History of the FIAT brand. Who owns famous car companies (brands)? The largest Fiat concern is located in

On July 11, 1899 it was registered at Palazzo Bricherasio new company— “Società Anonima Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino.” The company's first plant was opened in 1900 in Corso Dante. The company employed 150 people who assembled 24 cars of the 3/12 HP model, which had one distinctive feature— the cars did not have reverse gear.

In 1902, a Fiat 24 HP built specifically for racing, driven by Vincenzo Lancia, won the Sassi-Superga hill climb competition.

Managing Director Giovanni Agnelli personally took part in the Second Tour of Italy and set a record on the 8 HP model.

In 1908, Fiat settled in the USA, where it created a subsidiary, Fiat Automobile Co.

The range of products is expanding: in addition to passenger cars The company's production program now includes commercial vehicles, marine engines, trucks and trams.

Over the course of several years, Fiat completely updated its products: for the first time, the company's cars featured rechargeable batteries. The use of transmission began with universal joints, patented by FIAT.

Fiat racing cars continued to win various competitions and set several records.

In 1916, construction began on the Lingotto plant, led by Giacomo Mattè Trucco. The plant became the largest in Europe. The huge building had 5 floors, and on the roof there was a track for testing cars. Construction of the plant was completed in 1922. Once commissioned, it became a symbol automotive industry Italy.

At the beginning of the war, the company's products were almost completely reoriented to military needs.

After the war, it took several years to return production to a peaceful course and overcome the crisis, but already in 1923, growth resumed thanks, first of all, to competent tax policy.

The 509, the company's first 4-seater car, was launched into production.

The main activity of the company was the mass production of cars. Only mass production made it possible to significantly reduce the final cost of the product. The Sava holding was formed to promote car sales.

In 1934 and 1936, two models were born that found a strong response among buyers: “Balilla”, nicknamed “Tariffa minima” for its efficiency.

And the smallest utilitarian car in the world is “Topolino”, which lasted on the assembly line until 1955.

The war led to a significant decrease in the production of passenger cars, but, at the same time, the production of commercial vehicles expanded significantly. Having released two new models - 500

and 1400 – Fiat confirmed its commitment to research and innovation.

For the first time, interior ventilation and heating systems were installed on mass-produced cars.

Research continued in the field of marine engines, as well as in the field of aircraft construction: in 1951, the G80 appeared, the first jet aircraft created in Italy.

In 1955, the Fiat 600 was born - a large utilitarian car with a rear-engine layout.

And in 1957, the New 500 began rolling off assembly lines. In 1960, this model appeared in the ‘Giardinetta’ version, which became the predecessor of the company’s station wagon cars.

In addition, during these years the Fiat 1800 appeared, then the Fiat 1300 and Fiat 1500.

In 1971 after the Fiat 850,

...model 127 appeared.

In 1979, the independent company Fiat Auto S.p.A. appeared, which included the following brands: Fiat, Lancia, Autobianchi, Abarth and Ferrari. At first, the company owned only 50% of Ferrari. This share later increased to 87%. In 1984, the Alfa Romeo brand also became part of the company, and in 1993, the prestigious brand sports cars Maserati

In 1980, a car developed by the Giugiaro design studio was released. Fiat Panda.

And two years later the Fiat Uno model appeared. The car used the most advanced technologies, innovative electronics, the latest materials and environmentally friendly 1000 Fire engines.

Another successful model, Tipo, appeared in 1989. For the advanced technical solutions used in it, it was awarded the title “Car of the year”.

Fiat Tempra debuted in 1990

A year later, in 1991, the 500 model appeared.

In 1993, it was the turn of the Fiat Punto (it received the title “Car of the Year 1995”) and the Fiat Coupé. Its design was developed by Pininfarina in collaboration with Centro Stile Fiat.

With the Fiat Ulysse, which appeared in 1994, the company entered one of the most dynamically developing market segments - the minivan segment.

In 1995, the Barchetta, Bravo and Brava models debuted.

The following year they were joined by Fiat Marea and Fiat Marea WE, and in 1997 by the Fiat Palio.

The year 1998 was marked by the appearance of the wonderful Fiat Seicento city car,

As well as the Multipla model, which was distinguished by its exceptional versatility.

