During its more than century-long history, it remained the largest automobile manufacturer in Europe and the third in the world after General Motors and Ford for over 20 years, until the car industry crisis in the late 1980s.

In 1970, Fiat Automobiles employed more than 100,000 in Italy when its production reached the highest number, 1.4 million cars, in that country.

[4] Fiat has also manufactured railway engines, military vehicles, farm tractors, aircraft, and weapons such as the Fiat–Revelli Modello 1914.

Outside Italy, the largest country of production is Brazil, where the Fiat brand was the market leader for many years.

[5][6] The group also has factories in Argentina, Poland and Mexico (where Fiat-brand vehicles are manufactured at plants owned and operated by Stellantis North America for export to the United States, Brazil, Italy and other markets) and a long history of licensing manufacture of its products in other countries.

[8] On 11 July 1899, Giovanni Agnelli was part of the group of founding members of FIAT, Fabbrica Italiana di Automobili Torino.

Agnelli led the company until his death in 1945, while Vittorio Valletta administered the firm's daily activities.

Its first car, the 3 ½ CV (of which only 24 copies were built, all bodied by Alessio of Turin)[10] was based on a design purchased from Ceirano GB & C and had a 697 cc (42.5 cu in) boxer twin engine.

During World War I, Fiat had to devote all of its factories to supplying the Allies with aircraft, engines, machine guns, trucks, and ambulances.

Upon the entry of the US into the war in 1917, the factory was shut down as US regulations became too burdensome (the site was eventually sold to Western Publishing).

[23] Fiat made military machinery and vehicles during World War II for the Army and Regia Aeronautica and later for the Germans.

In 1970, Fiat employed more than 100,000 in Italy when its production reached the highest number, 1.4 million cars, in that country.

[4] As of 2002, Fiat built more than 1 million vehicles at six plants in Italy and the country accounted for more than a third of the company's revenue.

Chairman Agnelli candidly described the deal as "a classic petro-money recycling operation which will strengthen the Italian reserves, provide Fiat with fresh capital and give the group greater tranquility in which to carry out its investment programmes".

Historically successful in building city cars and Superminis, currently Fiat has a range of models focused on those two segments (accounting for the 84% of its sales in 2011).

[30] He unilaterally decided to leave the Fiat group from Confindustria and Federmeccanica, and to cancel the national collective labor agreement in the engineering sector by starting separate negotiations with some trade union organizations for a new specific company agreement in the automotive sector, starting from the Pomigliano production plant.

[34] Fiat's 2018 range of passenger car engines comprised eleven units, eight petrols and three diesels.

Its market share increased rapidly during the 1970s, with the 127 supermini and 128 range of small family cars being the biggest sellers, selling largely on practicality and efficiency.

They built their first Brazilian car plant in the Greater Belo Horizonte city of Betim in 1973, after initially assembling tractors there.

Recently a range of new models developed in Brazil has been launched: Pulse, Fiorino, Toro, Argo, and Mobi.

[45] Accordingly, Fiat left the United States car market in 1983, although the Spider and the X1/9 continued to be sold in small numbers with Pininfarina and Bertone badging respectively.

[54] Fiat passenger cars began assembly in South Africa in 1950, and full production in their Rosslyn plant commenced in 1966.

On 13 October 2022, Fiat Brand and the Algerian government signed a framework agreement aimed at local production of vehicles and the development of the automotive sector in Algeria.

[57][58] Fiat's presence in the Chinese market is limited compared to its European, Japanese, Korean, and American rivals.

Fiat currently offers Japanese consumers the 500 in both coupe and convertible body styles, and the Panda.

He then stated that "if Tesla CEO Elon Musk can demonstrate that the car will be profitable at that price, I will copy the formula, add the Italian design flair, and get it to the market within 12 months.

In 1968 the "rhomboid" logo (as it was known internally) was introduced which featured the FIAT initials spelled out on four interconnected rhombuses.