14 Jan 09 13:26
Fiat is to launch its 500 cabriolet - to be called 500 C - at the Geneva Motor Show in March.
The 500 C will go on sale shortly after the show, as Fiat wants to make it available in time for the summer. British buyers will be the first to take delivery, as we buy more convertibles than any other European nation despite our dismal weather.
It will be a four-seater, though of course, those rear seats will be small; a bit of boot space will be lost, says a Fiat insider, but otherwise the interior is similar to that of the hard-topped 500 .
The 500 C will have a folding canvas roof, which stows away neatly into the rear compartment; it keeps its door pillars and roof structure intact, however, so will not give a full roadster experience.
Expect the same 70bhp 1.2 and 100bhp 1.4-litre petrol engines as the 500 hatch; a turbocharged Abarth version is likely to follow, though the 75bhp 1.3 diesel may not be offered.
The engines will gain a fuel-saving stop-start system, which cuts the engine when idling and automatically restarts it; this will be fitted to the 500 hatch as well from next spring, and then in other Fiat models as they are updated. Fiat promises a fuel saving of around 8%, with particular benefits for city driving.
