• Fiat plans to modify its all-electric 500 and offer a hybrid configuration (in Europe).
The all-electric Fiat 500e is launching here in North America this year, but it has been on sale in Europe in its current form since 2020. The affordably priced car is proving popular there because of its Lilliputian size, well adapted to the old continent’s urban areas. Last year, Fiat sold over 65,000 in Europe.
The 500e has been marketed alongside the gas-powered version, which remains popular (104,000 units sold in Europe last year). But that ICE version is set to be withdrawn from the market, since it will no longer comply with European Union safety regulations.
The recent decline in the growth of demand for EVs has led Fiat to make some adjustments. Namely, it will bring back a gasoline engine with the 500. It will do so by modifying the new 500e to accommodate a gas engine and create a hybrid version in the doing. The 1.0L 3-cylinder engine, which was offered with the regular 500, will be used along with an electric motor.
The model will be marketed under the name 500 Ibrida (we'll let you translate) and should make its debut towards the end of 2025 or the beginning of 2026. The model will be built at Fiat's Mirafiori plant in Italy, where the 500e is produced.
The price of the Fiat 500 Ibrida has not been announced, but analysts expect it to be well below that of the all-electric version. The EV starts at 29,000 euros in Europe (and almost $40,000 in Canada), while the gas-powered version is priced at 18,000 euros.
There’s no word either way regarding a possible introduction in North America for the hybrid 500e, but it would be very surprising if Fiat were to offer it here. This is a market that had flatly rejected the gas-powered 500, remember.
The real challenge for Fiat here is to grow sales of the all-electric version in North America. If sales don't take off, the whole of Fiat could disappear from our market by the time the hybrid version arrives in Europe.