Last Tuesday, FIAT and Zastava (a Yugoslavian carmarker) have signed a collaboration memorandum. Rumors say that the factories in Kragujevac will be employed to build a remake of the Topolino.

But, besides the interesting news about FIAT regaining its role as a major player in the automotive market at an international level, the news rang different bells for me – and, I am sure, for most of those who spent some time in proximity with The Region Formerly Known As Yugoslavia.

This car is legend. It is a version of the Fiat 600 made by Zastava from 1965, under licence from Fiat. Production continued until the eighties but the Fičko (read: fichko) remains as a complex symbol, infused with an ironic blend of nostalgia. And starred in one of the greatest films of the last 5 years.