Category: Fiat

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Alfa Romeo Chrysler Fiat

Chrysler Australia to take on Alfa Romeo and Fiat distribution

Alfa Romeo Giulietta

The association with the Ateco Group and Alfa Romeo and Fiat, which began 15 years ago, will come to an end on 1 May. Distribution for the two Italian marques will then fall under the banner of subsidiary company Chrysler Australia. All Alfa Romeo and Fiat dealerships around the country will also come under the control of Chrysler Australia.

Neville Crichton, Executive Chairman of the Ateco Group said, “Alfa Romeo and Fiat have at their heart a real, live passion for life and Ateco has been fully involved in that, whether it has been the yacht, the Alfa Romeo G1 or motorsport with the Fiat 500 Australian Grand Prix and class-winning performances at Bathurst with Alfa Romeo.

“But while this makes it all the more hard to say good bye to these iconic brands, we know that it is that passion that has driven us over the past 15 years and which has made them successful once again in Australia. We know that they now have are prepared and positioned for a strong future in Australia and New Zealand, something of which I and everyone who has worked on them at Ateco can justifiably be very proud.”

Ateco’s full statement can be read after the break.

UPDATE: Chrysler Australia’s statement has also been added below.

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Fiat

Sweet dreams

Fiat USA has come up with a hot and steamy approach to advertise its 500 Abarth. We’re sure most will approve.

[Thanks to Tim for the tip]

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Fiat WRC

Is Fiat the next manufacturer to join the WRC?

Abarth 500 esseesse

The resurgence in manufacturer support for the WRC could be set to take another step with word coming Fiat is keen to join the sport. The Italian auto giant would likely use its performance Abarth brand with a view to start racing in 2013 or 2014.

Already competing in lower level rally competitions such as the IRC, it’s expected Abarth would upgrade its current Punto S2000 to WRC spec. Although, it would be nice to see a Fiat 500-based machine in action.

It will be great news for WRC if this rumour comes to fruition and follows the recent additions of MINI and Volkswagen to the series.

[Source: Autoblog]

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Audi BMW Ferrari Fiat Volkswagen

International Engine of the Year Awards 2011

Fiat TwinAir Engine of the Year

The winners of the International Engine of the Year Awards have been announced and its a little engine that could from Fiat that has taken out the top prize. Punching well above its weight the 875cc TwinAir motor has modest power outputs, ranging from 65–105hp. It’s currently not available in Australia, but can be found in the Fiat 500 in overseas markets.

A jury of 76 judges from across the globe voted on the awards and here’s what John Carey, from Wheels magazine, had to say about the TwinAir donk, “This is proof that aggressive downsizing need not spell timid performance. Surprisingly torquey, impressively and affordably efficient, this tiny twin also has plenty of character.”

Not content with overall honours, the Fiat TwinAir also won the Sub 1-litre, Best New Engine and Green Engine categories.

International Engine of the Year Awards 2011

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Alfa Romeo Fiat Porsche Volkswagen

VW teases Alfa with promise of Porsche engines

Volkswagen-Alfa Romeo-Fiat

The simmering saga of Volkswagen chasing Alfa Romeo skirt continues with the German giant dangling a big Porsche carrot in front of Alfa Romeo. That carrot takes the form of a rumoured plan for future Volkswagen-owned Alfa Romeos to use Porsche engines.

Although, Alfa’s current owners, Fiat, are still playing hard to get and are clearly not amused with Volkswagen’s latest flirting, telling Autocar, “We shut the door in their faces and now they’re trying to get in the window.”

In reply, VW boss Ferdinand Piech says, “Volkswagen has time.”

[Source: Autocar]

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Fiat

Abarth 500 esseesse en route to Australia

Abarth 500 esseesse

More than two years have passed since the Abarth 500 was released in Europe but the car, in its hottest essesse form, has now been confirmed for Australia.

The news emerged a couple of weeks back and demand for the fiery 117kW/230Nm pocket rocket has been very strong with the first shipment already selling out.

“While we are amazed by the demand for the Abarth 500 Esseesse, it isn’t a huge surprise,” says Andrei Zaitzev, General Manager for Abarth in Australia.

“The Abarth 500’s Australian arrival was delayed by demand in Europe, which meant that there was already pent-up demand here. The announcement that we would launch with the rare, high performance Esseesse version sent an extra rush of people to our dealerships wanting to be amongst the first on the road in an Abarth 500.”

Let’s hope the sting in the tail for those who have already expressed an interest to buy isn’t an overinflated price tag!

A note at the end of the press release says we’re not allowed to call the Abarth 500 a Fiat, but what the hey, we’re going to file this under the Fiat category anyway.

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Alfa Romeo Fiat Volkswagen

Volkswagen CEO admits “we’d be interested” in Alfa Romeo

Volkswagen-Alfa Romeo-Fiat

In late August news emerged that Volkswagen insiders had confirmed a keen interest in buying Alfa Romeo. Back then people were willing to talk, but they weren’t prepared to give their names. Now, word has come straight from the top with Martin Winterkorn, Volkswagen Group CEO, admitting, “Alfa is a very emotional brand. If Fiat considers selling, we’d be interested.”

Winterkorn went further, offering a critique of the Alfa brand and highlighting where improvements could be made, “It’s a beautiful brand but there are quality issues with the engines and suspension systems for example. I’m quite sure we could make a beautiful brand out of Alfa again.”

