The first fruits of this inspiration will be found in cars from 2024.
Fiat is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the brand's famous Lingotto factory and will use it as inspiration for the design of next-gen cars.
Opened for the first time on May 22nd, 1923, the factory became the heart and soul of the company in Turin, Italy producing over 80 different models over its production life and testing them on the 0.93-mile-long rooftop test track. Its importance to the company is unique in the automotive industry, which is why the company has released a celebration video titled “Shaping the Future,” which discusses the building's past as well as explains how it's still shaping Fiat's future.
The video has Fiat CEO Olivier Francois discussing the building's rich history with Ginevra Elkann, President of Pinacoteca Agnelli and granddaughter of principal Fiat shareholder Gianni Agnelli. Francois then gives us a sneak peek into the design of the brand's future cars, which he calls 'Lingotto-inspired' models. These cars will have design elements inspired by the rooftop test track, with the first appearing next year in line with future electrification plans.
“At Fiat, we think that the Lingotto and the track are such a landmark that they deserve to become 'design markers',” Francois says. “Their characteristics have inspired FIAT designers to trace the lines of the future FIAT models, from the incredible roof track to the ramp – a revolution in the 1920s – which is like a manifesto of our traditional lightness: less material, more space, that's our vision of interior design moving forward.
In the video, we're greeted with quite a few CGI interiors with long, oval shaps – very obviously inspired by the factory's famous design – on the dashboard. Everything is multicolored, made up of different shapes, and appears to signal alternative design materials and styles. Minimalism, which has become all the rage in automotive design in recent years, seems to be at the core of the company's design philosophy, with Frncois saying that “less is more.”
Even the massive factory windows appear to be having an influence, with a shot of the exterior appearing to take them and integrate them into a new type of lighting setup. It's not too far off what Hyundai has been doing with the Ioniq 5 and 6's pixel lights, and with a few tweaks, it seems like it could make it to production on a successor to the Fiat 500X – rumored to be called the 600. Finally, the video hints that the brand's iconic four-stripe logo will return, albeit reimagined for the modern day.
Today, the factory no longer produces cars but exists as a multi-use property that houses shops, offices, hotels, and art galleries. We've seen the building remade as a slot car track and even used in modern-day marketing campaigns like Mini's remaking of the famous “The Italian Job” chase scene. It's an inextricable part of Fiat's past, and now it appears the company is going to make it its future.
Keyword: Fiat's Famous Rooftop Test Track Will Inspire New Models In A Unique Way