Fiat 600e Production Officially Kicks Off

Fiat has announced that production of the new Fiat 600e electric crossover has officially begun. The newcomer is being manufactured at Stellantis' plant in Tychy, Poland. The first example of the 600e left the factory on September 7. Finished in a vibrant shade of orange called Sun of Italy, factory workers stood proudly alongside the range-topping La Prima variant for this milestone celebration.

The 600e will be sold alongside the unloved 500X until the latter is discontinued. While American Fiat fans can look forward to the arrival of the new 500e, the larger 600 won't be heading our way. It will remain a Europe-only vehicle, much like the mechanically similar Jeep Avenger EV.

Two trim levels are available, both powered by the same electric drivetrain. A 54-kilowatt-hour battery provides a WLTP-estimated 250 miles of range, while a single electric motor sends 154 horsepower to the front wheels.

A gasoline-powered hybrid variant with a 1.2-liter three-cylinder engine is expected to debut next year as an alternative to the all-electric derivative. This is the same engine that does duty in the combustion-powered Avenger. After that, we can expect Abarth to work its magic on the 600e. Fiat's in-house performance arm will doubtless increase power, but it remains to be seen if it will adopt an all-wheel drive configuration with dual motors.

Naturally, an Abarth-fettled 600e would be sharper and more agile than the car on which it's based. The chassis will likely be uprated to handle the extra power, while we anticipate recalibrated steering and stiffer suspension. It would make for a fun little crossover, but one can also expect the 250-mile range figure to suffer slightly.

Recently, images of Alfa Romeo's latest crossover were leaked. Known only as Project Kid, the little SUV is tipped to use the same STLA Small (e-CMP2) platform as the Avenger and 600e. We speculated that the baby Alfa would receive superior performance and increased power in keeping with its sporting heritage. If this is the case, perhaps this configuration could be used by the eventual Abarth 600e.

The 600e will be built alongside its Jeep-badged cousin at the Tychy plant. The facility has a history of making award-winning cars; the Polish-made 2004 Fiat Panda, 2007 Fiat 500, and 2021 Jeep Avenger have all been honored with the European Car of the Year award.

Established in 1975, the factory employs more than 2,000 people who work across three shifts. Between 1975 and December 2022, the plant produced a remarkable 10.8 million vehicles.