2012 Fiat 500 Sport: Not Selling as Well as Hoped

A dealer was supposed to open in a mall near where I live back in March/April. The store is still boarded up and actually all references to the dealer have disappeared from the internet. One other thing to consider is that Alfa Romeo has been delayed again. I'm sure a lot of dealers are reluctant to invest in a separate building, personnel, etc. when there's only one model to sell.

That said, dealers that do exist are trying very hard to sell the car. I've heard of dealers offering Pop models for $13,990. The dealer closest to me is offering 0% finance for 5 years. They even sent me a completely unsolicited trade in offer for my MINI, although I have no idea how they got my name.

Just bring out the Abarth already! The car is SMALL.. who buys small cars? The young generation with no responsibilities such as kids, carpools, home depot, etc etc... Also theywe like black rims. HUGE trend. Most minis I see now days have black powdercoated/painted wheels with mid-late 20 s behind the wheel. I think they will see a jump in sales as long as they don't limit the production numbers. And this is coming from a 20 year old.

no thanks! lmao

I had some seat time in one at the LA show and the interior quality is laughable compared to the Mini and the "Gucci" edition was a sick joke.

This isn't a problem with the vehicle. This is strictly a dealership problem, and the sales numbers reflect that. Take Michigan for example. There are a total of just 2 "Fiat Studios" in this state, and they're both in the Detroit area, about as far east as you can go before running into Canada. I'm from the central part of the state, as as much as I'd like a Fiat 500 I'm not about to drive all the way to Detroit every time I need service. I'd spend more in gasoline than that complimentary maintenance plan would be worth. People on the west side and to the north probably don't even know the car exists and if they do I'm sure they wouldn't drive all that way either.

As far as the whole "Fiat Studio" atmosphere is concerned, after visiting the 2 Detroit area dealers I don't see the logic for Chrysler wanting separate, free-standing Fiat dealers. Sure, everything inside is minimalist and gleaming white and brand new, but the atmosphere comes off as sterile and cold and doesn't do a thing to play up the Italian-ness of the 500. Chrysler could have EASILY met their 50k target if they'd just let the 500 be sold in normal Chrysler showrooms. Most of them already sell all of the other Chrysler brands under one roof. So instead of a "Chrysler Dodge Jeep" dealer they'd be a "Chrysler Dodge Jeep Fiat" dealer. Big deal.

If you have a Suzuki-esque number of dealers, well duh, you're gonna get a Suzuki level of sales.

Fiat is battling on two fronts, in my opinion. They must change the perception the older generation holds about the brand in America. Fiats had a reputation for being unreliable rust buckets with a poor dealer network and no customer service to speak of. And then there are younger people who have never even heard of Fiat. To them it's some obscure brand that's too new to be trusted.

Maybe Suzuki should team up with FIAT in the US. Sounds like a win-win!

I think Fiat can blame King of the Hill for their weak sales. Im 20 and grew up watching shows like KotH. Fix It Again Tony stands out in my mind whenever I see a Fiat, and I have a feeling most others my age have the same connection to the name.

I like the 500 a lot, just not enough to buy one. The Abarth however sounds tempting..

A few things:

-A separate building and staff to sell one niche model is ridiculous in terms of capital costs. Maybe this is the start of a whole range of Alfas and Fiats, but at least for the moment, it would not hurt to sell in current Chrysler dealerships.
-The original sales target was never realistic to begin with
-JLo probably hurts more than it helps

The Abarth should help immensely as this is the model that enthusiasts have been looking for all along, along with a healthy helping dose of saucy commercials involving Romanian models, and less J-Lo. The biggest help would be if they could simply be sold in Chrysler dealerships.

Offer the Abarth with a tranny like DSG, PDK or SMG and I will buy one but until then I will wait to see what Fiat will bring over here.

if i were in the market for a car, jlo would turn me off it

The lower gas prices go, the lower 500 sales will be. And the reverse is true. Why does one think Explorer sales are so good? If gas was back over $4.00 a gallon Ex sales would take a huge hit.

why would anyone bother with this over the base mini cooper?

either lower the price or make it less crude.

Sell me an Abarth...

What do some have against Jennifer Lopez?

Well I did my bit. I've had my 500 for a few weeks now and I'm lovin it.

The dealer I bought from was a normal Chryco dealer. Must be a Canadian thing. I agree that a standalone studio does not make a lot of sense right now except maybe in a few strong markets.

I don't understand the JLo hate either, and I seriously doubt it has tanked the brand.

The 500 is too small to sell 50K units at today's gas prices. But if the car is reliable then it will set the stage for good sales of larger FIATs. I don't think the Abarth will have much of an effect on sales per se. There are just not enough enthusiasts in the USA.

