# Which Fiat is Best for You? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 31, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446 "2009-03-31T15:44:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![zenith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zenith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zenith)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2009, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/41 "2009-04-03T14:54:22Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Meh. I lost my respect for Fiat when they prettified the Multipla. They took something utterly unique and turned it into just another MPV. > > [Behold, the ugliest car in the universe!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fiat_Multipla_front_20080825.jpg) I might trade in my Aztek for something that looked like that! ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2009, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/42 "2009-04-03T15:09:39Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Meh. I lost my respect for Fiat when they prettified the Multipla. They took something utterly unique and turned it into just another MPV. > > [Behold, the ugliest car in the universe!](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Fiat_Multipla_front_20080825.jpg) Oh Em Gee, that’s bad. Really bad. ---
**Author:** ![zenith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e19b73/32.png) [@zenith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zenith)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2009, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/43 "2009-04-03T15:21:18Z")
Let’s be honest about 1970s quality control.Everyone sucked. NOBODY, not even “saintly Japan”, was immune to poor quality. I know of plenty of Toyotas, Hondas, Datsuns (what they called US market Nissans until '83, for you youngsters), AND MOST ESPECIALLY Subarus of that decade that didn’t make Payment 35 without a rust-through. A mechanic I knew called Datsun “Dat Soon?”, as in Dat 'Ting broke dat soon? I’d give a Chrysler-branded Fiat a chance. That Qubo van would make a nice replacement for my Ranger as a city-delivery vehicle. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2009, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/44 "2009-04-03T15:21:24Z")
Oh, it’s no Aztek. ---
**Author:** ![Spiny\_Norman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Spiny\_Norman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiny_Norman)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2009, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/45 "2009-04-03T15:36:34Z")
> [@Magiver](#): > > Oh Em Gee, that’s bad. Really bad. Weird thing is, I had one as a rental once - and it’s actually a really nice vehicle. Roomy like all out, great view in all directions and gigantic mirrors to boot, the best laid-out cockpit I’ve ever seen, all the little niggly details - the damn thing, ugly as it was, just worked. (Did OK on the Autobahn, too. No muscle car, but handled the speed nicely once it got there.) ---
**Author:** ![oboelady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8491ac/32.png) [@oboelady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oboelady)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/46 "2009-04-04T04:05:25Z")
Oh, the memories. 1966, 16 years old, new driver’s license and my dad bought a brand new Fiat 600D. Think Volkswagen Beetle, but smaller. Suicide doors. Incredibly tiny engine. Fun to drive. I actually turned it around inside a small two car garage. But, as others have noted, they were junk. Also, as others have noted, so were all the other small cars back then. I think they’d be worth a test drive. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/47 "2009-04-04T11:17:53Z")
I’ll say this. Fiat makes better _looking_ cars than Chrysler dreamed of. Maybe if in the course of this merger they are able to borrow the few technologies and manufacturing traits that work from each brand they might have a chance. Oh, and maybe make a interior that isn’t shit. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 12:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/48 "2009-04-04T12:30:05Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > Colour me astonished that Fiats haven’t been in America for decades! > > Think of them as European SUVs - I once saw six Poles in one [Polski Fiat 126p](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polski_Fiat_126p). 🙂 I wants a Fiat 126! It’s sooooooo caaaauuuuuuttttte! ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/49 "2009-04-04T12:36:18Z")
I followed the OP’s link to the Fiat site & randomly looked at a few of the models. After the 6th one which looked like a cheap copy of an 8 year old Nissan I lost interest. How can I short the stock of Fiat USA? This won’t take long. It’ll sink without a trace. ---
**Author:** ![Shirley\_Ujest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shirley\_Ujest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shirley_Ujest)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/50 "2009-04-04T12:43:33Z")
I agree, alot of the Fiats look just live every other car out there. If they put the new engines/gadgets and gizmos inside of the really CUUUUTTTTTEEE older styles, then they’d have something. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/51 "2009-04-04T13:08:00Z")
I think A-R would find a market in the USA-do they still make the Spyder sports coupe? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/52 "2009-04-04T13:54:39Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I followed the OP’s link to the Fiat site & randomly looked at a few of the models. After the 6th one which looked like a cheap copy of an 8 year old Nissan I lost interest. You can say a lot of things about the current Fiat lineup, but “unoriginal” is not one of them. > [@ralph124c](#): > > I think A-R would find a market in the USA-do they still make the Spyder sports coupe? They make a Spider, but it’s a convertible, not a coupe. That’s what spider means. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/53 "2009-04-04T15:02:13Z")
