1962 Fiat 500 Giardiniera Wagon

Description

The Fiat 500 is a rear-engined, four seat, small city car that was manufactured by Fiat Automobiles from 1957 to 1975 in two-door saloon and two-door station wagon bodystyles. Launched as the Nuova (new) 500 in July 1957, as a successor to the 500 "Topolino", it was an inexpensive and practical little car. Measuring just 2.97 metres long, and originally powered by a 479 cc two-cylinder, air-cooled engine, the 500 is considered one of the first purpose-designed city cars. The Fiat 500 Giardiniera station wagon was the longest-running model of the legendary Italian small car, being produced fundamentally unchanged between 1960 and 1975. Its 500cc engine is laid under the floor of the boot to create a flat loading area, while the roof on this model stretches all the way to the rear, rather than stopping above the driver and front passenger as it does in other models of the same period. The Giardiniera also features "suicide doors" and was the only model to continue to use this door type into the 1970s. In 1966 production was transferred to Desio, where the Giardiniera was built by Fiat subsidiary Autobianchi. A total of 327,000 Giardinieras were produced, later examples having Autobianchi rather than Fiat badging.