Archive for Fiat

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This is something seriously really cool from Fiat. They’ve actually incorporated social network elements into their car ownership together with a very cool and gadgety way of teaching you how to drive your Fiat economically.

It’s called Fiat eco:Drive and it’s basically it’s a software that will allow you to record detailed information on your vehicle as well as your driving pattern’s efficiency and later analyze it in a software on your computer.

All you need to do is plug a USB storage drive into the Microsoft Blue&Me USB port and the data will be copied to the drive. After you’ve finished driving, just plug the same drive to your computer and let the eco:Drive software analyze it.

The software will let you know how fuel efficient your current driving pattern is and how you can improve it. It will also give you a score out of 100 - something Fiat is calling the eco:Index. Just follow the tips the software gives you and watch your eco:Index go up, hopefully. A user of eco:Drive is also part of the eco:Ville social network. Users will be able to interact, share tips, as well as watch how much CO2 and energy they are saving together as a whole.

The video after the jump shows so much more about the software. It’s really quite a cool piece of software and has quite nice graphics. It’s built on Adobe AIR so it works on both a PC and Mac. It currently works only on the Fiat 500 and Fiat Grande Punto but Fiat is working on making it compatible with the rest of the Fiat range as long as you have Blue&Me installed.

Watch the video after the jump.

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Volkswagen has BlueMotion, Mercedes-Benz has BlueEFFICIENCY and soon Toyota will make Prius a badge for fuel efficient vehicles that are environmentally friendly. Fiat is wasting no time developing its own “Green” brand called PUR-O2.

The PUR-O2 line of cars will feature fuel-saving technologies such as start-stop systems by Bosch, Eco Drive, green tyres, low-viscocity fluids, aerodynamic bodykits and gearboxes with modified ratios designed for low fuel consumption.

Initially three PUR-O2 models will be offered - the Fiat 500 PUR-O2, the Fiat Bravo PUR-O2 and the Fiat Croma PUR-O2. These cars will feature small displacement petrol engines such as a 1.2 liter unit, and fuel efficient Multijet engines with low CO2 emissions mated to a Dualogic twin clutch automated gearbox with ratios for fuel efficiency.

Fiat is quite obviously trying to position the Fiat Fioriono Qubo as a happening lifestyle MPV as evident from the hot babes and the bright colours in this set of photos.

Based on the Fiat Panda platform, the Fiorino is a joint venture program between Fiat and PSA Peugeot Citroen and as a result of that, it is also sold as the Peugeot Bipper and the Citroen Nemo. The series was originally launched as commercial vans but as Renault did with their Kangoo, this new passenger version comes soon after.

A few engine options are available ranging from a 73hp 1.4 liter 8 valve mated to a 5-speed manual (Fiat recommends this for CNG conversions), to a 75hp 1.3 liter Multijet engine mated to either a 5-speed manual gearbox or a 6-speed automated manual.

It is available either has a 7-seater or a 5-seater. Look after the jump for more photos of the Fiorino Qubo and its accompanying babes.

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Fiat and BMW have announced that they plan to collaborate on a common platform to build the next generation Fiat Grande Punto, the second generation Alfa Romeo Mi.To and third generation MINI on.

BMW has been looking for a JV partner for its MINI platform for quite some time now in the search for higher economies of scale. The MINI already shares engines with another European company - PSA Peugeot Citroen. The MINI’s 1.6 liter Prince engine is also found in PSA cars like the Peugeot 308.

BMW had been in talks with Mercedes-Benz in the past to increase their JV activities including exploring the idea that the next gen MINI and A-Class could share the same underpinings, but its rival had rejected the idea of any further joint projects beyond the current hybrid system JV.

The fact that BMW and Fiat is tying up for platform sharing is quite funny really as Fiat had also been in talks with Daimler in the past and talks progressed further than any talks Daimler had with BMW, but in the end Daimler decided to go ahead and build the next generation A-Class on its own rather than share platforms with anyone as it had sufficiently cut costs through its CORE initiative. To make it simple, A and B were both going after C, but A and B ended up getting together instead.

BMW and Fiat are also considering developing a new family of gasoline and diesel engines together. This should be the successor to the Prince family.

More details will be revealed by the end of 2008.

Fiat has decided that it will be building its new small SGE engine at its Bielsko Biala plant in southwest Poland. The SGE (Small Gasoline Engine) is Fiat’s smallest engine with only two cylinders and a 900cc displacement. It will be going into the upcoming Fiat Topolino and other small Fiat cars like the Fiat 500, Fiat Panda and possibly the Fiat Grande Punto as an economical baseline engine.

The engine will be equipped with Fiat’s Multiair electronic variable valve timing system and will have a few tune levels available ranging from a normally aspirated 65hp output to a turbocharged 110hp output. The engine design reduces the weight of a conventional 4-cylinder by 20% and installed volume by 25%.

