After the runaway success of the Panda and 500, Fiat are now readying the Topolino city car which will represent the smallest model in their current range when it goes on sale late next year, and this week prototypes have been spotted out testing for the first time. Photo: Auto Bild.

After the runaway success of the Panda and 500, Fiat are now readying the Topolino city car which will represent the smallest model in their current range when it goes on sale late next year, and this week prototypes have been spotted out testing for the first time.

The newcomer will be named after the original 2-seater 500, a model designed by Dante Giacosa. This diminutive car later received the Topolino nickname due to its mouse-like character. More than 500,000 examples were produced between 1936 and 1955. And like the original, the new Topolino will be produced with a two-door body, and is rumoured to have an upmarket design and vintage elements to ensure an iconic character.

As the spy pictures confirm, the new Topolino will use an evolution of the A-platform used by the Panda and 500. Shortened in length to 3.15 metres, the car will accommodate four people and luggage.

The Topolino is being developed for global consumption. The European model will be an upmarket design, rivalling the 2-seater Smart ForTwo, the future Volkswagen up!, and the Toyota iQ. Sources close to Fiat suggest that the Topolino will be built at the former Zastava factory in Serbia, located 140km south-east of Belgrade.

Low-cost versions of the Topolino will be produced and sold in developing markets, including South America, Russia, India and China. The first of these derivatives will enter production in 2010 at the Fiat factory in Betim, Brazil, with other countries following. Each factory is scheduled to produce 100,000 units per year. The specification of the Topolino will remain competitive in each market.

Technically the Topolino will offer the latest in safety and motorisations. Among the engines available will be the new 65bhp turbocharged 2-cylinder 900cc SGE (Small Gasoline Engine), as well as a hybrid variant. All versions of the new Topolino will conform to Euro IV standards. The 65bhp SGE engine will produce less than 100 grams of CO2 per kilometre.

A luxurious derivative is also being considered for the Lancia brand, to be sold underneath the Ypsilon. This version could go on sale in Europe in 2010.