How many Fiestas has Ford sold this year? That should tell us something.

Meanwhile, Alfa keeps getting delayed...

DAMMIT SERGIO! I want a new Alfa!

@ silverstang

I think you may be right. Everyone who I've mentioned Fiat to has said "Fix it again Tony" except for when I discuss it over on Jalopnik. But then again, us Jalops are considered a crazy bunch more often than not.

However, somehow, Mini continues to sell quite well despite the fact that it's actually got a record of really crappy reliability.

My girlfriend is actually in the market for a compact car. So, in light of the recent release of the Fiat, I took her to a dealer to test drive one. The showroom was pretty quiet(it was a rainy Saturday afternoon here in Albany, NY). The salesman couldn't have been nicer. Not pushy at all. I asked if she could get a test drive; he threw us the keys and told us to be back before the store closed. Pretty awesome. Had an extended test drive of about an hour in which we took the car on the highway and ruined roads. The car proved to be surprisingly quiet and capable on the highway. Also, I am 6'2 and with some adjustment of the seat fit comfortably in both the driver and passenger seat. On the same day we also went to a Ford dealership to test a Fiesta. Pretty similar dealer experience. We weren't that impressed by the Fiesta. It was pretty bland compared to the 500 and lacked the "Italian flare." I do believe Fiat is going to have a problem getting these cars off the lots, I think they need to get more people actually test driving these cars with a smart advertising campaign and relieving American woes about reliability. But trust me, go down to your local dealership and just take it for a spin; nothing to lose!

Smart ruined it. The 500 is a better car, but the POS Smart left a bad taste in people's mouth. If Fiat had gotten here first, it might be a different story.

There are fewer Fiat dealers than there are Mini dealers. Mini has two dealerships in South Carolina, Charleston and Greenville; none in Columbia.

Fiat has no dealer in South Carolina. There's one on the border in Charlotte, NC.

15,000 of a model new to the market with a very limited dealer network doesn't sound too bad. I wouldn't know where to go to get a FIAT if I wanted one. But I guess that's the problem and management was supposed to do a better job making people want the car and be able to find one. Three fixes:

1) Get rid of the JLo campaign. Chrysler let Celine Dion kill the Pacifica and now they're letting JLo have a shot at the 500. If a pop star was on the charts more than 15 years ago, they should not be in your car commercial, period.

2) Generate some incentives for local advertising by dealers. Buyers need to know where to get these cars.

3) Upgrade the interior materials. This car looks great but many who sit in it are quickly disappointed. Almost everything you touch feels like it will fall off in your hands. The interior looks OK and is a lot less compromised for style points than, say, a Mini. But as soon as you touch anything it just feels cheap. It might feel worse to the touch than any other car on the market now that Hyundai and Kia have cleaned up their interiors.

@mikelovesvtec

I'm in Albany, NY too. LOL. Considering that Albany is the size of my hand that's pretty funny. I'm from Long Island, but attend college up here.

In regards to the Fiat, my friend and I test drove it as well. It's a fun/cool little car and most people do like it...but they don't want to deal with a tiny car as a daily driver. It would make a good second/commuter car if your other vehicle is an SUV.

"why would anyone bother with this over the base mini cooper?

either lower the price or make it less crude."

I haven't checked the US prices but for here north of the border the Mini classic (extra base model)starts at $21,900 and the Fiat starts at $15,900.

That's why people buy the Fiat over the Mini... it's far cheaper.

"Smart ruined it. The 500 is a better car, but the POS Smart left a bad taste in people's mouth. If Fiat had gotten here first, it might be a different story."

What does the Smart have to do with the Fiat 500?

They are made by different companies, don't look alike, have completely different drivetrain layouts, different number of seats, different purpose in life, etc .

They are both small cars but that's all they have in common. Are telling me Americans can't tell one small car from another?

fw: The general public sees them as similar cars and would buy them for similar reasons. Smart created a mini-fad for the mini-car. Fiat lost out on that fad. The 'hipness' of having a cute little car was ruined by Smart.

Chrysler missed a huge opportunity not selling the 500 in mainstream dealers. Anyone walking into a Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep dealer today looking for a compact car has one choice, the Caliber. In addition to not being a very good car overall, it really not a small car. More like a shrunken Avenger or Jeep Patriot. The Chrysler customer walks away shaking their head and heads to the Ford/Toyota/Nissan/Mini etc. store. A great idea would have been what poster vince touched on; let the traditional dealer open a small showroom in a mall or one of the new outdoor shopping mecca's like The Forum. Service at the traditional dealer, but sales in a fresher environment. Mall space is cheap these days as well, would have been an easy decision by the dealer owner. Take a look at all the abandoned Hummer dealerships to see what a huge investment in a niche stand-alone brand gets you and you'll quickly see what Chrysler dealers made the decision not to invest.

brn

Would you refuse to buy a Buick LaCrosse because you didn't like the Ford Crown Victoria?

