Nobody Wants An Electric Fiat 500

It’s no secret that demand for electric cars, especially in Europe, has slumped significantly over the last few months. Being hit particularly hard by this is the little electric Fiat 500e, demand for which has plummeted so significantly that Fiat parent Stellantis has been forced to close down the factory where it’s made for seven straight weeks.

Initially, the historic plant at Mirafiori, Turin was set to be idled for four weeks, beginning on 13 September. Fiat, however, has now confirmed that that shutdown will continue until 1 November.

When it launched in 2020, the electric 500 – retroactively given the 500e name, which everyone was calling it anyway – spearheaded Fiat’s plans to go all-electric in Europe by 2030, plans that, like those of plenty of other manufacturers, have since fallen by the wayside thanks to faltering demand.

The decision to extend the halt in production comes following Stellantis reportedly telling Italian trade unions that the EV market is “in deep trouble” in Europe, according to Reuters. It also comes amid an increasingly fractious relationship between Stellantis, which owns nearly every mass-market Italian car manufacturer, and Italy itself.

With the nation’s government vocally trying to increase car production there, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares is set to speak to the Italian parliament later this month to address the company’s production prospects there.

Despite the surface-level turmoil, though, Stellantis does appear to be taking long-term steps. This includes the investment of over £80 million in the 500, including the development and production of a hybrid version – which wasn’t previously part of the plan for the new model – which is hoped will shore up demand and significantly increase production. That, though, won’t arrive until early 2026.

It’s not clear if the shutdown has affected production of the new Maserati GranTurismo, which is also assembled at Mirafiori, or whether it only affects the 500’s assembly lines.