The destroyed post-war economy of Italy had rather modest potential, and the release of a new popular car model was a difficult task. The Fiat 600 was at that time one of the symbols of the post-war Italian “economic miracle”. This car was released in a fairly large number after its debut show at the 1955 Geneva Motor Show .
The small utilitarian Fiat, dubbed Seicento, has been overwhelmingly successful for several months. Demand for it exceeded production capacities, and the waiting time for a buyer to receive a car was one year. The strategic components of success were the competitive price, original appearance and relatively spacious interior. All this, combined with a rather low fuel consumption at that time, made this car popular not only in Italy, but also far beyond its borders.
Fiat 600: specifications
What is so remarkable about this model? The 1955 Fiat 600 Seicento is a compact city car with a load-bearing body only 3.2 m long, with a 21.5 liter 4-cylinder petrol power unit located at the rear. from. The vehicle was equipped with hydraulic drum brakes on all four wheels. In a unique at that time independent suspension together with gas shock absorbers, springs were used, which also served as a body stabilizer. The gearbox had four steps - three synchronized gears and a reverse gear. Clutch - single plate, dry. Engine - in-line, four-cylinder liquid-cooled.
The cooling system was also used for heating the passenger compartment. In some versions, an additional rear radiator was installed. In all Fiat 600, the technical specifications are consistent with the advanced. For example, a generator with external adjustment and a battery ignition system were used. The maximum speed ranged from 95 km / h in the version with an in-line engine with a volume of 633 cm³ to 110 km / h with an engine version of 767 cm³. Such a motor began to be used after updating the model in 1960. The car had a decent ventilation system.
Seicento Development
A year after the presentation, in 1956, soft-top models were released, as well as a six-seat version of the Fiat Multipla 600. It was the predecessor of the current minivans. A great feature of Multipla was that, if necessary, one of the three rows of seats folded, turning the car into a mini-truck.
The Fiat 600 sold amazingly fast. A millionth car was sold in February 1961, less than six years after it was launched into mass production. At that time, according to the manufacturer, the volume of cars assembled was 1,000 units per day. In total, just over 2,600,000 units were produced in Italy alone. The car was discontinued in 1969, but continued to produce its various modifications abroad. The Fiat 600, the photo of which is now causing many to smile, was at that time considered simply a luxurious means of transportation.
Production in Europe
In Spain, the 600 model was produced under the SEAT brand from 1957 to 1973. In total, nearly 800,000 cars were produced, which were exported to almost all countries of Western Europe, as well as to Central America and Africa. The concern produced various modifications of the original 600th model, some of them with improved characteristics. Special versions of the SEAT 600 were the Descapotable Convertible and the more expensive commercial version, the Formicheta.
The Italian city car was very popular in the former Yugoslavia. At the Zastava plant in the city of Kragujevac, an analogue of the original model called Zastava 750/850 was produced until 1985. The Yugoslav car has been repeatedly modified, mainly related to an increase in engine capacity and power.
Production in South America
The popularity of the car in South America was so great that the import of this model from Italy and Spain did not cover all the demand, and in 1960 production was opened in three countries at once - Argentina, Chile and Uruguay. As in other foreign enterprises, the South American Fiat was different from the original. They were equipped with 32-hp engines, metal chrome parts were replaced with plastic. Although production did not last long in Uruguay and Chile, production continued in Argentina until 1982.