The New Fiat 500..

[Jim 1]

The standard version is expected to be about 10k.. for a new car with modern engine and design, I don't think thats too ambitious really! :)

[StuartFZR400 0]

I dunno Jim, prices in recent years seem to be great bargains, but today they seem to be going up again. £10k is a lot of money to spend; with £10k I'd be buying a higher spec car 2nd-hand as said. Guess those little 500's will be down to £5k in 3 years time though.

 

Certainly a clean looking car - but aren't all new cars. They soon become one of many. Just nice to have a car that stands out sometimes... sometimes not. Couldn't sit on the fence more if I tried.

[Jim 1]

£10k is a lot of money to spend; with £10k I'd be buying a higher spec car 2nd-hand

 

Thats always the approach i've taken.. but am fed up and dissillusioned with "nearly new" cars being a false economy.

 

A friend of mine recently laid down 10k on a 40k Golf GTI 1.8T.. he's sunk about a grand into it with various problems since then, and god knows how much I spent on my GT TDI MK4 with its various issues, etc in the year I had it.

 

The thought of something new, and warrantied that gets fixed for free whenever it breaks just appeals. Its probably just a phase as I do wanna keep the Corrado but the 500 is the first new (affordable) car i've seen in a while that has really grabbed my interest!

[double-6s 0]

FIAT = Fix It again Tony....

 

It'll be like all fiats, turn to rust in a couple of years. My mate had an original one, and it was tremendous fun, but probably a death trap, there wasn't anything to them at all. if i remember correctly it had a 500cc or 750cc engine in them?

It was a very cheeky car though and great fun! Essentially a city car, the top speed was abysmal.

 

Oh get with the times mate. Don't tell me, prefabricated factory-built houses are sh*t too?

 

Things change. Historical views/reputations are hard to change.

 

But I reckon you'll find modern fiats are built as good as most other modern cars.

[Skimask 0]

FIAT = Fix It again Tony....

 

It'll be like all fiats, turn to rust in a couple of years. My mate had an original one, and it was tremendous fun, but probably a death trap, there wasn't anything to them at all. if i remember correctly it had a 500cc or 750cc engine in them?

It was a very cheeky car though and great fun! Essentially a city car, the top speed was abysmal.

 

Oh get with the times mate. Don't tell me, prefabricated factory-built houses are sh*t too?

 

Things change. Historical views/reputations are hard to change.

 

But I reckon you'll find modern fiats are built as good as most other modern cars.

 

Just wait and see.....they'll fall to bits in a few years...he...he

It's like Ford 'Built to last' yes, but they forgot to tag '5 years' on the end of it. They aren't in the business to make cars with a long life span....but no car manufacturers are, it's just some are designed with a longer lifespan than others.

[double-6s 0]

Now you're knocking ford reliability?

 

Er, I did 80k miles in a 1.6 focus without ANY maintenance at all, and it's still going 100k later. Not too shabby really is it.

[Phil K 0]

Warrenties are all well and good but mine is just about running out now and I've not found a single reason to claim! OK, I will be anal in the last month and claim for every little thing I see possible but after this experience with the LCR I'm certain the MRS will be enjoying a nearly new/just out of warrenty VAG car next 8)

[Jim 1]

I've said about the reliability of my girlfriends Ford Ka too.. she had a new 51 reg Ford Ka and only just got rid of it a few months ago for a brand new one. Had done about 50,000 miles and beyond routine servicing had never needed ANY work. It finally freaked out and a known / common problem with the steering rack showed up but she got a reconditioned rack fitted by a local garage and it was tip top again. But at that point decided she didn't want the aggro of having to pay for more repairs so went and got a new one!

[Skimask 0]

Now you're knocking ford reliability?

 

Er, I did 80k miles in a 1.6 focus without ANY maintenance at all, and it's still going 100k later. Not too shabby really is it.

