By John LeBlanc for MSN Autos
Did you really expect all those Chrysler dealers, who spent loads of dough creating all-new Fiat facilities, to get by with just selling one model, the lone 500 city car? Of course not. So without much surprise, Fiat has formally released images of an all-new 500L—as in “Large”—due for its world debut at next month’s Geneva auto show.
By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos
Volkswagen's Up line of sub-subcompacts has been receiving a steady stream of positive reviews for bringing some much-needed sophistication to an otherwise price-sensitive class. Now, the company announced it will build a performance-minded GT version based on a concept shown at the last Frankfurt auto show. It'll have nearly double the power (110 horses!), aggressive styling and presumably a more tied-down feel around corners.
That little three-cylinder turbo would provide more than adequate if the Up were to come here to North America, joining an ever-increasingly large number of offerings in the mini-subcompact class. The Fiat 500, Scion iQ and Smart Fortwo are the three currently on sale in Canada, and will soon be joined by the Chevrolet Spark.
Would Volkswagen have a business case to sell the Up in Canada? If so, does your current lifestyle support buying something so small, perhaps as a second commuter car? Or for a student looking for an inexpensive set of new wheels?
Also, what other 'mini-subs' out there would you like to see on our roads? The Ford Ka, like this photo on the right? A Nissan Pixo? Let us know!
By Jake Lingeman, AutoWeek
Fiat will look to gain more traction in the U.S. market with a wagon version of the subcompact 500. Fiat brand chief Olivier Francois said the company will introduce a five-door model at the Geneva Motor Show in March.
Fiat sold less than 20,000 copies of the 500 last year in the United States, well below its initial target.
"We thought we were going to show up and just because of the fact people like gelato and pasta, people will buy it," CEO Sergio Marchionne told reporters. "This is nonsense."
The slow-selling 2012 Fiat 500 now has another obstacle in its sales path: It has been tagged by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration with a three-star safety rating, the lowest of any new model tested so far.
The two-door subcompact received four stars from NHTSA for frontal crash and rollover accidents but received just two stars for side-impact crash safety, the agency announced on its Web site, safercar.gov.
The tests gave the car a combined overall safety rating of three stars, NHTSA reported. The outgoing Dodge Caliber and Ford Escape SUV were the only other 2012 model vehicles whose test results have been completed and released so far by the agency with three-star ratings.
By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos
Fiat currently sells versions of the Dodge Journey and Chrysler 200 in Europe as Fiats and Lancias, and we've known for a while that some smaller cars and vans would be headed back in the other direction. We now have confirmation that the first product will revive the name Dart and will be an Alfa Romeo-based compact sold in Canada and the United States.
We've got a couple early teaser photos for you here that show off some real stying ties to the updated Charger, including a 'racetrack' rear light cluster. Dodge says the Dart will come with three engines, including the 1.4-litre turbocharged version of the company's MultiAir four-cylinder engine. Could we finally see a small turbodiesel there too? Might be worth it.
This also will mean the Caliber will finally bite the dust... Few are shedding tears over that call.
Let's just hope that the Dart is a more thorough polish job than the Fiat 500.
By Greg Migliore, AutoWeek
The Los Angeles auto show kicked off in typical fashion on Wednesday, with car companies rolling out the familiar lineups of convertibles and green machines tailored for the Southern California audience.
Yes, the Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 and the Jaguar XKR-S are sinister, and the Honda Fit EV will be eco-friendly. But you knew that. So here are a few nuggets we learned after a day of prowling the floor that you won't hear other places.
By Greg Migliore, AutoWeek
The track-bred, enthusiast-oriented Fiat 500 Abarth will be revealed in November at the Los Angeles auto show.
This is the much-anticipated performance variant of the 500, which has spurred Fiat's return to the United States this year.
The Abarth version gets the 1.4-liter MultiAir engine and upgraded brakes and suspension pieces. More details will be revealed closer to the show.
Fiat has sold 13,861 copies of the 500 through the first three quarters of 2011.
By Jake Lingeman, AutoWeek
Chrysler is taking more than 30 Mopar-modified cars to the 2011 SEMA show, all of which will be sitting in the company's 28,400-square-foot display area. More than 500 Mopar parts will be displayed.
The Mopar “image” vehicles include the Chrysler 300 SF6, the Dodge Challenger SRT8 ACR, the Dodge Durango Tow Hook, the Fiat Titanium, the Fiat Carbon and the Ram 392 Quick Silver.
By Luca Ciferri and Bradford Wernle, AutoWeek
The Ram brand will get a commercial van based on the Fiat Ducato large paneled van, supplier sources said at the Frankfurt motor show.
Chrysler plans to build 30,000 a year in Mexico, the sources said. Chrysler already builds Ram heavy-duty pickups in Saltillo, Mexico.
The van will fill a hole in Chrysler Group's commercial vehicle business that was created when the company stopped selling the Dodge Sprinter vans, produced by Mercedes-Benz, after the DaimlerChrysler divorce in 2009.
By Mark Atkinson for MSN Autos
Having spent some time behind the wheel of most of Chrysler and Dodge's new and revamped product line, they are for the most part, definite improvements on poor or middling products. Kudos to the engineering and design teams that spent 12 months of solid overtime to get those updates out the door while that whole bankruptcy/Fiat sale thing was going on.
Anyway, Consumer Reports has given its verdict on ChryCo's products. It said that the Durango and Charger were "very good" and that the Town & Country was much improved, but that the remainder were simply "mediocre."
So what do you think? Have the Chrysler 200 (nee Sebring), Dodge Avenger and Journey, Jeep Compass and Patriot changed enough to consider purchasing one? Are you a current owner who thinks Consumer Reports should get stuffed? Let us know.
Justin Couture
Reportedly, the first word to come out of his mouth was "car," and since then it's evolved into a life-long passion. Justin is a fan of passionately engineered vehicles, but in general, loves the industry as much as the cars it produces.
