2012 Fiat 500 C Lounge Convertible Navigation Leather Bose Audio Green Coupe on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Ford CEO told Trump 1 million jobs at stake because of fuel economy regs

Bloomberg is reporting that Mark Fields, Ford's CEO, pushed President Donald Trump for market-driven national fuel economy standards, and that up to a million jobs could be at stake if those national regulations didn't take consumer expectations into account. Fields was reporting on his conversation with Trump in remarks made at the National Automobile Dealers Association in New Orleans, Bloomberg reports. The report also states that he and fellow CEOs Mary Barra of GM and Sergio Marchionne of FCA aren't seeking to eliminate fuel economy standards altogether, but rather to make them more flexible. Bloomberg reports that Fields didn't cite the studies he was referring to in support of his job loss figures, so we can't independently verify Fields' math at this time. But his push to stop selling cars consumers don't want – that is to say, more hybrids and EVs than consumer demand supports right now – is clear. We've already reported on that. To level an educated guess at what will happen next, Trump seems likely to reduce the stringent 2025 fuel economy targets, perhaps freezing them at current levels. The automakers are already invested in producing vehicles that meet current standards, and they also have to think about foreign markets like Europe that aren't likely to relax standards below current levels. If you consider economies of scale, automakers are likely to ask for federal standards that match global standards for their largest markets as closely as possible. We'll see if Trump buys Fields' math, but Ford isn't hedging its bets. Backing out of the Mexican assembly plant cost the company $200 million – not a huge sum compared to the total value of Ford, a massive company which had its second best year ever, but still an important gesture to Trump about Ford's priorities. Related Video: News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images Government/Legal Green Fiat Ford GM Sergio Marchionne Mary Barra Mark Fields

2024 Fiat 500e adds special models for fans of rose gold and sweet tunes

The 2024 500e is nearly here, and before its grand launch, Fiat revealed a pair of special editions that’ll be joining the lineup toward the end of the year. TheyÂ’re called the “Inspired By Beauty” and “Inspired By Music” models. Starting with the 500e Inspired By Beauty (seen in the photo gallery at the top), itÂ’s painted in an exclusive Rose Gold color you wonÂ’t be able to get on any other 500e. The shade is rather stunning, so itÂ’s safe to say the name matches its actual appearance. This model also gets body-color mirror caps and chrome molding to differentiate it from other models. Inside the Inspired By Beauty, Fiat treats you to beige “eco-leather” seats and a contrasting black dash also wrapped in eco-leather.  The Inspired By Beauty model adds new driver assistance features that other versions of the 500e donÂ’t have, including adaptive cruise control and lane-keep assist. Thankfully, the second special model Fiat released today also has the above driver assistance features, too. 2024 Fiat 500e Inspired By Music front 3/4 View 23 Photos This one (directly above) is called Inspired By Music, so listen up, audiophiles. This model gets a JBL premium sound system consisting of seven speakers, an amplifier and a subwoofer. It has four unique sound modes in the infotainment system including My Music Room, My Recording Studio, Giuseppe Verdi Opera House Pisa and Open-air Arena. Each have their unique characteristics and are meant to represent the sound experience you might have in each location. Appearance-wise, the Inspired By Music wears a shiny coat of Piano Black (yes, another intentional music reference) paint and the same beige eco-leather color combo as you see in the Inspired By Beauty model. Both of these special models have the same starting price of $37,595, including the $1,595 destination charge. Fiat says you can expect them to hit dealerships in the third quarter of 2024, but theyÂ’re both available for ordering today. Related video:

2023 Fiat 500e First Drive Review: A European preview

TURIN, Italy – AmericaÂ’s relationship with the Fiat 500 has been rocky at best. Skimming over the original, pre-war model, the second-generation 500 (the one with a rear-mounted engine) was briefly sold here with funky headlights that stuck out from the front end like a bugÂ’s eyes. Small and underpowered, though a tremendous amount of fun to drive in its own way, it didnÂ’t catch on and moseyed out of our market after a few short years. The third-generation 500 spearheaded FiatÂ’s return to the United States when it disembarked here in 2012. It sold as well as you can expect a European-flavored subcompact hatchback to sell in the Ford F-150Â’s bastion and bowed out in 2019, though itÂ’s still sold across the pond alongside its intended successor. That would be the fourth-generation 500, unveiled in 2020, which kept the retro design but went electric-only. Sales in the United States are scheduled to start in early 2024, meaning the cheeky hatchback will be about four years old by the time it turns a wheel on American pavement. Is it worth the wait? I traveled to FiatÂ’s home town of Turin in northern Italy to get a better idea of what makes this fun-sized EV buzz. ThereÂ’s one point I need to address right off the bat: what you see in our gallery isnÂ’t exactly what youÂ’ll get when the new 500 rolls into American showrooms with an “e” attached to the end of its name. Fiat hasnÂ’t detailed the American-market model yet, but itÂ’s reasonable to assume most of the changes will be found on the specifications sheet and on the list of standard and optional equipment. Fiat canÂ’t take a European-market car and ship it here unchanged, but IÂ’m not expecting significant updates to the exterior or interior design — nothing suggests it will morph into an outdoorsy four-door crossover. Speaking of design, itÂ’s been the 500Â’s main selling point since the last-generation model made its debut in 2007 so FiatÂ’s edits were pretty light. IÂ’d guess someone who isnÂ’t up to date with whatÂ’s happening on car planet might not realize that theyÂ’re looking at a new 500, and thatÂ’s intentional. Still unabashedly retro, the model stands out from its predecessor with a new-look front end that features two-piece LED headlights and a big “500” emblem, bright beltline trim and a more chiseled hatch.