famous races in the world.

Full Abarth press release and technical specifications follow:

Abarth returns to track racing, and it has chosen to do so with its new ‘500 Abarth Assetto Corse’, the baby supersports car from Abarth, due to be produced in a Limited Edition (49 cars).

The new vehicle, designed by the Fiat Group Automobiles Style Centre and produced by a team of Abarth Engineers and Designers will be the star of track races from next year and its creation confirms Abarth’s racing vocation.

The Assetto Corse version of the petite 500 Abarth takes up the baton from its forerunner, the ‘595’ that notched up numerous successes and great victories from 1963 and led to the coining of the description ‘small but deadly’.

The cars sports a full racing outfit: wide track, white 17’ special ultralight racing wheels, low ride, sports racing mirrors and a place for a number on the sides. Available in pastel grey with red Abarth side stripes, the ‘500 Abarth Assetto Corse’ reveals an assertive front end that houses a badge bearing the Abarth logo and, below this, wide bumpers complete with an aerodynamic spoiler and screen-printed grilles to replace the plastic louvres on the standard production version. In addition to the classic bonnet clips, the bonnet houses two carbon air intakes bearing the Abarth scorpion logo.

The rear part of the car features a white winged spoiler, a badge bearing the Abarth logo and a twin exhaust pipe.

The Abarth identity is expressed to the full with a thunderbolt logo on the side representing the brand’s racing image and a red band and four white chequers on the roof, just as on the winning Abarth 850TC version of the 1960s.

Inside, the ‘500 Abarth Assetto Corse’ is equipped with a roll-bar type-approved for racing that is completely hollow to make the car lighter and faster. The car weighs approximately 180 kg less than the road version. The anatomical seats, the steering wheel (special for racing) and the carbon door panels make the 500 Abarth Assetto Corse a real baby sports car with a indomitable character all of its own .

Abarth has also thoughtfully provided a clothing set for the driver, that will be delivered in an original Abarth-branded leather bag. Owners of the ‘500 Abarth Assetto Corse’ will therefore be resplendent in overalls, helmets, gloves and shoes, all meticulously branded with the ultra-new ‘Assetto Corse’ logo produced for the limited edition of the car.

500 Abarth Assetto Corse Technical specifications

500 Abarth 1.4 16V turbo 200 bhp ‘ASSETTO CORSE’

• Engine - 4 cylinders in line, 4 valves per cylinder, 1368 cc.
• Power output: 200 KW (147 KW) at 6500 rpm.
• Peak torque 300 Nm at 3000 rpm.
• Garrett GT 1446 fixed geometry turbocharger.
• Special reinforced water and air sleeves.
• Transmission - M32 6-speed gearbox
• Suspension - Front: McPherson strut, special racing shock absorbers, coaxial spring with nut for adjusting height of car.
• Suspension - Rear : inter-connected arms, special racing shock absorbers, springs with nut for adjusting height of car.
• Steering - Electric power steering with racing tuning.
• Brakes - Brembo radial front calliper with four pistons M4X40.

Unfortunately Abarth have not released official photographs of the vehicle at this time (other than the computer images above), but Italiaspeed have a nice collection on their website.

In January Fiat UK Managing Director Andrew Humberstone made a pledge that he would be taking a hands on approach to bringing up the standard and reputation of the UK Fiat dealership network. Well, if a survey of around 32,000 UK motorists recently published by magazine Auto Express is anything to go by, he’s going to have his work cut out.

The Driver Power Dealer Survey canvassed the car buying public’s opinions on a range of criterea to paint a balanced picture of people’s overall dealership experience, and Fiat came a lowly 29 out of 30 overall.

This probably comes as perplexing, and certainly challenging news for new Fiat Group UK Sales Director Andrew Sproston, who took up his new position at the company this past Monday.

The broken down results show Fiat dealers as coming in the following positions:

• 20th for Value for money
• 29th for Standard of Workmanship
• 30th for Technical knowledge
• 30th for helpfulness and attitude
• 29th for Communication
• 30th Cleanliness and Atmosphere

It appears to us at NF500 that only the 20th place for “Value for money” saved Fiat’s dealerships from receiving the wooden spoon in this particular survey.

The Fiat 500, as the European wide “500% Fiat” marketing campaign reminds us all, is indented to be the embodiment of a completely fresh and revitalised Fiat. If these results really are anything to go by, along with some recent worrying reports from Fiat 500 owners and would-be owners on the new Fiat 500 forums, Fiat could do with taking a serious look at the dealership network and find out what they can do to improve their reputation “on the street”. If customers are being treated well by dealerships, word gets around, no matter how slick and polished your promotional work may be.

Credit to James on the forums for pointing this one out to us.

Fiat Group Automobiles UK Ltd has just opened a stylish new Flagship Store in London’s West End, and is marking the occasion with a design exhibition and celebrity party.

The showroom, located in the heart of the capital at Wigmore Street, London W1, features a cutting-edge interior of chrome and glass which provides a striking backdrop to the range of Fiat cars on display.

The company scored a PR coup in January when it launched the iconic new Fiat 500 in the UK by ‘flying’ it in one of the capsules on the London Eye. Now Fiat is working on establishing its new Flagship Store as a ‘cool’ place for car buyers and Fiat enthusiasts, as well as marketing it as a venue for corporate meetings, fashion shows, art and design exhibitions, and as a lavish set for film makers.

