[fonsi]

hey guys im doin a project on fiat ..
anything abt fiat will help me..
like history,profits,owners,etc....

[fonsi]

i need it urgently.....asas

[gTr]

Hey pal,just log on2 google.com and type fiat history.U'll receive numerous websites linking ya to various sites.
All the best for ya project.

P.s : just a lil curious as to y u chose the project on fiat??/
or was it mandatory

Laterz!!

[fonsi]

hey gtr...thanks..but i have done all tht stuff..
all will have the same stuff ..i want something different..
yah its mandatory

[amit]

have u tried fiat.com? they have a whole section on their history. rite from 1899 till date. seems pretty comphrehensive to me. try it out if u haven't already
all the best

[Stratos]

Dude... maybe this may go out of the way.. but try to find a issuse of BS Motoring... some months ago.. in which there was an article of Tom Tjaarda.. i think... he had designed many cars for FIAT... there was some really nice info in that article!..

[F50]

I think I got a mag. which has all history of Fiat

[Kinetik]

hey fonsi i've done a project in the fiat r&D dept.. the initial part of the project descibes some stuff abt the company. if u wish u can have a look

[heavy_foot]

hey fonsi check out this link ...www.carsfromitaly.com
will be of help for you...and all the best pal.
cheerio

[fonsi]

hey guys thanks for all ur help..
i appreciate it..thanks
coz my project is done..

[amit]

congrats! hopefully it went well. Maybe u can share some not so known fiat facts and trivia with us

[hasopi]

I am starting a new FIAT thread..with all of your permission.



Taken from PALIOUSERSINDIA yahoo group.

http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/.../message/16106


FIAT DESIGNS – THEN AND NOW
Over 100 Years Of Design Expertise

FIAT was founded in Turin on July 12, 1899. The first plant, inaugurated in 1900 at Corso Dante, had 235 employees and produced 24 automobiles. The first automobile to bear the Fiat brand name was a model 4 HP

Other models followed soon, the 8, then 10, then 12HP. The 8HP was the first front-engined Fiats, with a two-cylinder 1082cc engine producing 10hp, built at a rate of one per week. The 12HP, with a 3768cc engine was the first Fiat to be widely exported, around Europe and to the US. A total of 134 were built.

The first mass-produced Fiat, the Zero 12-15HP was introduced in 1912. This used a 1847cc engine producing 18hp and over 2000 were built up until 1915. 1912 also saw a Fiat, the S76, set the world land speed record. This monster was powered by a 28355cc four-cylinder engine with three spark plugs per cylinder and 290hp.

Maybe the most famous Fiat, the 500 'Topolino', was first shown in 1936. A small (the smallest mass produced car in the world at the time), two seater, it was powered by a 569cc four cylinder engine with just 13hp. Up to 1948, 122,000 were produced. Fiat has produced over 450 models since its inception and is world renowned for its superb design capabilities. In the Indian context, most noteworthy of mentioning is the range of cars that Fiat offers on the 178 platform which includes the very popular hot hatch – The Palio.

Since these were different markets, with different cultures and needs, which are difficult to meet, with a single model a fresh approach was required. As a result, it was decided to develop not one car but a modular platform with several bodywork types. Different models developed from a single matrix, which adopted the most advanced quality standards to ensure that the models would be competitive on every market in terms of styling, safety, technology, price and reliability.

And so the Fiat Palio was born, the Fiat Group's first 'world car'. It was presented in April 1996 at Ouro Preto (Brazil), and the forefather of this family of cars was gradually joined by the other models (the Siena, Palio Weekend and Strada) all with an international spirit, which in six years have decreed the great worldwide success of the '178 project'. This is borne out by the fact that today the four models are marketed in forty countries, produced in nine plants, distributed in four continents and that over two million units have been sold.

The 178 family also makes the Fiat range extremely versatile, able to exploit all sales opportunities. In some countries only a single model is produced and marketed, while all versions are available in others. In other words a differentiated response from a single project that reflects the needs and characteristics of each market. Nor can we forget that this worldwide initiative has given rise to a vast number of agreements with the main international suppliers, and the commitment to stimulate the exchange of components and to encourage the growth of local industry.

