Skip to main content

Test drive: Fiat 500 Pop

Mental connections are weird. Upon picking up the Italian Red Fiat 500 Pop from the boss for a four day loan while my motorcycle was in the shop, I couldn't help making the hot little Italian in its strikingly red paint to a tomato. Small. Generally round. And one of my favorite veges/fruits.
The 500 fit my mental connection perfectly.

The 1200cc engine and 5speed manual gearbox I would have to say, made this the best small capacity car I've even had the pleasure of driving.
Sliding through the gears and zipping through Auckland traffic were a breeze, and I honestly can say that in the four days that the little Fiat was in my possession I only stalled it a couple of times (honest!) usually because I forgot to take it out of 3rd gear at the lights. Get the gearshift right however and the Fiat 500 Pop takes off at a highly respectable pace for such a small capacity car.
The interior was perfectly styled to match the rich character that the 500 Pop possesses with the very cool retro gauge cluster being my favourite part of the surprisingly spacious interior.
It doesn't feature a list of high spec accessories the length of your arm, but in a car like the 500 Pop, you don't need it. It is a base car that is oozing with so much character you're likely to forget its sub $20k price.

Sure you won't be moving house in a Fiat 500, although I did try, the 500 can fit a surprisingly large amount of kit in the back, especially with the rear seats folded flat.
With a very short wheelbase the Fiat 500 Pop did handle a bit skittish on the open road, but around town it was in it's element, with precise steering from the two steering modes.

It may not have a cabin filled with high tech extras, but it doesn't need any of that. For the insanely low $19,990+orc that the Fiat 500 Pop costs, you'd be mad to overlook the little Italian Tomato as a new car option.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

DODGE TOMAHAWK: THE MONSTER THAT NEVER WAS

  It’s 2003, and crazy uncle  Chrysler had what seemed like a fantastic idea, but it really wasn’t…   By Mat Fiat and Chrysler were made for each other.  Fiat possessed oodles of Italian heritage and passion, while Chrysler was the Gerry Brownlee of American automotive companies.     The combination of the two was always going to create a noisy company that isn’t afraid to throw its weight around and let you know about it.  These days it seems a month doesn’t go by with out  some kooky new idea from  “out-there” FCA  CEO  Sergio Marchionne  making the rounds. But wind back the clock to the turn of the century  and we can see Chrysler was already pretty out-there . And here’s why; they thought the Dodge Tomahawk was a good idea.   For those who aren’t in the know, the Dodge Tomahawk was what turn of the century Americans , well ,  Americans in general ,  have always thoug ht was e...

Maxxis Bravo AT 771 Review

Watch the 3-year ownership review on Youtube! I've owned a set of Maxxis' Bravo AT771 tyres for 3 years now, so I thought I'd share my thoughts on them. Firstly, I didn't buy these tyres after doing any research on them. Truth be told, I'd never even heard of Maxxis before buying these! But with the stipulation that I wanted a set of All Terrain tyres for my Forester in 215/65R16, and that I didn't want to pay over $1500 for them. I ended up paying $1000 fitted and balanced. I took a punt on the 'Mackies' as I've started to call them, and I've got to be honest, I've been pretty happy with them. Sure, they don't look as cool as other All Terrain models out there, but they've worn well and haven't given me any headaches in the 3 years I've had them. The Good Stuff The AT771s have proven to be a really good match for the Subaru in the sand, which is primarily where they've been used apart from highw...

Aprilia SR125 Review

  Aprilia’s motto is “ desined  for racers, built for riders” – but does that translate to their scooter range?   I’ll admit that even with my  usual  level of enthusiasm  at collecting a shiny new bike , I wasn’t expecting a heck of a lot from Aprilia’s SR125  “ Motard ” scooter  out of the box.    After grabbing it from  Bayride  Motorcycles in Tauranga – straight off the showroom floor no less – with just 1km reading on the digital display,  I was expecting  my 80km ride home along the state highway  network  to take  much longer than the norm.   However, to my surprise, the little Aprilia not only made the trip in easy fashion, it hit the legal highway  speed  limit straight out of the box! An impressive feat, considering it was still – technically –   running in when I handed it back and was pushing a top speed which, at times, would  get a ...