Italian-Austrian Karl (Carlo) Abarth founded his car company in Turin in 1949. Abarth was known for it’s prowess in hill climbing, racing and for it’s exhaust pipes. It was the racing arm for Fiat in the ’70s and ’80s and then withered for a time. Fiat resurrected the brand with its relaunch in 2007 of the Fiat 500 Abarth, to the delight of it’s dedicated collectors.
Take a journey through Abarth Mark Gessler and his 1950’Abarth 204 A, Giuseppe Fiermonti and the 1972 Abarth 124, Ruben Wainberg and Livia Nasi on board of theirs 2008 Abarth 500.
Suddenly little cars have found some swagger. Is the Abarth headed for U.S. soil? Fiat revived the brand best known for ’60s style racing to create the latest funky tuner. We’ve seen some slick looking Abarth footage lately and the European press has good things to say about the Fiat Abarth. Perhaps Fiat will out-Smart the competitors with extra bad abilities particular if it dips into the SRT range.
If all goes according to plan, we as Americans, are making an investment. We are making an investment in the future of the American car, the global vehicle.
If all goes according to plan, GM will be put back together again in a structure more efficient than the former bloated structure.
If all goes Chrysler will make bella cars for small-car seeking American drivers, the way Fiat does across Europe.
If all goes according to plan, we are moving toward an energy efficient future.
If all goes according to plan, the dealers, suppliers, executives, UAW plant workers, retirees and contractors who’ve are in financial straits, will find new avenues for survival.
At least, that’s what the plan calls for. What remains to be seen is how this plan will play out on everyday lives, how unforeseen events will affect this game, how people will pick up the pieces, and how Americans are going to buy and sell cars to make all of this rebuilding possible. Or as Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm put it today, “We’re starting to hit rock bottom. We know there is an end to this.” We have the plan, now the end of the story remains to be written.
Chrysler pulled a fast one on the auto industry, or at least a deft lane change by turning over a 35% stake to Fiat. We’ll be watching this partnership unfold. Somehow, we can’t help but think back on Chrysler’s other foreign touchstones — Mitsu, Lambo.. the list goes on. But in those situations, the big dog was on the other side of the fence, that was until Daimler Dachsund came around. This whole thing still might not fly, according to the Detroit Free Press, with the complicated loan issues at stake if Fiat becomes a big investor.
Yesterday Chrysler and Fiat announced a “strategic alliance” wherein Fiat would take a big stake, cost-free, in the American company. Bells rang, whistles blew, cheers went up—mainly from the Cerberus boardroom. That company happily is giving away 35% of Chrysler, which it bought (80%) for $7.4 billion from Daimler Benz less than two years ago. And everyone loves the deal.
But enough of high finance. Most of us hope the deal works out. Chrysler would gain access to a range of excellent FWD, low-emission small cars that, rebadged and rebodied, it could begin selling relatively quickly. The company would finally have access to the European and South American markets. It would get critical help rebuilding and, maybe, succeed in convincing the Feds to cough up the conditional $3 billion in March that it needs.
Fiat gets a heckuva deal. Mainly it gets access to the U.S. market, both for manufacturing and distribution. Check our buddies at Cargurus.com, who supplied this text, and get their twist on the matter.
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