The Fiat 500: the first Fiat car to be made by Chrysler?The Fiat 500: the first Fiat car to be made by Chrysler?

One of the first Fiats to make it to the United States via Chrysler will be the diminutive Fiat 500, introduced in 2007, with an exterior design meant to recall the original Fiat 500, the ubiquitous Italian car of the 1950s and 1960s (a Fiat 500 was one of the tire sellers in Cars). Power comes via several SOHC in-line four cylinder engines, displacing just 1.2 liters with horsepower ranging from 68 to 74 hp; but for the United States, the base powerplant is expected to be a 100-horsepower 1.4 liter engine, with the optional Abarth turbo version going up to 175 hp (similar in output to the 2.2 Turbo II sold by Chrysler in the 1980s). Like the New Beetle, the 500 is based on a more conventional design — that of the Fiat Panda, which has completely different interior and exterior styling, but essentially the same chassis and components.

Roberto Giolito, head of Fiat-brand styling and designer of the popular 500, says Chrysler will build four versions of the mini-car beginning in 2011. The lineup will include the standard 500 hatchback, a convertible, a station wagon and a sporty “tuner” hatch based on the Abarth version of the 500. According to Fiat, an all-wheel-drive CUV is a possibility. All the versions will be sold as Fiats. Production may be at a plant in the U.S. or at Chrysler’s Toluca, Mexico assembly facility.

The tiny Fiat 500 coupe was crowned “best compact car” by Japanese Internet users in 2008, against the equally small Toyota IQ (also coming to America) and Peugeot 308. In Japan, though, people tend to accept small cars more readily; micro cars – powered by engines of just 600 cubic-centimeters (.6 liters) – have been street legal for years.

Fiat had considered building the 500 for the American market at its Case New Holland tractor factories, before tying in with Chrysler. Its goal was to repeat the success of BMW's Mini, which proved that, while Americans generally don't care for small cars, sometimes they make an exception. Automotive history is littered with nameplates that tried to establish a footing in America with small cars and achieved only marginal success, until they faded away: Crosley, Nash Metropolitan, Studebaker Lark, and Geo.