I’ve previously test driven the Fiat 500 and loved it which is why I decided to rent the convertible version this weekend while I’m here in Lebanon. But, while the Fiat 500 was a lot of fun to drive on flat roads, it’s horrible to drive up a mountain.
I don’t think it’s the lack of power but more the crappy automatic gearbox. The car will just not shift down into the right gear when you really need it. It actually stalled with me TWICE on a tight steep corner which is why I’m now driving the car in manual mode not auto so I could choose the gears I want when I want them.
The version of the car I’m driving is the 500c where “c” stands for cabriolet. Since the weather is fantastic right now in Lebanon driving around in a convertible is the way to go about it. The car I’m in also has a black leather interior which looks a lot nicer than the beige interior of the car I test drove in Kuwait. But, I don’t think I could recommend anyone to get a Fiat 500 if they live in a mountainous country unless they get the manual version (or drive the auto gearbox in manual mode).
17 replies on “The Fiat 500c”
how many times have you flown this year?!
hope you have a great stay!
may be this particular car has a gear problem.
Love the car .. but I won’t give up my MINI for nothin!
Abarth is the way to go!
For sure but not at that price point
So how is the situation over there? The UAE has just issued a warning to their citizens to leave Lebanon and to not travel there, as well as Saudi Arabia also. Kuwait of course is silent#$%#. Supposedly the Syrian situation is spilling over to your country.
Don’t know, everything is quiet here haven’t heard anything or read the news for a couple of days.
Not a Fiat fan. But in all fairness I have never really shown any real interest in their car models to try them so I really can’t judge Fiat. The roads in Kuwait are fairly wide. Low fuel prices (compared to the rest of the world)and expansive road development accounts for many folks opting for larger vehicles.
I wonder if the local Fiat dealer does well in the Kuwait market? At times it seems as if everyone here has a SUV or large sedan.
Well I’m not a fiat fan but the 500 is different from the rest of their cars.
where did you rent it from?
Avis for 70$ a day
I agree with you mark, while in the USA early this year I test drove the full range of all 500 including the Abarth verssion, not sure how to spell it, and found the them all missing something when it comes to power and performance, not worth for the value. MINI is 1000 times better
that’s because it isn’t an automatic gearbox, it’s an automated sequential manual like the f1/egear/smg so it really was never intended to be left in auto mode. that is just a way for them to market it as such and boost sales.
Manual shifting while driving up and down mountains is as obvious as selecting D to drive the car forward. Specially in underpowered cars.
Well most cars are intelligent enough to know what gear they should be in going up a steep incline. For example I usually drive a Toyota Echo when in Lebanon which is a pretty low powered small car and a much older model than the Fiat 500. In all the times I’ve driven the Echo taking the exact same steep curvy inclines as I was taking with the Fiat I never faced any issue close to this.
As I said though it’s not the lack of power more an issue with the gear box. It’s an automated sequential true but it was definitely meant to be left in Auto. The car is sold as an automatic with a manual option and not a manual with an automatic option.
True, but the whole point of these cars being made with a manual option is to use them in these situations.
I actually rented a Toyota Yaris last time I went to Lebanon and had a blast driving it through the mountains, so much fun 🙂
Mark do you think you could post a review of that 2012 Land Cruiser as well? I’m talking about that pic you posted on twitter.
I’m planning to buy one but Toyota is charging 23k AED more just for that Navigation screen in GXR+ , so do you think its worth it?and tell me how is the 270 BHP engine do infront of the old 230 BHP one?