 

No i'm not knocking Ford reliability at all. They aren't built to last. The mechanics on Fords have always been good, parts are cheap as chips - hell I just went to Ford for a VR6 oil seal yesterday, it was less then half the price of a VW one.

They just rust quicker than most cars, and are not 'built to last'.

I am impressed by Seat and Skoda though, once VW took them over they produced cars that were a million times better than the originals.

[double-6s 0]

Now you're knocking ford reliability?

 

Er, I did 80k miles in a 1.6 focus without ANY maintenance at all, and it's still going 100k later. Not too shabby really is it.

 

No i'm not knocking Ford reliability at all. They aren't built to last. The mechanics on Fords have always been good, parts are cheap as chips - hell I just went to Ford for a VR6 oil seal yesterday, it was less then half the price of a VW one.

They just rust quicker than most cars, and are not 'built to last'.

I am impressed by Seat and Skoda though, once VW took them over they produced cars that were a million times better than the originals.

 

Dude - get with the times. Not built to last. Rust quickly. Hardly.

 

There is very lttle difference between makes these days in terms of longevity and engineering.

 

Last year Ford beat ALL the premium german marques in a GERMAN reliability survey. Times are a changing fella.

 

Open your eyes - dubs aren't the only well made cars around any more.

[Toad 0]

Open your eyes - dubs aren't the only well made cars around any more.

 

Some might say that dubs aren't well made cars....

 

I used to see this all the time driving tractors, different drivers would have huge brand loyalty for no good reason really. There was one guy I had the displeasure of following into a job who did his best to knacker the Massey he had so he would get a John Deere.

 

In reality, all the brands produced comparable items, each had their own flaws, but the only difference to the drivers was actually how much free crap you got from the dealer. :roll:

 

And to those who were at Ed38, yes this is another topic I have related to agriculture... :)

[Skimask 0]

Now you're knocking ford reliability?

 

Er, I did 80k miles in a 1.6 focus without ANY maintenance at all, and it's still going 100k later. Not too shabby really is it.

 

No i'm not knocking Ford reliability at all. They aren't built to last. The mechanics on Fords have always been good, parts are cheap as chips - hell I just went to Ford for a VR6 oil seal yesterday, it was less then half the price of a VW one.

They just rust quicker than most cars, and are not 'built to last'.

I am impressed by Seat and Skoda though, once VW took them over they produced cars that were a million times better than the originals.

 

Open your eyes - dubs aren't the only well made cars around any more.[/quote:99c64]

 

No again, I didn't say that dubs were the only well made cars around - you should read the post before making assumptions!

[coolrado 0]

they are certainly taking their time bringing this out, i took this photo of it in june 2005 at the motor show.

[StuartFZR400 0]

Thats always the approach i've taken.. but am fed up and dissillusioned with "nearly new" cars being a false economy.

 

A friend of mine recently laid down 10k on a 40k Golf GTI 1.8T.. he's sunk about a grand into it with various problems since then, and god knows how much I spent on my GT TDI MK4 with its various issues, etc in the year I had it.

 

The thought of something new, and warrantied that gets fixed for free whenever it breaks just appeals.

 

Jim, you're just buying the wrong cars. All the bikes I've had I've lost no depreciation and only had running costs; its harder to do with cars, but you can set achievable targets. The Corrado has been my biggest expense, while depreciation was low, the continuous parts added up - I spent nothing like what some people do on my corrado, and yet still managed to spend £2k on it. Versus the gf's old fiesta, think that has £0 spent on it, lol, but its as safe as sleepwalking down the M6.

 

A good example in hand is the missus Megan - here he goes again I hear you say. Bought 1.5 years ago and probably depreciated by £1k to £1.3k at worst in that time, but mostly due to the 20,000 miles per year she was doing. Was bought with over a years warranty left on it, so peace of mind was achieved. Yes, non mechanical items have gone wrong a couple rare times at no cost - since then, touch wood, nothing. Now would be a good time for her to sell it.

