2014 Fiat 500 Pop on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Fiat updates Euro-spec 500 with new equipment, Cult trim

It's been seven years since Fiat relaunched the 500, and it has, by and large, been a runaway success for the Italian automaker. Numerous variations on the theme have followed - from the convertible 500C and performance-oriented Abarth models to the 500L minivan and upcoming 500X crossover - but it's high time that Fiat give the original hatchback a bit of a refresh, and that's just what it's done... to some extent, anyway.
Debuting this week at the Geneva Motor Show, the updated 500 features a number of enhancements to keep it fresh and with (if not quite ahead of) the times. That includes a redesigned instrument cluster centered around a seven-inch TFT display developed by Magnetti Marelli. There's a new 900cc turbo two-pot TwinAir engine being offered with 105 horsepower and 107 pound-feet of torque that can get a Cinquecento so equipped to 62 miles per hour in 10 seconds and on to a 117-mph top speed while delivering 67 miles per gallon (at least on the European cycle). Finally there's a new Cult trim level pictured here, being added to the top of the range that builds on the Lounge trim with more equipment like 16-inch alloys, gloss black roof, chrome or gloss black wing mirrors and more.
We're still waiting to find out what, if any, of this equipment will make the jump to the US model, but for now you can scope out the press release below and the high-res images in the gallery above for a closer look.

Fiat buying rest of Chrysler in $4.35 billion deal, IPO avoided

Chrysler will now become a wholly owned member of the Fiat family, as it's been announced that the 41.46-percent stake in the Auburn Hills, MI-based manufacturer owned by the United Auto Workers' VEBA trust fund will be sold to the Italian company. Concluding the agreement will mark the closure of a piecemeal purchase process that could have resulted in an initial public offering.
The total cost of the sale will see the VEBA healthcare trust receive $4.35 billion, $3.65 billion of which will come from Fiat. $1.75 billion of that will be cash, while an additional $1.9 billion will be part of a "special distribution." An additional $700 million will be paid over four separate installments according to reports from Automotive News Europe and USA Today, although the shares will belong to Fiat following the first payment. The deal was reportedly initially struck on Sunday (though it is just being announced today), and is being portrayed as particularly good news for Fiat and Chrysler, which have now prevented the remaining shares going to the stock market in a UAW-forced IPO.
"The unified ownership structure will now allow us to fully execute our vision of creating a global automaker that is truly unique in terms of mix of experience, perspective and know-how, a solid and open organization that will ensure all employees a challenging and rewarding environment," Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne said in a statement.

Fiat 500X gets up close and personal

Jeep's introduction of the Renegade just months ago at the Geneva Motor Show took the brand into new territory. Not only is it smaller than anything else Jeep makes, but it's also the first Jeep to be made outside of North America. But the Renegade is only half the equation.
Based on the same platform but with a much more rounded appearance will be a new Fiat crossover (at least tentatively) dubbed the 500X. Expected to arrive later this year, the 500X will replace the discontinued Suzuki-based Sedici and join the existing 500 hatchback, 500C convertible and 500L in Fiat's growing family of Cinquecento-themed models.
Pictured here in the latest batch of spy shots (sent to our photog by a sharp-eyed civilian, hence the slight quality issues), we can see the heavily disguised prototype up close, both inside and out. From the outside you can discern a much bubblier shape and rounded details than the Renegade, while the interior (apart from all the loose wires and warning signs) looks to adopt similar cues to the existing 500 family members, from the color-keyed dashboard panel to the rounded switchgear.