This week, the "You Know ..." line will bear Fiat's history, from its founding in 1899 to the rebirth of the new 500 in 2007.
Fiat was born in 1899 when the Italians launched their first car, a 4-horsepower car that could reach 35 km / h and was sold in the first year in four units. The company was founded by Giovanni Agnelli, a 33-year entrepreneur. The name of the Italian brand is actually an acronym for the Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino.
After a series of models considered exclusive at that time, Fiat's first truly affordable Fiat was produced in 1932. It was called 508 Balilla and then cost 12,500 Italian pounds, that is, the two-year salary of a worker.
At present, the Fiat Group's activity includes, besides factories and commercial vehicles, production of agricultural and construction machinery (CNH), industrial vehicles (Iveco), components and production systems (Magneti Marelli) Stamp with the newspaper. Besides the above-mentioned publication, the Italian group also owns Itedi and Italian Edizioni. Some national and local publications are controlled by the three media groups.
The first Fiat factory had 150 employees and was founded in 1900 in Corso Dante. In the year of the official opening, the factory produced 24 units. At this time, the Fiat Group has over 220,000 employees, half of whom work outside Italy. In 1921, workers took control of Fiat's factories and anchored a Communist flag above them. In protest, Giovanni Agnelli resigned.
At the Fiat Lingotto factory in Turin, the test track for the new models is on the roof of the building. The 5-storey building, the largest factory in Europe at that time, was considered one of the most avant-garde, the production line starting from the ground floor and gradually climbing to the upper floors. Disused in 1982, the building shelters today, among others, a hotel.
Fiat holds the record of the title of "Car of the Year" or "Car of the Year" in Europe, the showcase of Italians hosted 9 trophies, last won with the Fiat 500 model in 2008. However, we also consider the other models in the group Car of the Year, Lancia and Alfa Romeo, the Fiat Group has 12 awards. The models that have won this distinction are: Fiat 124, 128, 127, Lancia Delta, Fiat Uno, Fiat Tipo, Fiat Bravo / Brava, Fiat Punto, Alfa Romeo 156, Alfa Romeo 147, Fiat Panda and Fiat 500.
Fiat's 70-horsepower Multijet 1.3 engine was chosen in 2005 as the International Engine of the Year. It was then the smallest 4-cylinder diesel engine with a consumption that can only be 3.3 l / 100 km. The second generation of Multijet engines will be launched in 2009.
Seat manufacturer was "standing up" with Fiat's support. The Spaniards produced Fiat models under the Seat brand until 1981, when the Italian manufacturer withdrew its support.
During the First World War, on August 9, 1918, 8 planes produced by Fiat overcame the city of Vienna by distributing flyers with peace messages. In the interwar period Fiat produced a series of aircraft, which were highly appreciated at that time. These were models such as CR 32, CR 42 and CR 25. The Italian manufacturer has produced nine aircraft models throughout its history. During the Second World War, Fiat produced tanks and military aircraft for the Italian and German armies.
The Fiat S76 beat the world speed record in 1912 in New York, driving the required distance of 290 km / h. The model was called 300 hp and is still one of Fiat's most powerful creations.
The MC 72, which reached the world-wide speed record in 1934, unmatched so far, was equipped with a 610 hp Fiat engine. Its speed was 709 km / h.
In 1922, the first diesel-electric locomotive in the world was equipped with a Fiat engine that develops 440 horsepower.
In 1979, the Fiat 147 was the first car produced in series that worked exclusively with ethanol instead of gasoline. At present, Fiat is the manufacturer with the lowest European average CO2 emissions: 133.7 g / km.
Since 2005, Fiat has been the leader of the Brazilian car market with a fabulous market share of over 25%.
Until its 2007 launch, the Fiat 500 was produced in nearly 3,500,000 units, of which 600,000 are still present. The Fiat 500 Club Italia, an independent association of Fiat 500 fans, has over 12,000 members worldwide and a site that since June 7, 1999 has been accessed over 3,450,000 times: www.500clubitalia.it
At the launch of the new cinquecento, Fiat developed for the first time a multimedia platform that invited the public to draw and configure their own car, thus bringing suggestions to the designers finishing the project at the Mirafiori factory.
By 2006 Fiat owned the Sestriere Ski Resort in the Alps, a settlement founded by the family of Agnelli, the original brand owner.
The Fiat logo, oval on a blue background, drawn by Biscaretti, was adopted in 1904. Since then, Fiat has changed its logo design 14 times over its history.
In the year 2000, Fiat signed an alliance with the US manufacturer GM whose results were, among other things, JTS and JTD Multijet propellers. In 2005, the collaboration ended.
In 1945, the year when Mussolini was removed, the Italian National Liberation Committee removed the family of Agnelli from Fiat's leadership. The reason given was their collaboration with Mussolini's government. Following the founder Giovanni, more precisely his nephew Gianni, returned to Fiat in 1966 as general manager and then as president until 1996.
