The Autonomy Programme of Fiat Group Automobiles Participates in First Edition of World Handbike Championships

Turin 11 June 2007 -- The Autonomy Programme of Fiat Group Automobiles is the main sponsor of the World Handbike Championships to be held from 15 to 17 June at Parabiago (Milan). Over two hundred physically handicapped riders from twenty countries will take part, competing on handbikes, which are special three-wheeled bicycles propelled by the arms and not the legs.

A veritable village will be set up for the event that will not only host all the scheduled races but also many other different initiatives, shows and exhibitions where time can be spent in sport, amusements and social commitment. The Fiat Group Automobiles stand will enable the public to get to know vehicles at first hand that are fitted with special devices according to the principles of the Autonomy Programme. Fiat has been using this initiative since 1995 to provide services and individual and collective means of transport for those with reduced mobility using the latest product novelties and to help the physically handicapped to use motor vehicles.

The new logo of the Autonomy Programme will also be seen at a sporting event for the first time. Produced by the creative team in the Turin offices of Leo Burnett and Leo Design, the new design agency of the Leo Burnett Group, the new logo symbolises the absence of constraints and barriers through the stylised body of a man grasping a steering wheel and opening up to the world, life and reality around him. The famous wheelchair symbol has thus been abandoned and the new brand stresses the longstanding social commitment of Fiat Group Automobiles, expressing even more than in the past the concept of freedom and accessibility. The logo obviously retains some features of the previous logo such as the colour scheme and the lettering of the “Mobility Programme” payoff. The new logo is already visible on the customary advertising campaign to promote the concept: “It’s good to be a motorist”.

The stand at the Handbike Championships will host: an Alfa Spider, an Alfa 159 Sportwagon 2.4 JTDm with Q-Tronic gearbox that is fitted with a hand accelerator and arm-operated brake lever; there will also be a raised roof Doblò with elevator platform for conveying people in a wheelchair. In addition, for transferring the riders, the organisation will be provided with a Nuovo Scudo, the latest Fiat Professional vehicle, and a Lancia Musa 1.3 Multijet with DFN gearbox. Furthermore, in an area near the stand, the visitors will be able to observe a Fiat Croma from close up that has an electronic hand accelerator and a self-locking brake lever, and a Fiat Grande Punto with an accelerator under the steering wheel, floor brake, electronic clutch and two small hoists (an electric transfer hoist and the other one for loading wheelchairs into the boot). Last but not least, the public will be able to admire Alfredo Di Cosmo’s Alfa 147 TS 16v 2.0 GR, a testimonial of the Autonomy Programme, with which he competes in the Italian Turismo 2007 championship, first division, group 3, which is reserved to 2.0 cc vehicles.

Lastly, the sponsorship of the World Handbike Championships reflects the Fiat Group’s commitment to the disabled, which was also shown by its being an Official Partner of the Ninth Winter Paralympics in Turin in 2006, a human and sporting challenge that sent out an exciting message to the world: there are no “different” competitions but only “different” abilities as all sportspeople have the same determination to win and to overcome obstacles. Fiat is also convinced that a car manufacturer can do much in this respect by enabling people to regain their right to mobility and independence through the use of a car. A concrete example? In 2006 alone, over 12,000 Autonomy Programme vehicles were sold by Fiat Group Automobiles and more than 1000 of them have used the services offered by the 18 Mobility Centres in Italy.

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