Fiat, one of the most historic car brands in the world and the oldest in Italy is celebrating 125 health. Founded in 1899 in the city of Turin, its name is the acronym for Italian Automobile Factory Turin.
Throughout its history, the automaker expanded beyond Italian borders, becoming one of the largest automotive companies in the world.
From the first car, the 4 HPpassing through classics like baby mouselos 500, 600, 1500, 128, Panda, Uno, Tempra, Tipo, Palioamong many others until reaching the current range, Fiat knew how to conquer the working class with reliable, accessible and attractively designed products.
Their models are part of the lives of millions throughout South America. To get a sense of its magnitude, only in Brazil did it produce more than 18 million units and built a network of more than 500 dealers.
In Argentina, the first country on the continent where it established itself as a producer, it manufactured tractors, locomotive engines, naval engines and railway cars, and then made its way by launching the unforgettable Fiat 600.
The creation of an empire
The first Fiat factory was inaugurated in 1900, on Corso Dante. He employed 35 workers who had the responsibility of working on the brand’s first model. he 4HP.
In 1901 the Fiat 12 HPa model designed by engineer Giovanni Enrico and the first vehicle with a four-cylinder engine made in Turin.
In 1903 Fiat began to rise in trading on the Stock Exchange, which enabled growth and expansion throughout the world. The strategy in those years was to direct its objectives towards product diversification and conquering potentially optimal markets.
In 1908, Fiat vehicles were already built under license in the United States and began to export to France, Austria, Great Britain and Australia. At the end of its first decade, the company already had a share capital of 12 million lire, 2,500 employees and a production of 1,215 cars.
After the First World War, when it focused exclusively on the manufacture of military vehicles, airplanes, ambulances, machine guns and submarine engines, the company resumed the production of cars (introduced the model 501) and expanded its activities in the steel, railway, electrical and public transport sectors.
In the 1930s, the brand sealed the style that would lead it to manufacture low-displacement cars. First was the 508better known as Balilla, and after the Second World War, the 500B, the 1100E and the 1500E.
In 1955 the Fiat 600utility vehicle of which more than four million units. Meanwhile, two years later the new 500which reached 3,678,000 units.
In 1966 Giovanni Agnelli, grandson of the founder, became the president of the society. In 1979, Fiat Auto was formed, including the Fiat, Lancia, Autobianchi, Abarth and Ferrari brands (50% of the shares of the latter had already been acquired in 1969).
In the 80s it bought Alfa Romeo and its subsidiaries, while in 1993 it added the prestigious Maserati.
In 2009, the Fiat Group signed an agreement with the United States government by which, in exchange for technology, it took over management and an expandable stake in the future of Chrysler Group LLC, a company created with the assets of the bankrupt Chrysler Corporation. LLC, of which it acquired all the shares in 2014, renamed Fiat Chrysler Automobiles.
On January 16, 2021, the company merged with the French group PSA (Citroën-Peugeot), coming under the protection of the Dutch industrial consortium Stellantis, becoming the fourth largest vehicle producer in the world behind Toyota, Volkswagen Group and Hyundai Motor Group.
As Italian as Argentine
With more than 100 years of history in Argentina, Fiat landed its first vehicle in our country in 1903 in the hands of an independent distributor. Years later, on May 21, 1919, the Italian company set up its first showroom in Buenos Aires and created the first technical assistance for vehicles imported from Italy.
With the success of the Italian models, the company opened its first factory in the Buenos Aires town of Caseros in 1960, beginning production of the beloved and remembered Fitito, one of the first cars manufactured on a large scale in Argentina.
The evolution was rapid. In 1963, the brand’s second factory on Argentine soil was launched in Ferreyra, province of Córdoba, to produce mechanical assemblies. While in Palomar, Greater Buenos Aires, a bodywork and assembly unit was built.
The following year the Mirafiori Building was inaugurated as its headquarters. Even in the 60s, the Argentine market had cars like the 1100, 1500, 1600 Multicarga and the 125.
Fiat’s expansion continued in the 70’s with the export of automobile assembly components in Uruguay, which began in 1972. Between 1971 and 1986, the Fiat 128 marked an era in Argentina, being the first front wheel drive car manufactured in the country. The vehicle also had a transverse engine and was manufactured in basic, L, Family, Europe and IAVA versions.
From the beginning of 1980 until 1995, SEVEL (alliance with Peugeot) produced and sold models such as the Spazio, the Uno and the Regatta, to name a few that were widely accepted.
In 1995, Fiat Auto decided to invest 600 million dollars in Argentina to manufacture the new Palio and Siena.
Already in the 21st century, Fiat’s history in the country was marked by four well-defined milestones: the relaunch of the Ferreyra industrial complex (2008); investment for the production of new Palio (2012); and the modernization of the factory – with a new investment of 500 million dollars – to produce the Fiat Cronos.
Launched in 2017, the compact sedan from Cordoba has already reached the 400 thousand units produced and since 2021 it is the model best seller in Argentina.
Celebrations at the Fitito Museum
To commemorate its 125th anniversary, the local branch organized an exhibition of classics at the Museo del Fitito.
At the event there were more than 15 representative models from different eras: 508 S Balilla, Topolino, 1500, 800 Spider, 600, 128, 147 Sorpasso and even its latest novelty, the Fastback.
Honoring his career in motorsport, the emblematic “Regatta, victor” was also exhibited, the car with which Osvaldo “Cocho” Lopez achieved five victories at the beginning of the TC2000.
