HENRY PAYNE

Payne, Q&Auto: Fiat chief’s new toys

Henry Payne
The Detroit News

“I’m a muscle car junkie with the Dodge Challenger,” says Bob Broderdorf, ex-chief of the Fiat-Chrysler performance car brand. “To deliver those cars – Hellcats, 392s – I’m very passionate. My dad had an old Barracuda. Woodward Dream Cruise is what I got excited about growing up.”

Now Broderdorf is packaging excitement in a much smaller box.

The 37-year-old Detroit native is the new captain of Fiat North America. He inherits an iconic Italian name that has struggled in the U.S. even as it has filled out its menu with more Yankee-friendly dishes like the Fiat 500X crossover – and received unexpected endorsements from a 500L-chauffered pope. Don’t ask Broderdorf about Pope Francis (always best not to mix religion and cars), but he’ll talk ’til sundown about the summer arrival of Fiat’s next big – er, little – thing: the 124 Spider.

Broderdorf was handpicked by FCA car QB Tim Kuniskis to run Fiat, and it’s easy to see why. The two men share a youthful energy marked by a machine-gun delivery of facts and figures. And if Broderdorf can sprinkle some of that Hellcat marketing magic on Fiat, then the Spider will charm Dream Cruisers everywhere.

I sat down with Broderdorf in Los Angeles to talk Fiats, Miatas and Minis.

Q: Your first car?

Broderdorf: Dodge Neon.

Q: The 124 was originally conceived as an Alfa. Now a Fiat. Why?

Broderdorf: Anytime you have an opportunity to have a partnership to launch a car like this – the 124 Spider – this is a platform that allowed us to do that. The idea of paying homage to the past... plays really well to what we have done previously for the Fiat brand.

Q: The last 124 was made until 1985. How many sold?

Broderdorf: In 1966 it was first announced in Italy. Then (from 1968-1985) it came here. Over that time frame, 170,000 were sold in the U.S. market – by far the most of the 200,000 they sold overall. It was a big deal here.

Q: Where will the new, Mazda Miata-based 124 be built?

Broderdorf: Hiroshima, Japan. Building it there leverages the platform to build two unique interpretations of the car. There are lots of synergies that the platform enables. Both (Miata and 124) have taken a different spin at the rear-wheel drive roadster. We wanted to make sure that if you put that badge on this car there is a whole cult following that is really excited about it. There is still a (U.S.) owner’s club with 8,000 members. If we can play the heartstrings of those people... then we are on the right track.

Q: Engine shared with the Abarth?

Broderdorf: Powertrain is 100 percent Italian. 1.4-liter Multi-air – 160 horsepower mated with automatic and manual transmissions.

Q: Throwback styling?

Broderdorf: It starts with face of the car. The old Spider had the hexagonal gril – that very clear face. Fiats overall are pleasant, not overly aggressive, very concentrated. Headlamps and taillights play homage to that. And the side of the car had a horizontal line from fender to the rear – we maintained that. Even where the license plate is bracketed plays homage to the original car, but we still put a modern twist on it.

Q: You have a compact, a sports car, two crossovers... How have sales gone with the X?

Broderdorf: We’re happy with sales. Making great progress. We’re getting buyers into the marketplace – they are taking a look at it. The key piece is all-wheel drive. A lot of our sales come in the southern markets. To get the northern markets on board we need the AWD feature.

Q: Like your close competitor Mini Cooper, will Fiat always be a small brand?

Broderdorf: There is a fine line between niche and mainstream. The most important thing for Fiat is (that people say) the number one reason to buy is “fun to drive.” When we stay in that vein, we grow. But we need to build cars the right way – that’s more important than just hammering down volume.

Q: Is California important for you?

Broderdorf: This is my No. One market in the U.S. It’s important to be here. There is a trendy cool factor. If things take off here in California – particularly some of your urban markets – then some of the cities like New York, Miami, New York will most quickly adopt to it. The original announcement of the brand was here.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Email him at hpayne@detroitnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @HenryEPayne.