Fiat 500 Anniversario 2017 pricing and spec confirmed

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) Australia has announced sharp pricing for its 500 Anniversario, with the special-edition variant on sale now from $21,990 before on-road costs.

Based on the full-time Lounge 1.2-litre hatchback variant, the Anniversario commands a $2000 premium and comes with a standard five-speed manual gearbox or optional five-speed 'Dualogic' automatic transmission ($23,490).

Only 60 units will be offered in total, with nine manuals and 51 automatics up for grabs.

All of these limited-run 500s come with an individually numbered 'Anniversario' build plate.

Inspired by the 1960s, the decade the 500 started production in Turin, Italy, the Anniversario adds several retro touches, including the choice of three exclusive paint colours – 'Riveria Green', 'Sicilia Orange' and 'Gelato White'.

Furthermore, its seats are upholstered in a horizontal-striped fabric with contrast piping and embroidered '500' logos, while the floor mats are embroidered with 'Anniversario' logos.

Outside, there are chrome accents on the bonnet and side mirror caps, as well as vintage-style 16-inch alloy wheels that FCA says have "an alternative diamond-finish design which recalls the spokes of classic car wheels".

All of these limited-run 500s come with an individually numbered 'Anniversario' build plate.

Standard equipment already found in the donor Lounge 1.2-litre hatchback variant includes a 5.0-inch 'Uconnect' touchscreen multimedia system, Bluetooth connectivity, digital radio, satellite navigation, heated side mirrors, leather steering wheel, 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster, rear parking sensors, tyre pressure monitoring and a sunroof.

Powered by a 1.2-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine, the front-wheel drive Anniversario produces 51kW of power at 5500rpm and 102Nm of torque at 3000rpm.

Australian Fiat 500 sales have taken a dive this year.

Claimed fuel consumption is 4.8 to 4.9 litres per 100 kilometres on the combined cycle test, while carbon dioxide emissions have been tested at 111 to 115 grams per km, with the automatic more efficient and less pollutant than its manual counterpart.

Australian Fiat 500 sales have taken a dive this year, with 704 examples finding homes to the end of October.

Comparatively, the the micro car tallied 1011 registrations during the same period in 2016, representing a 30.4 per cent slide year-on-year.

The Kia Picanto and Mitsubishi Mirage currently lead the micro-car segment in the 2017 sales race, with 2749 and 1268 units sold respectively through the first 10 months of the year.

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