The New Face of Fiat?????????

M

mbusman

Big Bird
My wife and I are in Italy for 2 weeks. Before I post photo links, I must say that there are quite a few MBZ sedans, BMW & Alfa Romeo sports sedans and sedans and the rest seem to be roller skate size fuel sippers. Only two sports cars I've seen so far were a BMW Z4 and Porsche Boxter. Lots of really little guys including various Fiats, Renaults, Peugeots, Toyota Varis hatchbacks, Ford Focus, and tiny Hundais. Only Hondas seen so far were two CRVs. Nissan seems to have a presence with a tiny guy too. Also saw from a distance what appeared to be a full size Fiat Van and SUV/minivan.

Anyway, here's the pix so far. All I can say about styling is that the X beats the pants off these guys. Click on thumbnail photos to get a short description of the model, etc. If I see more/different during the trip, I'll post the pix to get opinions if y'all think these will sell in the USA.

Mike




















 
If you want one of these....

The last 3 pics are the same car as we have here known as the Suzuki SX4. As a matter of fact, there was one Ebay vendor that was selling the rebadge kit so that your could use Fiat badges on the US version.
 
kmead said:
Except now it is a VW as VW bought Suzuki.
Click to expand...

Bought Suzuki? I don't think it has gone anywhere near that far. What I've read is that Volkswagen has purchased 19.9% of Suzuki and likewise Suzuki has purchased 2.5% of the Volkswagen Group.

Part of this will have Volkswagen receiving their own version of the Giugiaro-designed Fiat Sedici/Suzuki SX4, called the VW Rocktan.
 
Alright, bought may have been a bit strong for what is currently 20%, but the ultimate effect will be that Suzuki is a VW brand. In the US I could easily see them being absorbed by VW's sales organization as the new Kisashi launch has not been a crowning success.

From a press release:
Suzuki currently maintains ventures with Nissan Motor Co. and Fiat SpA, though they are likely to be phased out under its alliance with Volkswagen.

Which suggests the SX4 could become a non Fiat vehicle in the near future.

But yes I should have been more accurate in my description, the net result is likely to be the same. We actually have one of the Suzuki dealers here in town and its very rare to actually see any of their cars beyond the SX4.
 
Hey Ryan.. Interesting note...

Fiat owns 20% of Chrysler and is now running the operation.

Could the .001% make the difference?

HA!
 
No Ferraris or Lamborghinis seen so far........

Must be their annual production ends up parked on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills.

As for styling, the majority of what I've seen so far is utilitarian. At $7 and change/gallon, I can understand all the roller skates I've seen. I bet George's Martini, Bob Turchan's X, and probably everyone else's X would turn heads over here.

Maybe the problem is the heavy city traffic and difficulty to find parking. No winding roads to hit 35 mph curves at 65 mph in the city. Maybe things might look different Saturday when we hit the Tuscany countryside. I'll take pictures if I see anything different/interesting from Fiat.

Mike
 
A sportier looking Fiat seen today??????

in Florence. There's no "FIAT" front emblem, only a difficult to read Fiat plaque on the back side, which I tried cropping and adjusting contrast to make the photo a bit more readable. Maybe someone here can better identify the car.
Mike


P1050028.jpg


P1050029.jpg


P1050030.jpg


P1050031.jpg


P1050031a_edited.jpg
 
WOW... three abreast and...

... look at that trailing arm suspension system. Front IFS is interesting also!

I have NO idea what it is... MORE INFO please!
 
Sorry, I deleted the pics from photobucket shortly after posting and I guess that deleted them from this thread? Is that what happened? Anyway, they are back.
 
Matra Murena, before this Matra Bagheera was the chassis this three seater French mid-engine car was based on.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matra_Murena

Kinda rare in the US, but another significant small mid-engine car from that era when mid-engine sports cars were in Vogue.

Being French & "different, the driver was seated in the center, ala McLaren by Gordon Murry..

The French has designed some of the most interesting cars to date, but generally remain un-appreciated, like Italian cars, they have style, personality and charm.... something that does not appeal to some.

Bernice

Hasbro said:
One of my favorites. Anyone know what it is?

s1xray2xm6ns.jpg
Click to expand...
 
WOW... thanks for that Bernice...

But both the drawing and Wiki never mention the center position driver...

I can see that for racing but having a passenger on one or both sides of me while driving... especially for passing would seem to be dangerous, as well as a hindrance... Cool idea, but not very practical.

I did get a chance to ride in Brett's Multipla last year with three abreast seating... and ME sitting on the LEFT side spooking out passing traffic! Felt STRANGE to me also!

HA!
 
Hello,

the red one is a Matra Murena , the yellow is a Bagheera. I know the Bagheera very well because my father has a 1977 Bagheera ( yellow). It has the same spirit than the X1/9 (little mid-engine) but i don't like the noise of its engine. The handling is incredibly modern , soft, and it's not common to drive with 2 seats near you.

David
 
matra!

Gee! That's my car. The cutaway is of the series 1 and I have the Series 2 Bagheera. Driver sits on the left as shown in the picture not in the middle. Its like a bench seat but shaped for 3 posteriors. Metal skeleton chassis with fiber glass panels riveted and glued to it. I have only driven it in the yard but the little ohv valve 4 with twin double barrel webers sounds pretty good. The Murena boasted a galvanized chassis which was a pretty smart idea considering how prone the Bagheeras were to rust. Just a note the Matra Djet of the 60's was alleged to be the worlds first production mid-engined car.
 
3rd seat

scorpion said:
Gee! That's my car. The cutaway is of the series 1 and I have the Series 2 Bagheera. Driver sits on the left as shown in the picture not in the middle. Its like a bench seat but shaped for 3 posteriors.
Click to expand...

Nice to see another bagheera owner; I had a series 1 Bagheera, yellow. I sold it a few years back. My wife was never quite sure whether to sit right next to me, or leave an empty spot in between us. A true Frenchman would have brought his wife and his mistress...
 
matra

Have you heard the one about why a Frenchmen always pays his photo-radar speeding ticket when he gets it - because in the accompanying picture the woman in the passenger seat is not his wife.
I like the style of the Series 1 better than the Series 2. Maybe someday I'll get the Series 1.
 
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