Seinfeld - Fiat "BTM"???

http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/03/seinfeld.crash.ap/index.html

he rolled a "1967 Fiat BTM" which experienced brake failure.

so what is this car??

 

I'm going to take a wild guess and suggest that BTM means "Berlina Transformabile", or maybe "Bianchina Transformabile", which would be the roll-top (get it?) version of a 500 or 600 or Autobianchi.

Like so:
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Is brake failure the same as DUI??

 

An instantaneous brake failure on an old Fiat like that is probably due to a fracture of one of the metal brake lines or a rupture of one of the rubber brake hoses. And of course it's very easy to roll a rear-engined Fiat in an emergency manouever.

Glad you're OK, Jerry!

 

"Fix it again Tony"

 

I guess Seinfeld panicked, all he really had to do is open the door and drag his feet, Flintstone style.

 

He had a really nice blue 850 coupe, all stock. I don't know what a btm is.

 

Nice pic, Jeff and your interpretation is probably right on the money. I was trying the think up all sorts of Abarth permutations believing the reporter wrote it down improperly..BDM,VDM,PTN...still nothing. I'll go with yours until we see a photo of the poor little thing.

 

I have been around Fiat's for quite a while and never heard of a BTM, but here you go....
http://luvtosurf.blogspot.com/2008/04/what-is-1967-fiat-btm-seinfeld-had-car.html

 

I am aware of the Fiat Dinos, I just never heard them called a BTM. His blue 850 was on ebay awhile back.

 

Maybe when they asked Seinfeld what kind of car it was, he responded FIAT - a BTM (Brakes That Might work)

 

This article states that Seinfeld crashed in a 1967 Fiat 500. Miltonian was right.

http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/news/celebrity/ny-etcars0404,0,2182629.story

 

There is some rather amusing mis-information about Fiats on some of these links! Apparently a lot of people are not aware that the 500 model was still in production in 1967, and they are not aware of the "chic" status of old 500's. It wouldn't surprise me at all to hear that Mr. Seinfeld owns a 500, there are a lot of them being imported from Italy and other parts of Europe.

As for the "BTM" designation, I was being serious when I suggested that it may mean "Berlina Transformabile". If the car was imported on a foreign title, the US DMV may not be able to find that model listed, or it may be abbreviated to BTM. Don't think of it in English, as "transformable", but in Italian, as "trans-for-MA-bee-lay". "Berlina Transformabile" is a genuine model designation in Italy.

I tried to watch the Yahoo link of the TV report, but my computer is too slow. Are there any pictures of the car being posted?

 

"Chic"? I'll say...
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I have seen a message (somewhere) whichs suggests that BTM is probably an abbvreviation for "body/type/model" on a vehicle accident report, and that one of the news agencies may have mistaken that for part of the identity of the Fiat in question. That makes sense.

 

The latest:

http://blogs.automobilemag.com/6239243/editors-soapbox/the-real-story-about-jerry-seinfelds-mystery-car-crash/index.html

 

Thanks, I stopped buying Automobile long ago, when they started making Motor Trend look like journalism, maybe this is the beginning of a
rebirth.

 

Ahhh, I can see it now.
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(Newman!)

 

Actually, "Ferrari In Alternative Trim"

 

As an Abarth'd 500 owner I can't imagine how brake failure would cause the car to 'fall over' but someone not used to being careful with swing axels can easily fall over... Then again maybe the brakes failed coming into a corner which caused him to tuck a wheel under?