The platform will be called "C", standing for compact. The first car to be underpinned by the new architecture on the European market is the Alfa Romeo Giulietta, which will have its world premiere at the Geneva Auto Show in less than a month.
Fiat and Chrysler are now developing a wider version of the platform, called Compact Wide, which will serve as a base for at least seven new cars belonging to the Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep brands.
The new platform has been designed to offer a good handling. To achieve this, it uses McPherson front suspensions, while the rear suspension uses a dual-link layout. For weight-saving purposes, the front suspension arms and the rear suspension crossmember are made from aluminum.
The platform weighs 174 kg, thus being 10 percent lighter than its predecessor. It is built from 84 percent high and ultrahigh strength steel for an increased structural rigidity. As a comparison, its predecessor was built from only 65 percent of these materials.
"In developing the Compact architecture, we looked for best-in-class performances in terms of handling and steering response, weight-to-power ratio; noise, vibration and harshness, active and passive safety," Stefano Re Fiorentin, Fiat's head of advanced engineering was quoted as saying by autonews.
The platform, in both of its forms, has been engineered to sustain front- or four-wheel-drive, transverse engines layouts.
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