Fiat 500 vs Fiat 500X

What's the difference?

It feels like the Fiat 500 is coming of age in this new-generation EV form. Electric power perfectly suits this compact hatch’s unique personality. It’s comparatively well priced and the design shouts Italian cool. It’s a niche model, but the 500e’s undoubted charisma could broaden its appeal as electric vehicle adoption begins to pick up pace. 

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

The 500X is a fun-looking alternative to the various options available from everyone else and is - overall - better to drive than its Renegade twin. 

It packs a very good safety package which you can't ignore but does lose points on the warranty and servicing regime. But it's also built to take four adults in comfort, which not every car in the segment can boast.

In its latest electronic guise, the 500e stays loyal to its 1950s cinque­cento roots, with the addition of contemporary touches like this distinctive split headlight and DRL design, beautiful 17-inch alloys that look like they’ve come out of a jewellery box, and a simple, curved rear end treatment with classic 500-style LED tail-lights. 

There are six colours to choose from, with ‘Ice White’ being the only no-cost option.  Premium shades - ‘Onyx Black’, ‘Ocean Green’, ‘Mineral Grey’ and ‘Rose Gold’ cost $700 extra, while the ‘Tri-coat’ ‘Celestial Blue’ adds $1600 to the price.

The interior also evokes 500s of old with a familiar elongated central panel across the dash, a two-spoke steering wheel and a circular instrument binnacle. 

Woven material across the dash (made from recycled plastic) is a nice touch, and there are fun Easter eggs around the car like Turin’s skyline embossed in the wireless charging pad and an outline of the original 500 in the armrest recesses.

The single trim option is ‘Ice Beige’ synthetic leather on the seats and door panel, with a super-cool ‘FIAT’ monogram pattern, throwing back to the brand’s typography from the 1960s and ‘70s. 

Overall, the cabin design is neat and ultra-clean with a high-quality attention to detail.

Look, I like the 500X, but I know why people don't. It's clearly a 500X in the way a Mini Countryman is a Mini. It looks like a 500, but get closer and you see the difference. It's chubby like a $10 weekend market Bhudda statue and has great big googly eyes like Mr Magoo. I find this endearing, my wife does not. The looks aren't the only thing she doesn't like.

The cabin is a bit more restrained and I quite like the band of colour stretching across the dash. The 500X is meant to be a bit more grown up than the 500, so there's a proper dash, more sensible design choices but it still has the big buttons, perfect for the meaty fingers of people who won't be buying this car.

It might be 61mm longer than the combustion 500, but at just over 3.6m long, a little under 1.7m wide and a bit more than 1.5m tall, the 500e is still right-sized for the city.

A four-seater, it offers adequate space for the driver and front seat passenger, but with a wheelbase of just over 2.3 metres, something’s got to give, and that turns out to be room in the rear. 

Realistically, it’s a kids-only zone, and even then, those in front will need to give ground to free up some legroom. 

Storage runs to a tray between the front seats complete with roll-top lid, another storage box/armrest above that, a small glove box and bins in the doors with just enough room for a decent-size bottle. 

For connectivity, there are USB-A and USB-C ports for power and media, plus a 12V socket in the centre storage tray and another in the boot. No charging options in the back.

Speaking of the boot, it's only 185 litres (VDA) with four seats up. Enough room for a limited number of (preferably) soft bags, although the rear seat split-folds 50/50 to open up 550L.

Given the front engine, FWD configuration, it’s no surprise there’s no ‘frunk’, the 500e is a no-tow zone, and don’t bother looking for a spare of any description your only option is a repair/inflator kit.

At just 4.25 metres, the 500X isn't big, but makes the most of what it's got. The boot impresses at 350 litres and with the seats down, I think you could reasonably expect to triple that figure, though Fiat doesn't have an official number that I can find. For added Italian feel, you can tip the passenger seat forward to get really long things in, like a Billy bookshelf flat pack from Ikea.

Rear seat passengers sit high and upright meaning leg and kneeroom are maximised and with that tall roof, you won't scrape your head. 

The doors each have a small bottle holder for a total of four and Fiat has got serious about cupholders - the 500X now has four.

I drove the Pop Star, which is the second of the now-two model "regular" range, the other being the, er, Pop. I drove a Special Edition in 2018 and it's not clear if it is Special as there's also an Amalfi Special edition. Anyway.

The $30,990 (plus on-road costs) Pop Star has 17-inch alloys, six-speaker Beats-branded stereo, dual-zone climate control, reversing camera, keyless entry and start, active cruise control, sat nav, auto headlights and wipers, leather shifter and steering wheel and a space-saver spare.

The Beats-branded stereo speakers are supplied with noise from FCA's UConnect on a 7.0-inch touchscreen. The same system is in a Maserati, don't you know. Offering Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, UConnect loses points by shrinking the Apple interface into a lurid red frame. Android Auto properly fills the screen, for some reason which is ironic given Apple owns the Beats brand.

Power is provided by a traction electric motor sending 87kW/220Nm to the front wheels via a single-speed reduction gear automatic transmission.

It’s fed by a 42kWh lithium-ion battery, the set-up running on a 400-volt electric architecture.

