I love the 500, a small city car that is happy being a small city car, great review. Much nicer interior quality, and the specs are so good for what it is going to be used for. Although u are paying more now. The 500 makes a great electric city car for the millions of people without loads of kids and large shopping trips, etc. (Because we do exist) We need more manufacturers thinking like this.
I bought a Fiat 500e Passion (in rose gold) two months ago and it is a belter of a car with bags of power, great build quality and a brilliant driving experience, particularly in one-pedal drive mode. It replaced a Renault Twingo GT which had identical dimensions, so the boot and cabin are large enough for me and it also fits into my garage. Thanks to the piano keys that operate the HVAC system, the tablet remains off as I have no use for it and prefer to enjoy the pleasing sound of the electric motor.
@@fc4660 Hi F C. Over the winter, I averaged about 3.8 miles per KW/h in mixture of town and (50-60 mph) main road driving, all with a light foot. This has recently risen to 4.25 miles per KW/h during early Spring, so range is now about 160 miles. I have read that the Fiat can be charged at 85 KW on public fast chargers but I have only ever used my home wallbox which is set very low to match my solar PV system's output, so it is currently costing me very little to run. Hope this is of some help.
I've always liked the 500, and this is a good review, but it captures in a nutshell the huge problem we have with EV's right now - price and range. The most basic 500-e is nearly £10k more than the entry petrol version, that's £25k for a very small, basic, low range car, and that climbs to £30k for a higher spec model. THIRTY GRAND! This is why EV's are mostly being bought by the well off at the moment - people who will always have a second ICE car for longer journey's where they're still way more practical. We're still 5 years or more away from sensibly priced EV's with better battery tech.
@@jonwetherell5214 Possibly with a very small car, but this is the argument everyone makes - buy on contract. At this price though, even with a moderate deposit, you're looking at £3-400 per month for a Fiat 500e, which is crazy (Kia EV6, mid-spec on PCP deal is around £7-800pm). This is just totally impractical for most average buyers, especially with many now struggling just to keep the heating on and put food on the table. With electicity prices soaring it's also going to get more expensive to charge EV's too.
I also reviewed the Fiat 500e in my channel and I can definitely confirm price and lack of options (and practicality) is an issue. For that price you could get a C-segment car that is more spacious and practical to live with! And still as city friendly as the Fiat 500e!
... but she failed to mention a) that strange push button gearbox b) no handbrake for hill starts c) gas pedal that stop and go without using the brake pedal (which I hope there "is" a brake pedal). Must test drive one before I buy.
Despite the occasionally annoying presentation style, it's a reasonable summary. Reasonable, but not totally accurate. As a very happy 500e owner, I can offer the following: *Range - I'm only getting an average of 3.6 miles/kWh - so ~144 miles - and this is always using Range mode for max regen and driving normally on a mix of road types. *Driving is fun and the car is both nippy and confident (my other car is a BMW i3, and the 500e actually tracks better). *Interior - I was/am pleasantly impressed with the build quality and most of the materials quality; there's one of one exceptions, but all-in-all it's very good (again, my benchmark is a BMW). *Practicality - well, it's a Fiat 500 for goodness sake and nobody should be expecting a Tardis. Having said that, it's more than capable of taking our large weekly shop or carry-on luggage for two. Again people, it's a city car..! *Specs - I have the La Prima model, so top-of-the-range. The specs are pretty amazing, with very driver assistance gizmo you could wish for. Honestly, the only thing missing is folding door mirrors; but I guess the car is regarded as narrow enough for this to be a moot point. I would definitely recommend people considering a city car EV to take one for test drive.
In my channel I reviewed the Fiat 500e as well! I can confirm you have a good point! Your points are valid I agree with you almost everywhere, but there is ONE major flaw: the price. For that price, we all have expectations! I personally would've expected a tardis-like experience if I were to pay beyond 30k Euros for an A-segment car. For 30k one could get a C-segment (like a Golf or Astra) car which is similar to the 500e in terms of city friendliness, but MORE easy to live with!
@@autochampwandelen Well, price - or more accurately, value - is all in the mind of the buyer. For me, I believe the 500e delivers much for the price I paid, and the sales numbers reflect that this is a common-enough view. The level of tech, the impressive build quality, and the sense of style all combine to deliver a valuable package. A car purchase, any car purchase, is a discretionary spend, so value is totally subjective.
