History of the Fiat 500
The Fiat 500 was first created in 1957, during the postwar period, in response to the demand for an affordable, economical, compact town car. The original Fiat 500 was a small car, measuring ten feet in length, and it was powered by a small, two cylinder 479cc engine. The Fiat 500 was one of the first cars to be designed specifically for a city environment, where its small size was an important asset. The small Fiat 500 quickly proved to be a success with the public, and it became popular throughout Europe.
The 500 was marketed as the Nuova, meaning new, although it was also known as the cinquecento, which means five hundred, in Italian. The original designer for the Fiat 500 was Dane Giacosa. The car had a rear engine, similar to the pattern of Volkswagen's Beetle and the older Fiat 600. Other notable features were the fabric roof, which could be opened all the way to the rear or the car, and the suicide doors, which open in the opposite direction to most car doors. Although the basic 500 was a two door coupe, there was also a larger station wagon version, the Giardiniera, in which the engine was laid on its side. The Fiat 500 Nuova was manufactured between 1957 and 1960.
The Fiat 500 has since been resurrected a number of times in various forms. The latest incarnation was produced in 2007, on the fiftieth anniversary of the 500's invention, but Fiat had already brought back the 500 five times before this. The newer versions of the 500 all had larger engines than the original and they tended to have smaller roof openings and front hinged doors instead of the original suicide doors.
In addition to the various versions of the Fiat 500 that were produced between 1957 and 1975, Fiat has also used similar names for other models of their cars. The Fiat 500 was not the first of Fiat's cars to bear the 500 name. The Fiat 500 Topolino was manufactured, in three different versions, between 1936 and 1955. Topolino means little mouse in Italian. It was a small car, but it was different from the model that is considered to be the classic Fiat 500. The Topolino was followed by the Fiat 600, which itself later gave rise to the most well-known Fiat 500 vehicle.
Fiat also produced a small city car during the 1990s which was named after the Fiat 500. The Fiat Cinquecento, with a badge featuring the number in written rather than numerical form, was produced between 1991 and 1998. It was designed to replace the Fiat 126.
A modern version of the Fiat 500 has more recently been created by Fiat, playing on nostalgia for the old 500. The Fiat 500 name was brought back for this new model in 2007. The modern Fiat 500 shares some of the style features of the original, but it is both longer and heavier. More information about the new Fiat 500 and the various versions of the old Fiat 500 can be found on the clube500.org website. They've sold millions of new Fiat 500's, and the Fiat execs call that a financial success.
The Fiat 500 has proved to have an enduring popularity that has surpassed its successor, the Fiat 126. During its history, the Fiat 500 has featured in a number of cultural media, including the films The Big Blue, The Castle of Cagliostro and Cars.