In a workshop in Turin – the home city of the Italian car manufacturer Fiat – classic Fiat 500s are being renewed with electric motors.
Classic Fiat 500s, produced between 1957 and 1975, are being “brought into the 21st century,” says Giovanni Gentile, owner of Officine Gentile.
Outside, the car bodies are waiting in rows to be given a new life in human hands.
Outside the workshop, long rusted carcasses of these small, rounded cars are waiting for their turn.
Inside the workshop, sparks fly as workers cut and weld the metal. The cars are then repainted, new wiring installed and the electric motors installed.
The cars are available for up to ISK 11.5 million after the overhaul.
The charging port is neatly hidden behind the old Fiat logo on the front of the car.
Many of the restored cars are painted in pastel colors and some are convertibles.
After the overhaul, the cars are sold for 40-50,000 euros, or about 5.7 to 7.2 million ISK, while the convertible cars cost up to 80,000 euros, or 11.5 million ISK.
They work hard every day and the material is plentiful in the car’s home country.
The original Fiat 500 became a classic design masterpiece and around 4.2 million units were produced.
They are still popular with classic car enthusiasts around the world and regularly hold large gatherings in Italy and elsewhere.
The estuary rarely becomes what the source dreams of. This gets a new life in the workshop.
The model was re-released in 2007 with some modern changes and is now also sold as an electric car.
Giorgio Pagliero, sales manager at Officine Gentile, says the workshop wants to maintain the cars’ “heritage and historical character” while giving them “another life”.
