Five-Minute Fix: Fiat 500e and Ample Launch Battery Swapping in Madrid

Five-Minute Fix: Fiat 500e and Ample Launch Battery Swapping in Madrid​

New Partnership Shows How EV Charging Doesn’t Need To Take Forever​

FIAT just flipped the EV game on its head by making “recharging” happen in less time than it takes to grab a coffee. In a bold partnership with battery-swap startup Ample and car-sharing service Free2move, FIAT has launched its first battery-swapping station in Madrid, Spain. And get this: the all-electric Fiat 500e fleet can fully “refuel” in under five minutes.

Five-Minute Fix: Fiat 500e and Ample Launch Battery Swapping in Madrid

Discover the Five-Minute Fix: Fiat 500e and Ample Launch Battery Swapping in Madrid for quick electric vehicle refueling.

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What makes this tech so slick is its flexibility. Ample’s batteries are designed to be plug-and-play replacements for standard EV packs, meaning they could work across many Stellantis brands in the future. And with Free2move Charge backing the project, Stellantis is all-in on seeing where this can go next.

This is the direction Fiat USA should be pursuing. Not just the battery swapping, but also combine the Free2Move rental, leasing and car sharing services to escape from the failing boutique sales paradigm. Now that the government is stepping back from EV mandates, subsidized charging stations, and other socialist centralized planning schemes, battery-electric vehicles can retreat to the market niches where the propulsion technology works best. One market niche with a better chance of success would be in small city cars like the Fiat 500e and Fiat Grande Panda.

There still isn't much of a foot print for Free2Move in the USA, and the Fiat brand's network is tiny and shrinking. Ample is just getting started in Europe. In the US I would combine everything into one business model, but let Ample continue to be a separate company, so other auto manufacturers could participate in the battery swapping service if they choose. My idea for a combined Fiat-Free2Move-Ample outlet would be in locations such as off-site near major airports, places easily accessible to college students living on campus, dense urban environments, and converted Fiat outlets. In addition to the battery swapping service each outlet would have Level 2 and 3 chargers for non-swappable battery electric vehicles.

The Fiat brand should also offer both mild hybrid and plugin hybrid options as well for those who simply want their own car, or outlets located where having an IC engine makes better sense. The vehicles I would offer swappable batteries with would be A and B segment Fiats, C-segment Chrysler and Dodge crossovers of some kind, and two versions of the shortest Fiat Doblo. The Doblo Easy-Pro panel version for Ram and a passenger version for Chrysler. If the batteries are domestically manufactured and easily installed then the vans could be sent as knock downs with enough American built components to avoid the Chicken tax.