Two years later, the Fiat Doblò was presented at the Paris Motor Show, a modern universal car that also had a commercial version.

In addition, the company’s plant in Brazil began production of three “worldwide” models: Palio, Palio Weekend and Siena.

In 2001, production of the Fiat Stilo began, which featured a modern design, advanced technology and many luxury options.

2003 became a tragic year for the company - Giovanni Agnelli, who headed it for almost half a century, died.

In the same year (ten years after the debut of the model), a new Punto appeared with an innovative 1.3 Multijet 16v engine, as well as a seriously updated Barchetta.

The Fiat Idea was not only the first MPV created by Fiat, but also the first bearer of the new round emblem, which was created at Centro Stile Fiat to commemorate the company's 100th anniversary.

In 2005, production began of the new Croma, designed by Giugiaro, the new Fiat 600 (in the year of the 60th anniversary of the launch of the original model) and the beautiful, solid and exciting Grande Punto.

2006 was marked by the release of the new Doblò and Sedici, an urban crossover 4x4xTUTTI, which became official car 2006 Winter Olympics.

The updated Panda 2007 has also appeared model year with an expanded range of modifications.

2007 began with the launch of the new Bravo, which became the first bearer of the modified Fiat emblem.

The new Bravo and the new emblem confirm the new direction of the company's development.

In the same year, the Fiat 500 was reincarnated. With the light hand of the designers, the car was transformed: classic shapes received a new reading.

In 2011, the FIAT Freemont crossover was released - the result of collaboration between Chrysler and Fiat engineers. The machine is a balanced family car, which has a modern European design and offers its owner high level comfort.

Cars from Italy in Russia are valued primarily for their elegance and practicality. Italian roots are clearly visible in the largest Russian manufacturer"AvtoVAZ". The Tolyatti VAZ-2101 is actually well known in Italy.

In this article we will consider the issues of Fiat models Russian assembly and let's remember a little about the history of the brand. How good and popular are Fiats in Russia? What cars from Italy are assembled in the Russian Federation? We will also look at the main advantages and disadvantages.

Fiat and associations

What first comes to mind when you hear Fiat? The musical sound immediately indicates that the country of origin of the Fiat is Italy. In fact, the history of this famous company is closely connected with the history of Russia. Something has always drawn Italian manufacturers to Russian spaces. And it’s not for nothing that VAZ is a pure Italian.

It's surprising that Fiat hasn't gained a foothold in our country over the subsequent years. Yes, there was cooperation with Sollers. But it did not last and did not grow into something more. Already in 2011, the cooperation, which lasted 5 years, ceased. During this time, the production of “local” Fiat Albea, Fiat Doblo and Fiat Ducato was established. The process of manufacturing cars was reduced to assembling ready-made components imported from abroad. At the same time, cars of our assembly sold well and were very popular.

Italian Fiat manufacturers are not discouraged and are boldly building prospects for cooperation. Most often, their ambitious proposals contain figures for car production of approximately 500 thousand per year and at a newly built plant.

A little history

The history of the company began back in 1899 in the city of Torino, in northern Italy. In the first car from Fiat, the driver sat in the back and the passengers sat in front. Control was carried out using levers. Steering wheel appeared later. Since 1911, the company has been trying its hand at producing racing cars. The successful release of S76 allowed us to continue and develop this direction.

The desire to develop and experiment led Fiat to create a huge empire. Today Fiat is a manufacturer not only of cars of all types and purposes, but also of aircraft, trains and engines for ships of various displacements and purposes.

And then, back in the last century, the company took on any undertaking. During the war, Fiat mastered the production of aircraft, tanks and armored vehicles. Since the late 60s, Fiat has become a corporation that includes Ferrari, Lancia, Alfa Romeo and Maserati.

In 1999, Fiat celebrated its centenary. Today, the global technology manufacturing concern can hardly be called decrepit. More than a century of constant development has strengthened Fiat and given it a good impetus. New concepts are constantly being designed and put into operation modern cars. More than 130 of our own research centers around the world are actively helping.

