Fiat Idea

The Fiat Idea is a car manufactured and marketed by Fiat from 2003 to 2012 over a single generation with one intermediate facelift. It is a five-passenger mini MPV with five doors. It has a front-engine, front-wheel drive layout. Internally designated the Type 350, the Idea was Fiat's first entry in the compact MPV market, sharing its platform with the third-generation Fiat Punto (Project 199); exterior design by Fabrizio Giugiaro at Italdesign and interior design by Fiat's Centro Stilo. The monovolume design is noted for its centrally located instrument cluster, and high H-point, reconfigurable seating — with reclining, sliding and folding rear seating. The Idea debuted at the 2003 Geneva International Motor Show, followed a year later by an upscale variant, the Lancia Musa, sharing many common components with modified exterior. Both were manufactured at Fiat's Mirafiori plant and were superseded by the Fiat 500L. Production continued through MY 2016 in Brazil, including the Adventure model, a front-drive variant with increased ground clearance, and styling elements resembling an off-road vehicle. The Idea nameplate is an acronym for Intelligent Design Emotive Architecture.