Fiat 500C 2016 Review

Fiat 500C Pop
Road Test

Fiat’s entry-level cabriolet, the 500C Pop, is a town car for the beautiful people. Offering an iconic design that is as at-home in Melbourne laneways as it is in the Italian Riviera, it’s a tailored option in a sea of off-the-peg vehicles. Sadly, it’s not quite so accomplished outside city limits.

Offered in a palette which includes an assortment of ice-cream inspired colours, it’s probably just as appropriate to ask which flavour Fiat 500 you’d order as which colour.

I last sported a pastel shade in the late eighties so it was with some trepidation that I headed to the motoring.com.au car park to pick up the 500C Pop. Was it to be a Sole Yellow, Coral Pink or Mint-Milkshake conveyance for the week?

Imagine my relief when I found a Vesuvio Black bambino waiting for me instead.

In metallic black paintwork, the Fiat 500C Pop looks seriously stylish and stands out on the street for all the right, sophisticated reasons. The cinquecento (Italian for ‘500’) is a classic design, updated for modern times and while it is small in stature, it offers a surprisingly accommodating interior and is certainly more capacious than it looks. In its subtle dark hue, it’s a super-light car for grown-ups and with its powered soft top it’s the perfect trans-seasonal accessory for fashionable drivers.

The Fiat 500C Pop is the most affordable of the cabriolet range, with a starting price of $22,000. Black metallic adds another $500 to the purchase but there isn’t an extensive list of options beyond that for the Pop model.

There are a couple of fabric trim options available for the interior but if you want the jazzier Prince of Wales check or leather trim then you’re going to need to step up to the $25,000 Cabrio Lounge model.

The test vehicle was paired with a black interior and black roof, each of which added to the sophisticated appeal of this 500C, but you can select from three different colours of roof – black, red or ivory, each of which is available with a coordinating exterior colour palette.

Things are a bit limited on the technology and features list for the Pop too, which is lacking in a few driver comforts that buyers at this price point have come to expect. That said, there are some likeable new features including the Uconnect multimedia system which centres on a 5.0-inch colour touchscreen.

Controls are large and easy to use via the screen or steering wheel and setting up a Bluetooth connection for calls and audio streaming is a cinch. Uconnect adds DAB+ digital radio to the Fiat 500C for the first time and while digital radio reception remains sketchy outside of major metropolitan areas, given the Fiat 500 is likely to spend a significant amount of its time navigating city streets, it’s a worthwhile addition here.

Sadly some basic tech features are lacking in the Fiat 500C which are available as standard features in other cars at this price. There are no auto headlights, no cruise control, no reverse parking sensors and no reverse camera.

Ordinarily in a vehicle of this size, the lack of reverse sensors or a camera would be of little concern, but due to the incorporation of the cabriolet roof, the C-pillar at the rear of the car is huge and pretty difficult to see around.

Manoeuvring the vehicle in parking situations is simple however, thanks to the city steering function which is available by pushing a button on the dash. Even though we found the steering in the Fiat is not particularly heavy in ordinary driving, city setting lightens it up so it’s really easy to get in and out of the very tiniest of spaces.

While it may not be of so much concern to the city driver, the lack of cruise control was quite bothersome for me as I spend a good proportion of time on the freeway. Perhaps continental police officers are more lenient on speed limits but here in Australia, cruise control is surely an essential item for most drivers.

On the freeway, the little Fiat was quite a surprise. The 500C features a 1.2-litre four-cylinder petrol engine paired with a five-speed manual gearbox. Generating just 51kW and 102Nm, the Fiat is not exactly the hottest of hatches but the engine and transmission combination works nicely together and will get you up to speed before too long.

The 500C also feels pretty solid on the road, and despite its small dimensions, you don’t feel threatened when flanked by trucks. Having a soft top, the cabin isn’t airtight so there’s a fair amount of road and wind noise that is evident but nothing that really detracts from the overall ambiance of the Fiat.

The engine is not one for open roads or hefty inclines as it really struggles to pull uphill, even with a single occupant. It can’t cope with steep hills in high gears and must be shifted down to second gear, where you can hear the poor engine trying with all its might to succeed.

Driving the car under load on my regular test route really took its toll on the fuel consumption too. The official combined figure for the Fiat 500C with manual transmission is 4.9L/100km, but I was only able to return numbers in the seven-litre range.

Where the Fiat 500C Pop did delight was in the most surprising area of all – that of space. Our family of four, which includes two teenage boys, was able to fit into the Fiat with ease with no shoe-horning required. The front passenger seat did need to be moved forward a little to afford extra rear leg room, but not so much that its occupant was forced to sit with his knees up to his ears. Reassuringly there were no moans from the back either telling me that the boys were cramped, in fact they both said how comfortable they were.

While rear passenger comfort was remarked upon, the front seat comfort could definitely be improved, with front seats sitting very flat and hard and with little side bolstering. The driver’s seat in the Pop model cannot be adjusted up or down so you do have the sensation that you are sitting higher than you would really like.

Boot space in the cabriolet was adequate and could easily swallow a week’s worth of shopping, or a good haul from the farmer’s market (hay bale excepted) but it isn’t the car for a family weekend away and certainly not if you’re headed to the Alps.

No, it’s a car which can serve as occasional transport for a foursome, but is much more suited to a couple or single driver and most likely, those situated in the city that want their small car to make a fashion statement.

It’s hands down the most stylish of the micro-car segment and if you can do without those missing features and you happen to have a flat commute then the 500C Pop will be right up your Melbourne laneway.

2016 Fiat 500C Pop pricing and specifications:
Price: $22,500 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 1.2-litre four-cylinder petrol
Output: 51kW/102Nm
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Fuel: 4.9L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 115g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP

Also consider:
>> Holden Spark LT (from $18,990 plus ORCs)
>> Nissan Micra TI (from $16,990 plus ORCs)
>> Mitsubishi Mirage (from $11,990 plus ORCs)