Alexandre
An (almost) unexpected turn of events that could redefine the future of Turin's iconic Mirafiori plant, Stellantis plans to launch a thermal version of the Fiat 500, marking a return to its roots in order to save the historic plant. This decision comes at a time when Mirafiori, known for the production of the electric Fiat 500 and some Maseratis, operates at low revs.
With the imminent end of the production cycle for the Maserati Levante SUV next week, which alone accounts for 25 of the 33 Maseratis produced every day, the plant is heading for a temporary shutdown from April 2 to 20. This precarious situation prompted Stellantis to look for solutions to revive the business, in particular by relying on government incentives which, to date, have failed to materialize. Among the options considered was the production of Chinese Leapmotor vehiclesa company in which Stellantis is a shareholder. However, the news that is now attracting all the attention is the potential production of a combustion version of the Fiat 500 at Mirafiori.
This version would use the three-cylinder internal combustion engine, which should have reached the end of its life in the EU due to its planned ban from 2035. Stellantis is considering relocating production of the Fiat 500 combustion engine. in Tychy, Poland, and potentially the planned new site in Morocco, near Turin. A recent meeting between managers and designers at Mirafiori revealed that the project was feasible, All that's missing is final approval from Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis. The idea is to adapt the 500 BEV's bodywork to accommodate the Firefly engine, a move that could temporarily boost production at Mirafiori, waiting for the future electric 500 on STLA Small. A solution that, until a few months ago, had been categorically rejected by Fiat.
Despite the ongoing transition to electric vehicles in Europe, and an Italian market struggling to take off, the initiative could not only boost plant volumes (with a projected closing below 50,000 units by 2024) but also to ease tensions with the Italian governmentwhich aims to produce a million vehicles in the country, including at least 200,000 in Turin.
This strategic choice does, however, raise logistical questions. Stellantis engines in Europe are currently produced in Poland, but with the closure of this facility announced earlier this year, Stellantis may have to turn to its Brazilian plants for engine supplies...
At the same time, the option of producing Leapmotor cars remains on the table, although this project is still in its infancy.
Now that's common sense!!! Should we have waited until we were up against the wall to think about implementing this opportunity??? I hope it happens... Plus, it would extend the brand's DNA with a new model that's not "stellantised" in its design....
This should have been the case since the launch of the new 500... What a waste of time, what a waste...
Absolutely. 👍
All-electric is a dead end, especially in Italy. If there's finally a "new" Fiat 500 with a combustion engine, that'll be great, especially if it goes on sale in several countries. It's unbelievable that Tavares should be the one to decide, when he's pushing Peugeot to the detriment of other brands, or turning Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia into cars derived from Peugeot models.
Hello YES a new Fiat 500 petrol with hybridization .
All we have to do now is wait for engine production in Italy to return to normal.
A 500 (like the electric version, if I've understood correctly) with a Firefly would be great, a nice nod to Tavares and his puretoc ....and especially since they can run on ethanol.
At last, some pragmatic and positive news.....thank you mr tavarez
1/ Let's not sell the 500 before we've sold it. Nothing has yet been decided by Scrooge.
2/ On the (Italian) sites that talk about it, they say that it's simply the repatriation of production of the "old" 500, which would move (in whole or in part) from Tychy to Mirafiori. It would not be the new 500 that would adapt to combustion engines.
Of course it will be the best car in the group!
It's going to take them a long time to get back to reality... Whether it's a city car or a big SUV, the problem with electric cars remains the same: they're simply too expensive for what they are. Incidentally, I admire this ability to completely change direction in record time. 3 months ago, a combustion 500 was unthinkable, today it's on the table, and without PureTech. Just goes to show...
Good news (*), and not just to save a legendary factory and its jobs... but to put, if not put an end to, the European diktat that forces manufacturers to offer only electric models, which, it has to be said, are far from being of interest to the greatest number! Struggling sales (euphemism), factories at a standstill... Europe has put the cart before the horse! The forced transition isn't working. EVs still too expensive, charging infrastructures struggling, announced/actual autonomies as misleading as the consumption announcements that led to the "Diesel Gate" (but no risk of Electric Gate, apparently! 😳).
In short, forced electrification doesn't work! What's needed is to give manufacturers time to come up with mature electric models that are more attractive to consumers than combustion engines, and the choice would have been made on its own!
So a big YES to a combustion-powered 500 (and all the others), by developing engine efficiency, alternative fuels and so on.
But not with that damned 1.2 Pure Tech, because even "improved", given the mess it's in, who can trust it anymore!? 🤔
Stellantis, you need to stop thinking only about your profits and think a little (a lot) more about your customers!
Stop putting your damned (that's the word!) 1.2 Pure Tech in every sauce and in every brand! A Fiat customer, let alone an Alfa Romeo or now Lancia customer, wants Latin character! Not just a nice coat of arms and a body that's barely been fitted out to look as if it's covering a soulless Peugeot Citroën engine that's riddled with major flaws to boot!
Let's hope so... For me, a New 500 combustion engine, or even better, a "real" 500 Abarth with real good combustion engines (we understand each other, no Pure Tech!!!) with the character and soundtrack to match, I'd buy it!
And I don't think I'm the only one 🤔
Let's keep our fingers crossed that we'll be able to enjoy driving without breaking the bank... At least until 2035!
This scenario is quite astonishing. As the platform was not designed for internal combustion engines, adapting it will require years of design work, all for a transitional period while we wait for the future version based on the Peugeot platform....
In short, I don't have much faith in it.
A 500 hybrid to replace my 500 petrol ....... !!!! We'll see about electrics later.
If the platform is already planned for combustion engines, since the question had already been put to Olivier François, the brand's CEO, he had replied that it was possible and that they would think about it.
Something that should have been done since the launch with a 1.0 Firefly hybrid 100 HP could do it.
What a great idea, transforming a bourgeois city car into a petrolette, that's going to please the anti's. Next step: add a towbar.
But yes, the future lies with internal combustion engines, and especially with the sweet little Multijet diesel that purrs so softly! The ideologists of ecology are dangerous barbarians and fearsome tyrants. I don't think we want polluting batteries any more... or, more generally, the regulatory dictatorship of the European Union, manipulated by a minority!
I don't see the point, there's already a 500 thermal, and even an Abarth, so why remake what already exists?
Great news! Hybrid 48 volt thermal in the superb body of the Electric model and then FIAT would make a Carton in sales!!!! Speed on Mirafiori's channels !!!!!Thank you Thank you to all of you!
The electric one we don't want bravo if it's confirmed
At last, some common sense thinking - only fools don't change their minds!
On the other hand, what I don't understand:
1. Which engine, the FireFly ex FCA or the Puretech ex PSA? In either case, from Brazil rather than Europe?
2. Relocating from Tychy in Poland to Mirafiori: what about Tychy's low-cost production?