Problems come. Problems go. If you have been around for 105 years, then surely, a crisis like this would be a mere blip in your long history. I am talking about Fiat of course, the nutty Italian manufacturer that makes some great cars but doesn’t know what to do with them. People say it’s difficult for Fiat to emerge unscathed from its current financial problems and that they are more or less finito, but I think as long as they make good, well-built and thoughtful automobiles, there shouldn’t be much to worry about.
Take for instance this car that I am now driving. It was manufactured at a time when both Fiat and Italy were going through some tremendous upheavals. European nations were getting at each others’ throats thanks to their fiercely nationalistic and protectionist policies, Italy was under the grip of the Fascists and the country was yet to emerge from an economic crisis that started with the first World War. Fiat specifically had to put up with government policies that were dictatorial. Which meant curbs on how much you could sell in the domestic market, restrictions on how many cars you could sell abroad, and a host of other unfair economic measures. Then Italy invaded Abyssinia, leading to sanctions being imposed. And WWII would soon begin and everything would be devoted to production towards the war effort. And you call this a problem?
Pardon me for that little bit of economic history. It’s just that I wanted to put things in perspective. Here I was in Pune, puttering around in an automobile that also has been around for 70 years now – almost three-quarters of the time the company has been in existence – and wondering about Fiat, its cars and its penchant for getting into trouble. And since this particular Fiat did not ask for too much attention from you for driving it, I had enough time to ponder about all these.
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