Just had the prices through from Fiat:

1.4 (95hp) Pop Star is £14995, range tops out at a 1.6 (105hp) Multijet at around £18500.

Specs look very good equipment wise, the Pop Star entry level looks great with Alloys etc, the mid range Easy substitutes Rear Park and Electric Rear windows for the Alloys and shares the same pricing as the Pop Star.

The new Fiat 500L will be offered with a very simple range with 3 trims level and only 2 pricing levels. To ensure the customer has the best driving experience, the most important features are included as standard on all versions of the 500L.
Standard Specification:
 Body Coloured bumpers
 Remote Controlled Central Locking
 Body coloured electrically adjustable door mirrors
 Dualdrive Electric Power Steering
 Front electric windows
 Height adjustable driver’s seat
 Cargo Magic Space (height-adjustable load platform)
 Height and depth adjustable steering wheel
 Leather steering wheel with audio controls
 Leather gear knob
 12 V power socket
 Fold&Tumble split, sliding, reclining and folding rear seat
 ESC (electronic stability control system) including ASR/MSR, Hill Holder,
ABS+EBD, ERM (electronic rollover mitigation), DST (driving steering torque) and
BAS (brake assist system)
 Cruise Control
 6 Airbags (Driver – Passenger – Side)
 Space saver spare wheel
 Air conditioning
 5" Touchscreen Radio with Bluetooth

Pop Star
This is the version perfect for people who are concerned with how the car looks, stylish and cool. An appealing 500-like interior with body colour painted dashboard available in 4 shades (Red, White, Black, Grey) is coupled with a
bright Pop seat design for a lively and young interior.The seats are available in black Stark fabric with red or grey inserts.The Pop Star will offer as standard 16” alloy wheels and chromed side mouldings.This interior is the most reminiscent of the Fiat 500 dashboard treatment.

Easy
Priced at the same level as the Pop Star, the Easy will be the perfect trim for people who are more focussed on comfort and equipment.
The seats are available in beige or black Tecnosilk fabric.The soft-touch dashboard, which is available in 3 shades (Beige, Grey and Red), is coupled with a two-tone colour steering wheel and a contemporary interior design for elegance.Electric rear windows and rear parking sensors are standard.The standard 16” steel wheels can be upgraded with optional 16” or 17” Alloy wheels.Please note that the value for the customers on this trim level is in line with the value of the Pop Star, they will simply appeal to different customer types.

Lounge
This is the top of the Fiat 500L range, aimed at attracting customers who want quality, comfort and a richer level of specification.The suede dashboard, available in 2 shades (Beige and Grey) is coupled with a two-tone colour steering wheel and an elegant and sophisticated interior design.The seats are available in Castiglio Visone (Dark Grey) or Vigogna (Grey) colours.
Lounge will offer in addition to Pop Star:
 Rear electric windows
 Foglights
 Dual zone Auto Climate Control
 Automatic light with rain sensors
 Electrochromatic rear view mirror
 Rear parking sensors
 3 Rear Head Restraints
 Fixed glass roof
The Fiat 500L features a panoramic glass roof (standard on Lounge Trim, optional on Pop Star and Easy). With a total surface area of 1.5 m
2, it is the largest in the segment.
As an optional extra, there is a possibility to have an electric opening glass sun-roof available.


Apologies for formatting, copypasta'd from a PDF file.

so it is quite expensive...

RobW said:

so it is quite expensive...

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Yeah, I kind of agree with you. But on the other hand the Pop Star version does seem to have quite a lot of standard kit already, it's not like a regular 500 Pop which doesn't have all that much.

Like the sound of all the flex options which come as standard. Still not 100% convinced about the look of it though, but maybe when our Panda goes in for a service next year I can take a closer look...

Super Uwe said:

Yeah, I kind of agree with you. But on the other hand the Pop Star version does seem to have quite a lot of standard kit already, it's not like a regular 500 Pop which doesn't have all that much.

Like the sound of all the flex options which come as standard. Still not 100% convinced about the look of it though, but maybe when our Panda goes in for a service next year I can take a closer look...

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i had a closer look and it really isn't good vfm

a Bravo would be cheaper, better equipped, look better and perform better

i wish Fiat well with it and maybe they will compete with MINI but I won't be buying and I don't think my Mum will either

It's not really a Bravo competitor/replacement though.

