Fiat 500 Facelift to Get 4WD, LPG

It's been a while since Italian manufacturer Fiat decided to revive one of its former stars-of-the-lineup, the 500, and the decision seems to have paid off. The car is a hit on European markets and, perhaps for that reason too, was chosen to lead the Fiat return to the US.

Fiat is planning for the European version a facelift of the model though, which is likely to enter the market next year. Whereas the visual changes to be brought to the 500 are to be expected, being a facelift and all, the biggest changes will likely come in the form of the engineering behind the car.

According to Autoblog.it, although nothing has been officially confirmed yet, the revised 500 will bring with it a four-wheel drive version. Even if a new 4x4 system will not be developed especially for the 500, the model will use the rather successful one employed on the 500's bigger brother, the Panda.

That's the exciting news regarding the 500. Another news, this one more Eco-conscious in nature, will be the addition of the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) technology to the 500 range. As was the case with the 4x4 version, the Panda will also be a source of inspiration for this model, but this time the Panda Natural Power.

As far as engines go, the revised 500 will likely use 1.2l and 1.4l powerplants, to go with the recently introduced two-cylinder TwinAir. The TwinAir engine is the first in a long line of such units to be introduced by Fiat in the years to come.