TURIN, Italy – America’s relationship with the Fiat 500 has been rocky at greatest.
Skimming over the unique, pre-war mannequin, the second-generation 500 (the one with a rear-mounted engine) was briefly offered right here with funky headlights that caught out from the entrance finish like a bug’s eyes. Small and underpowered, although an amazing quantity of enjoyable to drive in its personal approach, it didn’t catch on and moseyed out of our market after just a few quick years.
The third-generation 500 spearheaded Fiat’s return to the US when it disembarked right here in 2012. It offered in addition to you may anticipate a European-flavored subcompact hatchback to promote within the Ford F-150’s bastion and bowed out in 2019, although it’s nonetheless offered throughout the pond alongside its supposed successor. That might be the fourth-generation 500, unveiled in 2020, which stored the retro design however went electric-only.
Gross sales in the US are scheduled to begin in early 2024, that means the cheeky hatchback can be about 4 years previous by the point it turns a wheel on American pavement. Is it well worth the wait? I traveled to Fiat’s residence city of Turin in northern Italy to get a greater concept of what makes this fun-sized EV buzz.
There’s one level I want to deal with proper off the bat: what you see in our gallery isn’t precisely what you’ll get when the brand new 500 rolls into American showrooms with an “e” hooked up to the tip of its identify. Fiat hasn’t detailed the American-market mannequin but, however it’s affordable to imagine many of the adjustments can be discovered on the specs sheet and on the listing of normal and optionally available tools. Fiat can’t take a European-market automotive and ship it right here unchanged, however I’m not anticipating vital updates to the outside or inside design — nothing suggests it would morph into an outdoorsy four-door crossover.
Talking of design, it’s been the five hundred’s fundamental promoting level because the last-generation mannequin made its debut in 2007 so Fiat’s edits had been fairly gentle. I’d guess somebody who isn’t updated with what’s occurring on automotive planet won’t notice that they’re a brand new 500, and that’s intentional. Nonetheless unabashedly retro, the mannequin stands out from its predecessor with a new-look entrance finish that options two-piece LED headlights and a giant “500” emblem, shiny beltline trim and a extra chiseled hatch. Its proportions haven’t modified, however it’s barely larger than earlier than: it stretches 143 inches lengthy, 66.3 inches extensive, and 60.1 inches tall, dimensions that make it about 3 inches longer, 2 inches wider, and a couple of inches taller than the final 500 offered right here. It’s supplied as a hatchback with two or three (!) doorways and as a quasi-convertible. I drove the two-door hatchback, and it’s too early to inform which variant(s) will come to the US.
Larger adjustments are scattered all through the inside: the brand new 500e feels a lot nicer than the last-generation mannequin, each when it comes to match and end, and of kit (it even has power-operated door handles, Maserati-style). It additionally advantages from the identical enjoyable method to design that permeates many of the current additions to the Stellantis portfolio. “FIAT” is stitched into the upholstery, the previous 500’s define seems within the inside door pull subsequent to the phrase “Made in Torino,” and the Turin skyline is etched into the wi-fi charging pad’s mat. The motive force faces a two-spoke steering wheel and a refreshingly easy digital instrument cluster, whereas a ten.25-inch touchscreen dominates the dashboard.
The similarities between the last-generation 500 and the brand new mannequin are merely skin-deep; the 2 vehicles share nothing below the sheet metallic. Constructed on a brand new platform, the 500e ships with a single, front-mounted electrical motor that pulls electrical energy from a tiny, 28.5-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack to zap the entrance wheels with 95 horsepower and 162 pound-feet of torque. This model ideas the size at 2,601 kilos, and my crystal ball tells me we’re unlikely to see it in the US. What we’ll doubtless get (although understand that that is pure hypothesis) is the drivetrain European motorists need to pay additional for. It’s nonetheless constructed round a front-mounted electrical motor, however the battery pack’s measurement will increase to 42 kWh and horsepower jumps to 118, although torque stays flat. On this configuration, the two,843-pound 500e takes 9 seconds to succeed in 62 mph from a cease versus 9.5 seconds for the bottom mannequin.
Driving vary is determined by the place you drive and who you ask. Fiat quotes figures of 118 miles and 205 miles for the small and massive battery packs, respectively, however it notes that driving solely within the metropolis unlocks 257 miles and 291 miles, respectively. These numbers had been achieved utilizing Europe’s notoriously optimistic WLTP testing cycle, and the EPA figures can be decrease (assuming we get both battery pack).
