After having returned to making tires for the (rare) Ferrari 250 GTO, the most expensive car in the world, Pirelli has returned to making tires for a diametrically opposite machine: the small, friendly and popular Fiat 500 , or Nuova 500, released in 1957.
The new Cinturato CN54 revealed are part of Pirelli Collezione, a range of car tires produced between the 50s and 80s of the last century. Tires that keep the look of the originals, but are produced with modern compounds and technologies.
What that means is that, although they still look like the originals — so the look doesn't clash with the rest of the vehicle — when they're made with modern compounds, their safety and performance are improved, especially when driving under conditions. more adverse, such as rain.
Using original documents and drawings in the archives of the Pirelli Foundation in Milan, Pirelli engineers were able to base themselves on the same parameters used by the team responsible for creating the Fiat 500 — chassis and suspension configurations — when they developed this new tyre, better adapting it to the vehicle's characteristics.
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Originally released in 1972 — coinciding with the launch of the Fiat 500 R, the latest evolution the model knew — today's Cinturato CN54 are available in the same diminutive dimensions as the originals. In other words, they will be manufactured in the 125 R 12 measure, serving all the Fiat 500s, which saw several versions over the 18 years in which it was produced.
Yes, it's just 125mm wide and 12″ diameter wheels. Truth be told, you probably don't need more "rubber".
The Nuova 500 was truly small — the current 500 is a giant when placed side by side with its awe-inspiring muse. It wasn't even 3.0 m long and its bi-cylindrical rear engine measuring 479 cm3 initially delivered only 13 hp — it would later go up to “untimely”… 18 hp! It only gave 85 km/h, rising to 100 km/h in the most powerful version — speeds… crazy!
