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2014 Fiat 500L

The saying goes that man cannot live by bread alone, and neither can automakers live by selling one car alone. This holds especially true for automakers with a budding dealer network to support, like the Fiat brand, which returned to US shores in 2011 after a 28-year absence. The company's single car to sell at the time was the Fiat 500, a cute retro rebirth of the original, iconic Cinquecento, which your toddler now calls Luigi thanks to Pixar.
Since then, the new 500 has sold reasonably well here in the US, and the Fiat brand has been following the same playbook that another purveyor of pint-sized autos, Mini, has used: sell as many variants as you can of the one model you've got. So we have the 500, 500C drop top, high-performance 500 Abarth, all-electric 500e and a few additional trim levels and special editions to further fill dealer showrooms. But the axiom that automakers cannot live selling one car alone still stands, and so Fiat has finally introduced its second model, the larger 500L.
Executive Editor Chris Paukert completed our First Drive of the 500L back in June, and was left pleasantly surprised by its combination of utility, offbeat style, fun-to-drive demeanor and value. We've also, however, read some scathing reviews, like this one from The New York Times. I wasn't sure where the truth lay when the keys for this top-trim 2014 Fiat 500L Lounge were handed to me, but finding out would be but a short week of together time away.

2015 Fiat Ducato and French siblings get prettier face, finer features

The Ram ProMaster only introduced itself to US buyers - prognathous jaw first - last year, but it might quickly be the recipient of some plastic surgery. Above is the new face of the 2015 Fiat Ducato, which does duty as our ProMaster, the Citroën Jumper and the Peugeot Boxer and will be officially unveiled on May 12. Its face still slopes forward all the way to the bottom, but the distance and weight of the jutting chin has been greatly reduced by curving lines that more artfully integrate the new three-piece bumper with the sheetmetal. That bumper can be had in two colors, and the front end also gets new, sleeker headlights with LED DRLs.
Trims are named Classic, Tecno and Lounge, and all benefit from ESP, a new underride guard and an upgraded cockpit with touches like better seats, Bluetooth and a clipboard that can be affixed to the dash and is robust enough to hold smartphones and tablets. High-zoot options - which would give the ProMaster better fight against the Mercedes Sprinter if they carry over to our market - include lane departure assist.
The Ducato will come with choices of three roof heights, four lengths and eight capacity ratings. You'll find info on that and much more in the press releases from Fiat and Peugeot below, and we'll find out more about how the ProMaster will benefit in a few weeks.

Tom Hanks' custom 1974 Fiat 126p has sold for $83,500

Actor Tom Hanks has sold his custom 1974 Fiat 126p at auction for $83,500. It's a notable sum for a 23-horsepower Polish-built microcar, but it's not even the most interesting part of the story. That would be how the Saving Private Ryan star came to possess the car, which was never officially sold in the U.S. in the first place. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The "Polski" Fiat 126p was built in Cold War Poland under license from Fiat while the country was still under communist rule. A successor to the original Fiat 500, the model was particularly long-lived. Fiat built about 1.4 million of them in Italy from 1972-1991. However, that number pales in comparison with the estimated 3.3 million additional cars from Bielsko-Biala, Poland, where the car was manufactured until 2000. Cars built in Poland were denoted 126p, and locals nicknamed them "Maluch," or "small one" in Polish. They were still prevalent in former Eastern Bloc nations like Hungary in 2016 when Hanks visited the country. As an apparent joke he posed next to a few street-parked examples that he came across, posting the subsequent photos to Twitter with the caption "So excited about my new car!!" According to The Drive, a Hanks fan named Monika Jaskolska, a resident of Bielsko-Biala, saw the tweets and made it her mission to get one for him. Jaskolska ended up raising enough money, along with corporate sponsors, to not only restore a 126p, but build a custom interior for Toma Hanksa, as he's known as in Polish. Because the Philadelphia actor was known for collecting typewriters, they customized the interior switchgear to resemble keys from a vintage one. Some of the money raised also went to a local pediatric hospital. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The car was given an unveiling ceremony in Poland before it was delivered to Hanks in Los Angeles via cargo jet, just in time for his birthday. In addition to the custom interior, the car features some exclusive badging and a Forrest Gump quote on a plaque affixed to the dashboard, so there's no confusing it with a regular Polski Fiat. Now, however, it's time to move the car on to a new owner. Hanks is donating the full sale amount to Hidden Heroes, which supports military caregivers, the spouses and parents of injured or ill servicemen and servicewomen.