NF500 / italian car

Following on from previous difficulties that have dented the production and reputation of the Fiat 500, manufactured at Fiat’s plant in Tychy Poland, yet another spanner has been thrown in the works, which, ironically, was part of a solution to previous strike threats from workers over pay and conditions.

Parent company Fiat has been instigating upgrades and improvements at the Tychy plant, one element of which was designed to instil a sense of pride in the workers’ association with the Italian car manufacturer. At the entrance to the plant, pictures of historical Italian figures and events have been placed, and the menu at the canteens has been upgraded and improved.

This, however, is apparently the source of the current unrest. When the “Itialianization” of the plant lead to traditional favourites such as beetroot soup and steam softened beef tongues were replaced with minestrone soup and spicy meatballs with spaghetti, the workforce saw this as a step too far and have downed tools until a resolution to this catering catastrophe can be negotiated.

Fiat’s spokesman in Poland, Mr Ingannare, has been quoted as saying

Italian cuisine is the finest in the World, and while we accept and value the tradition of our Polish workforce, we will not back down on this matter, even if it regrettably leads to some customers Fiat 500s being delayed by a few weeks. Eventually we are sure the Polish workforce will learn to love our great Italian dishes now on offer, in which we’ve invested a great deal of time and money as part of our ongoing improvement programme at the plant.

Last week Fiat UK launched their new website and online car configurator.

Produced in partnership with AKQA, Fiat claim their new website is revolutionising the online automotive experience.

Epitomising the ‘Fiat digital’ spirit, www.fiat.co.uk features a unique interactive design and online world firsts. Developed to dramatically transform the Fiat buying and ownership experience, the site aims to makes it easier to choose, configure and finance a new Fiat. At the same time, it opens up a new channel of communication between Fiat and its customers.

Fiat’s digital platform will be an instrumental part of the Italian car manufacturer’s objective to increase car sales in the UK to 100,000 units by 2010, once its full range, including the new Fiat 500, is in place. The launch of the new website coincided with the introduction of the company’s new mid-size five door hatchback, the new Fiat Bravo.

The new Fiat website takes its inspiration from the brand’s heritage of design and innovation. At the heart of the site is a dramatic 3D showroom that pays homage to Fiat’s world-famous Lingotto building – renowned by architects and industrialists as a feat of remarkable engineering. The showroom displays the company’s range of models available in the UK to emphasise that stylish design is a quality that is shared by them all.

Built entirely for broadband, the site features full-screen 360° images of the interiors and exteriors of the cars, combined with a tailored voiceover to give potential customers an audio-visual tour of every model.

In an automotive online first, www.fiat.co.uk gives visitors real-time contact with Fiat Customer Services. For the first time ever, customers can book and confirm a test drive, request maps for directions and model brochures, in real-time. The test drive booking is then qualified by a real-life customer services representative, rather than by just a confirmation email.

Managing Director of Fiat Group Automobiles UK Ltd, Giulio Salomone, says:

The launch of the innovative fiat.co.uk represents the first step in our Fiat digital journey. Our strategy is to embrace the latest technology to create an environment that is captivating, innovative, and customer-focused. Every aspect of the website has been designed to make the experience a pleasure for the user and to immerse them in the Fiat brand.

Ajaz Ahmed, Chairman of AKQA says:

Fiat’s spirit of pioneering innovation and fun enabled us to take a fresh approach to many of the challenges that often compromise automotive sites. The result is a fun digital experience that combines a number of world firsts, is visually stunning, user friendly, and unlike anything else.

Not much there for the Fiat 500 yet, but the tease (shown above) at least reveals the UK launch date of the new baby Fiat.

Customisation. It’s worked wonders for the MINI, and Fiat appear to be pinning their hopes on it doing the same for the new Fiat 500.