According to the Volkswagen CEO they no interest in making a bid for Alfa and would only be willing to deal if Fiat expresses an interest to sell.

[Source: Autocar]

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Volkswagen “seriously interested” in Alfa Romeo

Volkswagen-Alfa Romeo-Fiat

Volkswagen’s quest to grab the world’s biggest car maker title from Toyota has taken a new twist with news it wants to buy Alfa Romeo. It’s all a bit like shcoolyard secrets at the moment, though, with executives from Volkswagen and Fiat only willing to provide quotes on condition of anonymity.

Automotive News Europe says not one, but two Volkswagen employees have said they are “seriously interested” in purchasing Alfa Romeo. In reply the secret Fiat exec told ANE, “We have no intention at all of selling the brand to VW.”

Rumours of VW’s interest in the iconic Italian manufacturer emerged late last year. Indeed, in April Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn admitted he admired Alfa, but there were currently no plans to add another brand to the Volkswagen Group.

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne reckons they can push Alfa Romeo into the premium segment and achieve 500,000 sales per year by 2014. Just 102,000 sales were registered in 2009. It’s certainly an ambitious target.

Credit Suisse motoring expert Arndt Ellinghorst thinks it may be too ambitious and says the might of the Volkswagen Group would be necessary, “Maybe Alfa could get to a half million unit sales a year, but only after the brand is sold to Volkswagen.”

Whatever the outcome of this latest motoring marriage something needs to be done to support Alfa Romeo. It is understood the maker has been costing Fiat €200–400 million per year in losses over the last decade.

Follow the source link below and to learn how some analysts think Volkswagen should add Alfa Romeo to its portfolio at the expense of the Seat brand.

[Source: Automotive News Europe]

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Fiat

Abarth Punto EVO photo gallery

Abarth Punto EVO

The Abarth Punto EVO has just gone on sale in the UK. It is powered by a 1.4 litre turbo four with “MultiAir technology”. The feisty Punto can punt its way to 100km/h in 7.9 seconds. Peak power from the Punto EVO engine is 165bhp (123kW), which is complemented by 250Nm of torque from 2250rpm. A 180bhp+ esseesse upgrade will also be made available in the future.

Inside there’s race-style front seats, a smart looking interior and a bloody big sport button that sharpens up the EVO’s responses. You also get Brembo brake calipers and sticky Pirelli rubber wrapped around model specific 17″ alloys.

Fuel consumption for this car is around 6l/100km and CO2 emissions are a relatively responsible 142g/km. And it’s all packaged up in a pretty decent looking hatchback body. The Abarth Punto EVO has the makings for a very tasty city car, then. The only disappointment is that the Punto EVO is currently not on the local importer’s radar.

So you’ll just have to make do with a press release and a raft of images, which are all yours after the break.

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Alfa Romeo Ferrari Fiat Lamborghini Lancia

Auto Italia 2010

Auto Italia, Canberra, April 2010

It was a perfect autumn day in Canberra today. Ideal weather for the annual Auto Italia car show, then. Every year Italian car owners and enthusiasts gather in the nation’s capital to show off their shining metal and this year the lawns adjacent to the National Library of Australia provided the ideal setting.

Of course, cars are much more than shiny metal, and the perfect example of this are marques like Alfa Romeo, de Tomaso, Fiat, Ferrari, Lancia, Lamborghini and Maserati. All were represented at Auto Italia 2010 today. Indeed, this year the featured marque for the Italian show was Alfa Romeo in honour of Alfa’s 100th anniversary. Alfa owners obliged by showcasing some truly beautiful cars, some incredibly rare, all incredibly cherished.

You can catch a glimpse of today’s show by checking out the photos after the jump. More info on Auto Italia in Canberra can be found at their official website.

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Fiat Motorsports

“It was good fun and nobody got hurt”

Kimi Raikkonen crashes our of Rally Finland

Kimi Raikonnen’s Rally Finland experience came to an abrupt halt when he crashed out on SS19 yesterday. Three YouTube clips of Kimi in action can be seen after the jump, including a brief interview with Kimi, who seemed in good spirits after the spectacular accident.

Climbing out of his car after the rollover Kimi can be seen to matter of factly dust his hands and walk away. While it appears he didn’t show much concern for his co-driver I’m sure he would have made sure he was okay before exiting the car. Don’t you think?

[Thanks to Paul for the tip]

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Fiat Formula 1 Motor Shows

Kimi Raikkonen at the Rally of Finland

Ferrari Formula One driver Kimi Raikkonen is making the most of his summer break by taking part in this weekend’s Rally of Finland. Raikkonen finds himself at the wheel of a Fiat Abarth Punto S2000s prepared by four-time World Rally Champion Tommi Mäkinen.

The footage above shows Raikkonen taking part in the opening Killeri special stage. He and co-driver Kaj Lindstrom were racing head to head against Sveinung Bieltvedt and were over 2 seconds down at the half way point on the spectator-friendly arena course. Watch the clip to see if Kimi was able to reel in the deficit and post a win.

It’s a nice synergy for the Finn that his schedule allows him to take part in his home rally. Speaking to WRC.com Raikkonen was asked if he saw a future in rallying. His reply left the door wide open for a post-F1 future in WRC, “Yes definitely. I am still in F1 and still have one more year contract but everything is open and it is nice to be a part of it here. I am a bit too young to do nothing so I will see. It all depends on which way F1 is going. Nobody is exactly sure how it will be. I am in no hurry.”

[Source: RallyBuzz & WRC.com]