We got our 500 new in June 2008, one of the first around, being a 1.2 POP, in white with the red/ivory interior. We added chrome mirror covers and the black "sport stripe" and then on delivery got some aftermarket chrome wheel covers. No matter where you went it attracted attention. People stopped to look at in car parks, passed admiring comments and EVEN BMW's would stop to let you out in car parks or at junctions!!
So to our comments; the car averaged 45mpg in the winter (short trips) which went up to 55mpg during the summer (longer trips and days out).
The best it did was on a weeks holiday, half main roads/ half country lanes at an astounding 65mpg!!
The breather pipe need to be changed twice, first time under warranty at 2 years old and the next at 3 years old. I did the second one myself it took about 30 mins, helped by this site, and the new hose had been modified by FIAT.
It used no oil, lost no water and just need the usual regular checks and annual servicing.
So nearly 4 years problem free motoring, doing nearly 20k miles ( I know it's not alot) and we decided to change. We got 70% of the purchase price back so all in all a super little car with character, fun to drive and financially a bargain.
The only reason that we changed is that we now need a much bigger car, so there is now a set of genuine "thule" roof bars that have only had very light use for sale, if anybody is interested please email me through this site. I am located in the North East and the email is a work address so don't worry if I don't reply straight away.

Got any picks of the chrome wheel trims?

I want some retro looking ones rather than the tatty rubbish i keep seeing

Sorry, no pictures with me but if you look at www.auto-bits.co.uk page 4 of the 14inch trims it was the indiana chrome. They looked sort of retro yet modern and covered most of the wheel as the gaps were not very big.

Thanks for that. I really fancied some small chrom caps that would go on the inside section. Like the oldy style ones. Havent seen anything though

The 500 is nice to drive with the 1.2 engine - very easy and feels eager and responsive, being tuned for torque at low revs. I think many people write it off without trying it. One of the staff at the main dealer (importer agent) for FIAT NZ told me "we're not importing 1.2s because they're just not fast enough for NZ". Well, I drove a 1.2 around England at speeds up to 100mph. The speed limit in NZ is 100km/h (62mph).

Oddly the 100hp 1.4 version tends to feel less eager and less responsive; needs more gearchanging to feel like you're making progress, which is why I went for the Dualogic (faster/smoother/easier gearchanges). If I had the chance to buy a 1.2 with 5-speed manual, I would. Much cheaper, the gear shift action seems lighter/smoother than the 6-speed, and you do get better fuel economy. I think the 1.4 might have the higher top speed when the 100bhp come into play, and might be better for high speed overtaking, but that isn't the natural habitat of the 500; it's going to spend more time in town than on motorways.

-Alex

alexGS said:

The 500 is nice to drive with the 1.2 engine - very easy and feels eager and responsive, being tuned for torque at low revs. I think many people write it off without trying it. One of the staff at the main dealer (importer agent) for FIAT NZ told me "we're not importing 1.2s because they're just not fast enough for NZ". Well, I drove a 1.2 around England at speeds up to 100mph. The speed limit in NZ is 100km/h (62mph).

Oddly the 100hp 1.4 version tends to feel less eager and less responsive; needs more gearchanging to feel like you're making progress, which is why I went for the Dualogic (faster/smoother/easier gearchanges). If I had the chance to buy a 1.2 with 5-speed manual, I would. Much cheaper, the gear shift action seems lighter/smoother than the 6-speed, and you do get better fuel economy. I think the 1.4 might have the higher top speed when the 100bhp come into play, and might be better for high speed overtaking, but that isn't the natural habitat of the 500; it's going to spend more time in town than on motorways.

-Alex

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I think there might be something wrong with your 1.4. Granted I did drive one or two 1.4s that felt sluggish and it really comes down to when it was last serviced and how it was broken in.

If you are looking for more torque I have a suggestion that wouldn't break the bank at £100 plus delivery.
http://www.dcperformance.co.uk/uprated/pipercross-pk-induction-kits/fiat/500.html
It's a Pipercross CAI and you will need to declare it but at least it's not a homemade kit and the insurance guys don't jump up & down about it since it can be bought 'off-the-shelf'. It can be got direct but it's more expensive. There's no RR graphs for it but you would have to take my word for it that it's worth the money since I did try the 'performance' replacement foam filter route afterwards and kinda felt that I wasted my money. There are no risks with this one like the GSR (which you can only get secondhand) which is the best but you would need your spanners handy if the roads were flooded.

Despite the recent discussion thread on a replacement filter for a 1.2 it did give me another 1-2mpg which I can't explain it providing I wasn't booting it - the induction noise can be a bit addictive. The noise is quite civilised but if you floor it - it does get you noticed.

If your roads are dusty over there I would look at replacing the filter head with a ITG one and at £56 it's a bargain being bigger than the one that comes with it and it can never be too big. It should fit (but get it checked) and the 'old one' can be a spare when one is being cleaned since it needs to be bone dry before it's oiled. Note that the cleaner and the oils for the foam are different than the cotton gauze.

