Geneva 2012: Fiat 500L, Heir To The Multipla Throne
North America missed on the ermm…unique…Fiat Multipla, sold in Europe in the late 1990’s, but Fiat dealers, clamoring for another product, will get the Multipla’s spiritual successor, the 500L.
Although it bears the 500 moniker, the 500L is closer in size to a Mini Countryman. Built in Fiat’s factory in Serbian (making the 500L the first Balkan car to hit the U.S. since the Yugo), engine choices for Europe include both the 1.4L 4-cylinder from the 500 and the 900cc TwinAir turbocharged 2-cylinder engine. A 1.3L Multijet diesel will also be offered. These engine choices will likely not make the cut for North America – the anemic 1.4L naturally aspirated engine will be painfully slow, and both the diesel and the TwinAir, fabulous as they are, are too bizarre for our tastes. The Abarth’s 1.4L turbocharged motor is the most probably candidate.
More by Derek Kreindler
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Reading all these comments, without actually owning any of these cars, I realize that I come to this web site not for the "Truth About Cars" but for the blather about cars. I might have missed it, but did any Fiat 500 owner post? The rest is just pre-teen boys talking about sex.
One thing I notice from many drivers is that despite having 130, 160, 180, or even 200+hp on tap, most drivers don't even utilize any of it. They simply are tepid with the throttle and thus don't understand that if you NEED to pass quickly, to put your foot into it, let the rpm go above 4Krpm long enough to get past whatever you are passing and then slow back down. I've driven an early 80's Civic with 67hp on tap and never had any issues with it on the interstate and easily drove it at 70-80mph and it went up mountainous passes without issue. I didn't find the little Fiat 500 underpowered, just had to keep your foot into it longer but it got up to speed and by dropping down a gear or two for passing, you CAN drive it just fine on the interstate. My guess is this being a B segment car, it won't be too much heavier I don't think, the little fiat now weighs in around 2,333# or so and thus this car may weigh in as much as 2500-2700# in FWD mode in any case so my feeling is if they go with the normally aspirated 1.4L motor, they'll up the hp enough to produce something closer to 120hp to compensate, for the US anyway and perhaps a more spirited variant utilizing a turbo. The 900cc motor as it is in more aggressive turbo form puts out 107, if I recall hp.