At this point it is clear that such a broad, complex project could not be implemented in a conventional way. This is confirmed by the fact that Fiat's first 'world car' was also developed on a global scale, through a process that marked a new departure in the company's history. A multinational team of experts from different countries defined the features of the model, bearing in mind the specific demands of each of the markets in which the Palio would be sold. What is more, the 60 major components suppliers to the Palio were involved in the development of the product as 'co-designers'. They guaranteed strictly identical components, built in all parts of the world with the same materials, the same manufacturing processes, the same technologies and the same quality.

This strategy made it possible to cut development time for the model, but above all to guarantee that the manufacturing standards, and therefore the quality of the Palio - and now of the Siena, Palio Weekend and Strada - are always the same and the highest possible, wherever the car is built and whatever the labour culture and mentality of the country in which it is manufactured.

Joint development also made it possible to harmonise the technological and manufacturing processes of the models in the 178 family rapidly throughout the world, a key factor for the achievement of a series of savings that guarantee that the end product has a competitive cost.

To achieve this result, the specific expertise of each Fiat plant in the world was evaluated, and production of parts and components for the cars was assigned to one plant or another according to the specific skills of each one. Truly as story that stands testimony to Fiat's design capabilities in the automotive arena.

THE PALIO – NOMENCLATURE AND DESIGN

Then name Palio refers to a popular Italian horse racing festival where the Palio was the prize in a contest that involves competition, sportsmanship and speed. It is a name appropriate for a car, which offers Italian styling, innovative design and truly exciting performance. The new Palio is a sharply fashionable car that also happens to be a practical hatchback. Created by the world famous Giorgetto Giugiaro, it is the first true World Car.

When designer Giugiaro began to re-skin the new Palio, he penned a holistic design that appeals to the sense of style of people all over the world. The Palio, as a result, has become a firm favourite because its distinctive up to date design has a strong personality and is liked almost universally. Giugiaro has incidentally been voted "Car designer of the Century" by motoring journalists worldwide. The original design of the Palio was carried out on the basis of a proposal from the IDEA Institute in Turin, with additional inputs from the Fiat Styling Center.

En route to redefining the dynamics of the B segment of the Indian automobile market, the Palio has been a winner all the way. The Palio won the prestigious CNBC Autocar 'Car of the Year' award along with the 'Best Value for Money car' award. Business Standard Motoring also adjudged the Fiat Palio as their 'Car of the Year'.

Despite this success, Fiat has not become complacent with the Palio and has relentlessly updated the car. Fiat carried out an exhaustive testing in India too, running 'trains' of Palios. Twenty-seven prototypes and 70 pre-production cars were tested over various types of terrain in India. In one of the most exhaustive testing programs ever conducted, the Palio, prior to launch in India in September 2001, covered more than 300,000 kilometers, always running more than eight cars together.

Once again in August of 2003 an updated version of the Palio called the Palio NV was introduced in India. The changes made on an ongoing basis since it launch are numerous and so far reaching that he car has been continuously improved in all areas. The outcome of these efforts in terms of style, technology and unbeatable comfort show that evolution knows know limits.

THE FIAT LOGO STORY

A hundred year long story… a story that is still going strong… a story of men, engines, roads, technology and, indeed, design as well. Design, not only of superlative models, but also in terms of among other things the changing face of the Fiat logo over the years.

Fiat vehicles across the world have begun adopting a new brand mark, beginning with the new Punto, which was presented on the occasion of Fiat's hundredth anniversary in July 1999. This brand mark is none other than the renowned round shield of the twenties, featuring a band of laurels around a blue field on which the Fiat name stands out in silver.

A restyled version of this symbol has now graced the front grille of the " centenary car " and will gradually be adopted by all Fiat models over a period of time. This was designed by the Fiat Style Center and the emblem stands for change in continuity, a sign of the past, re-interpreted in a modern light.

The round logo will replace the five bars that have given the Brands cars a family feeling since 1991. The groups trade mark the famous emblem of four cubes slanting at 18 degrees - remains the same, and will continue to distinguish the back of each model as the Company's unmistakable signature.