The array of options, packages, colours and trim levels available for the Fiat 500 is indeed impressive, Fiat claim they make for more than 500,000 possible combinations. With production expected to be around 120,000 baby Fiats per year, it could be several years before any two identical cars are produced. That’s the theory of course, however as we’ve seen with the MINI before, the reality can be a little different, with many owners opting for popular, and value for money packages and strong, familiar colour combinations.

Designed by the Fiat Style Centre and developed in parallel with the 500 project, the Customisation range of the new car offers all customers, even the most demanding, an opportunity to choose between over 100 items that adapt perfectly to the car’s characteristics, underlining its qualities and the friendly impression it imparts at first glance. They are accessories designed to increase comfort on board, to make free time more enjoyable, and to improve quality of life.

With the dedicated Fiat 500 Customisation programme, the new cinquecento is clearly stating intentions as a stylish Italian car, lavishly equipped and good value for money.

If you fancy jazzing up your new 500, Fiat offer 19 original decals: from the ‘chequered flag’ for the roof alone, to the tricolour or monochrome 500 stripe that streaks over the length of the car, a quirky barcode design and a badge with the Italian flag above the direction indicator. It’s also possible to match your exterior livery with the door trims. Motorists who like a bit of sparkle and bling can order chrome-plated wing mirrors, bonnet trims and the nudge bar on the front bumper. However, the untamed racer in you can opt to add sideskirts and a front and rear air dam.

Once you’re finished making the exterior of the new Fiat 500 your own, you can move inside, and find plenty more option boxes you may want to tick there too. According to Fiat, in side the new 500 innovation and practicality merge in an ideal environment, with references to obvious and specific elements of the past reinterpreted in a modern key. For example, you can forget your Magic Trees and cheap overpowering interior smellys the 500 can be purchased with an innovative ‘fragrance diffuser’, a new system developed by Fiat that offers a choice of three fragrances. The device is positioned inside the glass-holder and supplied by a 12V socket; it is turned on by a button and the intensity of fragrance can be adjusted. The colour of the cover can also be chosen to match the car interior. The fragrances are on sale through the Fiat sales network.

The Fiat 500 debuts with a new ignition key, with a changeable protective cover. Like some mobile phones, the cover can be replaced very rapidly in “snap-on” fashion, so that the key matches the bodywork, or simply to reflect your mood. There are several other accessories with an original design available for the Fiat 500, from the elegant soft plastic ivory or black jacket-hanger that fits on the head-restraint. Or the cell phone holder and iPod player, USB port and 12V socket, which guarantee calm journeys with no crossed wires. And the car covering tarpaulins decorated with a picture of the Fiat 500 of the Sixties, an original way of recalling the new car’s forebear.

It is also possible to order aluminium pedals or a plate with the 500 logo for the kick panels, and three different types of leather upholstery for the matching gear lever knob and steering wheel. Plus accessories for leisure time, such as the elegant luggage rack that fits on the rear window to carry skis and snowboards in total safety, with an extra touch of styling and originality.

The long list of accessories that customise the Fiat 500 concludes with a practical unit that fits into the loading bay, where you can store items of all shapes and sizes.

You can see view several photographs of the new Fiat 500, and many of the available options at the NF500 Flickr Group, and you can build your own virtual Fiat 500 on the official Fiat 500 website.

The new Fiat 500 has proved exceptionally popular, even before launch Fiat proudly proclaimed orders in excess of 25,000 vehicles.

Now Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has stated his aspirations for the little car, suggesting that the new 500, being launched Tonight (4th July), can be for the automaker what the iPod has been for Apple.

In an interview published in Wednesday’s La Stampa Marchionne, who openly seeks inspiration from successful companies, spoke of his admiration for the iPod’s cutting edge marriage of value, function, and style.

I want Fiat to become the Apple of automobiles. And the 500 will be our iPod

Fiat plan to sell 50,000 new 500s before the end of 2007, and analysts are suggesting that the new Fiat 500 will do as much (if not more) for the image of the Fiat brand, as it will do for the coffers of the Italian car company.