We didn't care for the Ka's abuse of cats and squirrels(re fake commercials you've probably seen)
As a first post here is my view from the States.
Last time Fiat was here they garnered a very bad rap, not simply because of products that were eventually linked to Yugo (a Fiat design and license without oversight) but because of a lack of proper parts, service, and warranty. Being sold at used car lots and motorcycle dealers didn't help. Plus they hadn't been thoroughly engineered for harsh winters with over 100" of snow and tons of road salt.
I almost purchased a Lancia after driving a 131 Mirafiori, and still think the X/19 paved the way for our Pontiac Fiero.
But what I can picture, beyond the need Chrysler has for a remake of the Omni and Horizon which borrowed much from the 131, and for a 500 whose rubber band transmision won't burn up with 4 teenagers aboard, is that Fiat and Alpha Romeo (who already has scheduled a return to our shores) will be able to hit the ground running (in American foootball jargon) with a dealer network and quickly trainable technicians already firmly entrenched. Plus the necessity of overnight parts supply.
I see a good alliance (hate that word as iut conjures up pieces of crap from Renault marketed as AMC) wher both companies can benefit. The other alternative is selling Fiats at CNH agricultural tractor dealers.
When the Americans make cars, they always manage to produce a classic out
of almost every range, to whit, Camaro Z28, Firebird SD455, GTO, Olds 442, Mustang Boss 302, varous hemi engined Chargers and Challengers and so on, but they cock it up on 2 fronts. They don't like modern technolgy and they spoil successful European designs when they "Americanise" them. Chrysler Cricket anyone? I'm pretty certain the Avenger name was already in use on a Chrysler model over there, but Cricket, come on. The Omni was, I think a US version of the Chrysler Horizon which was actually a Simca, complete with engines that were so "tappety" they sounded terminal every time they came past. I hired a car 3 years ago in Baltimore for the day and when I looked at the cars in a particular price group I saw the Pontiac Grand Prix and the Dodge Somethingorother. Great I'll have one of those it's bound to have at least a V6. The only one they had was a Focus as seen above. The little changes they made to the outside of the car just made it look bland. Inside it had a mega stereo, an auto box and the Air Con was so powerful I had to turn
it down, and the temprature ranged from 98 to 105 degrees that day. It's equipment was lamentable apart from those, with manual door locks, mirrors and wind up windows. But what really spoilt it was the dash. Gone was the dramatic slash cut dash with its sophisticated slinky surface and in its place was something that looked like beige elephant hide and had been re-cycled from a 1970s Datsun. It was hideous. When Mercedes had to alter the headlamps on some of their cars in the '70s for the US market they still looked
good. Generally speaking when BMW or Audi or almost any European maker adapted their cars for US legislation they still looked good, with the possible exception of the MGB. Even the mk1 Ford Fiasco looked ok, in fact it was the round headlights in a square rebate that made the first XR2 look so distinctive
and the Saab 99 and 900 would have looked weird without the big bumpers. As for technolgy, I went to the Tank Museum in Bovington in the summer and saw a US light to medium tank that came out right at the end of WW2. Its engine was cut away and there we had a 4 overhead cam V8 with 32 valves.
In 1945. Think Aston Martin V8, Maserati Ghibli/Indy, Ferrari 308 and Porsche 928. They all came out 25 years after this tank, but where was the Chevvy or
Mercury or Dodge with this kind of engine? Chevrolet had a go in a small way with the Chevvy Vega Cosworth but I think it was the '80s before a Corvette got a sophisticated engine, and that was the top of the line version. With tough emissions regulations in the mid '70s, 5.7 litre (350CI) V8s went from having over 250 hp to 165!!!!! A V8 quad cam 4 valve head would mean they wouldn't need such big engines now. France and Italy have punitive taxation for cars of over 2 litres, hence the 2 litre version of the Maserati Bi-Turbo, and Merak, not to mention the Ferrari 206 and 208 and the FIAT Dino 206. This means that 4X4 Pick ups are going nowhere significant in much of Europe. Chrysler also missed the opportunity to bring over some of their prettiest cars 5-10 years ago with the likes of their cab forward designs like the Cirrus (?) and Stratus (?). There would have to be an agreement for the 300C to keep using the Mercedes diesels as FIAT don't have anything big enough and the same goes for the Grand Cherokee (I think). Having said that,
the smaller Chrysler/Jeeps like the Patriot use an Italian engine at the moment
made by VM Motori, so at least there's an Italian link there. Chrysler will have to get away from the likes of those awful cast iron four cylinder engines they and the rest of the US makers built in the '80s and use more modern engines. GM ignored the modern alloy OHC engines built by Vauxhall/Opel and built crude engines of their own. If Chrysler made Heavy Goods Vehicles then that could have been a good link up, but unfortunately; they don't. Could FIAT supply their own up to date petrol engines? Well, maybe but seeing the V6 is a GM(H) engine and the 2.2 4 banger also originates from GM in Europe, that only leaves us with the smaller 1.4s, and until Chrysler make something the size of a Bravo.....Oh yes, I think Chrysler's European factory in Austria is run by Steyr who, if I'm not mistaken make the 4X4 transmissions for some Pandas. As for the Italians in the US, well a ready made dealer network is always a good thing as is parts distribution, but otherwise I really can't see the benefits. Enlighten me someone; please.
