A bit over a week ago, Fiat teased a new concept that would mark the Multipla’s return to the limelight – for the second time, if you also count the tiny Multiplina concept that the Italian carmaker touted a while ago. The Multipla is Fiat’s multi-purpose vehicle, originally manufactured in two forms: initially, the 1956-1967 “minivan” version of the Fiat 600 platform with up to six seats, and the late 1990s bulging 3+3 wagon with a very weird modular design.
Fiat only described the Multiplay concept with a tiny logo, combining those two vehicles, and mentioned that it would have “an ingenious mechanism (that) enables the vehicle to switch from one configuration to the other in just a few movements.” Now, Fiat has shown the concept at the Paris motor show, and boy, is it wacky.
It Looks Like A Multipla
First of all: yes. The Multiplay’s design brings back the looks of the 1990s Multipla, just in a bulky crossover form.
The earlier car, before it was ruined by a traditionally bad Fiat facelift, had a pair of headlights directly underneath the windshield and another set up front. The ones in the “passenger pod” are the main beams, while the low beams are down low.
Curiously, this also prevented the 1999 Multipla from being sold in Finland when it was new, because traffic legislation of the time noted that a car’s headlights are mounted ahead of the front axle. Because the Multipla had a pair headlights that were behind the front axle, it would not have been legal.
The wording has since been changed, and secondhand Multiplas have been imported here, but it’s one of the weirdest reasons to keep a car from being sold.
The Multiplay concept has a wide, round light pattern from one side mirror to the other, Geordi La Forge style, with a large Fiat logo in front of the front passenger. A pair of C-shaped DRLs are shaped into the front bumper, on both sides of a huge MULTIPLAY logo.
While the original Multipla wasn’t offered in crossover form, the design has been translated into something chunky, with unpainted black plastic surrounding the wheelarches. The moon-buggy looks are complemented with big four-spoke wheels, which at least are a big plus.
The Roof Slides
Offering a different approach to a “modular” design, the Multiplay’s trick also justifies the wordplay in its name. The rear section of the roof slides back and forth, from a full long-roof wagon length to a shorter pick-up variant, leaving the rear deck in the open if necessary.
When the roof is moved forward, the rearmost seats stack up, and the car becomes a four-seater, with the C and D pillars joining neatly.
The rearmost side windows slide down into the quarter panels, a feature not often seen in any production passenger cars except a Japan-market Nissan Cedric station wagon, and that had the window behind the rear wheel, not above it. As the roof moves forward, it reveals a flexible bed cover.
The tailgate doesn’t fold down, but it has 50/50 split bay doors that open to the side. The rear spoiler works as an attachment for bikes, and little studs rise from the floor like parking bollards to keep stuff from sliding around (strapping them in place probably works, too).
From A Six-Seater To A Four-Seater
If extended to its full length, the cabin has six seats and a flexible seat Fiat calls the “Petsenger seat,” meant to transport pets as well as to accept a child seat; it also works as a small table or storage space.
Multiplay challenges one of the biggest compromises of modern family vehicles: the unusable third row. Thanks to its highly efficient architecture, the rear compartment can accommodate up to two children and even an adult when needed. The result is a dedicated family zone where children have their own space while remaining within easy reach and view of parents.
The front passenger seat, in turn, can be arranged into a chaise longue, where one can relax when the vehicle is parked, as the pad on the dashboard doubles as a headrest. It’s all very weird, very concept-like, and I’d like to see if any of this makes production other than some shapes in the dashboard and seats. As Fiat notes:
Multiplay explores how a single vehicle can fulfill roles usually performed by different vehicles or additional accessories. Its transformation architecture, use of space and multifunctional components provide a testing ground for future FIAT innovations.
I do think that putting all the features in the same basket also creates a problem, as if you only have one car that does it all, you only have one vehicle to use.
That said, the dash is upholstered in some very nice looking fabric, and the color scheme of the interior is said to have been inspired by a watermelon. The dashboard’s display is supposed to bring in mind the horizon of the Mediterranean sea. It also disappears from view when the vehicle is switched off.
Compared to the other vehicles, production ones, that share some of the Multiplay’s modularity, I think it definitely has something shared with all of them.
The Multiplay has the folding seats and extendable passenger area of the Felicia Fun, even if the Fun’s default state is different: it’s a pickup first and foremost, with two jump seats available by moving the rear wall. The Multiplay is a wagon first, with the rear seats stacking and the rear deck opening to create a Subaru Baja of sorts. The bed cover even looks like the one on the Baja, and thinking back to the Toyota Open Deck, the Multiplay definitely exists in the same free-spirited, open this, open that ballpark.
But I need to stress that those were production cars, and while made in small numbers, they were available to customers. It’s one thing to float ideas and create discussion, and perhaps inspire some future details, and another thing to build the car.
Top graphic images: Fiat; Paramount
Imagine all the complexity and reliability of retractable hardtop convertible, but you store potted plants and bags of mulch in it.
The moon-buggy looks are complemented with big four-spoke wheels, which at least are a big plus.
Or a big “X” if you can’t park with the wheels in the “plus” position.
Always remember your order of operations.
Love the green color. Cool to see that there’s some creative thought put into what you can do with a vehicle. This is the antithesis of the JAGUAR TYPE 01.
Lol. Since making the second row unusable is the best way to make access to the third row easier?
Anyway, it’s wacky and fun, and I’m glad they made it. Just lay off the marketing speak.
“traffic legislation of the time noted that a car’s headlights are mounted ahead of the front axle.”
Interesting. I wonder if there was a specific vehicle they were targeting. Aside from the Multipla, has there been a production vehicle that had the headlight behind the front axel? Were motorcycles illegal?
It’s weird enough to be a Citroen.
Let that bake for a minute.
It’s ridiculous.
But I’m glad we’re back to ridiculous concept cars.