Is the Italian car on a slow road to death?

[jackpe]

Have a soft spot for Italian cars, also due to my heritage. Have been watching with alarm the slow but inevitable march to irrelevance displayed by the FIAT group since the late 80s.

Fiat: No longer bothers to do anything but 500 related products.. where it used to have a strong presence in the Golf sector and with medium superminis like the Punto, seems to have totally given up on these sectors. With VW and the other germans increasingly muscling in on the small car sector this makes FIAT look like a one trick pony pretty vulnerable if the 500 starts to fall behind.

Alfa: Giulietta was a good effort but seems to be struggling to achieve the volumes that are needed. The Mito looks unlikely to be replaced. Interesting plans for rear drive move upmarket but really no reason why the lower sectors should be abandoned when the Germans are making steady progress in those areas

Lancia: Joke. Again used to have a relatively strong presence in the Golf sector with the Delta, now reduced to selling a couple of Y's and Deltas in Italy. Basically on life support.

Chrysler/Jeep (now part of the group): reliant on Fiat strategy and hardly likely to breathe much life in the group, soon to release the 500L based small off roader. on those underpinnings unlikely to be a great success?

Ferrari: Very successful but can't keep Fiat afloat, if Fiat goes under the Germans likely to buy it out.

Maserati: resurgence in recent years but is it enough? especially mixed reception given to the Ghibli


What are everyone's thoughts? I would hate for the FIAT group, or whatever it is now called to die a slow death.. but the VW group seems to be able to make cars that sell in every segment and FIAT seems to be giving up on almost everything.

[TurboHatchback]

Well Fiat never did make good larger cars so I think it's no bad thing them sticking to small cars.

Alfa IMO are living off a reputation long out of data and haven't made a good car for two decades (bar the 4C). I would like to see them return but I don't think they will.

Lancia have been dead in all but name for many many years.

Ferrari/Lamborghini/Maserati/Pagani etc are doing quite splendidly but I'm not really interested in supercars, I find them pointless expressions of money and bad taste.

In conclusion yes I would say that the Italian manufacturers are only making small cars but maybe this isn't such a bad thing or anything new. When has there been a large Italian family car that was actually any good when compared to its competition at the time?

[r11co]

You are aware of course that technically FIAT is no longer an Italian company?

[jackpe]

r11co said:

You are aware of course that technically FIAT is no longer an Italian company?

Yes, well aware but it is still FIAT and not owned by another group so although now legally headquartered elsewhere the Italian element is till there..

[MitchT]

Wait 'till interest rates go up and the cheap credit that's facilitating volume sales of expensive German brands to the proletariat is no longer available.

[vtecyo]

It is, but it'd probably break down before it got to the end of that road so don't worry about it.

[Contigo]

No will last longer than most certainly the French cars will be long gone before the Italians. Once you own one you realise that even though they will let you down and have some real quirks you still Love them because the amount of passion that goes into the car design is like no other.