The Fiat 500 (the "cinquecento", /tʃin.kwe.tʃen.to/, or "chin-kwe-chen-to", from the Italian wor for "500") is a car produced by the Fiat company of Italy between 1957 and 1975 (the Fiat 500 K alone was produced until 1977). It was designed by Dante Giacosa. In 2007 Fiat lauched a similar looking, retro-styled car, basing it on the Fiat Panda. Launched as the Nuova 500, it was marketed as a cheap and practical town car. Measuring only 2.97 m (9 ft 9 in) long, and originally powered by a tiny 479 cc two-cylinder, air-cooled engine, the 500 redefined the term "small car" and is considered one of the first city cars.