One of the more interesting collaborations at New York's Fashion Week tweaks the fact that it's the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week: a red-and-green-stripped Gucci version of the Fiat 500.

According to Fiat USA, "The exclusive FIAT 500 by Gucci limited-edition models represent the perfect combination of craftsmanship and style, and bring together two of Italy's most respected brands. These special editions of the FIAT 500 and 500 Cabrio have been customized by Gucci Creative Director Frida Giannini in partnership with FIAT Centro Stile."

But read the fine print on the web teaser: "European version shown. North American model available in limited quantities late 2011." See, the Gucci-wrapped 500 actually debuted at Milan Fashion Week earlier this year. Yes, you've got to give Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne credit for having ... boldness.Continue reading...

Continuing the trend of brands taking over Times Square, FIAT North America brought its first TV commercial, "Drive-in," to life with an event that evoked Italia for Big Apple tourists and shoppers this past weekend, not letting Sunday's rain spoil the fun.

The lure of free espresso and gelato, bocce ball, music and a drive-in movie experience — thirty Fiat 500 sedans and cabrios arranged,  drive-in style, to watch movies on the Times Square jumbotron as dusk fell — wooed passersby to check out the "Simply More by Fiat" experience, where they could chat with Fiat product specialists (including Fiat North America head Laura Soave) and check out the 2012 Fiat 500 and Fiat 500 Cabrio.Continue reading...

Fiat SpA aims to rescue Chrysler from the ash heap of automotive history. Already, the Italians are making sense with some of their rehab work, such as clearing the way to bring Fiat’s small cars to the Chrysler lineup in the US.

But on another front, Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne's strategy is questionable: He has split Dodge into Ram truck and car sub-brands with the idea of establishing Ram -- essentially sans Dodge -- as Chrysler’s truck marque.

Fiat’s logic for the separation is that the Dodge brand means little to car buyers, and that’s true.

“It’s not such a terrible idea to take the Dodge truck and try to brand it as an entity because it really doesn’t fit the car business,” Gary Dilts, senior vice president at J.D. Power & Associates, told the Detroit News. “A Dodge Ram truck is in a totally different hemisphere than a Dodge Caliber.”Continue reading...