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Fast Porsches and gold BMWs | Autoblog Podcast #548

On this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Associate Editor Reese Counts and Contributing Editor James Riswick. The trio discuss driving the BMW X2, the Porsche 911 GT3, the Volkswagen GTI and Autoblog's new long-term Kia Stinger GT as well as a new engine for the Ford F-150. They also reflect on FCA and Ferrari head Sergio Marchionne and what his passing means for the future of those two companies. Autoblog Podcast #548 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we've been driving: 2018 Porsche 911 GT3, Volkswagen GTI, BMW X2 and Kia Stinger GT Sergio Marchionne Ford F-150 Mercedes-Benz A-Class Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Earnings/Financials Podcasts BMW Ferrari Fiat Kia Porsche Volkswagen Coupe Crossover Luxury Performance porsche 911 gt3 bmw x2

The Fiat 500 hatchback and cabrio have been discontinued

The Fiat that brought the brand back to America is going away after this year. All forms of the 2019 Fiat 500 — hatchback and convertible — are being discontinued with the current 2019 inventory being sold off through 2020. This includes the electric, standard turbo and the Abarth iterations. Once the little 500 is gone, Fiat's lineup will consist of the 500X crossover, 124 Spider sports car and the 500L micro-minivan thing. The decision to cut the little 500, easily Fiat's most identifiable model, strikes us as a bit strange. Certainly it has drawbacks, and it's still basically the same car that was introduced in Europe over a decade ago. Its small size and two-door form factor also aren't particularly popular in today's crossover-consumed market, but the 500 wasn't Fiat's worst seller. In fact, as of June, the most recent month for sales data available, it was leading the Italian brand's sales. And the year before, it was the Fiat's best seller over the same time frame. The 500L has actually been the worst seller so far this year, with only 399 being sold through June, which is a drop of 56% versus last year. The 500X, a crossover, is trailing the 500 and the 124 with 1,484 sales, a drop of 54% compared to last year. Even if other models were selling better, it would seem like a decent car to still have around to show how the bigger models got their designs. And at the very least, the 500 Abarth presented a cheaper halo option to the 124 Spider. No announcements of a 500 replacement have been made. There are rumors of a next-generation model, and it might be previewed at Geneva as a full EV. It could use the modular battery system that was featured in the Fiat Centoventi concept from the last Geneva Motor Show. Having seen the Honda E and Mini Cooper SE retro chic EVs, this could be a smart decision for Fiat and give the little hatchback some fresh relevance.

Ferrari to be spun off from Fiat Chrysler

The recently merged Fiat Chrysler Automobiles empire has ambitious plans for growth, and it's going to need some big bucks in its coffers in order to enact them. Part of that cash injection is coming from the floating of its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange, but now FCA has announced a further capital campaign to be based on the enormous asset that is Ferrari.
FCA's board of directors has just approved the separation of Ferrari from the rest of the group as a separate entity. Once that separation is complete, Ferrari will put 10 percent of its shares on the stock market "in the United States and possibly a European exchange" as well.
This isn't the first time that the idea of a Ferrari IPO has been raised. Sergio Marchionne, chief executive of Chrysler, Fiat and Ferrari (pictured above), first raised the idea four years ago. Former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo nixed the idea, but now that he's been discharged, it appears there's nothing to get in the way of Marchionne's desires.