Exactly 50 years on, a group of Fiat 500s will once again return to historic Liege in Belgium – leading a 10-day celebration of one of the greatest endurance rallies ever.

The Fiat 500s, dating from the 1950s, are part of a stunning entry list confirmed by organisers of this July’s Liege-Brescia-Liege rally which, in 1958 was unique. Then, the challenge comprised 3300km of gruelling roads, including treacherous mountain passes through the Alps, Dolomites and Yugoslavia, driven flat out – and all in cars of less than 500cc.

This year, when the rally is reborn as part of the 50-year celebrations, Fiat will be providing support in the form of a transporter full of new Fiat 500s, the vehicle that shows small cars can be fun to drive while offering fuel consumption of just 4.7 litres per 100 kilometres (50 mpg). Any classic microcar breaking down during the rally and not able to be repaired swiftly en route, will be swapped for a new 500 so that the crew can continue to enjoy the event.

Rally organisers and technicians will also use a fleet of Fiats, which will offer receptions for competitors at overnight stops along the route, including Liege, Karlsruhe, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Ljubljana, Bolzano and Brescia. Liege-Brescia-Liege 2008, organised by ClassicRallyPress Ltd pays tribute to this pioneering attempt to prove the practicality, durability and usability of tiny cars that were often dismissed as ‘city cars’.

In 1958, 36 cars entered the event but only 13 finished, and they included all seven of the 500s that started the rally. The 500s eventually placed first, second, fourth, sixth, seventh, ninth and thirteenth.

A 1958 report showed that the total engine capacity of all 13 cars that finished the event was less than that of one typical American car of the time – yet the 13 cars had transported 26 adults 2000 miles over tough terrain, non-stop for three nights and two days.

This may be considered the first environmentally-conscious car rally, and the 2008 event sets out to prove once again that you can enjoy an unforgettable drive across many of Europe’s most beautiful mountain passes even in a small-engined car that is frugal on fuel.

Launched on 4 July, 2007, exactly 50 years after its predecessor, the Fiat 500 echoes its hugely successful ancestor in heralding a new, vibrant and positive era of car production for Fiat. A brilliant evolution of the classic style combines with modern engineering and technology to produce a car that has already won innumerable accolades, including Car of the Year 2008. It’s a personal car – more than 500,000 permutations are available to customise them.

The Liege-Brescia-Liege Rally 2008

Starting from Liege on 11 July, the celebration rally covers the same 3300km/2000 mile route as the 1958 event, including Europe’s toughest mountain passes, combining evocative names such as the Stelvio and Gavia with less well-known but equally challenging roads like the Vrsic in Slovenia. Overnight halts are: 11 July Karlsruhe, 12 Munich, 13 Cortina d’Ampezzo, 14 Ljubljana, 15 Bolzano, 16 Brescia, 17 Bolzano, 18Munich, 19 Karlsruhe and 20 Liege.

Cars that would have been eligible for the 1958 event will compete for awards in classes of 250cc, 350cc, 425 and 500cc – an additional ‘Spirit’ category welcomes cars up to 700cc and of a type built up to 1968, again divided into capacity classes. The rally is organised by ClassicRallyPress Ltd with the support of the Royal Motor Union of Liege, which coordinated the 1958 event.