Main production facilities

In modern reality, the size of the Fiat corporation is impressive. Under the common wing there are more than 1,000 companies in 61 countries around the world. The number of Fiat employees is about 220 thousand, of which half work outside the borders of Italy. As a percentage, about 46% of all production capacity is located outside the homeland.

Fiat has its own factories in Brazil, Argentina and Poland. At the same time, the Brazilian production site is the largest. At maximum load, the car plant is capable of producing 3,000 cars per day! The manufacturing country of Fiat is not only Italy. There are many joint ventures in France, Egypt, South Africa, Turkey, China and India. Cooperation is structured differently everywhere. Somewhere, as was the case in Russia, only assembly is carried out from components imported from Italy, but somewhere in one plant they can assemble both Fiat and local equipment.

The concern plans to further expand into the markets of Africa, Europe and America. After all, the main concept was and remains that as many people as possible become familiar with the most advanced technologies thanks to Fiat cars.

Fiat model range

Production of Russian Fiats ceased in 2011. Since then, new Doblo, Albea and Ducato cannot be bought. What can Fiat please Russians with today? In 2016 the lineup The automaker is limited to only 3 cars:

• punto;
• FullBack.

The 500th Fiat, whose manufacturer is its native Italy, is a neat and compact hatchback. The car can have either a 1.2-liter petrol power unit, a 0.9-liter turbocharged engine, or a 1.3-liter diesel engine.

The Punto is a modest hatchback that also has a choice of two power units with 1.4 liters but different power levels. As for, two transmission options are offered: classic mechanics and robotic automatic.

FullBack is a clone of a Japanese car Four wheel drive vehicle, produced at its production site in Thailand, perfectly complements the Fiat range. But for this car, the answer to the question: “Fullback Fiat” - what country of origin is it?” - you can answer: not Italy.

For those who do not have residential restrictions, Fiat offers a much larger range of models. Among them, the cute Fiat Panda stands out, which has an all-wheel drive version. In addition to it, you can purchase such Fiats as Mobi, Uno, Palio, Linea, Ottimo, Viaggio and Freemont.

Russian assemblies of Fiat

Despite the fact that today there are no joint productions with Fiat, there are cars that deserve special attention. These are the Albea, Doblo and Ducato we love so much. Cooperation with the Sollers company was not in vain. The Ducato has been the most popular car in its class for several years.

Despite active and successful sales of Russian Ducato and Doblo, there was a lot of criticism towards our assembly. In some places we noticed gaps larger than those specified by the factory, in others there were defective products in the car. However, criticism did not prevent the cars from becoming popular. Fiat Ducato, whose manufacturer is a plant in Yelabuga, simply had no competitors at one time.

Fiat Doblo

This model was produced in Naberezhnye Chelny when Fiat actively collaborated with Sollers. When developing this model, the designers took Fiat Cargo as a basis. The resulting compact car immediately found its connoisseurs. He liked him in Russia too. Manufacturers of Fiat Doblo offered several modifications, which included passenger, cargo-passenger and purely cargo options.

The car had a 1.4-liter power unit, 77 “horses” and was equipped with a 5-speed gearbox. Fiat Doblo's manufacturing country seems to be Russia. Why "seemingly"? Because we only assembled the main components, which, in turn, were manufactured at the Fiat subsidiary in Turkey.

Fiat Albea

It was with “Albea” that the production of “Russian Italians” began. The first car was released at the plant in Naberezhnye Chelny in 2007. It was a classic sedan of the simplest appearance. As power unit there was a 1.4-liter engine. Since 2011, the car has ceased production due to obsolescence.

Many car enthusiasts did not like the rather weak and undynamic engine, as well as the simple external and internal design. Yes it was budget car, but time makes its demands. For the same money, competitors are already developing more modern bodies and “stuff” them with all sorts of technical innovations.

The country of origin of the Fiat Albea is Russia, so the car also had positive aspects:

• spacious interior;
• comfortable seats;
• spacious luggage compartment;
• good ground clearance;
• economical fuel consumption;
• budget cost.

