Fiat unveiled the current-generation, electric-only 500 back in March 2020 but the cute hatchback has yet to be shown in US specification. According to teasers shared on social media channels, the wraps are coming off tomorrow at the dawn of the 2022 Los Angeles Auto Show. Bear in mind these official previews depict the Euro model but we're expecting the North American variant to look virtually the same inside and out.
Although Fiat also sells a slightly more practical 3+1 version on the Old Continent with a tiny suicide door on the passenger side, Americans are likely to get only the conventional body style. Not that we're complaining considering the Italian marque is currently down to just one model, the 500X, so any new additions to the lineup are more than welcome.
Next-generation Fiat 500e teasers
Technical specifications remain shrouded in mystery for the time being, but we'll remind you new Fiat 500 sold in Europe can be had with a choice between a 24- or 42-kWh battery pack. Its electric motor sends 117 horsepower and 220 Newton-meters (162 pound-feet) of torque to the front wheels in an electric hatchback that weighs roughly 3,100 pounds (1,400 kilograms) in its heaviest specification.
With the smaller battery, the Fiat 500 is rated at 115 miles (185 kilometers) of range in the WLTP cycle. Stepping up to the larger pack, you get enough juice for 199 miles (320 kilometers). If history has taught us anything, it's that EPA's rating will be smaller than WLTP. The US-spec car will likely get the bigger of the two batteries, but should it also have the entry-level pack, its range could eco that of the 100-mile Mazda MX-30, the shortest-range EV currently sold in the US.
As a final note, the previous-gen 500 and 500e bowed out of the US in the second half of 2019 when Fiat ended production of both versions for North America. The Abarth derivative was also phased out, and speaking of which, a high-performance derivative of the new EV will break cover on November 22 for the European market.
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