Mopar is making an appearance at the Chicago Auto Show featuring four cars they’ve decked out with loads of visual goodies including the Mopar Fiat 500 “Stinger,” pictured above.

Photos hit the media last week, along with the equipment list for the Stinger, which plays up the black and yellow paint scheme you might expect given the name. Black stripes run along the sides, and a black-and-yellow checker pattern covers the roof.

Other than the exterior styling changes, the other-other 500 (don’t forget the Abarth) comes with black chrome accents and 17-inch black aluminum wheels borrowed from, well, the Abarth. The interior also gets new color touches that match the Stinger-styled outside.

Performance-wise there isn’t much different here: just a new set of brakes, cold air intake and a cat-back exhaust to help the car’s 1.4-liter engine breathe easier.

Have a look at our pictures from the show, shown below.

GALLERY: Fiat 500 Stinger

Sex sells, even if you don’t quite know what that pretty lady is saying.

Luckily we’ve got the subbed version of the popular Fiat 500 Abarth advertisement, right here! This spot, which was proved to be one of the most successful ads seen during the superbowl, was first seen way back in November. That doesn’t really matter, as we can’t get enough of it!

Check out the translations in the video below.

Continue Reading…

This Fiat 500 Abarth ad hit the spot with viewers, and showed the biggest increase in internet traffic during the course of the Super Bowl.

Edmunds revealed that the commercial showed the greatest increase of traffic to the models page on their site. Using measurements at 7 different points during Sundays game, Edmunds found that the Fiat section of their site had a 138 percent rise in activity at the end of the game.

The effective commercial follows Abarth’s “Small, but wicked” catch-phrase, and is sure to catch your attention in just 60 seconds.

The Abarth is going to be hitting North America some time this year, featuring track-ready performance and small car fuel efficiency.

Check it out in the video below.

Continue Reading…

Did you think that every automaker’s secrets were revealed at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit? Think again.

At least ten new models will debut at this year’s Chicago Auto Show, which kicks-off this Wednesday, February 8th. Here’s a quick round up of what to expect:

Acura

The ILX Sports Sedan will debut, and replace the TSX. The new ILX will be based on Honda’s Civic platform, and share the powertrain choices. Additionally, the ILX will show off three engines, including a Hybrid. The ILX will be targeted towards a younger crowd, and is being called a “gateway” to the luxury brand lineup.

Joining the ILX will be a new RDX. The popular SUV will be redesigned and will show off a wider track, a longer wheelbase and a new V6 engine. The RDX will be showing off some new technologies as well, including Pandora Internet Radio, and a Text-to-Speech SMS voice texting.

See the rest of our Chicago Auto Show preview below:

Continue Reading…

Fiat has released pictures of its new 500 “wagon” ahead of the car’s big reveal at the Geneva Motor Show this March. Called the 500L, it’s a replacement product for the infamously ugly Multipla.

The “L” stands for “Large” and helps expand the Fiat 500 range to four models. As for sizing, the 500L measures in at 163-inches long, 70-inches wide and 65-inches high. By comparison, the standard 500 model, the 500L is roughly two feet longer.

Designed as an alternative to traditional B and C segment cars, the 500L will go on sale in Europe in the last quarter of 2012 with a choice of two gasoline engines (TwinAir and a 1.4-liter), as well as a 1.3-liter turbodiesel.

GALLERY: Fiat 500L

Sergio Marchionne, the CEO of Chrysler Group LLC, has been in the media a lot lately thanks to his successful reinvention of Fiat and Chrysler as profitable companies. Announcing a $183 million net income for 2011 was a good way to start off the day for the surely elated Marchionne.

Having brought the company back from the brink of extinction, Marchionne felt the need to reach out to his colleagues with a letter to inspire confidence in them for the future. You’ll find the highlights below.

“Dear Colleagues, For the second straight year, we have delivered on the ambitious financial targets we set as part of the five-year plan that we revealed to the world on Nov. 4, 2009. In the results that we announced today, we posted net income of $225 million in the fourth quarter, and full-year net income of $183 million. We also reported a modified operating profit of $508 million in Q4 2011, and $2 billion for the total year.”

Marchionne continues to provide all of the positive numbers Chrysler has been posting lately, and went on to some motivational words to his workers.

“Based on the Company’s 2011 achievements, I am pleased to inform you that a performance award payment will be made to all eligible salaried and represented employees. This is a reward that you have earned. The more difficult the task, the more satisfying it is to overcome all obstacles. You have been to hell and back, and you defied predictions of our demise. Your efforts rewrote the history that so many naysayers had forecast. As we move forward with Fiat, let’s remain flexible in order to continue to achieve and take advantage of changing conditions while maintaining the same high level of passion and integrity that has brought us the measure of success we have had so far.”