This is it installed with a cold air feed and this was the test bed. One of the drawbacks of the kit is that there can be a slight initial hesitation but that was resolved with a set of new spark plugs and would recommend the Denso Iridium (ideally the VX) if you're not worried about the cost (there's another thread on that ).

Also you're one of the 15% on the 500 section with a 1.4 but in reality possibly less than 10% have that particular engine. Since your petrol is relatively cheap you could 'make hay while the sun shines'.

EDIT: If you decided to make your own it can be easily done - look at the LAD motorsport one. A crankcase breather can be used so that another connection does not need to be 'catered' for. I got one last day cheap in Halfords for a €1 - currently experimenting with it.

alexGS said:

The 500 is nice to drive with the 1.2 engine - very easy and feels eager and responsive, being tuned for torque at low revs. I think many people write it off without trying it. One of the staff at the main dealer (importer agent) for FIAT NZ told me "we're not importing 1.2s because they're just not fast enough for NZ". Well, I drove a 1.2 around England at speeds up to 100mph. The speed limit in NZ is 100km/h (62mph).

Oddly the 100hp 1.4 version tends to feel less eager and less responsive; needs more gearchanging to feel like you're making progress, which is why I went for the Dualogic (faster/smoother/easier gearchanges). If I had the chance to buy a 1.2 with 5-speed manual, I would. Much cheaper, the gear shift action seems lighter/smoother than the 6-speed, and you do get better fuel economy. I think the 1.4 might have the higher top speed when the 100bhp come into play, and might be better for high speed overtaking, but that isn't the natural habitat of the 500; it's going to spend more time in town than on motorways.

-Alex

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Agree. IMHO the 1.2 is the better engine for driving around town, for a tiny little engine (I come from Australia where 2 litre engines are considered to be small) it does have a nice wallop of torque low down

When I drove the 1.4 500 I was surprised how slow it was, but perhaps I just wasn't revving it enough

306maxi said:

Agree. IMHO the 1.2 is the better engine for driving around town, for a tiny little engine (I come from Australia where 2 litre engines are considered to be small) it does have a nice wallop of torque low down

When I drove the 1.4 500 I was surprised how slow it was, but perhaps I just wasn't revving it enough

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Maxi the 1.4 engine has two characters. One is below 4000 revs and one is above 4000 revs!
Funny but i drag raced a Wrangler diesel and off the line it completely killed me but then as said, i went above 4000 and passed him by 6000 before changing gear at 7000! I guess to get that 0-60 in 10 seconds you have to rev it insanely off the lights!

Admittedly it does get a bit tiring for a city car in 2nd gear at 10 mph which is why the TA is better suited to city driving. However once you get going nothing beats the appeal of downshifting and upshifting the 1.4 at 5000 +

ahmett said:

Maxi the 1.4 engine has two characters. One is below 4000 revs and one is above 4000 revs!
Funny but i drag raced a Wrangler diesel and off the line it completely killed me but then as said, i went above 4000 and passed him by 6000 before changing gear at 7000! I guess to get that 0-60 in 10 seconds you have to rev it insanely off the lights!

Admittedly it does get a bit tiring for a city car in 2nd gear at 10 mph which is why the TA is better suited to city driving. However once you get going nothing beats the appeal of downshifting and upshifting the 1.4 at 5000 +

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ammett - you have the same dualogic setup as alexGS but from memory the 1.4 needed the 6 speed close ratio to stay in the 4-6K power band. Since you only have 5 gears it might explain when you're over reving your engine.

Recently looking at the 1.6 NA in a suzuki swift sport and their engine only produces the goodies higher up the rev bank - the newer multi-valve engine with 133bhp, the power band is between 5-7k with peak torque reached at 4,400 rpm (higher than the F500 1.4). The 'old' model only has 5 speeds so it's 'screaming' on the motorway.

If you look back at the 'debate' in the past on the VW GTI most argued that the 8V was the better 'day-to-day' proposition than the 16V. So I would accept that was a 'town car' the 1.2 8V is probably a better option than the 1.4 16V.

loveshandbags said:

So I would accept that was a 'town car' the 1.2 8V is probably a better option than the 1.4 16V.

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It's probably a better motorway car too, at least at UK legal cruising speeds. Where the 1.4 comes into its own, I expect, is on fast twisty hilly A roads .

jrkitching said:

It's probably a better motorway car too, at least at UK legal cruising speeds. Where the 1.4 comes into its own, I expect, is on fast twisty hilly A roads .

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With the improvement in roads over here - most of them are now tolled and surprisingly empty typical cruising speeds are hoovering around 80-90mph. At one time I used to do an overnighter on a 300 mile round trip but I now end up doing it in one day. When you're 2-3 up it preferable to get the journey 'over and done with' in one go without rest stops. 500 1.4 seems to come into its own on these journeys & was quite stable. It didn't do any better on juice than the T-jet which will not be as an economical 'long termer' given its 'simplicity'.

Unfortunately on the fast twisty hill bits it needs a turbo or more cc but it does OK as a solo drive but it was a more inspiring drive that the current motor.

loveshandbags said:

If you look back at the 'debate' in the past on the VW GTI most argued that the 8V was the better 'day-to-day' proposition than the 16V. So I would accept that was a 'town car' the 1.2 8V is probably a better option than the 1.4 16V.

