Fiat had a lot to talk about at the Geneva show, but while the Italicized Dodges and Chryslers may be the big news, we were more interested in a surprise concept called the 500 Coupe by Zagato.
Billed as “just a prototype,” the 500 Coupe has seen its C-pillars chopped down to give the car a sleeker, rounder coupe shape. Just for fun, Zagato even fitted a double-bubble roof for that racer look, along with some 17-inch dark chrome wheels, dark chrome trim and new rear windows. It’s powered by Fiat’s tiny 0.9-liter TwinAir two-cylinder engine producing 105 horsepower.
It may be a concept, but it’s actually a pretty good idea. Anyone who’s ever sat in the back of a 500 knows that the headroom is already a problem for anyone over 5’7″, so why not ditch the rear seats and make it a coupe? You’ll even get a few more cubic feet of cargo space out of it, since you won’t have partially-folded rear seats in the way. With Mini preparing to bring its own two-seat Coupe to market, this concept makes perfect sense for Fiat as they continue to do battle with their British/German counterpart. And while they’re at it, they can ditch the roof and take on the Mini Roadster as well. Will Fiat produce it? It likely depends on how the Minis do. The market for tiny two-seaters isn’t a big one, so the volume may not be worth the expense.
