To ask you about the FIAT 500?

[Dramatical]

Just wondering if anybody has one and if you would recommend it?

oh I just had a huge pang for parking mischief! They are brilliant to park right at the back of a space so folks don't see the space is taken until the last minute!

But you are right about giant people carriers and 4wds always sidling up into the adjacent space.

It wouldn't be something I'd consider for my DD. They're tinny, powerless and there is not much protection in an accident. If you have no say in it then let her crack on. If you do have a say, then research small cars that perform well in the event of a collision. A fiat 500 absolutely doesn't.

And yes, I've had one. It felt 'flimsy'

I have a new mini now which is really solid but I appreciate that isn't your question

I bought on last year and I love it

I've got one and I absolutely love it, the size is deceptive as I can fit in baby, pram and shopping with no problems.

We hired one when we went to rome, have to say as a city car we loved it! Dh is 6ft 2 and loved driving it, it would really fit through the smallest of gaps! Then there was myself 4 months pregnant and a tall 5 year old in the back behind me, and it was perfect for us. A little scary on the bigger roads outside the city but if you won't be doing that often I wouldn't worry

A Yaris would still be a better recommendation for a small car.

On a thread where someone was asking for small car recommendations maybe. This however was asking specifically about one car.

I've got an 18 plate 1.2 lounge in the glam coral colour with cream interior (phoebe Fiat )., i absolutely love mine .
I had a fiesta before that and much prefer my wee fiat, its a doddle to park , economical and very nippy. Go for it

I have a 1.2 lounge, 6 years old, never let me down. It does everything for me, cheap to run, cheap to insure. I can fit a weekly shop in the boot.
I did have graphics put on to mine as I felt they were all very similar so it was a bit different. Clearly someone loved them as there is another 500 locally who copied my graphics 😂

DD was adamant she wanted a matching one but ended up buying the Aygo as she felt for her it just inched ahead of the 500. To be fair having driven her Aygo I also love that.

I love my Fiat 500. It’s solid for a small car, reliable and beautifully kitted out. Heaps of fun to drive, super easy to park and manoeuvre.
Teaching my niece to drive in it and she loves it. It’s base is high enough that unbendy old people can get in and out easily - though your daughter might not care about that. it can feel very small when you’re in between big trucks. Steep hills can slow it down when the air-conditioning is on, but it revs well and is more than zippy enough for me. Super economical, only needs servicing once a year. Has an anti roll feature that is great when stopped on a hill.
Strongly recommend!

Dramatical It was used, but sorry cannot remember the year. I think the garage bought it at an auction and the mechanic seemed to be unsurprised by the problem. As much as I didn't want the hassle of this car, the garage were so awful that I had lost all confidence in them.

Some of the things they said to me were hilarious in retrospect. An example was "Garage owners are sick of people like you taking their cars out for a month then giving them back" like it was a hobby locally and that you hadn't paid for the damn car in the first place incurring credit fees/interest etc.

I still think they look great, but they are a bit of a tight squeeze, boot and passenger wise. Hope you get sorted.

Such a fun to drive small city car. I’d buy it again tomorrow

My cousin managed to roll hers on a country lane late at night.

She claims she wasn't driving too fast etc but I don't know Obviously as I wasn't there

The car more or less crumpled in on itself so that side of it would worry me greatly with a new driver

I have one. I'm 5'10" and don't think it's small at all.
It's very nippy, easy to park and costs me £30 each year in tax.
I bought it as an ex-demonstrator when it was a year old; cost me £5000 less than it would have done from new.
I call it Giuseppe!

On a thread where someone was asking for small car recommendations maybe. This however was asking specifically about one car.

But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be told they’re a bit crap and sensible alternatives suggested. FWIW there is no way my DD would be getting one as a first car as there are just so many better alternatives, not to mention the image problem they have.

I had one of the original new shape ones in 2008. No end of issues but still loved it. When I sold it 8 years later was told by garage that bought it there were so many electrical issues with it that they had to auction it rather than sell through their second hand arm. I would ensure you get a full AA type check if buying one second hand

1.2 engine a bit sluggish I found. Up a hill on a dual carriageway always had to drop to fourth to get up the hill and sometimes even third. My 1L panda with turbo was way better. I would get something like a swift or an aygo as a first car

Last year DD bought low mileage 2011 1.2 Lounge for £4k. Much cheaper and better looking than all the alternatives, and responding to earlier pp's the old Fiat's (pre-2017) had a 5* NCAP rating, so safe too. Good for DD too as she is only 5'2".

She loves it and we are very pleased. No issues so far. First year insurance £1k, this year £500 . Very cheap to run and perfect for a first car. DH uses it to nip into town or park at the station when he goes into London, and rather enjoys the change from his usual large car. No power, but that's why it is cheap to insure and great for a first car.

I had one as a loan car and didn't like it. I drive a VW polo for comparison but I did also try the Up and liked that a lot (saw you mentioned that)

I'm on my fourth 500 - I love them! Granted I don't do many miles per year, and mainly city driving however I have never had any concerns when driving on the motorway. I have never had any issues with hills / weight of passengers.

Also have never had any major faults - just one issue where a warning light was coming on incorrectly which was found to be due to a wiring issue. My local Fiat garage were excellent though and fixed it on the day I called them to book in.

But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be told they’re a bit crap and sensible alternatives suggested

I don't mind being told they are crap, that's what I posted for, but the rest of it is just making it harder to get to the actual point. I find it hard to sift through things, so sticking to the question works well for me, that's all.

FWIW there is no way my DD would be getting one as a first car as there are just so many better alternatives, not to mention the image problem they have.

FWIW it's not my decision. It's my DD's.

What image problem?

I would ensure you get a full AA type check if buying one second hand

Thanks, it will be new, but it's sound advice for any second hand purchase. I usually test drive the car and nip it to my mechanic to give it the once over when i buy second hand.

Check this one:

www.euroncap.com/en/results/fiat/500/26307

I would be worried.

So if it's not your decision and you want posters to very rigidly stick to your question and nobody is allowed to veer off even a little bit, I'm totally confused as to why you posted

Hi OP

Worst car I’ve ever owned. I had a 1.2 lounge, the gear box went and cost a small fortune to replace, followed by a lightbulb for the rear number plate light - £1200 to replace as it wasn’t a bulb but the entire electric system that apparently runs round the whole of the car. To fix it require hours and hours of labour. It felt like my car was permanently in the garage after having numerous cars that required very few repairs other than those caused by wear and tear and were simple to do. My DDad refers to them as Fix It Again Tomorrow.

I got rid.