Fiat 500e 2023 Review

How much does the Fiat 500e cost?

The all-new 2023 Fiat 500e hatchback has landed in Australia, offered in a single La Prima model grade priced from $52,500 plus on-road costs.

That translates to just over $58,000 drive-away, depending on options ticked and your location.

For that money, Fiat says you’ll get 311km of driving range from a 42kWh lithium-ion battery, as well as loads of equipment in the tiny four-seater city car.

Fiat Australia is adamant it won’t introduce the more affordable 500e City Range variant (with a smaller 24kWh battery), as seen in the UK, instead saying its focus is on the La Prima.

The convertible 500e also appears to be off the cards for the time being, although Fiat has confirmed that the higher-performance Abarth 500e is on its way.

The 500e is likely to be a niche player in Australia, but parent company Stellantis is still hoping the first electric car from the Italian brand can replicate some of its European success, where it sold 70,000 of the pint-sized electric Fiats last year alone, making it the conglomerate’s best-selling global EV.

What equipment comes with the Fiat 500e?

There might only be one model grade for buyers looking at the 2023 Fiat 500e, but at least there’s a decent colour palette to choose from.

Ice White is the only no-cost colour, while Ocean Green, Onyx Black and Rose Gold cost an extra $700, while Celestial Blue commands a whopping $1600 premium.

The only caveat is that it might be tricky to get the colour you want… unless the colour you want is black, white or pink.

Fiat stopped producing the gorgeous Celestial Blue in June 2023, then canned Ocean Green the following month, both of which we saw (and loved) in the metal at launch.

Meanwhile, a Mineral Grey option appears on the spec sheet, but production of that colour also ended in June when Fiat announced it would stop producing grey cars, so those three will be much more difficult to come by. 

At least there’s plenty of standard equipment on board, which somewhat justifies its hefty price tag.

That includes 17-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels, LED headlights, a fixed glass panoramic roof (with mesh sun shade) and tinted windows.

Inside, Ice Beige eco-leather trim is standard, with a neat FIAT pattern embroidered into the seat, along with heated front seats, a six-speaker sound system, wireless phone charging and a two-tone steering wheel. 

Outside, an enclosed honeycomb grille is stamped with new ‘500’ badging, while ‘e-latch’ door handles aim to improve aerodynamics.

Fiat covers the car itself for a sub-par three-year/150,000km warranty, while the battery is covered for eight years/160,000km.

Services are due every 12 months/15,000km and cost $250 per service for the first eight years.

How safe is the Fiat 500e?

The 2023 Fiat 500e comes with a sub-par four-star safety rating awarded back in 2021 by Euro NCAP and adopted here by local crash test authority ANCAP.

But a decent suite of safety and driver assist tech brings six airbags, autonomous emergency braking (AEB), lane keep assist, blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning, driver fatigue detection, tyre pressure monitoring, adaptive cruise control and auto high beam.

You also get traffic sign recognition, which we found a bit hit-and-miss on launch.

What technology does the Fiat 500e feature?

The tech offering in the 2023 Fiat 500e is impressive yet thoughtful.

Designers took inspiration from the original Fiat 500 (dating back to the 1960s), so there are plenty of round dials and curvaceous lines throughout the interior. 

Like a lot of modern EVs, the Fiat 500e ditches a regular transmission lever and adopts a button-only approach when it comes to gear selection, to help with packaging and space inside the cabin.

They’re neat but lack a certain high-quality finish we expected, and you often need to hit a button more than once before it recognises your input.

Similarly, there are no regular door handles; instead, it’s the push of a circular button on the door trim, much like a Tesla.

Physical buttons and switches for the climate control panel are a welcome addition, as is the 7.0-inch high-res digital instrument cluster behind the steering wheel that displays information in a clear manner.

The central touch-screen measures up at 10.25 inches and offers wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and digital radio.

Meanwhile, two USB ports feature up front, one USB-A and one USB-C, while an unbranded six-speaker audio system takes care of sound, but is nothing special.

What powers the Fiat 500e?

The 2023 Fiat 500e is powered by a small electric motor mounted up front, producing modest outputs of 87kW of power and 220Nm of torque.

It doesn’t sound like much on paper, and it isn’t, particularly given how heavy this chunky little EV is, but more on that in a moment.

For reference, Fiat says the 500e will go from 0-100km/h in 9.0 seconds, before topping out at a speed-limited 150km/h.

But that acceleration figure seems conservative because, behind the wheel, the 500e feels zippy and athletic thanks to a healthy amount of torque that allows it to build speed quickly from a standstill.

The 500e has no trouble keeping up with traffic and feels confident travelling at high speeds, too.

