Fiat keeps the world famous model name ‘500’ alive by renewing its smallest model. For the first time in 13 years the 500 is being helped to a completely new generation. The new 500 makes its debut as 500E, a fully electric version.
The Fiat 500, reborn in 2007, was revised in 2015 at the age of eight, but Italians did not go further than a facelift. In the year in which the retro-500 blows out its thirteenth candle, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles finally comes up with a completely new generation. It debuts as 500E, and that is interesting. Fiat supplied a 500th of the current generation 500 in the United States, an electric version that was never sold through the official channels in the Netherlands. The brand new 500E will certainly come to the Netherlands. It will be in showrooms next to the new mild-hybrid versions of the previous generation 500. So side by side for a moment. Whether gasoline versions of the new 500 will soon be available, Fiat cannot tell us at the time of writing.
The aforementioned first 500th had a 113 hp and 199 Nm strong electric motor that was powered by a 24 kWh battery pack, good for a range of 140 kilometers determined according to the American EPA method. The electric version of the new generation 500 trumps its predecessor on every level. The 500E has a 119 hp electric motor with which the Italian shoots at 100 km / h in 9 seconds. Its top speed is 150 km / h. Of course, the battery pack is more interesting. A 42 kWh battery pack has been installed in the bottom of the 500E, giving the Fiat a WLTP range of 320 kilometers. For comparison: the Honda e and the Mini Cooper S E (Electric) have a WLTP action radius of 220 and 235 kilometers respectively. Good news: the 500E can charge quickly. The battery pack can be charged up to 80 percent full in around 35 minutes. Of course the 500E can also be stuck at home in the stop contract or at a wallbox (7.4 kW). In the latter case you need about six hours of loading time.
The 500E can be set in three driving modes: Normal, Range and Sherpa. In the Sherpa the top speed is adjusted to 80 km / h. Things like gas response become less direct and both the seat heating and the climate control are switched off to squeeze the last kilometers out of the battery pack, even though you can switch these systems on again manually. In Range mode it is possible to control the 500E with the accelerator pedal only. That means that the car brakes very strongly if you let the accelerator pedal celebrate. The 500E does not come to a complete stop, however, you have to depress the brake pedal yourself.
Design
On the outside, the new 500 is mainly recognizable as 500. Although the windows seem to match those of its predecessor, which therefore still exists for a while, the Fiat is completely new. The hood cuts through the headlights and that gives the 500 a slightly more aggressive muzzle. It is striking that Fiat has chosen not to have the rear light units introduced on the facelift of the previous 500 – with a colored piece of plastic in the middle – return. Prominent on the front is no longer a Fiat logo. Instead, the Italians stick the model designation there: “500”. The distinctive silver-colored plastic cover of the license plate, as the previous 500 had, does not survive the generation change. Striking are the direction indicators slightly protruding from the bodywork between the hood and the front screen and the slightly sunken handles of the doors.
Just like the bodywork, the interior of the 500 has been radically tackled. Although Fiat adheres to the historically responsible round instrumentation behind the steering wheel and the ‘oval’ inlay on the dashboard, every part is really new. At the center of the dashboard, Fiat screws a 10.25-inch display that is part of the infotainment system, a system that runs on the new Uconnect 5 control program and that can handle Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (wirelessly!). The control buttons for the transmission are located in the center console. The instrument panel itself is completely digital. There is also the option of powering your phone with an induction charger.
Platform
The youngest 500 is on a new platform, a base that also makes larger dimensions possible. With its length of 3.6 meters, -ie is about 6 centimeters longer than before and the width has also increased by 6 centimeters to 1.69 meters. The distance between the front and rear axle increases by 2 centimeters to 2.32 meters.
Autonomous
Fiat immediately fills the 500 with a package of high-quality hardware. For example, the model can be equipped with adaptive cruise control that works together with, among other things, the road sign recognition and Lane Centering, which keeps the car neatly in the middle of the roadway. That means that the 500 semi-autonomous (level 2) will find its way through the traffic. Also from the party: a 360-degree camera.
Three times special
Fiat supports the introduction of the 500E by directly presenting three specially dressed versions, named after shareholders Giorgio Armani, Bvgari and Kartell. We welcome the 500 Giorgio Armani, the B.500 Mai Troppo by Bvlgari and the 500 Kartell. These newcomers are auctioned and the proceeds go to one of the charities for which Hollywood actor Leonardo di Caprio is active.
Less exclusive, but also somewhat limited: the La Prima introduction version. This variant, of which Fiat will build a total of 500 units, is equipped as standard with the autonomous package, an electronic parking brake, automatic headlights with automatic high beam, a digital interior mirror, adaptive cruise control and the Uconnect infotainment system. De La Prima is in all cases a homeless 500, as you can see on these pictures. Fiat still has some footage of the closed 500E under its cap.