Fiat 500 vs Mini

[wins76]

Do you see the new Fiat 500? I don't know if Fiat did sell car before in the USA but this thing look cute (my wife comments). Do you know if we can go to any Chrysler dealership to test drive it or we have to wait until the Fiat dealership open up? One more thing Fiat500 or Mini?

[monkey_wrench]

I like it, but I haven't driven one yet.
We saw them all over Europe a few months ago, pretty popular there it seems.

Wait till the Abarth version comes out though...

[wins76]

Originally Posted by monkey_wrench

I like it, but I haven't driven one yet.
We saw them all over Europe a few months ago, pretty popular there it seems.

Wait till the Abarth version comes out though...

What in the Abarth version? My wife likes the Gucci ones. I guess the name Gucci attract her more than the car.....oh well...

[90rr]

fiat is one of the worst car companies in the world... piece of junk i would say .

[pwrdbym]

If his wife wants one because it's cute, I would think the Abarth would be lost on her. The 500 is comparable to the standard Mini (not the S) on power. As in it doesn't have much. I think you'll have to wait until the Fiat dealer opens to check one out, I haven't seen any in Chrysler dealerships yet. You may be able to search around on Autotrader or ebay to see if there is already a used one for sale in your area.

[anerbe]

Fiat established a dealership 1 mile from me about a month ago. I'm sure a dealership relatively close to you will open up soon.

[wins76]

Originally Posted by 90rr

fiat is one of the worst car companies in the world... piece of junk i would say .

You mean like yogo back in the 70's? I don't know, but Fiat seem to have more time in the belt as a manufacture of cars than yogo. Junk? ha ha That's what my friend told me about my BMW since he the one that pick me up from the dealership to work when my car needs attention multiple times.

[monkey_wrench]

Originally Posted by 90rr

fiat is one of the worst car companies in the world... piece of junk i would say .

Hm. Europe and South America are full of them. I wonder why.

[monkey_wrench]

Originally Posted by wins76

What in the Abarth version? My wife likes the Gucci ones. I guess the name Gucci attract her more than the car.....oh well...

UK Numbers:
Performance: 0-60mph in 8.1secs, max speed 127mph, 33.2mpg
Tech: 1368cc, 4cyl, FWD, 155bhp, 152lb ft, n/a kg, 146g/km CO2

[BK]

I've read some reviews, and Car & Driver noted that the engine was weak enough that it couldn't maintain 65 mph in 3rd gear traveling up a grade. Around here, driving a very slow car is dangerous, with the need to merge on highways and the aggressive drivers we face. The Abarth version has another 35HP and much more torque. My two cents is wait for that one.

[90rr]

Originally Posted by wins76

You mean like yogo back in the 70's? I don't know, but Fiat seem to have more time in the belt as a manufacture of cars than yogo. Junk? ha ha That's what my friend told me about my BMW since he the one that pick me up from the dealership to work when my car needs attention multiple times.

Well, I owned a Yugo and couple fiat's ( born and raised in former Yugoslavia) . and i can tell you that bot were really bad. fiat's had lots of constant electrical and mechanical problems . Yugo had tons of mechanical and interior problems (rattling plastic ,parts falling off , etc...) . i got brand new yugo and after couple hours of driving had a massive oil leak . car sucked from day 1 .

[TK-421]

Fiats have definitely changed and in a good way. My sister's best friend got a 500 and it's pretty fantastic. Reliability is yet to be known but the quality is definitely at or above the others in it's class.

[ragingclue]

If reliability is a factor, there's a good chance Fiat won't lose out to MINI. MINI was dead last this year in dependability. I'm going to go ahead and doubt that Fiat will be worse. As mentioned before, I'd wait for the Abarth which at least isn't potentially dangerously slow. Also, for how slow it is, there are other cars which get better mileage.

However, in the end, it's up to her and she needs to get seat time in both.