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New Fiat 500 EV Confirmed For 2020 Geneva Motor Show

Back in November 2018, chief operating officer for the EMEA region Pietro Gorlier made it clear that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will launch “employee training programs focused on hybrid and electric technologies.” There are plans to electrify every brand in the group, including Fiat with a successor for the slow-selling 500e that starts at $32,995.
Fiat 500 9 photos
Photo: Fiat
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Let that price sink in for a moment. At $32,995 before the federal tax credit and destination charge, the Nissan Leaf is superior to the Italian interloper in every aspect imaginable. It’s all the more surprising the next generation will be all-electric according to chief marketing officer Olivier Francois.

Speaking to Auto Express, the official highlighted two words. Totally electric. It’s kind of an urban Tesla, with beautiful style. Italianess, dolce vita in an electric car. It’s the polar opposite of Centoventi.” The latter is a concept car Fiat brought to the 2019 Geneva Motor Show earlier this month, a one-off with endless opportunities for customization.

“Premium is the way we will go with the electric 500,” concluded Francois, who did confirm the newcomer would be underpinned by an electric architecture currently under development. Despite this change in backbone, the size and proportions will remain familiar to Cinquecento customers.

The CMO didn’t offer information on pricing, nor did it mention the Abarth-ization of the 500 EV. Expected to be revealed in production form at the 2020 Geneva Motor Show, the timing leads us to believe the heir-apparent of the 500e will arrive at dealerships for the 2021 model year.

Surprising or not depending on who you’re asking, “the new 500 EV would not be the end of the line for the current 500.” Having a cheaper, internal combustion-engined alternative is an inspired choice considering the all-electric revolution hasn’t been completed, more so if you remember that lots of people suffer from range anxiety. Filling up with gasoline sounds simpler than searching for a charging station, right?

Based on what Groupe PSA did with the Peugeot 208, an urban dweller the size of the 500 couldn’t have more than 50 kWh of capacity. In the case of the e-208, electric range is WLTP-rated at 340 kilometers (211 miles) while the lithium-ion battery is covered by eight years or 160,000 kilometers (100,000 miles) for 70 percent of the original capacity.
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About the author: Mircea Panait
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After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
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