“Spider” (and “spyder” or whatever faux Italian they use) comes from small carriages with overlarge wheels (whose spokes looked liked arachnids). Hence, sports cars, not convertibles. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/54 "2009-04-04T15:44:00Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > “Spider” (and “spyder” or whatever faux Italian they use) comes from small carriages with overlarge wheels (whose spokes looked liked arachnids). Hence, sports cars, not convertibles. Those small carriages were open topped. By convention, it means convertible. You’re welcome to try finding a Spider (or Spyder) that isn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [April 4, 2009, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/55 "2009-04-04T22:08:50Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > I think A-R would find a market in the USA-do they still make the Spyder sports coupe? You know, a Chrysler-Jeep-Fiat-Alfa Romeo show room might actually be worth visiting. They might need to install some Chrysler engines in those A-Rs and find a midpoint between the weird Italian look and the boring Chrysler look but they’d have an interesting line up. They could pair the Jeep lineup down to 3 models, the Cherokee as the high end model, the Liberty as the compact SUV and the Wrangler as, well, the Wrangler. The Fiats could fill in the entry level segment and econoboxes with the 500, the Bravo II and the Linea. A-R could fill in as the sportier mid-size lineup with the 159, Brera and Spider. The Chrysler brand could hold onto the Minivan market with the Caravan/Town and Country and the full-size and family mid-size market with the 300 and something decent to replace the Sebring. It’s a tall order and they’d have to do something to spruce up the styles and share some of the technologies that work, but it’s a portfolio that would work if the products can compete. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2009, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/56 "2009-04-06T02:30:52Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > I’ll say this. Fiat makes better _looking_ cars than Chrysler dreamed of. Maybe if in the course of this merger they are able to borrow the few technologies and manufacturing traits that work from each brand they might have a chance. Oh, and maybe make a interior that isn’t shit. They dreamed up the Viper, Crossfire and Prowler. They brought back the convertible and came up with the PT Cruiser. They are the only American company that takes chances . ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2009, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/57 "2009-04-06T02:40:22Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > They could pair the Jeep lineup down to 3 models, the Cherokee as the high end model, the Liberty as the compact SUV and the Wrangler as, well, the Wrangler. The Fiats could fill in the entry level segment and econoboxes with the 500, the Bravo II and the Linea. A-R could fill in as the sportier mid-size lineup with the 159, Brera and Spider. The Chrysler brand could hold onto the Minivan market with the Caravan/Town and Country and the full-size and family mid-size market with the 300 and something decent to replace the Sebring. Or they could just start putting on Chrysler name on everything and stop wasting time and money selling the same cars with three different badges. I really believe that badge engineering is one of the US motor industry’s five biggest problems. Keeping the Jeep brand for off-roaders and the Dodge brand is alright, and they took a big step forward when they got rid of the Eagle moniker (and Plymouth?) > [@gonzomax](#): > > They dreamed up the Viper, Crossfire and Prowler. They brought back the convertible and came up with the PT Cruiser. They are the only American company that takes chances . Where did they “bring back” the convertible from? I agree with you on the taking chances thing, though, even though the PT Cruiser is just about the ugliest vehicle on the road that isn’t an Aztek (or Multipla!) ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2009, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/58 "2009-04-06T02:55:24Z")
The PT was retro and started a trend. Ugly is in the eye of the beholder.The convertible thing came when they brought back the full size convert after it was gone from the big 3 for decades.I don’t know why but the big 3 quit making them for a long time. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2009, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/59 "2009-04-06T03:02:29Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > The PT was retro and started a trend. Ugly is in the eye of the beholder.The convertible thing came when they brought back the full size convert after it was gone from the big 3 for decades.I don’t know why but the big 3 quit making them for a long time. Ford and GM still don’t make any “full size” convertibles I can think of. Anyway, there have always been four-seater Saab, Mercedes, Audi and Renault/Peugeot convertibles. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2009, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446/60 "2009-04-06T04:48:46Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > They are the only American company that takes chances . They took chances with niche cars and then proceeded to shit the bed when it came to mainstream, tent-post models. Whoopee. Every brand brought the occasional experimental/concept car to market. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-fiat-is-best-for-you/491446.md?page=4)