How far can the Fiat 500e go on a charge?

The 2023 Fiat 500e is underpinned by a dedicated EV platform that’s only used for the Fiat and Abarth 500e. At least for now.

Housed within that is a 42kWh lithium-ion battery that will deliver a claimed 311km of range on a full charge (based on the WLTP cycle).

It’s good for DC charging up to 85kW and Fiat says it’ll take around 35 minutes to go from fully depleted to 85 per cent, while AC charging up to 11kW (via a wallbox, for example) will take the battery from 0-100 per cent in just over four hours.

If you’ve only got access to a regular domestic power point, you’ll be waiting more than 20 hours. 

Fiat Australia decided not to bring the smaller 24kWh battery pack offered in Europe (with around 190km of driving range) to Oz, so we only get the one option.

What is the Fiat 500e like to drive?

Despite its tiny proportions, the 2023 Fiat 500e is a relatively heavy little thing, tipping the scales at around 1300kg.

But it still feels nimble on road and those city-car dimensions – 3.6m long and 1.6m wide – make it super-easy to manoeuvre.

Compared to the current Fiat 500 hatch, the electric version is 61mm longer, 56mm wider and 39mm taller, with the wheelbase 24mm longer to aid cabin space.

Steering is super-light, offering decent feedback, and a commendable 9.7m turning circle.

It’s also worth noting that the 500e is made up of 96 per cent new components and rides on bespoke EV underpinnings, set to be shared only with the related Abarth 500e.

The suspension set-up is nothing fancy, consisting of MacPherson struts up front and a torsion beam at the rear, and while the little 500e gets disc brakes up front, the rear-end uses drum brakes (like the Cupra Born).

Although it runs on relatively firm springs, the ride is surprisingly comfortable. Even on harsh bitumen scattered with big potholes you’d generally expect it to crash over, the 500e feels compliant.

Round a corner with some enthusiasm and the 500e feels up to the challenge, tackling turns in a composed manner and without a hint of body roll. There’s also great levels of grip from its Continental EcoContact 6 rubber.

Three driving modes are on offer, including Normal, Range (which boosts regenerative braking) and Sherpa, which limits your speed to 80km/h and turns off the climate control… as if you couldn’t just do that yourself if you really wanted to.  

Range mode is a nice place to be, offering a decent one-pedal driving experience.

What is the Fiat 500e like inside?

Build quality and materials are notably nicer than petrol-powered 500s we’ve tested previously, and while the 2023 Fiat 500e La Prima’s cabin is a huge leap forward, in some respects it doesn't feel like a car costing almost $60,000.

That’s the initial impression you get when you hop inside the cabin and are met with lots of plastics, along with switchgear that feels a bit ordinary.

At least there’s softer-touch ‘eco-leather’ on all the major touch points, and the ‘FIAT’ upholstery detailing is a nice touch.

Look closer and you’ll notice some cute easter eggs hidden around the cabin, like an etching of the Turin skyline along the edge of the wireless phone charging pad, in honour of the brand’s hometown.

It’s a compact car that’ll be easy enough for people of most sizes to feel comfortable driving, thanks to plenty of manual adjustments available to the driver and a tilt/reach-adjust steering wheel.

But it’s better to think of the little Fiat as a two-seater rather than be disappointed to find that none of your friends want to ride in the back seat, which is really only good for tiny people.

At 166cm tall, I could manoeuvre myself in there okay, but the roofline cuts into headroom, there’s very little outward vision back there, and unless you have short legs, you’ll feel cramped.

If you do use the 500e as a two-seater and lay down the 50/50-split folding rear seat, boot space goes from a measly 185 litres to a whopping 550L. 

There’s no space-saver spare tyre though, just a tyre repair kit.

Should I buy a Fiat 500e?

It’s easy to see why the 2023 Fiat 500e is a popular car in Europe because it’s charming, relatively well-equipped for the price and has a driving range that’ll be good enough for most city and suburban dwellers.

But here in Australia, where we live further apart and tend to do a lot more driving, the electric 500 won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. And there’s plenty of cut-price competition flooding in from China.

Still, if you love the look of this absurdly cute EV and have access to a fast-charger, the new Fiat 500e is well worth a test drive.

2023 Fiat 500e at a glance:
Price: $52,500 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Single permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: 87kW/220Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 42kWh lithium-ion
Range: 310km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 14.4kWh/100km (WLTP)
Safety rating: Four-star (ANCAP 2021)

For everything you auto know about EVs, listen to carsales' Watts Under the Bonnet: the electric car podcast

Join the conversation at 

our Facebook page

Or email us at 

editor@carsales.com.au