The current Fiat 500 dates back to 2007 when it was introduced as a modern incarnation of an iconic and very successful city car that the Italian firm produced from 1957 to 1975. Developed in an era when Fiat was struggling, the 500 managed to put the Italian firm back on track and eventually in a successful partnership with Chrysler. Frank Stephenson, the man who designed the production version of the 500, recently posted a video in which he discusses how he designed the city car that's now considered one of the most successful classic car revivals.

His design is actually based on the Fiat Trepiuno concept, which was penned by Roberto Giolito. But Stephenson added many of the key styling cues that made the Fiat 500 popular and explained the entire process by putting together a couple of sketches on a piece of paper.

If you're not familiar with Stephenson's work, the Fiat 500 is just one of many iconic cars he designed. He started out by designing the large double spoiler of the Ford Escort RS Cosworth before moving to BMW, where he penned the Mini Cooper, also a revival of a beloved classic. He also designed the first-generation BMW X5 before he was appointed director of Ferrari-Maserati Concept Design and Development. During this time, his team created the Maserati GranSport and MC12, and the Ferrari F430 and FXX. Following his tenure at Fiat, Stephenson became the Design Director of McLaren Automotive, where he oversaw the design of the MP4-12C, P1, 570S, 675LT, and 720S.