I was very impressed with it after having a good poke about and drive yesterday.

Dealers should have all of their cars by the end of the week for this weekend's preview event.

Customers can pre-order a car as of now, I would expect the first RHD cars to be through towards the end of February.

Just added about 35 photos to our Facebook page, have a look.

Looked at the photos, trying to like it, but no way. I've owned 13 Fiats over the last couple of decades, but other than the Abarth 500 I would struggle to find a reason to buy from the current Fiat range.
Overkill with the 500 logos on the rear seat.

Thanks for the link (I know it is your job to sell it but it's nice to see anyway!).

It does look like a really flexible car, have to say the rear seat configuration/boot layout looks terrific.

The interior itself looks smart, but my initial impression is that the shape of quite a lot of the parts is more similar to the Panda than the 500 (am thinking handbrake, instrument button layout below radio, speaker shape, headrest shape etc - quite a lot of "squircles"). Maybe with time it will grow on me though.

Super Uwe said:

Thanks for the link (I know it is your job to sell it but it's nice to see anyway!).

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I'll admit to a fairly major bias, but I genuinely think if you look at the cars that it will be 'entering the ring' with, it is better than a lot of them, and should appeal to a lot of people. I will probably think about one when my wife's car is due to be changed, but that's not for a while yet.

List prices are one thing - how much you'd actually have to pay is another.

My Bravo had a huge discount when new but a 500 will be much closer to list price.

I suspect that this will be more heavily reduced than the standard car.
Anyway, if you want to feel good about the prices, look at how much a Mini Countryman will cost you for the same spec....

elation said:

I'll admit to a fairly major bias, but I genuinely think if you look at the cars that it will be 'entering the ring' with, it is better than a lot of them, and should appeal to a lot of people. I will probably think about one when my wife's car is due to be changed, but that's not for a while yet.

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Out of interest, what do you see as a direct competitor?

Vauxhall Meriva, Citroen C3 Picasso, Ford B-Max, Countryman (obviously), possibly a Kia Venga I think (must admit I haven't seen one in the flesh).

That sort of Small MPV vehicle.

Possibly not the Countryman, but the others can all be had with discounts, sometimes very big ones.

I had a look at a Venga once and I wasn't impressed, and the Vauxhall is beyond ordinary. The Picasso has a horrid digital instrument display and an odd seating position, and is tired. The Countryman I wouldn't look at for a variety of reasons, but the Ford is supposed to be a brilliant drive and to have an excellent small engine: real competition then. Saying that, Ford dashboards are hideous and look like they were designed by Sci-Fi groupies.

Interesting, thanks. I'd also see more mainstream cars like the i30 as fighting for the same business.

The Countryman starts at £16,510 (£17,520 for the diesel) and probably isn't discounted much, if at all.

The 500L, starting at £14,990 (£16,490 for the diesel), will sell to people for that reason alone, just like the regular 500 attracted former Mini hatch owners.

JTD_Liam said:

The Countryman starts at £16,510 (£17,520 for the diesel) and probably isn't discounted much, if at all.

The 500L, starting at £14,990 (£16,490 for the diesel), will sell to people for that reason alone, just like the regular 500 attracted former Mini hatch owners.

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but do you want to look like a c**t too?

Sat in the L today and it is far better than the pictures suggest. The interior is lovely and the visibility excellent. Plenty of leg room in the back, and there seems to be a run-flat spare, which is a beginning.

Now I'll be my usual picky self and say that the gearlever is a little too low and the lever seems to have lost that lovely fingerstretch-from-the wheel positioning that is such a bonus on so many Fiats, and I found myself reaching forward and down to find fifth gear (it was LHD). Just like in the little Citroen C3 I was driving earlier today then

The other problem no-no was the huge glass roof, which results in a lowered roof lining over the back passengers heads and left me with my head tilted to one side and crushed against the roof lining. But I'd never ever have a glass roof so this wouldn't be a problem, for me.

The car I was in had ordinary A/C, manual rear windows and no fog lights, but it felt lke a good place to be and had everything else. Lots of glove compartments and shelves, which were all a bit confusing, but probably would be very handy.

