It isn’t cheap, at Rs 14.85 lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi. It is about the size of the Swift, so to cost three times as much is something of overkill, but it is being imported as a CBU, which is what drives the price up so much. What doesn’t change is the millions of paint shades and interior colors that one can pick - us Indians, for once, get choice equal to any country in the world, except for engines. The 500 will have the 1.3-litre, 75bhp multijet diesel that features in the Palio and Suzuki Swift.
Fiat India is not aiming to make money off this car - it is a brand-building exercise to revive the Fiat brand in India. The annual sales target for this car is a mere 100 units. If you’re building a brand, play on the Ferrari connection, we say. Bring us the Abarths as well!
Fiat is working with Ford Europe on the new version of the iconic 500. Whether or not Fiat’s planning an Abarth performance version is a matter of debate.
Fiat hasn’t confirmed a cabrio edition is on its way, but some magazines say it’ll sport a cloth top not a folding hardtop, and launch with really small engines in the range of 1.1-liters.
Here’s a first glimpse of Fiat’s upcoming Cabriolet version of the new 500 small car that’s scheduled for sale in 2007, with the drop-top planned for 2008.
The New Fiat 500 Cabrio should follow the same formula and draw on Fiat’s expertise with small cars.
From the image it’s clear that the Cabriolet sticks to the lines of the original car, sharing its profile despite the adoption of the canvas roof.
A complex electric folding metal roof was ruled out due to the car’s compact size and low cost characteristic.
The 500’s running gear is shared with Ford’s upcoming Ka replacement, which will be built alongside the baby Fiat at the same factory in Poland.
Under the hood will be several engine options ranging from 1.1-litre and 1.2-litre petrol units to a 1.3-litre Multijet diesel. A 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine with over 120bhp plus a new 1.6-litre turbo-diesel is also on the cards.
