History of Fiat 600
At the Geneva Motor Show in March 1955, a car was presented that is still unforgotten and enjoys many lovers and admirers all over the world: the Fiat 600, the "Seicento".
Early after the 2nd World War, Dante Giacosa, designer and draftsman of innovative models such as the Fiat Topolino and of course the Fiat Nuova 500, has been commissioned by the Fiat managers to develop a vehicle for the old dream of a "car for the little man ". It should offer high performance at a low price for a broad mass of the population. Fiat felt strongly linked to the objectives of the economic policies of the newly formed Italian Republic: To promote the motorization of the country and to create progress and growth.
The Fiat 600 was the awaited result of a long process of market studies, which already started in the pre-war period, from strategic considerations and technical efforts. Especially the engine and the transmission caused some difficulties for the engineers for quite some time.
In order to solve their own mental blocks and let the creativity come freely, Giacosa and his engineers were even locked up in a room during working hours just to get on any other thoughts. 1953 finally, the 633ccm engine with 23 hp and its top speed of 110 km / h was constructed and ready for series production.
Within a short time after its public presentation, the new Fiat 600 got a central driving force of the Fiat group and got so popular, that people hat to wait for up to one year to get one!
It was mainly the low purchase price with an excellent price-performance ratio, low fuel consumption and a high level of comfort that made the 600 a winner. It was quite small, but offered enough space for four people and was thus able to establish itself as a family car.
Even outside Italy, the Fiat 600 was a great success. A lot of licensed derivartes were produced in various countries: The Seat Seat 600 or 770 (Spain), the Zastava 750 (Yugoslavia), the Fiat Neckar NSU Fiat Jagst (Germany version with fabric sunroof), the Austrian Steyr -Fiat 600, and so on.
In total, nearly 5 million cars were built and caused bulging coffers in the Fiat company. It was not until the mid-1960s, when the sales figures went down due to the increasing popularity of the Fiat 500 and the new Fiat 850, and In 1969 the production of the Fiat 600 was stopped in Italy. In Spain it was continued as SEAT 600 until the end of 1973, and in Yugoslavia, the Zastava 850 with an 850cc engine was built even until 1985!