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I would definitely argue that the 1.2 is the better car around town, the low down torque means you can pop into small gaps in traffic whereas the 1.4 just doesn't repond quite as well low down, or at least it didn't for me.

loveshandbags said:

... hoovering around 80-90mph....

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That is fast cleaning.

RobinPJ said:

That is fast cleaning.

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At one time there was a 10% + 3 mph yardstick used and from my trips in the UK you would generally get away with 80mph. Speed limit here is 120km so it's rare on tolled roads to have any 'trouble' at 85mph. Given the cost of toll charges and the price of fuel I haven't come across many clapped out puntos or the like. Thinking back on an Uncle's Anglia at 70mph it was a scary experience and in hindsight my parents took an awful risk allowing me to take the trip with him. Would accept that the higher the speed the greater the risk but at 70mph on an empty tolled motorway I would probably need some driver aids in case I'd 'wonder off'. Concentration is key to safety.

loveshandbags said:

Would accept that the higher the speed the greater the risk but at 70mph on an empty tolled motorway I would probably need some driver aids in case I'd 'wonder off'. Concentration is key to safety.

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I would always prefer to drive quicker rather than being tired and going slower. It took me ages to get up to Northumberland back in January and I was having to sing to myself in the car to keep my mind on the job and off the monotony of a long journey....

306maxi said:

I would always prefer to drive quicker rather than being tired and going slower. It took me ages to get up to Northumberland back in January and I was having to sing to myself in the car to keep my mind on the job and off the monotony of a long journey....

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So you'll be singing up for the next X Factor, Britain's Got Talent or The Voice ????

loveshandbags said:

I think there might be something wrong with your 1.4. Granted I did drive one or two 1.4s that felt sluggish and it really comes down to when it was last serviced and how it was broken in.

Also you're one of the 15% on the 500 section with a 1.4 but in reality possibly less than 10% have that particular engine. Since your petrol is relatively cheap you could 'make hay while the sun shines'.

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Thanks for the thoughts that went into your reply!
I've been overseas working in Australia all month - I get back next week - so haven't been driving my 500 at all. I'm sure when I eventually get chance to, it will feel great. 'Sluggish' probably isn't the word, but the point I was making is that it needs to be worked fairly hard to get the performance.

The 1.2L is an easier drive, but then when the pedal does go to the metal, it definitely feels slower than the 1.4. If that makes sense? I've driven a few FIATs over the years that are like that - Multipla 1.6 petrol is another - they feel really strong and easy to drive but then when you do want 'extra' performance one day (overtaking up a hill or some such), there's nothing more to give.

Fuel economy is indeed hardly an issue when you do all your kilometres by jet engine like I do. But I do notice the small tank of the 500 doesn't go very far. I think the 1.2 makes a good choice and the point of my post was to make sure people didn't dismiss the 1.2 as an option, that engine suits the 500 well.

The 1.4 does have a lovely gruff sound and nice response to having a few more revs on the clock. In 'Sport' mode it takes off like a rocket. I do like it and will consider your advice about the air induction systems. The roads are not dusty in NZ (much too damp for that!) but at the same time, the standard setup is probably fine for me.

My Uno Turbo wears a cone air filter, mainly out of practicality as the standard remote airbox and ductwork cluttered the engine bay. I was using it as a racecar, and having a clear engine bay makes it easier to spot any leaks or problems, plus helps to keep the temperatures down.

I might well drive my 500 on a track one day, but all it will be needing is a fire extinguisher to meet the rules.

-Alex

alexGS said:

Fuel economy is indeed hardly an issue when you do all your kilometres by jet engine like I do. But I do notice the small tank of the 500 doesn't go very far. I think the 1.2 makes a good choice and the point of my post was to make sure people didn't dismiss the 1.2 as an option, that engine suits the 500 well.

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If you actually brim the tank and run it low you can get some good range out of a 500, in fact I've had 506 miles out of a tank which is 800 odd km

306maxi said:

If you actually brim the tank and run it low you can get some good range out of a 500, in fact I've had 506 miles out of a tank which is 800 odd km

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Ah but that's just the point - you have a 1.2 - the same tank in a 1.4 driven to keep up with open-road traffic (7.4L/100km) will only do about 420km. There are parts of NZ's south island where you have to take a long hard look at those little LCD segments (the ones divided into two) and think, am I going to risk it, given that it's probably 100km to the next petrol station...

Maybe I've just been spoiled by the 6.3L/100km average in my 156 and the 70 litre fuel tank, giving a range of 1000km. I should point out that despite that huge tank I've still run out of petrol twice, because the gauge never actually reaches 0 and the estimated range is hopelessly optimistic before it disappears altogether (it disappears when it drops below 50; runs dry about 30km later, which is about 50km after it said 150km). I've never run out of petrol in any other car!

The trip computer in the 500 seems accurate and honest.

-Alex

a 500's tank holds 42 litres. You do the maths