Immediately afterwards I went and sat in the new Mercedes A Class and found a cramped miserable car, far too close to the ground and consequently difficult to get in and out of, and with a tiny windscreen, an unattractive dashboard layout with cheap-looking metal detailing, and front doors that open so wide you have to lean out to reach the handles to close them. I have no idea what the back was like because I couldn't be bothered to look once I had struggled to get out of the driver's seat. Not a nice car at all. The Merc was priced at £27,000 and the 500L at something around £18,000. The Fiat is by far the nicer place to be and it felt to be just as solid and well made as the Merc, plus the interior is smarter and it is a joy to get in and out of because it sits high and the glass area is large. In fact it was as easy to access as my Doblo, and that is praise.

Now, without the glass roof and with the right engine this car suddenly looks competitive, it's the same price after all as a similarly specced Skoda Rapide, which has a low roof line (banged head getting in) and is the definitively grey and dull washing machine car, both inside and out.

No, I think the colourful, charming and really rather attractive - I mean it! - 500L might do well. I was surprised.

Wow! They really bone you on the options, when we bought our 500, going from 15's to 16's was £160, now they want £300 to go from 16's to 17's on the lounge.

Whilst I think the 500l isn't going to do tooooo badly, I think the pricing is way over the top. I don't quite see what Fiat is trying to do of late, the 500 has been able to sell for list over most of its life because it's a well designed product which people really want, whether or not some people on here like the 500 is beside the point, it sells bloody well, or at least did! Back in the day you could get a 1.1 eco Panda for 5 or 5.5k? Now the cheapest Panda is on Fiatsupasaver for 8k? Yes, it's a car which is probably worth more, but is it really for 2.5 or 3k more? Many would argue that it isn't and the sales seem to bear that out. I suspect the 500l is going to suffer the same problem from the start, perhaps even moreso as it's not replacing an old model and not going to get sales from people who had an old 500l and want the new one.

I know I'll be unpopular, but I can almost see the appeal of the Countryman, as in why people would WANT one, rather than just buy one because it ticks the boxes. The 500l is a bit pricey IMHO. The top of the range diesel 1.6 lounge is £1500 or so more than a C3 Picasso of same spec and gives away 10bhp.

But at least it's growing on people and Fiat will have a chance to do something with pricing once they've gouged the early adopters and had their factories sitting idle because not as many people bought them as forecast. Ulpian seems to like the ergonomics and useability of it which is a good thing, but they really need to do something about the price.

I think they'd have been far better off doing what they did with the 500 and starting out with the prices quite low and then as the model gains popularity, raise them.

The options are nuts, it's true. I think parking sensors are essential and should be fitted across the range, but Fiat has determined that they are a lifestyle choice and has bundled them in with other stuff in order for you to get them, and at the same time removed stuff you probably also want. Just a way to get the poor befuddled buyer to tick some more expensive boxes I suppose.

Ergonomically the car felt fine, but I do quibble about the placement of the gear lever. Fiat had achieved perfection with it's high-mounted lever, but this car returns to an earlier age with the lever on the floor and not quite long enough for me with my seat set comfortably high (I have long legs and a short body) to reach without leaning a little - not great actually. And the heater controls are not as accessibile as they are on current Fiats either. But it has a nice touch-accessible screen multimedia thingy, so that's alright , and I suppose people are meant to have climate control these days anyway ... tick, tick, tick Actually, I find the new Panda to be a marginally better place to sit in as far as basic ergonomics are concerned.

The proof will be in the driving, and I was looking at a LHD car, but as Maxi says, the 1.6 Diesel is expensive, and I believe the base 1.4 petrol isn't much to write home about either, with poor torque.

I should add that the Picasso feels a far smaller and less robust product than this Fiat.

Still, I reiterate, after looking at the Merc A Class, which many people would automatically assume to be the far better car, the Fiat looks like a very good deal. The 500L is a better ergonomic proposition than the Mercedes, certainly as far as access and closing the doors, and seat comfort, and seeing out are concerned. Oh, and space too. And dare I suggest that the Merc looks like zilch and has no road presence at all. Remove the huge 'look I'm a Mercedes' grill badge and it might be a Vauxhall.

Road test please somebody...

I'll just leave this here... http://bit.ly/SVTrdX