And the 500 isn't a minicar, it's just a subcompact. The Smart is much smaller. Subcompacts are not a fad, they been around forever and you see them everywhere.

@robs249

I'm from Long Island as well and go here for school. I go to SUNY. What about you? Did you also test drive the Fiat?

Did anyone else on this forum test drive the Fiat yet? What are your opinions?

"Offer the Abarth with a tranny like DSG, PDK or SMG and I will buy one but until then I will wait to see what Fiat will bring over here."

GTFO of here. It's an enthusiast site!

I did my part as well. I've had a Fiat 500 Pop model for about a month now. So far, so good. It's a stylish daily commuter that feels solid and is fun to drive. It suits me just fine, but I don't carry a huge amount of cargo and I rarely have more than one person in the car with me.

@peartree1 What's your problem?

legacygt says:

05:39 PM, 11/21/11

1) Get rid of the JLo campaign. Chrysler let Celine Dion kill the Pacifica and now they're letting JLo have a shot at the 500. If a pop star was on the charts more than 15 years ago, they should not be in your car commercial, period.

--Celine killed the Pacifica? Are you joking? What killed the Pacifica was that it was a mediocre product. I think the JLo campaign is stupid, don't get me wrong. I also couldn't believe that Celine would loan her name to any car brand. It just didn't make sense. What does being one of the most technically proficient vocalists have to do with buying a Chrysler? However, she didn't kill it - and she's leagues above JLo in every way.. including still being relevant.

@mikelovesvtec
Yeah I go to SUNY as well...
My friend test drove the car, as he's looking for a fun second car. I just rode in the passenger seat. It was a cool little car but I couldn't see him or myself owning one.

@ptcdawg says: What do some have against Jennifer Lopez?

maybe in small doses it might have been OK, but when I'm watching football and in every commercial break that stupid jlo ad plays (sometimes back to back), it completely annoys the hell out of me since the commercial is so in your face with the louder music...not one of those commercials you can just ignore

firstwagon,

I'm not sure you're seeing what I"m trying to say. In no way am I saying they're the same car. I am saying that they're both unlike most cars sold in the US. The way in which they are unlike is very similar. If they sell, it's because they create a fad (the LaCross and CV do not create a fad).

Ten years from now, if such cars become a little more common, it may be a different story.

was think about waiting for an abarth, glad I didn't cause I would have wasted my time since it's a girl car now :'( sad cause I thought it really had potential

First, I'll concede that subcompacts interest me. Growing up when didn't drive, we sailed land yachts - Buick Electra 225, Oldsombile Delta 88, Cadillac Fleetwood - my folks weren't interested if it wasn't American and huge. I've always had a secret desire - to be able to do a U-turn in a double-lane, instead of pulling into a driveway, to turn down an alley with no worries the car is too wide. To park in a standard space with room left over.

So yesterday, I went and test-drove the base Mini Cooper and the Fiat 500 and I'd call it about even. The Cooper is bit nicer inside and handles better, but the Fiat has better design (love the single cocentric gauge, which is in front of the driver, unlike the Mini), more features for the money (Mini's option pricing is the most insane this side of Porsche) and has better ride (better over imperfections, quieter, likely down to the run-flats). At 6'1" and 200 lbs, I had no problem fitting either, unless the Fiat had a sunroof (huge difference). Rear seats on both are a joke, imo.

Performance-wise, it's pretty close - the Mini has 21hp more and 15 more lb-ft of torque, but it weighs more (2568 v. 2363) so 0-60 is actually about the same (9.4 sec), and I'd say the 1.4L TwinAir sounds a bit better.

As far as maintenance cost and reliability - it's too early to call on the Fiat, and it would be charitable to describe opinions on the Mini Cooper as "mixed." A Honda Fit or Toyota Yaris, it ain't, if owners are to be believed.

The deal-sealer for me would be price. The Fiat 500 Sport was $18,600 with Safety and Convenience Package (bluetooth, ipod capability, alarm) and Climate Control. The base Mini with the same options (Premium and Technology Packages) was $25,200, and it wasn't 30% more car. If rumors are to be believed, that's Abarth money. Skipping the Sport and getting a Pop with the same options would make an even better deal, but I really like the sports body kit and wheels.