The legacy auto brands are going electric one by one. The light has been seen, plates of crow have been eaten, and a rime of frost is beginning to appear on the gates of Hell. No turnaround has been more dramatic than the one at Fiat. Former CEO Sergio Marchionne was an outspoken opponent of EVs. Now current Fiat CEO Olivier François has announced, “Between 2025 and 2030, our product line-up will gradually become electric only. This will be a radical change for Fiat.”

Fiat had already announced plans to electrify 60% of its lineup by the end of 2021.

Fiat is now part of the Stellantis group, and as InsideEVs noted, it may take some planning to sort out the different EV platforms used by the different brands of the PSA Group and FCA. This may be a reason for the fairly long 2025-2030 timeline. Battery supply may also be a factor. There are rumors that Fiat is hoping to build a new battery Gigafactory in Italy.

Fiat is already selling a new version of its 500 Electric in Europe (the gas and hybrid versions are based on the previous generation). The Fiat Concept Centoventi, which was shown at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show, sparked speculation that the brand’s next EV might be a Fiat Panda Electric.

“The decision to launch the new 500—electric and electric alone—was actually taken before Covid-19,” said François. “Even then, we were already aware that the world could not take any more compromises. We were reminded of the urgency of taking action, of doing something for the planet Earth.”

Source: InsideEVs, Autocar