There’s lots to love in regards to the 500e from the motive force’s seat. It’s extra spacious than you would possibly assume given its dimensions, the entrance seats are moderately comfy, and the digital instrument cluster is refreshingly easy. It’s primary, which is a pleasant change from among the IMAX-like shows firms are more and more stuffing into their vehicles. And, in a approach, it’s additionally retro: the previous 500 got here with a quite simple instrument cluster as nicely. The supplies on the dashboard really feel good contemplating the section this automotive competes in, although you don’t must poke round for very lengthy to search out rock-hard plastics, and the gear selector buttons save area however are clunky to make use of. Out again … nicely, it’s a 500, a mannequin that has by no means, ever been admired for roominess. It’s tight, and the trunk is small, however anticipating to suit NBA gamers within the rear seats and a cooler within the trunk is like anticipating to zig-zag throughout central Rome in a Chevrolet Tahoe.
Fiat will make some adjustments to the 500e earlier than launching it in the US, as talked about above, however I’d say the inside is nice to go as-is … with one exception. The lone, itsy-bitsy cupholder that flips out from the underside a part of the middle console isn’t going to chop it within the land Huge Gulpuccinos.
One of many extra attention-grabbing and sudden takeaways from my time behind the wheel is that the 500e drives lots like its gasoline-burning predecessor. It’s faster due to the electrical motor’s on the spot torque, and it’s clearly quieter, however it doesn’t prefer to be hustled (that’s what the Abarth-branded mannequin is ostensibly for). Whereas the battery pack is built-in into the chassis and instantly below the seats, its comparatively small measurement prevents the 500e from feeling as planted and bottom-heavy as different EVs.
The place this automotive actually shines is within the metropolis. It effortlessly and silently glides from gentle to gentle and darts into gaps in site visitors. It’s simple to park, too, due to a comparatively tight turning radius and a light-weight steering system. It’s additionally at residence on nation roads and even on the freeway, although the steering is equal elements fast and imprecise and the suspension is surprisingly harsh. I think about that’s one of many adjustments that Fiat will make earlier than giving the 500e permission to journey to the US; global-market vehicles usually include a firmer suspension in Europe than in the US attributable to totally different purchaser preferences.
One of many infotainment system’s menus exhibits the ability movement, which isn’t uncommon in a contemporary automotive no matter powertrain kind. What’s cool right here is that, along with the motor’s real-time energy consumption, it shows how a lot juice the local weather management system is drawing. This takes quite a lot of the guesswork out of driving an EV — in case your vary is free-falling, it will possibly assist you determine why. In my case, I misplaced extra vary than I lined distance. It was pretty chilly on the foot of the Italian Alps, so I had the heater on for many of the drive (my tester didn’t have heated seats). Your mileage could actually differ.
Fiat programmed three driving modes known as Regular, Vary and Sherpa, respectively. The primary mode is self-explanatory, however an essential element is that there’s no perceptible brake-energy regeneration. Elevate off the accelerator pedal and the 500e coasts with none resistance. Vary feels lots like Regular however it brings a powerful quantity of regen; you may come to a full cease by lifting your foot off the accelerator. Final and, on this case, least, Sherpa limits the highest pace to about 50 mph and disables the air con system in addition to the heated seats (if geared up) to avoid wasting as a lot vary as doable. In a doubtful approach, that is one other retro contact: with Sherpa mode, you’ll be scorching as hell in the summertime and by no means attain freeway speeds, identical to in a 1957 500 with an air-cooled, 13-horsepower two-cylinder engine.
The one-pedal driving mode is an actual boon in metropolis driving, and it provides just a little little bit of vary to the battery pack each time you’re taking your foot off the accelerator pedal, but when I may return and intervene within the design course of, I’d add an intermediate mode. Because it stands, it’s all or nothing, and the regeneration you get in Vary mode is comparatively aggressive. The 500e would profit from, say, a Vary-Mild mode.
There are two methods to have a look at the 500e. On one hand, it’s an entire lot much less helpful and an entire lot costlier than its gasoline-powered predecessor. The restricted driving vary will relegate it to second-car standing for many households and, whereas pricing for the American market hasn’t been launched, it received’t be low-cost. Pricing begins at €29,950 for the 95-horsepower mannequin and €33,150 for the 118-horsepower model in Italy, figures that characterize roughly $31,800 and $35,200, respectively, although the conversion is rarely so simple as Google makes it out to be. However, there’s a subset of the inhabitants that may welcome the 500e as the right automotive. It turns heads even in its residence nation, it has probably the greatest interiors in Europe’s crowded city-car section, and it’s tailored for big-city life. How that interprets again in the US can be attention-grabbing to see.
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