NF500 / innovations

The immediate sales success of the new Fiat 500 has revived talk of Fiat putting into production a microcar concept first shown in 2005 when the Fiat 500 “Trepiuno” was considered too impractical and expensive to be made by many industry observers.

In 2005 the concept vehicle, rumoured to measure just 2.65 metres in length, was shown originally by Italian motoring magazine Quattroroute.

At the time, Italiaspeed.com reported Frank Stephenson, then the recently appointed head of design at Fiat, wanted to steer away from the “retro” market he’d so successfully won over with his design for the new MINI, and the microcar would include many innovations to enable an extremely compact car to accommodate four people at an affordable price.

Those innovations were rumoured to include Fiat’s trademark all-glass roof and a sliding door for easy access in confined spaces with the 1.3 litre Multijet diesel engine sat behind and under the rear seats driving the rear wheels to allow for a comparatively spacious and flexible interiroir space.

As we all know, this never came to light and recently the “Trepiuno” hit the streets as the new Fiat 500. However, the instant popularity of Fiat’s new baby has lead to rumours of the microcar coming back. How much weight such rumours hold is yet to be seen, but the success of one car does not guarantee the success of another, or indeed mean a manufacturer suddenly has the funds to put a relatively complex concept into production and the one thing Fiat have shown in recent times is sharp business acumen.