The new Fiat 500 has visited the Bathurst race track, the spiritual home of Australian motorsport, as part of its preparation for its role in the Celebrity Challenge at the 2008 Formula 1 ING Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on 16 March 2008.

“The cars for the Celebrity Challenge are the very first racing cars to be built from the new Fiat 500 and our first car arrived here fresh out of the box,” explains David Stone, General Manager for Fiat Cars in Australia. “So we wanted to see how it performed and how it we could tweak it to make it even more exciting for Melbourne. With the Fiat Car Club holding their annual hill climb event at Bathurst, there could be no better place to see how the Fiat 500 performed!”

Fiat has competed at Bathurst many times before, with a Fiat 600, the 500’s bigger engined brother, turning out for the very first race in 1960. It was followed by a host of other Fiat models, with the last one being a Fiat Uno in 1986. While the rules don’t allow for a new Fiat 500 to take part in the modern Bathurst 1000, there is every chance that the new Fiat 500 could turn out for the 12 hour version of the Australian classic race in the future.

“The new 500 performed very well on the climb up the mountain,” says David Stone, who piloted the car on its test runs and who took an Alfa Romeo 159 JTD to a class win in last year’s Bathurst 12 hour. “The steering was sharp and responsive, there was plenty of grip and the handling enables the driver to get plenty of speed in the corners, but safely in the knowledge that if he does go too fast, the 500 will help him get out of danger.

"We will be fine turning the Fiat 500 race cars for the Grand Prix, but all in all, I am sure that after our experience at Bathurst the celebrities are in for a great day’s racing and the spectators will see something unique and exciting at the 2008 Formula 1 ING Australian Grand Prix when the new Fiat 500 takes to the track at Albert Park!”