The Chrysler Group has announced that the Fiat 500 will benefit from the new 1.4-litre FIRE (Fully Integrated Robitized Engine) with MultiAir in 2010, delivering high power, low emission engine technology.

Delivering 75kW/129Nm, the Fiat 1.4-litre fully integrated robitized engine with MultiAir should give the little Italian runabout a good level of squirt while keeping its carbon footprint as compact as its chassis.

But why would the Chrysler Group, which is now owned by Fiat, be announcing a new Fiat technology? Because the American car maker has unfettered access to the new engine tech, which in turn will improve the Chrysler fleet with more modern, more powerful and more efficient powerplants.

Chrysler reveals that a "turbo version of the engine is also planned and will produce a fuel economy improvement of up to 25 per cent when compared to a V6 engine with equivalent power."

With Chrysler and Fiat now joined at the hip, the MultiAir technology will find its way into applications such as Chrysler's four-cylinder 'World Gas' engine and the all-new Pentastar V6, the latter of which could give new generation models like the 200C (pictured) cleaner burning engines.

The sharing of technology between Fiat and Chrysler is only expected to improve as time goes on, and as Fiat is developing a V8 engine with MultiAir, the engine choices for both companies are only expected to grow.

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