Just in case you forgot: a Fiat Mobi is an economy hatchback for Latin America – and today our spies caught what appears to become a pickup variant of the Mobi. It seems all the interesting FCA budget cars are reserved for overseas markets while America and Europe just have the dorky little 500 family. It’s probably for the best since a pickup of this size would be ridiculed by North Americans and not quite accepted by Europeans, either.
Fiat also sells the Fullback in Europe, a clone of the L200, as well as the Toro in Latin America, which is derived from the Jeep Renegade platform. But the Mobi is much closer in concept to the venerable Polio-derived Strada.
The premise for the Mobi is simple: an honest day’s work from Monday to Friday and a family car on the weekends. But why is it shaped like a black box? Because Fiat apparently felt the need to be all secretive, even though nobody in Scandinavia cares about it.
The body for the X1P pickup is longer than the hatchback, as the bed has been added to all four doors, not two like you see on most small trucks. Regarding engines, the most likely unit is a 1.3-litre 8-valve Firefly with 101/109 HP running on gasoline or ethanol. However, the normal 3-cylinder 1-litre (6V) from the standard Mobi can’t be ruled out, even though it only delivers 72/75 HP.
A mixture of parts from Fiat’s cheaper models will be used here, parts which would make the Panda look premium. A twist-beam rear suspension will be added, and this works because the pickup is front-wheel-drive.
We expect this model to join the Fiat range in Brasil in early 2020. Between now and then, we should see an official debut happening this November at the Sao Paulo International Auto Show.
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