Beginning. The company was established in Turin on 11 July 1899. Giovanni Agnelli, who was to become a legend of the automotive industry, took an active part in this process. In the same year, in November, the first Fiat left the manufacturing plant. The following years marked the company's rapid development and other brands were taken over.
Development. While talking about the company's development, it is necessary to mention a Polish highlight. The 126 and 125 models (especially the former) made cars relatively easy to buy. The car was manufactured in Poland from 6 June 1973 to 22 September 2000 (Polski Fiat 126p). In total, 4,671,586 Fiat 126s were manufactured, including 1,352,912 cars which were manufactured in Italy. In total, 3,318,674 Fiat 126s were manufactured in Poland, including 1,152,325 cars manufactured in Bielsko-Biała, and 2,166,349 cars manufactured in Tychy. In 2000, Fiat signed a cooperation agreement with General Motors, and in 2009, it acquired over 20% of shares of the Chrysler group.
Present. Today, Fiat is a large industrial group which has focused its operations on the automotive sector. Apart from passenger cars, the tycoon designs and manufactures buses, lorries, agricultural equipment (including tractors) and machines for earthworks. Towards the end of 2009, Fiat employed 190,000 employees and the company's equity was over 10 billion dollars.
Contribution to the automotive industry. Numerous Fiat models have been awarded the car of the year title. These are: Fiat 124 (1967), Fiat 128 (1970), Fiat 127 (1972), Lancia Delta (1980), Fiat Uno (1984), Fiat Tipo (1989), Fiat Punto (1995), Fiat Bravo / Brava (1996), Alfa Romeo 156 (1998), Alfa Romeo 147 (2001), Fiat Panda (2004), Fiat 500 (2008). Makes belonging to the FIAT Auto group: passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, Iveco (trucks), light commercial vehicles and buses (under the Irisbus brand), Ferrari and Maserati (luxurious sports cars), Jeep and Dodge (trucks and off-road cars), Zastava (a Serbian automotive company), Chrysler (middle-segment cars, luxurious sports), Alfa Romeo (middle-segment cars, luxurious and sports), Lancia (middle-segment and luxurious).
Popular Fiat models: Fiat Doblo, Fiat Stilo, Fiat Ulysse, Fiat Panda, Fiat Punto, Fiat Croma, Fiat Grande Punto, Fiat Bravo, Fiat Nuova 500, Fiat 500C (Cabrio), Fiat Punto Evo. Dealers offer Fiat cars with various brands of tyres. Bridgestone, Continental, Michelin and other tyres can be encountered. Let's focus on a few examples. The Fiat Panda can come equipped with Bridgestone D693 tyres, size 165/70R14 81T or Bridgestone D684, size 185/65R14 86T or Michelin Energy tyres with sizes ranging from 13 to 15 inches. The Fiat Grande Punto can be encountered with Bridgestone ER300 tyres, size 195/55R16 87H, Bridgestone RE050 tyres, size 205/45R17 88V or Michelin Pilot Primacy or Michelin Energy tyres. Continental tyres can be encountered in Fiat Bravo cars manufactured in 2007 or later. These are models ContiSportContact 3, ContiPremiumContact 2 and ContiEcoContact 3, sizes 195/65 R15 and 225/45 R17.