Fiat Is Rude As Hell for Bringing the Europe-Only 500 to the NY Auto Show

The New York Car Exhibit was bleak this year, with many major automakers not in attendance and fairly significantly each and every new debut just a facelift of an current model. But in the corner of the Stellantis stand there were being two shining rays of light-weight: A pair of new Fiat 500s. The only capture is, the 500 is only offered in Europe and won’t arrive to the US. What the hell, Fiat?

The new 500 was unveiled in March 2020 suitable as the pandemic was wreaking havoc on the automobile field (and the planet), so this was my initially time seriously having to see and knowledge 1 in particular person. And person is it superior. A ground-up redesign with a entirely electric powertrain, the new 500 manages to seem way additional modern-day and upscale although nevertheless remaining as chic and retro as it need to. Its interior is so substantially nicer than the prior 500, with an enhanced infotainment program, larger-end supplies and some clever information.

Each hardtop and cabrio types had been on exhibit at the present, with the hatch painted in a stunning rose gold and the convertible just one of the Project Purple exclusive editions. But it was the hardtop that genuinely grabbed my interest, due to the fact the new 3-as well as-1 product provides a little suicide doorway to the passenger facet of the car. Despite its tiny sizing, the addition of that more doorway and the deficiency of a B-pillar will make it considerably simpler to get into the 500’s back again seat.

Stellantis does not seriously have an clarification for why these 500s had been at the car display. It would seem like the automobiles have been previously brought about to the US for CES earlier this 12 months, the place Stellantis confirmed off its global electrification endeavours, and the enterprise just decided to provide them to New York to have something on the stand. There are information sheets in the windshields that discuss all about the car, and they only have a single sentence in a really small font about how the 500 is just not readily available in the US.

Producing the presence of the 500s even much more troublesome is the point out of the Fiat model in basic. With the discontinuation of the 500, 500L and 124 Spider, the only Fiat marketed in the US is the 500X crossover, which is now 8 yrs outdated and not fantastic at all. (It has a neat new Yachting trim with a rollback roof, at the very least.) With the loss of life of the BMW i3 and Fiat’s main competitor Mini likely fully electrical, I assume there’s absolutely a sector for the new 500 in the US, even if it would require to wear a additional high quality cost tag. Viewing the cars at the auto demonstrate just manufactured me even sadder and madder that it will never happen.