Fiat UK has announced its prices for the new and ultra-cool Fiat 500, which will go on sale in Britain in January.
Fans of the Italian hatchback will be pleased to find that the carmaker has started prices below £8,000 - a lower than expected price that undercuts all but the most basic Pandas'.
The 500 has long been tipped to match the highly successful Mini as a 'premium' product with pricing to match.
The cheapest 500, the 1.2-litre, 69bhp Pop model, will cost £7900 on the road, almost £500 less than the 1.2-litre, 75bhp Renault TWingo. The top-of-the-range 1.4-litre 500 Lounge, which features air conditioning, alloy wheels, glass roof and a hands-free media system, will cost car buyers £10,700.
By contrast, even the basic 94bhp Mini One costs £11,625, and excludes air-con on its standard kit list.
Customers can also purchase a diesel model for the same price, with the 1.3-litre MultiJet model costing the same as the 1.4-litre petrol version.
Fiat's new pricing is further proof of the Italian carmaker's renewed confidence. Just last week the company reported that its quarterly profits had more than doubled year on year, and it has more than tripled the percentage profit on every car it has produced.
Fiat's order books for the 500 are already full for 2008. Left-hand-drive 500s are commanding big premiums in the UK, and buyers at the top of the RHD waiting list can expect to make a large profit should they choose to sell their cars straight after delivery .