@@autochampwandelen One more thing on price. You mentioned Golf and Astra; neither a pure EV platforms, and so the comparison is moot. Additionally, many of the legacy manufacturers, when offering an EV version of their compromise vehicle architectures, will spec and price the EV at the highest end of the range; ICE will be available with an entry-level spec/price, but not the EV option. Fiat, with the 500e, do at least offer all term/spec/price levels, making the EV accessible to a broader customer base. And that has to be a good thing.
No mention of the very reduced range in the winter due to the effect of cold on battery and need to use the climate control. But it is a lovely car to drive.
Thank you for a great review Nicola! The new lights do indeed resemble eye lids and the lack of grille harks back to the original 500 that if I recall correctly had what seemed a spare engine in the boot. An electric door release is form over function for an electric car though draining a few extra lumps from the battery may not be ideal. I'd hope there is a clear manual release somewhere. After all if your tired and pull over with the heater on and drop off into a deep snooze you'll want to be able to get out when you wake up to.. err.. powder your nose. The 'Sherpa' mode seems to have been around on cars for decades, regularly driving on faster country roads I often find a stream of cars queueing behind a careful driver not that it bothers me that much, honestly it doesn't bother me at all, really I'm REALLY not bothered OK!. I have to agree that 'HORROR' jingle makes me shudder, definitely at night if you live near a certain 24 hour fast food chain. I loved the comment about moaning in the drivers ear how much you hate it in the rear of the car. Now as for sausage dogs (I love em) under breaking they might have a tendency to roll off end end up under the front seats and that Dachshund extraction procedure can be an event in itself. OH and I can't remember if you might have said that you have the older 500 but if it seems like massive difference in nearly all aspects to the review car remember your car has character and you should continue to love it even after a mild moan or tantrum.
🤣 what a detailed comment. Love it. Oh and incase you were wondering, I have a rear seat dog hammock thing which means they’re comfy and strapped in with their seatbelts. Thankyou for watching x
Good review👍🙂 although I'm not sold on electric vehicles, when we don't have enough charging points at the moment. Hybrid makes more sense. When most cars take at least a few hours to charge, the city charge points won't make sense. This is why utility bills are going up. Trying to run before we can walk. Electricity isn't a "greener" energy source. Powercuts, blackouts will be a regular occurrence
This is a common misconception and the National Grid disagrees with you. Two thirds of UK homeowners have access to a driveway and, therefore, a home charger. They can charge at night making use of a currently under utilised electricity availability from wind power. Add in solar panels and storage from used EV batteries, not to mention vehicle-to-grid (where cars charge when prices are low and sell their cars electricity to the grid when prices are high) and you can see there really is no shortage. It is NOT why utility bills are going up (you really need to do yourself a favour and google why they ARE going up). The charging infrastructure could do with improvement, though, I agree with that.
I also reviewed the Fiat 500e in my channel! I must say its very promising, strong identity and style! But it suffers the same problem as most EVs, the price and not enough options. I also feel like a lot was invested into style than interior practicality.
u tube have upped the number and length of time for adverts that I find it so hard to enjoy watching these videos. Shame as this was so informative and enjoyable to watch
I totally agree and you deserve all you can receive, at the end of the day, I enjoy the video's and always click the buttons, just seems the placement always comes at the wrong point (and they have definitely increased in length which is a pain and so disruptive). Could we have them all in one go🤗)
Regarding the "creepy" off sound, if you play the "on" and the "off" sounds one after the other, you will listen (in a simplified version of course) the first notes of the soundtrack of "Amarcord", a 1973 movie by the famous Italian director Federico Fellini, written by the most talented Italian composer Nino Rota. Well worth listening, I wish the car played a little bit more of it!!
And the hybrid has been described as the laziest hybrid in the sector, with a 12-volt battery under the passenger seat that won't do much other than allow Fiat to put a hybrid badge outside.
@@carbuyer Great little car, though. I had the Panda with the 1.2 engine and kept it for 10 years, went EVERYWHERE in it. Basic motoring at its best. Fab review, great to see the EV.
