TIPO'S HISTORY

FIAT 128 (Succeeded by Fiat Ritmo/Strada)

The 128 was a popular small model of car manufactured by Fiat in the early 1970s.
The 128's basic and boxy styling (inspired by the larger Fiat 124), betrayed the advanced design that lay beneath.
Like the Mini, the 128 has a front-wheel drive design with a transverse-mounted engine, a layout which has since become ubiquitous for small cars. However, it was the later VW Golf, rather than the 128 3P, that first caught the public imagination for cars of this type and sold in significant numbers worldwide.
It was elected Car of the Year in 1970. The 128 was still a pheonomenal success for the Italian manufacturer, and continued until 1978 when it was replaced by the Fiat Ritmo/Strada range, and formed the basis of the Yugo range of cars made by the Zastava company.

Fiat Ritmo/Strada

The Fiat Ritmo was introduced in 1978 as a replacement for the popular Fiat 128. Language barriers meant that the car was called the Strada in English speaking markets.
Technologically, the biggest innovation of the Ritmo was not the car itself (which was based on the 128's running gear), but the way in which it was manufactured. Fiat, already an industry pioneer in automated assembly took the ambitious step and made the Ritmo the first car to be almost completely built by robot, earning the car the advertising tagline "Hand Assembled, by Robots".
The so-called "Robotgate" system made the car cheaper and quicker to manufacture, but the Ritmo also suffered a terrible reputation for poor build quality and unreliability. The infamous "rust-bug" which afflicted most Italian cars of the 1970's and '80's also struck hard and very few Ritmos have survived the test of time.
The resulting bad publicity severely dented Fiat's reputation in export markets, and although it was successful in its home Italian market, the car failed to make any impact elsewhere in the world. A facelifted version debuted in 1983, and the Regata sedan version followed a year later.
The Ritmo was replaced in 1988 by the Fiat Tipo.
 

Fiat Tipo

The Fiat Tipo is a mid-sized hatchback car produced by Fiat from 1988 to 1995.
The Tipo had a lot riding on it when it debuted in the late 1980s, having to repair the damage caused to Fiat's reputation by the rusty, badly built and unreliable Ritmo (Strada). While the Tipo followed in its predecessor's footsteps by being built by a highly robotised production process, while a galvanised outer bodyshell laid the infamous corrosion problem to rest once and for all.
The main innovation of the Tipo was that it was one of the first cars to demonstrate the concept of "platform sharing", whereby the floorpan, chassis design and core body structure is used as a basis for other models. The Tipo platform spawned the Fiat Tempra, Fiat Coupe, Lancia Dedra, Alfa 155 and the second generation Lancia Delta.
The Tipo itself used tried and trusted powertrains which had been used in its predecessor, which traced their lineage back to the Fiat 128. The styling was the work of Guigaro, and was heavily influenced by the smaller Uno model. Among the Tipo's many distinctive features was a fully digital instrument pack, and a plastic rear tailgate assembly.
The Tipo was voted Car Of The Year in 1989. Initally only available as a five door hatchback, the Tempra sedan and station wagon versions appeared in 1990, and 1993 saw a 3-door version along with the introduction of airbags and numerous other safety improvements. The controversial digital instruments were also dropped at this stage.
JAN 1992 New Tipo launched. Formula replaces base models. S replaces DGT with analogue instruments and sunroof.
FEB 1993 2.0i 16v introduced 115 bhp injected engine, alloy wheels, sports suspension, sports trim and instruments. SLX replaces GT with 115 bhp engine, spoked alloy wheels and electric sunroof.
JUL 1993 power assisted steering standard on all models. Plus new grille, narrow headlamps and interior modifications on 3-door models.
SEP 1994 Airbag, fire prevention system and seat belt pre tensioners now standard.
In 1995, Tipo production ended to make way for the Fiat Bravo/Brava.