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The Fiat 500 Nuova was released in 1957 and was the successor to the Fiat Topolino. Its cute design conquered Italian cities, and thereafter even the entire world. It had been such success that Fiat decide to pay tribute to the car by designing an eponymous, and very similar car that will be glorious in the 21st century.
Seasoned Italian designer Dante Giacosa was given the task to design the 500, he was the chief designer for Fiat and, according to him, the Italian people needed an inexpensive and small city car that could easily navigate through the narrow streets of exponentially growing Italian cities. Fiat were not alone with that idea: Austin had their Mini, Citroën their 2CV, some years later, also Renault came with the R4.
Finally, in 1957, a procession of 500s drove out of the Fiat factory in Turin, a unique release for a unique car. The people fell in love with it, although the 500 only gained superstar fame a little later. Initially, the 500 was considered underwhelmingly simple, especially when compared to the Fiat 600, its counterpart. However, after a few minor improvements, sales figures grew exponentially, and it turned out to beat the 600. Fiat decided to expand its 500 range, there was a sports version, a delivery van, and even a station wagon. The sports car brand Abarth even released tuned versions of the 500, achieving some success on the track.
The name ‘500’ is derived from the weight of the car, which is about 500 kg. In 1960, the D version of the Fiat 500 was released, and this brought a clearer reference to its name: the 500's motor, fed by a Weber carburetor, was increased from 479 cc to 499 cc.
From the beginning, the Fiat 500 Nuova won awards. In 1959, it won the Compasso d'Oro design award, which is a prestigious Italian design award.
In 1975, Fiat decided to bring an end to the beautiful story of the 500. The demand and the needs of the market had changed so much that there was no future for the 500. The total number of models sold is estimated to be around four million. In 2007, Fiat revived the 500 with a new series, which has been a great success worldwide and is still being sold at the time of writing. There seems to be no end in sight for this adorable classic.
Fiat 500 F
Previously, the 500’s passengers got in by opening rear-hinger ‘suicide doors’. In 1965, Fiat introduced regular front-hinged doors, which were a lot safer in an era without seat belts. At first, they were mounted using eight bolts per door, later that year only four bolts and hinges were used. This 500 was chronologically called the 500 F, it later became the best-selling 500.
There is hardly a car that has a higher ‘nicknameable’ factor. Also, the 500 Nuova is exceptionally easy to maintain and is a great entry-level restoration car. They are often used as advertising billboards as this 500 catches a lot of attention. Nobody could ever do wrong by acquiring a Fiat 500.
Technical information:
Body work
Mechanics