Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. originally FIAT, Italian: Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino, lit. 'Italian Automobiles Factory, Turin') is an Italian automobile manufacturer, a subsidiary of FCA Italy S.p.A., which is part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (previously Fiat S.p.A.). Fiat Automobiles was formed in January 2007 when Fiat reorganized its automobile business,and traces its history back to 1899 when the first Fiat automobile, the Fiat 4 HP, was produced.
On 11 July 1899, Giovanni Agnelli was part of the group of founding members of FIAT, Fabbrica Italiana di Automobili Torino. The first Fiat plant opened in 1900 with 35 staff making 24 cars. Known from the beginning for the talent and creativity of its engineering staff, by 1903 Fiat made a small profit and produced 135 cars; this grew to 1,149 cars by 1906. The company then went public selling shares via the Milan stock exchange.
Fiat Automobiles is the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy. During its more than century-long history, it remained the largest automobile manufacturer in Europe and the third in the world after General Motors and Ford for over 20 years, until the car industry crisis in the late 1980s.In 2013, Fiat S.p.A. was the second largest European automaker by volumes produced and the seventh in the world, while currently FCA is the world's eighth-largest auto maker.