Sunday,
March 25, 2007
Sweet Life is Back for
Fiat
The
ANNOTICO Report
The iconic Fiat 500 -- the Cinquecento -the
unlikely transport of the Latin lover: a symbol of exhilarating freedom and
romance to a weary post-war generation of Italians is back- in an updated
version, unveiled to an outpouring of nostalgia
and national pride.
The
Australian
Richard
Owen
Rome
March 24, 2007
Now,
half a century after the iconic Fiat 500 -- the Cinquecento -- was introduced,
an updated version has been unveiled to an outpouring of nostalgia and national
pride.
Like the Mini and
Volkswagen Beetle -- which have also been given a new lease on life in modern
versions -- the Fiat 500 is not so much a car, more a myth, said one
enthusiast.
For Italians
preoccupied with economic woes, political instability and scandals, the 50th
anniversary celebrations of
Renzo Arbore,
a veteran Italian singer and entertainer, said: "For our generation, the Cinquecento
was the courting car of the Latin lover. It was a kind of mini bachelor pad on
wheels."
Like the Vespa, the Fiat 500, the brainchild of the designer Dante Giacosa, symbolised Italians'
newfound freedom and mobility and featured frequently in classic films of the
1950s and 60s. "Perhaps Fiat could issue a car blanket of the kind we used
to take along for romantic purposes," Mr Arbore said.
He said the
original was "compact, not to say small, but there always seemed to be
plenty of room. It was not just a car, it was an
object of passion".
According to
Silvia Depaoli, the head of the Fiat 500 Club at Garlenda in
Ms Depaoli -- who owns six 500s -- said she hoped the new
version would "appeal to the young, just as the original did to us in the
1960s".
Nothing, however,
could replace the classic Cinquecento, which "achieved an immortal place
in our hearts ... it was part of our youth, our loves and our life".
Four million of
the originals were made in 18 years and about one million are thought to have
survived.
The new version
will be greener and faster than the original, which had a top speed of only
95km/h. It is wired up for satellite navigation, iPods
and Bluetooth, but retains the circular dials and white-leather steering wheel
of the 1957 version.
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