1936 FIAT TOPOLINO

Fiat’s original 500, commonly known as Topolino ("little mouse", the Italian name for Mickey Mouse), was first seen in 1936. The Topolino was one of the smallest cars in the world at the time of its production, and was Fiat’s first foray into a sector that it would eventually come to dominate in Italy. It was initially equipped with a 569 cc four-cylinder engine mounted in front of the front axle. The radiator was located behind the engine which made possible a low nose profile. With horsepower of about 13 bhp, its top speed was about 53 mph (85 km/h). After WWII, production resumed and the Topolino soldiored on until 1955. Although it was more expensive than first intended, the car was still very competitively priced and more than 500,000 were sold. The car on display was personally imported to Australia in 2001.