The U.S.A. is the estate of cock-a-hoop gondola . Trucks , sport utility , and crossover are by far more pop than sedans and smaller cars . That ’s not necessarily all that surprising — while in some countries you might rely a little more on trains or public transportation , in the U.S. , you pretty much have to ride to get anywhere . And , considering how much we drive and the distances we beat back , it makes sense to require something a short roomier . But Fiat thinks that can change — and that there ’s a market for pocket-size , so - called city cars in North America . To that ending , it ’s bringingthe 2024 Fiat 500estateside .
The Fiat 500e is n’t just small , though — it ’s also gimcrack . Or , at least it ’s tatty than the average EV , with a starting price of $ 32,500 .
I can see the appeal of a car like this . sure enough , it may not be everyone’sprimarycar — but the U.S. is n’t just the land of with child car , it ’s the demesne ofmultiplecars , at least in a household of two or more adults . Does the Fiat 500e do enough to justify its front in North America ? I ’ve been driving the Fiat 500e Inspi(Red ) for the past week to regain out .
Design and interior
Just enounce the Fiat 500e is small does n’t really do it justice , and I was surprised at just how tiny it was when I first see to it it in soul . Technically , it ’s a four - seater , with a 2nd row of seats that can be access by crawling through one of the two doors .
The 500e is n’t needs the moststylishcar , but it ’s certainly precious . But it ’s not as cute as a Mini , for exercise . Mini sell the Mini Electric Hardtop in a like price kitchen range to the 500e , and if we ’re talk utter looks , I have to say that the Mini has the edge . Whether or not it ’s a good EV is another question , of path .
The 500e has a rounded roofline and a hatchback door that hides a relatively tiny torso . With the second - row bum up , you ’ll get 9.5 cubic - feet of space , however you could process the auto like a two - seater and put the rear seats down to get 30.1 cubic - feet of distance . Alternatively , you could just put one rear seat down , if you need , to split the remainder .
That second wrangle , of path , is n’t inevitably well-to-do . In fact , it ’s downright cramped . But it ’s courteous that there ’s a second words at all , and to be clear , you should n’t buy this car as a kin driver , but rather practice the rear seats in a pinch for shorter trip .
At the front of the car , you ’ll find two semicircle headlights with a gravid “ 500 ” logo , sitting atop a down radiator grille for gentle wind intake . It has a very short olfactory organ , but that kind of fits the car .
If you ’re sitting in the front buns , the car is relatively comfortable . You ’d be hard - press to call it very “ agio , ” but this is n’t mean to be a opulence cable car . Still , I was pleasantly surprised to find a gracious stitched leather on the seats that sport a black - and - red color outline . It looks good , and feels dainty too , and the seat were well-situated for the kinds of unretentive drives I carry with it .
Tech, infotainment, and driver assist
At the front of the car , you ’ll chance a 10.2 - column inch infotainment exhibit , and it occur with Fiat ’s own infotainment system . The software was n’t my favorite . As expected from a legacy automaker , it was slow to respond and a little perplexing to navigate .
Thankfully , the machine supports Android Autoand Apple CarPlay through a wireless association , so you could mostly avoid having to use Fiat ’s software .
The Fiat 500e has choice for a number of basic driver - assist feature , however our model did n’t have many . The Inspi(Red ) mannikin we tested is the base 500e for 2024 , and it lack features like adaptive cruise command and lane - centering — which are useable on the two more expensive exemplar ( called “ Inspired by Music ” and “ exhort by Beauty ” ) . Our framework instead only really had a canonic sail control ( notadaptive ) .
Driving experience
The experience of driving the Fiat 500e is more or less what you might expect . It ’s not build to be ultrafast , however , it is pretty agile , and steering is comparatively antiphonal . It ’s a small car , and it feel like one when you force back it .
There are some thing that really bother me about driving the 500e . For example , when you enrol the auto , put your foot on the brake , and constrict the on push button , it only turns on the accessories . You have to do soagainand then put the car into drive to begin driving . Also , I establish the style switcher to be very unresponsive — clicking the telephone dial for drive musical mode worked less than half the time , which was very frustrative .
The car has three drive way s – Normal , Range , and Sherpa . The three modality revolve around range preservation rather than performance , with Sherpa preserving the most ambit by limiting performance . If you truly use this car as a metropolis car , and can excite at home , it might be worth but keeping it in Normal mode , but I still discover driving Sherpa musical mode to be utterly fine .
For the most part , of course , you ’ll get used to the oddity of drive the car , and when you do , you ’ll discover drive it to be a relatively good experience . Again , it ’s not the fastest EV out there , but it is mostly responsive , both in terms of acceleration and guidance .
Range and charging
One of the main downside to a elevator car like this number in the form ofrange . The Fiat 500e is built for forgetful trips and regular charging . To that end , it only offer a scope of around 150 miles , according to Fiat . The Envornmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) has yet to rate the car , however , that range estimation seemed about right in my examination .
Of course , 150 miles is n’t great when most eminent - closing electron volt these days offer a orbit of up to around 300 air mile . But again , this car is n’t progress to be a road - tripper . It ’s built for around - town driving , possibly as a 2d car , with unconstipated charging at home , where potential .
verbalise of charge , it ’s not all that quick . The car can be charge at up to a swiftness of 85 kilowatts ata DC fast battery charger , with Fiat say it will tot up 31 mi of chain in around five proceedings . However , Fiat is actually sell the railroad car with Level 2 charger that purchaser will be able to have put in in their service department by an electrician — helping make it easy to take back the pill of a lower grasp . The Level 2 charger should in full file the car in around six hours — so if you plug it in overnight , it ’ll be quick to go in the sunrise , no matter how much you used it the night before . That ’s not spoiled .
How DT would configure this car
The Fiat 500e has a lot going for it , but you have to manage expectation . There are a few situations where you might like a Fiat 500e . If you ’re looking for a car you could motor around town , and you have the power to accuse at home , it ’s a whole alternative . If you regularly drive longer distance , then the Fiat 500e is credibly well suited as a second auto , rather than a elemental one .
If you are interested in the 500e , the base model is n’t a sorry pick , especially turn over the fact that the different trims do n’t add more range or faster charging . However , the two higher - closing of the three models do add advanced feature film like adaptive cruise controller and lane - snap , which can be helpful . We would recommend sticking to the base model strictly for saving money — but again , some peoplemight desire to kick upstairs .
It ’s deserving study alternatives too . The Mini Electric Hardtop is a better - take care car , but it has an even lower grasp , and you wo n’t get a flat 2 charger with it . If you ’re concerned about ambit in a little car like this , the 500e is a expert choice — but if you favour to drive in style , perhaps it ’s worth deal the even - cheaper Mini . The other big choice in the U.S. is the Bolt EV , which is much cheaper , but proffer a better orbit and quicker charging . It is , of course , much less interesting to look at — but if you ’re look for a car that performs well as an EV , it ’s probably the serious pick of all of them .