Fiat Ducato Russia

At one time, the Ducato was the most popular car in its class. Russian version from Sollers was armed only with a turbocharged diesel engine with 2.3 liters in volume and manual transmission. 244 car body became the Russian designation. Just like in its time in Europe, the Ducato was produced in several versions: purely cargo and cargo-passenger. At the same time, there were elongated bodies.

The comfortable and practical Fiat Ducato, whose country of origin is Russia, had good dynamics and a comfortable interior of a foreign car. Among the shortcomings, it is worth noting some confusion when selecting spare parts. But this problem existed for everyone at first. The spare parts catalogs simply did not have time to be finalized.

Updated and modern Ducato

Among commercial vehicles, Ducato has always been renowned for its versatility and ease of use. affordable prices. The sixth generation Ducato is no exception. Italian engineers have combined the incompatible. Commercial cargo transport is easily and simply combined with comfortable and technically equipped passenger cars. Several modifications of the new Ducato allow you to solve a wide range of business problems. The “strongest” version of the car can lift up to 4 tons of payload.

What exactly is new in the Fiat Ducato? According to Italian developers, the car's body and door structures have been strengthened. Suspension, brake mechanisms and clutch are also reinforced and redesigned for longer life. Among the know-how are modern white paintwork, as well as a redesigned turbine, which allows the car to accelerate even faster with less fuel consumption. Per 100 km, the 6th generation Ducato consumes only 7.3 liters of fuel.

The Fiat company is famous not only for its cars. The concern's products include many agricultural machines and equipment, as well as a line for the production of magneti marelli spare parts.

Some historical facts that may be interesting include:

• Fiat had the first heating and ventilation system;
• the first SUV is also Fiat - Campagnola;
• the famous Common Rail injection system was developed by Fiat and Bosch;
• Fiat Sedici and Japanese are manufactured on the same basis and at the same plant.

There is information that, despite the use of advanced technologies and exquisite design, the Fiat company has quality flaws. Because of this, the name "Fiat" is translated by English-speaking inhabitants as "Fix it again, Tony." German car enthusiasts have their own translation: “Defects in every component.” Therefore, the statement: “The country of origin of Fiat is Italy” does not always indicate the quality of the products.

Conclusion

The cars of the global concern Fiat are not the most popular. You won't find them in various TOP sales lists. At the same time, the company is actively developing and has more than a century of history.

The Sevel Plant plant, located near the Adriatic coast of Italy, occupies a colossal area of ​​1,260,000 square meters, although “only” 375,545 “square meters” have been developed here directly for production. However, if he increases the production of cars at the rate that is observed now, even the remaining “empty” lands will not be enough for him. Suffice it to say that last year 290,309 cars rolled off these assembly lines, and this year they plan to produce at least the same number!

However, we are primarily interested not in “points”, “goals”, “seconds”, but in indicators of the quality of products. And, you know, it seems that this FIAT production is almost the last place on earth where they don’t build.

This is evidenced by the fact that last year alone the number of customer requests for warranty claims decreased by almost 20% compared to 2015. And in 2017, the Italians expect, there will be another 10-12 percent less.

It is no wonder, therefore, that in recent years Russian dealers of the brand have complained that their clients have become much less likely to exchange old Fiat vans for new ones. It is clear, of course, that the raging crisis in the country has made adjustments to the process of updating vehicle fleets. However, in the light segment, a car not replaced on time is not a saving, but a direct loss, taking into account the serious mileage of each piece of equipment and the costs of maintenance and repair of the “old ladies”.

But, it seems, in the case of this principle does not apply - the cars reliably transport goods and people, without frequently bankrupting the owners and without requiring replacement. And there are a number of completely objective explanations for this.

Let's start with the components. Almost half of the parts supplied to the SEVEL plant are made in Italy. Another quarter comes from other European partners. But despite the fact that the quality of manufacturing of parts entering the conveyor seems to be a priori beyond doubt, there is no strict incoming control. So, say, the panels (and especially complex configurations) from which the body is made are checked not only for compliance with the given dimensions, geometric and other parameters, but also for the exact - down to microns - location of the connection points with each other. And they pay absolutely indecent close attention to moving body elements. It is clear that all “control and accounting” is carried out electronically.