 

Check parkers/autotrader for selling prices and check what you can get for 2.5 years old versus new. Dont buy the rep cars, boy racer cars etc if you're after a reliable daily driver. Im finding with other peoples cars that servicing isn't so bad with the right car; but have heard horror stories too (bmw's etc - but again depends on the model I bet). You could've bought the Mk1 TT last year and barely lost anything on it by now from the prices I've seen.

Each to thier own though, just posting a different oppinion. Somesones gotta buy new.

[IrishG60 0]

I was starting to get a bit worried that there might be something wrong with me.. over the past few months i've seen more and more articles on the forthcoming Fiat 500 and I think it looks absolutely superb.

 

I saw a discussion about it on Pistonheads and was encouraged to read a number of folks saying similar things, so I don't feel like a complete lemon. In fact I think its the first new (and affordable) car i've seen i'd actually buy in a heartbeat for quite a few years.

 

 

Its cool! And REALLY light! And done by the guy who designed the new BMW Mini's so shouldn't fall apart, despite it bearing the Fiat badge!

 

 

 

Watch out.... he's a mental-lor!!!!!!!!!! :shock:

[craigowl 0]

If you are as old as me you will probably never buy a Fiat, Alfa or certain Lancias.

Even up until a survey I saw about a year ago in Auto Express the back up, dealership attitude and reliability are at the bottom of the heap.

 

The cars were always renowned for poor electrics and rusted fast, too. One magazine years ago said "no wonder Italian mechanics have arms like gorillas" when describing a normally simple electrical job on a car.

 

However, if you live for the moment and dont mind losing money fast, the trade off includes things the Italians regard as essential, such as verve, style and pose value. (Perhaps meekly surrendering and wanting your mummy when things go wrong is a requisite, too! :wink: )

 

Interesting Italian cars in my time were:

Fiat 127 - one of first shall hatchbacks - won "Car of the Year" award - great innovative design, but do you see any now? No - they all rusted away very quickly.

 

Fiat 124 coupe - elegant, if boxy, very nippy twin carb version, IIRC

 

Alfasud - I so wanted one of these after the Manta I bought in 1972. Described as one of the best drivers cars ever for the mass market. Sadly, they rusted away all too quickly. Predicatable or what?

 

Fiat 125 - extremely boxy, boring rustbucket. Inspired the Russians to do the Lada!

 

AlfaRomeo Spyder - classy ikon - style never dates. See Fellini's "La Dolce Vita" (1960) for a flavour of essential Italian decadence and style and, IIRC, this car.

 

Lancia Beta Coupe - My neighbour bought a new powder blue model just after it came out that early corrosion due to bad design was causing the engine to fall out of these cars. The coupe really was beautiful from nose to tail, but they slumped from about £7k to about £1500 in a few years and I never had the heart to tell him why he had got a good discount for it at the Lancia dealer. (All gone from the UK these dealers after that AFAIK?).

 

Fiat 850 coupe - My best pal owned a second hand one for a while. (See pic taken Nov 1971 - Ben Lawers) Great fun, but tail happy with rear engine. Guess what - they rusted quickly!

 

So - Italian cars - you probably cannot ignore 'em in your lifetime - but you may never get round to buying one. :)

[Andy665 0]

Had a good look at this in a couple of Fiat showrooms when I was in Italy earlier this month - its a very pretty little car, far better looking than the gawky looking latest Mini.

 

Demand is sky high at the moment, the factory in Poland can't keep up with the orders, on looks and cuteness alone it deserves to be a winner - glad to see Fiat getting back into the habit of building good small cars.

 

Just so happens that a 1/43rd scale new 500 is Noahs first toy car :lol:

[double-6s 0]

If you are as old as me you will probably never buy a Fiat, Alfa or certain Lancias.

Even up until a survey I saw about a year ago in Auto Express the back up, dealership attitude and reliability are at the bottom of the heap.