Fiat's rather excellent 1.4-litre turbo MultiAir does duty under the stubby bonnet, making 103kW and 230Nm. Rather less excellent is the six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, which sends power through the front wheels only.

It's rated to tow a 1200kg braked trailer and 600kg unbraked.

That 42kWh battery is connected to an 85kW DC charging system, with Fiat claiming it makes 50km of range available after five minutes, and 80 per cent of range in 35 minutes.

The charging port is a CCS Type 2 combo, and the AC maximum is 11kW, taking four hours for a full charge. An 11kW Mode 3 charging cable is included as standard.

Maximum range is 311km which is pretty handy, with the benefit that the relatively small battery delivers those quick recharge times.

Energy consumption on the WLTP cycle is 14.3kWh/100km, however our relatively brief steer around Turin didn’t allow for a meaningful test figure. That will have to wait for evaluation on local soil. 

Fiat rather optimistically suggest you'll get a combined cycle figure of 5.7L/100km but try as I might, I couldn't do better than 11.2L/100km. What's worse, it demands 98RON fuel, so it's not the cheapest car to run. This figure us consistent with past weeks in the 500X and no, I wasn't thrashing it.

Fiat claims the 500e will dash from 0-100km/h is 9.0sec which is pretty handy, and in typical EV fashion it’s cheekily rapid around town.

Given the transmission is a single-ratio auto, the placement of buttons in the centre of the dash to control its operation makes a lot of sense. 

Acceleration is impossibly smooth, whether that’s from rest or in the cut-and-thrust of city traffic. 

There are three available drive modes. As the name implies, ‘Normal’ doesn’t place any performance limitations on the motor, while ‘Range’ shifts to more aggressive single-pedal regenerative braking and even slicker accelerator response.

Then, if you’re low on charge, ‘Sherpa’ limits maximum speed to 80 km/h and softens accelerator response while cutting the climate control and seat heaters to ensure you get to your destination in best Nepalese mountaineering fashion. 

We tried a stint in all three, and Range proved the most effective around town, the regen braking being strong but never abrupt (and able to bring you to a complete stop).  

The disc front/drum rear mechanical brakes are a bit sharp on initial bite but nice and progressive from there. 

A note for left-foot brakers, though. Apply pressure to the accelerator and brake pedals at the same time and the car bogs down in a case of minor paralysis. A quick dab on the brake is required to get things going again.  

Of course, noise levels are low, with the motor just a background hum. But Fiat has installed an unusual (mandatory) ‘Acoustic Vehicle Alert System’ warning for pedestrians at speeds up to 20 km/h.

Rather than the generic space-age tone favoured by many brands, the 500e plays the music of Amarcord by Italian composer Nino Rota. Wow. Turning the car on or off can also be set to produce a guitar sequence inside the cabin.

Suspension is strut front/torsion beam rear and over decidedly ordinary surfaces through inner Turin the 500e was impressively refined, retaining its composure over some nasty ruts and bumps. 

A roughly 300kg battery under the floor makes for a low centre of gravity, and thanks to wide tracks for its size, the 500e feels well planted and stable even in sharp cornering manoeuvres.

Steering feel is good, the 205/40 Continental EcoContact 6 rubber is agreeably quiet and grippy and a 9.7m turning circle makes reverse parking or a 180-degree change of course pretty straight forward. 

In terms of ergonomics, operating the car is stress-free with a sensible mix of on-screen and physical controls, although a minor black mark goes against small opening levers located low down in the door panels. Not exactly easy to get to.    

Again, I shouldn't like the 500X but I really don't mind it. It's flawed, which might be why.

The dual-clutch transmission is dumber than a box of loose cogs, lurching from start and looking the other way when you expect it to shift. We know the engine is a good one and I think part of the reason it's so thirsty is the confused way the transmission goes about its business. I'd love to drive a manual to see what it's like.

The 500X initially feels worse than its Jeep Renegade sibling-under-the-skin, which is quite an achievement. Part of that is to do with the ride, which is very choppy below 60km/h. The first 500X I drove wallowed about but this one is a bit tauter, which would be good if you weren't punished with this bounciness.

The seats themselves comfortable and the interior is a good place to hang out. It's reasonably quiet, too, which is at odds with the old-school silliness of its conduct. It feels like Labrador let out of after day kept inside.

And that's where the car I shouldn't like is a car I do like - I really like that it feels like you're on Roman cobblestones, the type that make your knees hurt when you walk on them for a day. The steering wheel is too fat and is at a weird angle, but you kind of square up to it and drive the car like your life depends on it. You have to take it by the scruff, correct the shifts with the paddles and show it who's boss.

Obviously, that's not for everyone. If you drive it really gently, it's a very different experience, but that means going slowly everywhere, which is no fun at all and not at all Italian.

Out of the box, you get seven airbags, ABS, stability and traction controls, forward collision warning, high and low speed AEB, active cruise control, rollover stability, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, blind spot sensor and rear cross traffic alert. That's not bad for a $30,000 car full stop, let alone a Fiat.

There are two ISOFIX points and three top-tether anchors for baby seats. 

The 500X scored a five-star ANCAP rating in December 2016.