The Fiat 500L has seen a remarkable jump in popularity during the past few weeks thanks to Pope Francis’ historic tour of the United States.
Since choosing the Fiat as his preferred ride for the US-Cuba trip, the Pope’s little black number has become a talking point across America, and dealers have seen a surge in interest from buyers.
Giuseppe Salvitti, salesman at the Fiat dealership in Manhattan, said: “People are calling to ask about the Popemobile. It’s selling really well.”
Eschewing the famous bulletproof Popemobile favoured by his predecessors, Pope Francis instead has swapped them out in favour of a variety of small hatchbacks for his papal visits.
In his view, being stuck inside the “glass sardine can” keeps him from the people and he said: “It is true that anything could happen, but let’s face it, at my age I don’t have much to lose.”
So why this particular car for the US trip? Mr Salvitti said: “I expect it’s because of the headroom. And it’s comfortable, spacious and reliable. And it’s Italian.”
“It’s perfect for a travelling businessman, a soccer mom, a family of five. There’s a lot of room in the back, and very good trunk space. It has a top speed of 100-110 mph – though you’re never going to reach that anywhere in America let alone Manhattan.”
It also comes with a cupholder in the central rear armrest to keep the papal coffee from spilling, while the Holy Father’s newly-released pop single can be played through the car’s six speaker sound system.
This isn’t the first time that the Pope’s choice of vehicle has caused a stir, after he chose to tour South Korea in a Kia Soul hatchback for his official tour to the country last year.
In a statement, Kia said that it’s honoured to be chosen to be the pope’s choice of car, but didn’t specify whether any modifications were made to the vehicle.
Experts also predicted at the time that the publicity will be good for the Korean carmaker; after all, the Pope is the leader of 1.2 billion Catholics, and it’s expected Fiat will similarly benefit.
Kim Jin Kook, chief executive officer of auto researcher Marketing Insight, said: “This will help Kia by bringing far-reaching exposure through the mass media.
“That exposure will be related to the Pope, who has a very positive image among the general public, which in return will trigger a halo effect for Kia.”