And here, in general, it must be said that the share of manual labor at this plant confidently tends to zero. In body assembly shops, for example, it does not exceed ten percent - cars are welded by robots. By the way - self-diagnosis. The machines are taught to assess their condition and in case of any “disease” they call a repair team. And this is not counting the planned routine maintenance for oil changes or maintenance of their engines. And the effect of using robotics is impressive - for the last 13 years, the conveyor here has been functioning like the most accurate Swiss watch - without running ahead or being late for a second.

And working without emergency work, as you understand, most directly affects the quality of all welding processes and procedures. And, by the way, there are a lot of them. For reference: the body of the FIAT Ducato is welded, or, to be more precise, soldered at 12,000 points. Basically, we repeat, by the method spot welding, since it is both more economical and, most importantly, more reliable than the newfangled laser. FIAT uses the latter in places that are constantly visible to people - mainly near window openings.

And by the way: did you know that the driver and passenger doors of Ducato are not “solid”, but consist of two parts for reliability? The first, narrow and massive, is attached to the body, and the second (the one with the window) is welded to it. In general, 722 robots are engaged in welding work in body production. And another 59 are passionate about painting cars (people take up brushes and spray guns only where the robot’s hand is not yet able to reach.

But where man still rules the roost is in the final assembly shops - here, alas, there are too many small and delicate operations that engineering has not been able to mechanize. And from the employer’s point of view, this is the most expensive production site, since a lot of resources are spent on fighting the notorious human factor. Suffice it to say that there is a post here whose responsibilities include checking all cars coming off the assembly line without exception. The team involved in this process “calls”, “looks through”, “probes” and “sniffs” the finished car from all sides. The work is hellish, considering that in this workshop the car receives more than 4,000 different parts, including the engine, transmission and chassis.

And if the Fiat quality control department detects a defect, it calls the foreman of the team that screwed up to eliminate it. This happens very quickly.

No one calls anyone, sounds the siren or sends a messenger. It’s just that cheerful music starts playing in the workshop, and an error code lights up on a special display indicating the culprits.

It is curious that after the defect is eliminated, the memory of it remains forever in the form of a so-called BAR code in the electronic passport of the car. Which, by the way, is very useful for its future owner, since they have access to this “medical history” official dealers brands all over the world, including Russian ones. That is, in the event of an unexpected and unforeseen breakdown, they have the opportunity to quickly understand whether it is connected with the “childhood” of the ward.

And such close attention to the quality of products is understandable. In particular, because the main sales market is Germany, where the Italians fight almost equally with Mercedes, occupying after it

About thirty years ago, the famous American manager Lee Iacocca said that by the beginning of the 21st century, the world automotive market only a few players will remain. The ex-president of Chrysler and Ford saw through the trends in the further development of the automobile industry, so it is not at all surprising that his predictions are confirmed.

The world's largest automakers and alliances

At first glance, it may seem that there are many independent automakers in the world, but in fact, most auto companies belong to various groups and alliances.

Thus, Lee Iacocca was staring at the water, and today there are actually only a few automakers left in the world, dividing the entire global car market among themselves.

What brands do Ford own?

It is interesting that the companies he headed - Chrysler and Ford - the leaders of the American automobile industry, suffered the most serious losses during the economic crisis. And they had never been in such serious troubles before. Chrysler and General Motors went bankrupt, and Ford was saved only by a miracle. But the company had to pay too much for this miracle. expensive price, because as a result, Ford lost its premium division Premiere Automotive Group, which included Land Rover, Volvo and Jaguar. Moreover, Ford lost Aston Martin, a British supercar manufacturer, a controlling stake in Mazda and liquidated the Mercury brand. And today only two brands remain from the huge empire - Lincoln and Ford itself.

What brands belong to the General Motors automaker?

General Motors suffered equally serious losses. The American company lost Saturn, Hummer, SAAB, but its bankruptcy still did not prevent it from defending the Opel and Daewoo brands. Today, General Motors includes brands such as Vauxhall, Holden, GMC, Chevrolet, Cadillac and Buick. In addition, the Americans own the Russian joint venture GM-AvtoVAZ, which produces the Chevrolet Niva.