I own the previous generation model in Sport trim with the Twin-Air engine and it's an absolute hoot to drive! So I'm definitely curious about what the electric model would offer should the time to move on from the Twin-Air come... And it looks promising 👍 Smashing review
I own 1, I love it, several people walked up to me, to tell, so cute and personality in abundance. Good for long distances as well, 433 km and only 1 charge in 24 mins on a fast charger. let's say a coffee break ....
I drive a prima convertible in LHD format..Love it for what it is but there are some down points..RHD conversion has not been done well, it is a 2+2 , range is great for city and day trips but it is not practical for any long range trips ( eg touring holidays) Mine is in a two car family and fits well but would i have got it as my only car? Probably not
No spare wheel is a dealbreaker. I love that gap between the low centre console and the dashboard though-it looks like it would be super easy to scoot from one side of the car to the other, which is extremely practical.
thats all nice and cool but I feel like a dimension goes missing when they turned the 500 into an EV, the sound from the engine. I always thought it was kinda charming and funny sounding idk. loving these reviews tho :)
@@carbuyer maybe not! im not looking for an EV at the moment, im way too emotionally invested with my volvo, but I might go for a test drive in a 500, it looks fun :)
I went to Guernsey in the Summer - the place is full of Fiat 500s so this should go down well. Nicola get yours over there, someone might take it off your hands
Got a Twinair Mito - done 60k in it & it's great. Thing that puts me off this, is that Italians ain't the best when it comes to automotive electrics, so I'd be tentative about trusting them to build a electric car that's reliable in the long term. Especially when it's their 1st stab at it... Stellantis has already has already issued recalls for a bunch of its EVs, so as cool as this is - I don't feel like being a guinea pig. Just saying 🤷🏼♂
the rear 3red door is not availabe in the UK for safety reasons. as you british people love to drive on the wrong side of the road, the passengers would leave the car on the traffic side. and you have the so-called left-foot-problem (where to rest your unemployed left foot).. sorry folks, same reason 🙂 and for the boot: you are talking nonsense there. it is enough space for four small, 3 midsize, two normal oe 1 big suitcase three small suittcasres: 2 of them lying flat and piled, the third upright on the side. sorry again. in a well pepared check yo would use some different sized suitcases to combine cable "problem: you can buy a frunk from an austrien firm, for 210 euros or you leave the DC cable at home because you will hardly eveer need it: the charging stations work with their own cables, so you just plug it in. the granny cable is for home charging on a wallsocket (schuko in german).
Too bad the charge port is on the bad side to access Tesla's superchargers. It would have been nice automakers to "chose a side", not repeating the issue ICE cars have.
no thanks, keep the electric version, only takes away from the rear hatch non-space. and yes I own a 500 with no rear seating space, I use the area for extra cargo room. no way is electricity viable here in the USA, not enough charging stations and retrofitting my home would be an insanely cost issue. thanks for the fun video
imagine if someone could make a cheap and simple ev that only costs £2000.. oh wait, that is exactly what some factories are making, because the whole point of ev is simplicity and they are therefore cheap! but buying it here, while it was possible in the past, the cost was inflated to nearly 10k, and the law now prevents anything being sold unless it means pricing out most of population
Way way over priced. FIAT originally brought out the 500 and designed it for people with average incomes. Now we are trying to get everyone in to EV's, FIAT, instead of building an EV for the average person, brings out something for wealthier people. £25k plus is way too pricey. Nah!
Why would you say you own a fiat 500, 30 times in a video? It's not a good joke. Its not even remotelly fun. Maybe once. Maybe twice. 30 times is just eye rolling
Just passing by locking for a review. What is this theater!? Are you talking to a bunch of 5 year olds? I get Faulty Towers vibes but without the irony.. Fire the script maker please.
For a little bit more money you can get a Tesla Model 3 with nearly double the range, better speed, all the nice stuff, and more. I see the small size point but the car feels overpriced. I assume the prices for Model 3 will even fall once the Berlin factory is running. I think Fiat still needs to level up a lot in order to be competitive.
If you actually go to the Tesla website you'll see the very cheapest Tesla model 3 is £44,990 purchase price. The performance model (the one with the good acceleration) is £59,990. These prices are before any optional extras are added. That's not a bit more money.