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Sometime in May this year Fiat announced that it would revive the Topolino name for a range of small cars that could potentially also include one that has electric drive, as the Fiat Phylla concept hinted. The new Fiat Topolino variants will be built at the recently acquired Zastava plant in Serbia. Above is an artist’s impression of what the new Fiat Topolino could look like. The Lancia-like grille is similiar to the grille that the classic original Fiat Topolino had, and would not be totally off as Fiat intends to market an upmarket version of the Topolino as a Lancia.

The Fiat Phylla concept city car was developed by design schools IED (Europeo di Design), IAAD (Istituto di Arte Applicata e Design), and the Centro Richerche Fiat (CRF)’s Advanced Design department.

Phylla is the Greek word for leaf, and pays homage to the leaf’s ability to photosynthesize sunlight into energy, which the Phylla concept has via the use of solar panels on the roof. The 750kg (including a 150kg battery) green concept is built on an aluminium space frame with asymmetrical pillar designs, pretty much like a leaf’s pattern.

The car’s body is only 2995mm long with a 1,980mm wheelbase, but features 2+2 seating. Of course with all 4 seats up there is barely any luggage space, as that is created when you fold the rear seats down, which results in a luggage capacity of 584 liters.

Power is via two electric motors, one for each axle, effectively creating a 4WD system. The car’s specs indicate a nominal output of 27kW with a peak output of 54kW, which leads me to believe 27kW is only with one axle powered, with the other axle’s motor activating when maximum acceleration is needed. The vehicle can go up to an estimated 145km in lithium-ion batteries, or 220km on lithium-polymer batteries. It can be recharged in 4 hours max at 4.5kW, or 5 hours at 3kW.

Most agree that the technology behind the Fiat Phylla concept will find its way into an electric version of the upcoming new Fiat Topolino family of small cars that Fiat is planning to introduce. See two more images after the jump.

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Fiat has picked Serbia to be the production base for its new low-cost car. It will use Zastava’s former plant in Kragujevac, Serbia, with an initial capacity of 200,000 units a year, with plans for this to be upped to 300,000 units from 2010 onwards. Fiat will invest a sum of 700 million euros into the production line, and the Serbia will contribute 200 million euros through tax breaks and incentives.

The first model to be built at the Serbian plant will be called the Fiat Topolino. Fiat had a car called the Topolino back in the 1930s, and it was a two-seat minicar. The new Fiat Topolino will be based on the Fiat 500 and Fiat Panda’s platform, and will be a shorter vehicle than either of the two vehicles at 3150mm long. The Panda currently measures 3538mm long, and the Fiat 500 about 3550mm long. An upscale variant of the Topolino will be marketed under the Lancia brand. Topolino means “little mouse” in Italian.

It was previously reported that Fiat might revive the Uno or Palio name for a new low cost car program. Fiat announced that from 2010 onwards, a new low-cost car project currently codenamed the B-compact family will be produced at the Serbian plant. This should be the new low cost car, but no name was revealed.

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Fiat to develop new low-cost car

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The latest automaker to jump onto the low cost car bandwagon is Fiat. The company plans to reveal its low cost car somewhere in 2010. According to Fiat R&D Chief Harald Wester, the new low cost car will be slighty larger than the Fiat Panda, but did not quote any indicative price range for the car.

The new low-cost Fiat will help with the company’s position in markets such as South America, Russia, India and China. It’s not known yet whether the new low cost car will be Fiat-badged or not, as there is a possiblity of a new brand being used. Fiat is still conducting internal studies on whether a low cost model could damage Fiat’s image.

This car would effectively be the spiritual successor to the Fiat Palio, a supermini designed by Fiat as a “world car” aimed at developing countries. There has been speculation on the revival of the Fiat Uno nameplate as well.

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Fiat will be exhibiting an Aria version of the Fiat 500 alongside the Abarth version - two different ends of the product range, kinda like how Honda launched the Civic Hybrid and the Civic Type R at the same time.

Following the theme of the previous Fiat Panda Aria, the 500 Aria will be an eco-friendly car with an Euro 5 compliant 1.3 liter 16 valve Multijet turbodiesel with DPF filter, mated to a Dualogic automated manual transmission.

The Multijet turbodiesel also gets stop-start technology, which switches off the engine automatically during stops and automatically restarts it when you’re ready to go again. Fiat says this can improve fuel consumption by up to 10% in urban driving conditions. Other eco-options include low power consumption auxiliary units, reduced weight components and low-drag Pirelli tires.

The Fiat 500 Aria’s interior is made of recycled materials including a new floor material made from old tires, recycled seat upholstery and organic woven leather and fabrics.

Fiat says all of these eco-friendly technologies will make its way into production cars. Two more photos of the 500 Aria after the jump.

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