Automobile concern Fiat and Chrysler

And the American concern Chrysler now acts as a strategic partner of Fiat, which has brought under its wing such brands as Ram, Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, Lancia, Maserati, Ferrari and Alfa Romeo.

In Europe, things are a little different than in the United States. Here, the crisis also made its own adjustments, but the position of the monsters of the European automobile industry did not change as a result.

What brands belong to the Volkswagen group?

Volkswagen is still accumulating brands. After purchasing Porsche in 2009, the Volkswagen Group now includes nine brands - Seat, Skoda, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Bentley, Porsche, Audi, truck manufacturer Scania and VW itself. There is information that this list will soon include Suzuki, 20 percent of whose shares are already owned by the Volkswagen Group.

Brands that belong to Daimler AG and BMW Group

As for the other two “Germans” - BMW and Daimler AG, they cannot boast of such an abundance of brands. Under the wing of Daimler AG are the brands Smart, Maybach and Mercedes, and the history of BMW includes the companies Mini and Rolls-Royce.

Renault and Nissan Automobile Alliance

Among the world's largest automakers, one cannot fail to mention the Renault-Nissan alliance, which owns such brands as Samsung, Infiniti, Nissan, Dacia and Renault. In addition, Renault owns a 25 percent stake in AvtoVAZ, so Lada is also not a brand independent of the French-Japanese alliance.

Another major French automaker, the PSA concern, owns Peugeot and Citroen.

Japanese automaker Toyota

And among Japanese automakers, only Toyota, which owns Subaru, Daihatsu, Scion and Lexus, can boast a “collection” of brands. Also included Toyota Motor truck manufacturer Hino is listed.

Who owns Honda

Honda's achievements are more modest. Apart from the motorcycle department and the premium Acura brand, the Japanese have nothing else.

Successful Hyundai-Kia auto alliance

During recent years The Hyundai-Kia alliance is successfully breaking into the list of leaders in the global automobile industry. Today it produces cars only under the Kia and Hyundai brands, but the Koreans are already seriously engaged in creating a premium brand, which may be called Genesis.

Among the acquisitions and mergers of recent years, mention should be made of the transition under the wing of Chinese Geely Volvo brand, as well as the acquisition of the English premium brands Land Rover and Jaguar by the Indian company Tata. And the most curious case is the purchase of the famous Swedish brand SAAB by the tiny supercar manufacturer Spyker from Holland.

The once powerful British auto industry has been given a long life. All famous British car manufacturers have long lost their independence. Small English firms followed their example and passed on to foreign owners. In particular, the legendary Lotus today belongs to Proton (Malaysia), and the Chinese SAIC bought MG. By the way, the same SAIC previously sold the Korean SsangYong Motor to the Indian Mahindra&Mahindra.

All these strategic partnerships, alliances, mergers and acquisitions once again proved Lee Iacocca right. Single companies in modern world no longer able to survive. Yes, there are exceptions, like the Japanese Mitsuoka, the English Morgan or the Malaysian Proton. But these companies are independent only in the sense that absolutely nothing depends on them.

And in order to have annual sales amounting to hundreds of thousands of cars, not to mention millions, you cannot do without a strong “rear”. In the Renault-Nissan alliance, partners provide support to each other, and in the Volkswagen Group, mutual assistance is ensured by the number of brands.

As for companies such as Mitsubishi and Mazda, more and more difficulties await them in the future. While Mitsubishi can get help from partners from PSA, Mazda will have to survive alone, which in the modern world is becoming more and more difficult every day...

The Fiat company today is a huge concern that produces a wide range of equipment intended for construction, agriculture, freight and passenger transportation, as well as passenger cars for road and sports purposes. It was founded in 1899 by a group of businessmen, however original title was not so short - “Societa Anonima Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino”. In the first years of its existence, the company was engaged in assembling Renault cars, but already in 1903 it began to rapidly expand its areas of activity, and first took on trucks, and then passenger buses. In addition, the abolition of duties on the import of steel from abroad allowed it to even begin producing ship and aircraft engines.

Fiat passenger cars were initially produced in small numbers as prestige and expensive cars. However, due to their high quality and regular victories in various auto races, they were sold very widely. One of the most impressive victories of that time was won by the Fiat S61 in 1911 at the French Grand Prix. It is worth noting that the engine of this model had an incredible volume of 10.5 liters.