CNN (yes, that CNN) has already booked the Fiat Flagship Store for a high level seminar for the automotive world’s leading marketers and media opinion-formers. But not us, sadly.

Coinciding with a glittering celebrity party kicked off by the Italian Ambassador Giancarlo Aragona, the opening night exhibition, called Fiat Workpop 500, featured the work of 22 young designers who are competing to design an accessory for the Fiat 500 that will be chosen to go into production, and become available for general sale.

Top international designer Ron Arad, Head of the Design Products Department at the Royal College of Art, and chairman of leading Italian homeware group Guzzini, is heading the competition’s panel of judges.

Ron Arad attended the Fiat Flagship Store opening night (Tuesday 11 March) along with Fiat Centro Stile’s Roberto Giolito – the designer and ‘father’ of the Fiat 500 –Andrew Humberstone, managing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK, Tony Dittli, managing director of the Flagship Store, and Elena Bernardelli, marketing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK.

The Fiat 500 Workpop exhibition, our relationships with the London Design Museum, where the new Fiat 500 is being exhibited, and the London Design Festival, which we sponsor, reflects Fiat’s enthusiasm to interact with our style and design partners,

says Elena Bernardelli.

Car Design News, the largest media in car design, has announced the two winners of their Car Design of the Year, the winners are:

• BMW Concept CS wins Car Design of the Year 2007 – Concept
• Fiat 500 wins Car Design of the Year 2007 – Production

For the third consecutive year, Car Design News ran an online vote for the best car designs to debut during 2007. With over a thousand responses and an international readership including more car designers than any other media, this is considered the most qualified award within the car design world – as Car Design News would have it, ‘by designers for designers’.

Awards were presented to the design team of each winning design at the Geneva Motor Show on Wednesday 5th March.

The voting in full was as follows:

Car Design of the Year 2007 – Concept:

• 1st Place: BMW Concept CS, 4794 points
• 2nd Place: Mazda Taiki. 4495 points
• 3rd Place: Citroën C-Cactus. 4115 points

Car Design of the Year 2007 – Production:

• 1st Place: Fiat 500, 4643 points
• 2nd Place: Maserati Gran Turismo. 4140 points
• 3rd Place: Audi A5. 3965 points

For the second year running Fiat group have won the production car category, this year claiming the top two places. The Fiat 500 was the clear winner, with 50% of readers giving it a top three ranking. This clear victory for the 500 is made more impressive when considering the other top five contenders were all luxury models costing far more than the baby Fiat.

Roberto Giolito, Head of Fiat Design, accepted the award together with Lorenzo Ramaciotti, Design Director of Fiat Group Automobiles.

We are really pleased to receive this award

said Ramaciotti,

it’s the second year in a row that Fiat Group have won, last year with the Alfa 8C at the top end and now the Fiat 500 at the lower end of our range and the Maserati in second place this year

After the success of the new Fiat 500 in Turin, Paris, Berlin and London, attention has turned to Tokyo (Japan) where a novel exhibition was dedicated to the car. The event saw more that 500 guests participate, including journalists, entertainers, representatives from Italian institutions (including ambassador Mario Bova) and the managing director of Fiat Automobiles - Lorenzo Sistino.

Through this striking exhibition, the Italian brand paid homage to Japanese culture, underlining the strong ties that unite the two nations. Japan is particularly attuned to the best Made in Italy products – from fashion to design, gastronomy and art. Among these, the Fiat Group has contributed to shaping the “automobile culture” even outside of the national confines.

Alongside the event in Tokyo, the work of artist Giuliano Ghelli was displayed in the exhibition rooms of the Italian Centre for Culture. Among the works of the Tuscan maestro, the “Macchina per Sognatori” (Car for Dreamers) stands out. The work is a tribute to the Fiat 500 – a symbol of Made in Italy and an ambassador for environmental compliance, as already demonstrated today by its “Euro5 Ready” engines.

The new Fiat 500 comes from a true automotive legend and represents a legacy of stories and concepts that relate to all. It is no accident that this is the “people’s car, created by people” - as its commercial debut also showed (from 15 March) alongside Japan’s spectacular event: the “Sakura” - cherry blossom. For about two weeks in spring, “hanami” – picnics - take place (both day and night) under the spectacular trees which are by now in full bloom. The whole population participates in a ritual dedicated to the beauty of nature.

And in merrymaking Italian style, the brand will open the Fiat Café this spring in Aoyama (Tokyo). Here, the public will be able to appreciate the concept of the “Caffè” which will be a meeting place for excellence and synonymous with cosmopolitanism, human warmth and compassion. All new 500s maintain the singularity of Fiat models and will feature right-hand drive in Japan. Initially, they will be the Lounge version which has a 1.2 8v 69bhp engine, combined with the Dualogic robotised gearbox. The Pop and Sport versions will then become available as well as the brilliant 1.4 16v 100 bhp engine with Dualogic gearbox.

Finally, highlighting the strong ties between Fiat and the nippon culture, the new Fiat 500 has been “scripted” into the animation film “Lupin the IIIrd. Green vs. Red” (the DVD will be officially launched in Japan on 2nd April). The film celebrates the 40th anniversary of the famous “ladro gentiluomo” (gentleman thief) designed by Monkey Punch. However, it is certainly not the first time that the eclectic character has driven a Fiat 500: in fact, over the years Lupin III has often been spotted on board a 500 during his incredible adventures.