Off Topic No longer in the top 10

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Off Topic No longer in the top 10

Absolutely, although a different segment the new Tipo looks particularly dull but I guess it could be a big seller in Italy. The 124 spider could be a hit though
 
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Though it has been facelifted that is really only a precursor to a new model and to get a little more mileage out of the 8 year old design, and with the 500, fiat have most of their eggs in one basket. Get the new design wrong and it could cost them a huge chunk of their market sales

Tbf beating each generation of car with a successively bigger ugly stick doesn't seem to have hurt MINI sales.

Then again Newcastle is filled with posters showing the back of a clubman and the words "incredibly attainable" and low low monthly payments so it would appear even the local dealer has nothing good to say about it and is wanting to shift some.
 
Tbf beating each generation of car with a successively bigger ugly stick doesn't seem to have hurt MINI sales.


If you look at what mini do, they don't really change a lot, they have to make each model look a bit different but then it's the look that sells the car so they can't change things too much. Fiat on the other hand don't just bring out a new car, they completely redesigned every aspect each time they bring out a new generation and in a lot of cases change the name as well.. Unto -> punto --> grande --> evo --> back to punto. Or look at the evolution from the original 500 to the current model taking them decades to get back to the 500 badge again.

Every time fiat do this they damage their brand loyalty, mini owners on the other hand buy another new mini that's a whole new car but somehow very much the same and they know where they stand, and can boast "of yeah I have the NEW mini......."

Trying to convince my OH her mini needs trading in for a clubman SD all4 next year ;)
 
If you look at what mini do, they don't really change a lot, they have to make each model look a bit different but then it's the look that sells the car so they can't change things too much. Fiat on the other hand don't just bring out a new car, they completely redesigned every aspect each time they bring out a new generation and in a lot of cases change the name as well.. Unto -> punto --> grande --> evo --> back to punto. Or look at the evolution from the original 500 to the current model taking them decades to get back to the 500 badge again.

Every time fiat do this they damage their brand loyalty, mini owners on the other hand buy another new mini that's a whole new car but somehow very much the same and they know where they stand, and can boast "of yeah I have the NEW mini......."

Trying to convince my OH her mini needs trading in for a clubman SD all4 next year ;)

I thought the grande/evo/new punto were based off the same platform, hence the new punto being so heavily discounted?

FIAT must be doing something right with the 500, given the volumes they've shifted and the strong residual values (which in turn probably help new sales stay so bouyant).
 
I'm very much interested in the next generation of mini, at that point I can predict with reasonable certainty the headlamps will exceed the diameter of the original mini steering wheel and will require 22s for the side profile to look correct. Hopefully Fiat won't swell the 500 in the same way, using the same styling festures but bigger doesn't look right done so haphazardly. I do guess they'll want to do a 5dr and given the stick it's had in JD power for rear leg room it'll probably end up longer as well. Hopefully it will be done by someone with an eye for proportion.

While the 500l is pretty gruesome, the X is reasonably successful compared to whatever the mini version is called maybe countryman? Is is it the paceman? Or is it the rocketman? God knows they all look the same all that differs is the monthly payment size as far as can tell...other than that one that was actually a 2 seater and looked like someone had welded a gigantic steel backwards baseball hat onto a cabrio.

But anyway my point being the mini proves it really doesn't need to be a looker..
 
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