 

The cars were always renowned for poor electrics and rusted fast, too. One magazine years ago said "no wonder Italian mechanics have arms like gorillas" when describing a normally simple electrical job on a car.

 

However, if you live for the moment and dont mind losing money fast, the trade off includes things the Italians regard as essential, such as verve, style and pose value. (Perhaps meekly surrendering and wanting your mummy when things go wrong is a requisite, too! :wink: )

 

Interesting Italian cars in my time were:

Fiat 127 - one of first shall hatchbacks - won "Car of the Year" award - great innovative design, but do you see any now? No - they all rusted away very quickly.

 

Fiat 124 coupe - elegant, if boxy, very nippy twin carb version, IIRC

 

Alfasud - I so wanted one of these after the Manta I bought in 1972. Described as one of the best drivers cars ever for the mass market. Sadly, they rusted away all too quickly. Predicatable or what?

 

Fiat 125 - extremely boxy, boring rustbucket. Inspired the Russians to do the Lada!

 

AlfaRomeo Spyder - classy ikon - style never dates. See Fellini's "La Dolce Vita" (1960) for a flavour of essential Italian decadence and style and, IIRC, this car.

 

Lancia Beta Coupe - My neighbour bought a new powder blue model just after it came out that early corrosion due to bad design was causing the engine to fall out of these cars. The coupe really was beautiful from nose to tail, but they slumped from about £7k to about £1500 in a few years and I never had the heart to tell him why he had got a good discount for it at the Lancia dealer. (All gone from the UK these dealers after that AFAIK?).

 

Fiat 850 coupe - My best pal owned a second hand one for a while. (See pic taken Nov 1971 - Ben Lawers) Great fun, but tail happy with rear engine. Guess what - they rusted quickly!

 

So - Italian cars - you probably cannot ignore 'em in your lifetime - but you may never get round to buying one. :)

 

 

Yep the dealers suck and the cars are generally made of slightly soggy pasta

 

BUT.......

 

A quick look at this in the morning and all that is soon forgotten Mr Owl ;)

[craigowl 0]

double 6s wrote:

Yep the dealers suck and the cars are generally made of slightly soggy pasta

 

BUT.......

 

A quick look at this in the morning and all that is soon forgotten Mr Owl

Attachments

 

:lol: ha ha - nice one, double 6s.

Best regards 8)

[skinnyman9000 0]

Ah ha, so here's the thread, i knew that really Walesy........ :lol:

[Walesy 0]

[Jim 1]

Don't entirely agree with you skinnyman about the normal 500 being a bit boring. Think its one of the most exciting small cars to come out in a while!

 

Still wanna get one... i've even been to Fiat and seen one now and liked what I saw! :)

[skinnyman9000 0]

Oh no, its definately not boring! I've been having a look on the Fiat website, the interior looks better than anything i've seen for a while! The seats look quality, i love the sound of the decent hifi setup, and the optional even better one. Its definately not boring, its just seems a lil too 'european', if that makes sense, almost (dare i say this) camp.

 

I dunno, i just couldnt imagine myself driving one. Unless i wore suade brown shoes and those small scarves, that aren't really scarves.

[Critical_Mass 10]

Saw a couple of these while over in France 3 weeks ago. Didnt get a great look as one was just driving by the other was on a car transporter. I have to say they do look quite funky when seen in the flesh. I wouldnt buy one myself, but i can see the appeal and it does stand out against the usual mundane designs that are on the roads at the moment. Lets hope it holds out unlike the mini which, quite frankly, am sick of seeing.

[The_Dude 0]

Don't entirely agree with you skinnyman about the normal 500 being a bit boring. Think its one of the most exciting small cars to come out in a while!

 

Still wanna get one... i've even been to Fiat and seen one now and liked what I saw! :)

 

Since the Nissan Figaro perhaps? That was a cool car.

I saw a 500 at a motor show and it was bigger than I expected, but it is a thing of beauty.