The Fiat 500 has already reached the production figure of 500,000 with the successful city car being produced at the Tychy plant in Poland. About half of that production has all been sold in Italy, followed by France, England and Germany. The car is sold in 83 countries around the world and will form a key part of the Fiat-Chrysler relationship, marking the first Fiat model to appear on the US market under the new partnership.
The Fiat 500 electric version will likely remain a special model for the US, without appearing in Europe. In the meantime, Sergio Marchionne is planning a positive recovery for the Chrysler brand, stating that it should reach break-even point already in 2010. Despite all the intricate strategy of how to deal with the various Chrysler brands and what will happen to each of the models, this is the first real indication we have of the benchmark stages of a more global Chrysler recovery strategy. It will be interesting to see in the future how much involvement Fiat will have had in that achievement and what might happen for Fiat and Chrysler in the US and European markets respectively, off the back of this recovery.
The Fiat 500 electric US version will be produced by Chrysler at its Auburn Hills facility, while a standard model 500 is on display at the Chrsyler stand at the New York auto show. Fiat 500 US sales will start in December in what is hoped will be a successful move in the new Fiat-Chrsyler partnership, with the retro style appealing to anyone wanting 60’s cool in their car.
Source | Autoblog.it