Minneapolis Street Sighting: Fiat 500

When I wrote about the Citroen 2CV earlier, I mentioned I love finding foreign small oddities; tonight I bring you a classic Italian nameplate rich with heritage both on and off the racing circuit. Where the Brits had the FWD Mini, the Italians made do with a proper rear-wheel-drive "hot hatch", and like the Mini, the 500 came in hot versions (the Abarth), and more pedestrian versions; and also like the Mini, the 500 was brought back to life as a trendy nice car to give its automaker a much-needed sales boost--and so far it seems to be working. BMW ruined the Mini heritage with a few unwanted spinoff models, and now, with the birth of the 500L, it appears Fiat is poised to do the exact same.

For a brief period in the 1970s and early 1980s, Fiats were sold in the US through a very limited dealer network.  Models included this 500, a 124 and 2000 spider and coupe, along with the 131 sedan; though all of these models are quite scarce today, the 124s and 2000s have select enthusiast followings in the US, the ubercompact 500 has fans the world over.

I first spotted this thing a few years ago, and because I only saw it driving, I never thought I'd actually shoot it--and I was dead wrong. Not only did I shoot it, but this is one of my favorite night shoots I've done to date. I'm not sure if the paint shade is original, but it looks fantastic here, and compliments the red/brown interior very well. This color combination works splendidly on Ferraris, and it works well here, too.I really don't like the taillights; for some reason, it looks like they have too much orange--they should be all red, and a tad smaller.

The wheels could be better, but they're stock so I'll cut them some slack A car like this needs uncapped steelies with performance tires, (maybe) not the cheap-looking setup that's on it. Then again, the owner of this particular 500 may not race it, so they crapcaps may suit him or her fine. Not for me, though.

In any event, I had a blast shooting this one, and I hope to see it around someday soon.