The government announced, on Industry Day, several measures that will be implemented for the automotive segment to resume growth and for the popular car to return to Brazilian streets in 2023.
The initiative, although it has some points in common, is not identical to the one taken in the early 1990s, when a tax reduction package was launched by the team of then-president Fernando Collor de Mello and facilitated the appearance of cheaper cars, such as the Fiat Uno Mille.
The Italian model, by the way, is considered by many to be the first popular car in Brazil, since the automaker practically had the engine required to comply with the new Tax on Industrialized Products (IPI) rate, which was significantly reduced for diesel engines. a maximum of 1,000 cylinders.
Because of this, 33 years after the launch of Fiat’s “little boot”, the Canaltech entered the time tunnel to remember what the “basicão” was like at the time. And he was much less attractive than the future models of popular cars that will soon be running through Brazilian streets.
One Thousand | How was it or Fiat popular?
The mission of producing the Uno Mille with an adequate engine to be entitled to IPI benefits and, thus, fit into the popular car range, was easy for Fiat. After all, the automaker still manufactured the legendary 147, equipped with a 1,050-cylinder engine.
It was enough to reduce the stroke of the pistons through the crankshaft and adjust the carburetion and the valve train to reinforce the torque. That’s it: the engine of the Fiat 147, which delivered 52 hp of power and 7.8 kgf/m of torque, now has 48.5 hp and 7.4 kgf/m. The requirements for launching the so-called popular car were met and the Uno Mille hit the streets.
In addition to the engine that was not very powerful, but ideal for the project, the Uno Mille’s main attraction was, obviously, the price. The car was launched for 625 thousand cruzeiros, currency in Brazil at the time. The price was about 100 thousand cruzeiros less than the main competitors in the market — Volkswagen Gol and Chevrolet Chevette —, both used.
As the saying goes, however, there is no “free lunch”. To make the costs of producing a popular car feasible, Fiat completely “cleaned” the Uno Mille. The few positive points of the car came down to a front stabilizer bar, the velvet in the central trim of the seats and the buffer in the trunk.
The absences of the 1st popular car in Brazil, however, were many and today they could not be implemented even if the automakers wanted to, as some (such as the absence of the right-hand mirror) could jeopardize the safety of the occupants.
What did Fiat give up in the Uno Mille?
Fiat took great care in cleaning the Uno Mille to make the car financially viable within the popular concept that existed in Brazil in the early 1990s. no exaggeration.
To give you an idea, the Uno Mille was sold without some items that, today, you can’t even consider removing from the car. Doubt? So just look at the list of accessories and items that the popular Fiat DID NOT have:
- 5-speed gearbox (5th was optional);
- Rear view mirror on the right side;
- Glove box lid;
- Headrests;
- reclining front seats;
- Rear washer and defogger.
How much would the Fiat Uno Mille cost today?
The Fiat Uno Mille launched in the 1990s cost, as we said, 625 thousand cruzeiros, the country’s currency at the time. And how much would the first popular car in Brazil cost today?
For this, it is necessary to transform the value in cruzeiros into real, the current currency of Brazil since 1994. In addition, corrections by the IPCA (Consumer Price Index) must be applied to the projected price.
After all the calculations, it is possible to discover that the value of a Fiat Uno Mille, without any accessories, and still devoid of mandatory safety items by the Brazilian Traffic Code (CTB), would be close to the goal that the Brazilian government wants for the car. popular in 2023: USD 51.3 thousand.
For everything that the first popular car in Brazil did NOT offer in terms of equipment or basic safety items, the updated value would be a bit “salty”, don’t you think?
