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FCA to invest $788M to build new 500 EV in Italy

1K views 15 replies 11 participants last post by  Serpens 
#1 · (Edited)
FCA Investing $788 Million To Build All-New Fiat 500 EV In Italy
BY DAN MIHALASCU
JULY 11, 2019
carscoops.com

Fiat Chrysler Automotive is putting behind its failed bid to merge with Renault with an uplifting announcement for the future.

The Italian-American carmaker said it plans to invest €700 million ($788 million) in the all-new, all-electric Fiat 500. That’s FCA’s biggest single bet on an electric vehicle to date.

FCA’s COO for the EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) region, Pietro Gorlier, announced the investment at the Mirafiori plant in Turin, Italy which turns 80 this year. “The plan is confirmed,” Gorlier told the media when asked if FCA remained committed to investing in electric vehicle technology after the plan to merge with EV specialist Renault collapsed.

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#2 ·
“This car was entirely conceived, designed and engineered here. It is a genuine product of ‘Made at Fiat’ and ‘Made in Turin’ ingenuity. It is another excellent example of the ability to create and innovate which abounds in our company and in this city,” Gorlier said.

LOLZ. Thanks, I'm still laughing. This guy do The Comedy Club on weekends?

I won't mention how it would've been smarter to buy Volt plans and drorrings and tooling from GM and go with what actually worked, except in the Volt tragedy the parent was too freakin stupid to know how to sell or update it.
 
#12 ·
So true. I think the second generation was a seriously handsome looking car and they should have expanded on the technology by putting it in other products like the pickups or an SUV/CUV or two.
They fund the development of crap like this, yet starve Dodge and Chrysler for product. It's such a shame.
It's almost like every new owner is secretly trying to kill what they bought then rearrange it and call it their own. Thank God for Jeep though I sometimes fear for it too. Infest the world with little electric 500's that remind me of those little cars on the track in a pricing game on TPIR.
 
#4 ·
But they already announced a new Panda Electric at Geneva in March. That Centoventi concept was a Panda. That car will pay for this investment, I would think. European appetite for a Panda-sized electric should be bigger, right?

I am just a guy in Midwestern America, where all of this seems dubious at best.

The 500 needs friends. I get that. But I would hope this is piggybacked onto something larger. Electric Panda sounds cool...
 
#14 ·
I read a comment on an EV forum that make sense
FCA needs to BUY carbon credits from Tesla in Europe so FCA is faced with
option
"A" keep paying Tesla
"B" build an EV to lower their carbon footprint to REDUCE the fines/credits
the 500 is a decent seller in European cities and commands a good mark up compared to the Panda + being a compact reduces the chance of LONG trips being a primary concern and small and pricy = a good way to cover the cost of a battery EV
 
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