While some of the “to hell and back” references are a little cheesy, no one can deny the steps forward Chrysler and Fiat have made since 2009. To end off his letter Marchionne touts himself as a proud CEO and tells his employees to take personal pride in their work.

“Now it’s time to stay steadfast on our path, guided by the same commitment and same values that we have used to steer toward a better destiny. Make tough, informed decisions; hold yourself and others accountable; and together we will write yet another successful chapter in our history. I am proud to be with you in the reconstruction of a great Chrysler.”

[Source: Detroit News]

Mopar introduced us to four new Chrysler tuned vehicles this morning, one of them being the Fiat 500 Stinger.

The Stinger comes with a Giallo (yellow) paint job, playing on the bumblebee reference, with black racing stripe and checkered flag design on the roof. To contrast the bright yellow paint, Mopar has outfitted the Stinger with black chrome accents around the headlights, door handles and mirror caps. The Stinger will ride on 17-inch by 7-inch Abarth hyper black aluminium wheels outfitted with performance tires.

The interior of the Stinger will continue with the Giallo and black theme with Mopar’s Katzkin black leather seats stitched with yellow highlights and accents. A Mopar carbon fiber instrument panel decal gives the Stinger a technical race appearance as does the Mopar shift knob finished in gloss black.

In terms of performance, not a lot has been done to the Stinger. It gets a cold-air intake as well as a free flowing cat back exhaust to squeeze some more juice out of the 1.4 liter 16 valve Mulitair engine. The brakes have also been upgrade to match the performance feel of the Stinger, utilizing cross drilled rotors to dissipate surface heat faster.

The Mopar Fiat 500 Stinger will be on display at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show.

GALLERY: Mopar Fiat 500 Stinger

For Mopar’s 75th birthday they have added some style and performance to four of Chrysler’s cars.

The Jeep Compass get’s the “True North” package, adding some matte black highlights and blacked out rims. The Fiat 500 is re-badged as the Mopar Fiat Stinger, sporting a bright yellow paint job complete with black racing stripe and checkered flag designed roof. The Dodge Dart becomes the Mopar Dodge Dart GTS 210 tribute, which comes with a carbon fiber hood complete with hood scoop, a skirt to get the Dart a little closer to the ground, and red leather accented interior to make the Dart really pop. To close out the four Mopar tuned vehicles is the Chrysler 300 which is simply called the Mopar ’12. The ’12 got the blacked out treatment, except for a blue line which circles the front wheels and the runs down the side profile of the car.

All four of these beauties will be on display at the 2012 Chicago Auto Show.

Check out the pictures below and tell us what you think in the comments section.

GALLERY: Mopar Jeep Compass “True North”

GALLERY: Mopar Fiat (500) Stinger

GALLERY: Mopar Dodge Dart GTS 210 Tribute

GALLERY: Mopar Chrysler (300) ’12

10: Audi TT RS

Classic car insurance company Hagerty has just released its annual list of vehicles that it expects will become the collector cars of the future. The list of “affordable” collector cars is capped at $100,000 and comes on the heels of the annual Scottsdale collector car auction week.

“After more than twenty years of witnessing car-collecting trends, we have the unique ability to look at new cars through the eyes of a collector,” said McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty Insurance. “This year’s Hot List includes cars that are sure to develop a cult-like following because their characteristics resonate with driving enthusiasts.”

Starting off the list, and a favorite of ours is the Audi TT RS which retails for $56,850 and is a favorite amongst automotive enthusiasts as an affordable, fun ride without having to indulge into Porsche costs. The TT RS has plenty of global appeal which means it’ll have plenty of global demand down the road. And besides, Audi consistently finds itself at the Le Mans podium; you just can’t argue with success.

Not too long ago, reports came in that Fiat is developing a 500 five-door wagon for the US market and now it appears that the Italian automaker will be reviving the 500L model name for the upcoming five-door 500.

The new five-door model gets an L added to its name for being large, and is scheduled to make its world debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Additional details on the model were also reported, stating that the 500L will sport a front end similar to the standard 500 model, but the vehicle will be wider and about 2.4-inches longer.

America will only be seeing a five-seater variant of the 500L, but it’s believed that the European market will also receive a seven-seater 500L. Fiat believes – and rightfully so – that American buyers wouldn’t have much interest in a seven-seater with such a small footprint.

Chances are the 500L in America will feature a 1.4L, four-cylinder engine with around 105-hp. The 500L badge originally came on Fiats produced from 1968-1972, but back then the L stood for Lusso, which is Italian for luxury. Now it’ll just be large.

[Source: Automotive News]