Fiat 500 – Cute and Smart

Thirty-six years ago, the Fiat 500 was discontinued. Almost three decades ago, Fiat left America because it couldn’t offer what Americans wanted in a car. Six years ago, the firm revived the 500’s name and profile for a new model, a 3.5-meter-long subcompact. And four months ago, Fiat unveiled the U.S. version of that car, the first Fiat to be sold in America in 28 years.

There has since been a lot of push-back. Small cars don’t work in America, people say, but Fiat reps point to the Mini Cooper, an example of which lives on every street from Pasadena to Pittsburgh.

The paranoids scream about small cars being unsafe, which prompts Fiat to trumpet the 500’s five-star European NCAP safety rating.

In short, America isn’t the place it once was, and Fiat isn’t the company it once was.

Similarly, the 500 isn’t the car it once was. When the 2400-pound hatchback arrives at the dealers’, it will come in three forms: Pop, Sport and Lounge. Each gets a 101-hp version of Fiat’s 1.4-liter four-cylinder (30/38 mpg city/highway) and a standard five-speed manual transmission. Creature comforts like air conditioning and cruise control are standard, and a six-speed Aisin automatic is available across the line.

The biggest change, however, is the engine. The 1.4-liter, 98 lb-ft four that lives under the 500’s hood is not offered in Europe, where the car makes do with a variety of smaller, hamster-on-a-wheel mills. This engine is a technological marvel; it’s tiny (note the iPhone placed on the intake manifold for scale), efficient and boasts Fiat’s MultiAir variable valve-timing technology, which does away with an intake camshaft and uses oil pressure to vary valve lift and timing. The MultiAir name comes from the system’s clever ability to open the valves multiple times in one intake stroke, promoting charge turbulence and aiding combustion.

The three levels are separated by small differences like bumper trim, wheel size and suspension tuning, but they’re essentially the same car

Looks aside, our 500 isn’t Europe’s 500. Everything from interior layout to crash structure has been tweaked in the interest of appealing to stateside needs. Because we’re a nation of fatties, the front seats have been widened, the center console narrowed. Steering and suspension tuning have been modified.

The Fiat smokes the smart fortwo with a 0 to 60 mph in an estimated 9.5 seconds.

The Fiat has it negatives. There isn’t any steering feedback to speak of, though the dash-mounted “Sport” button shifts the 500’s electro-hydraulic boost from woolly and vague to sharp and direct. Relatively soft springs and dampers, even on the Sport model, mean that the 500’s nose heads for China under hard braking.

Its has many positive traits. Updated tech and standard comforts like A/C and cruise control means this isn’t your grandfather’s Fiat. Priced to move. Fuel economy is commendable. Has a unique, old-world charm that’s undeniably chic. The 500 is a style piece. It’s a leisure tool that works best when you chill out. It’s quiet on the highway. The engine revs cleanly and easily to its 6900-rpm redline, but you aren’t encouraged to whip it. Its sound — a flat, steady drone regardless of rpm — seems almost purposely inoffensive. And while winding roads and city streets aren’t a flat-out thrill, the 500’s diminutive size and easy clutch take-up make up for a lot.

The Fiat exists on its own terms, however flawed they are, and it’s blessedly, gloriously unique. These days, that counts for a lot.

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