In 1912, the development of large-scale Fiat passenger cars began. The owners of the company wanted to launch on the market not only high-quality, but also original cars that would stand out against the background of any tricks of competitors. In order to have a wide selection of bodies for their products, they enter into contracts with a number of coachbuilders - Zagato, Locati & Toretta and Touring. In 1916, construction of the Lingotto plant began, which lasted 6 years. This production complex became the largest that existed in Europe, and was designed to provide conveyor production passenger cars.

The first model to gain wide recognition was the Fiat Balilla, released by the concern in 1932. It had very low fuel consumption and low cost, which made it widely available. 4 years later, the Fiat Topolino was released, compact and even cheaper, repeating the success of the previous one.

During World War II, air strikes destroyed most the company's production facilities, and the rest were nationalized. In conditions of post-war shortages, Fiat management made the right bet on producing cheap and economical passenger cars, releasing updated models one after another. The first was released in 1950 diesel car Fiat 1400.

In 1966, Fiat entered into an agreement with the Soviet Union, and Volzhsky was built in Tolyatti automobile plant, which initially produced Fiat models under its own name. Thus, the well-known “kopek”, or VAZ-2101, is almost identical to the Fiat-124 released in 1967.

In 1969, Fiat bought Lancia from its owners. The years of the oil crisis that followed did not lead the company to collapse, but only forced it to focus on increasing production efficiency and monitoring product quality and its cost-effectiveness.

In 1980, the Fiat Panda was introduced, designed by the famous Giorgetto Giugiaro. The car was very inexpensive, but it was different high quality And simple repair in case of breakdown, which made it a bestseller in Europe. Panda cars can be seen on the streets of Europe even today. The Fiat Uno, released three years later and featuring many updates to electronics, engine components and other aspects, became no less popular.

In 1986, Alfa Romeo came under the control of the Fiat concern after purchasing a controlling stake in this company.

Fiat's new bestseller, the Punto hatchback, was released in 1993. It was produced in several variations - covered with 3, 5 doors, a convertible and a Gran Turismo modification, which had the maximum configuration.

In 2003, a new Fiat Punto appeared, equipped with an innovative 1.3 Multijet 16v engine, and the Barchetta was also updated.

In the fall, the new Fiat Panda was released and received the title “Car of 2004.”

In 2004, the Fiat Idea went on sale, which became the first universal car company Fiat, as well as the first car that was entrusted with promoting the new mission of the brand. This car has a unique design.

In 2006, Fiat changes its logo again. It was developed together with the Robilant Associati agency and the Fiat Style Center.

Today the concern produces equipment for industrial and civil needs, and is one of the largest automakers.

In 2007, a presentation of the new Fiat 500 model was held in Turin. The date of the premiere was not chosen by chance, because it was on July 4, fifty years ago, that the company launched a new machine of the same name, which is associated with the formation of a new generation. The new product, in fact, was a modernized and improved version of the Fiat Panda. The Fiat 500 was equipped with two powerful gasoline engines different volumes (from 1.2 to 1.4 liters) with a capacity of up to 100 Horse power. All units operate on a six-speed or five-speed gearbox transmission Fighters for environment should be delighted with this vehicle, because its engines fully comply with Euro-5 standards.

In 2015, Fiat Bravo ceased to exist, as demand for it in our region fell sharply. Despite this, the modernized, roomy Bravo hatchback is selling very successfully in South America. This model is the closest “relative” of the Centro Stile Fiat, released back in 2007. Only now the model has received new bumpers, wheels, a convenient touch screen, wheels and a comfortable steering wheel.

In Brazil, the Fiat Bravo, unveiled in January 2015, will only be an interim option before the Fiat-Chrysler launch in 2016. It is worth noting that more than a billion dollars have already been invested in the latter’s project, part of which will be used to expand the capabilities of the large plant this brand is Minas Gerais.

Every year the concern bought bankrupt companies and today under its “roof” there are not only the automobile companies FERRARI, ALFA ROMEO and LANCIA, but also a couple of factories specializing in the production of specialized equipment, namely tractors.