General Fiat 500 Twinair as a sole car

[chicco]

I would like some advice about a Fiat 500 related question.

I am hooked by the virtues of a 2-Door 500 Twinair Sport with 105hp. I love the whole 500 concept and styling (thankfully my wife does too!), and the capable twin cylinder engine that balances between performance and economy. If I was on my own I would already have it cause I have been postponing owning a 500 since the Cinquecento Sporting era. I missed that by an inch while Fiat ditched the model for the Seicento which I never really liked. To make a long story short, I owned this far a Hyundai S-Coupe 1.5 85hp, and a Citroen Saxo VTS 16v 120hp. Both really good cars and reliable, covered over 150.000km's on each car. Right now I am counting two solid members in my family (me and my wife) and somewhere short ahead we can see a third tiny person joining our lives. And now comes the big question.

Both my previous cars were spacious in their own way. Even the Saxo would be loaded like no tomorrow on our vacation trips. With the forthcoming 500 purchase, I know that space is a luxury that I won't have. Considering that my family needs will be amplified soon, I wanted to know how other 500 owners manage kids and their truckloads of necessary stuff in their 500's.

My sister and my brother in law, sometimes struggle to fit their kids stuff on their 2008 Jetta, which is by far more spacious than any hatchback. I can judge a poor management on their side for fitting all, but I will be honest here, if I had such a lagoon for a trunk like the Jetta I would just throw everything in, no matter the order.

The 500 will be our sole car, and this for many reasons. Small city car since our commute is based on a big city, easy parking a must, economy engine while capable for a decent and relaxing journey through highways fully loaded (thats why i am keen on the Twinair 105 version), and easy enough for my wife to drive. Now I do believe a kid safety seat will be fit just fine on the back, but a stroller could be a nightmare to fit (or maybe a complete folding one able to fit in the trunk? - How you guys manage the strollers in the 500?). About the stroller issue I was also thinking to include a roof rack and a small Thule-like case to have up there at all times.

Will we manage to do fine on a 500 with a kid coming our way and all the gear that it brings? I know for a fact that I was a kid on the back seat of a Fiat127p with my parents driving amazing distances back in the early 80s, and the roof rack was having about 4 large suitcases facing upward, eliminating every sense of aerodynamics and making the tiny engine struggle with each km. I guess all our folks managed to do everything with their car selections back then (in similar setups of having a damn small car of 35hp at best to do all a car could do), but we got so modern and convenient that even the smallest inconvenience can drive us to the nearest dealership to switch our car to a bigger one. Me and my wife intend to keep the 500 for at least 7-8 years (most probably even more if it proves reliable) so please keep that in mind.

I apologise for the long sheet. Feel free to share your thought and most important, your tips (!), to make this work for me.

 

[purf]

A few years ago in 2011 before our first was born I bought my wife a mk 2 Fiat punto 5 Dr. After my son was born the first trip to the supermarket with the pram we realised it wasn't big enough. The boot was quite generous too.

However some people I know have small cars like Mazda 3 and Yaris 5 doors and get on fine. I guess it just depends how patient you are, how big your pram/push chair is and how much you both love your fiats...

Roof box for holidays?

We bought a scenic mk1 which makes life very easy, with two kids we're now thinking a Ulyses would be good....

 

[ahmett]

I would like some advice about a Fiat 500 related question.

I am hooked by the virtues of a 2-Door 500 Twinair Sport with 105hp. I love the whole 500 concept and styling (thankfully my wife does too!), and the capable twin cylinder engine that balances between performance and economy. If I was on my own I would already have it cause I have been postponing owning a 500 since the Cinquecento Sporting era. I missed that by an inch while Fiat ditched the model for the Seicento which I never really liked. To make a long story short, I owned this far a Hyundai S-Coupe 1.5 85hp, and a Citroen Saxo VTS 16v 120hp. Both really good cars and reliable, covered over 150.000km's on each car. Right now I am counting two solid members in my family (me and my wife) and somewhere short ahead we can see a third tiny person joining our lives. And now comes the big question.

Both my previous cars were spacious in their own way. Even the Saxo would be loaded like no tomorrow on our vacation trips. With the forthcoming 500 purchase, I know that space is a luxury that I won't have. Considering that my family needs will be amplified soon, I wanted to know how other 500 owners manage kids and their truckloads of necessary stuff in their 500's.

My sister and my brother in law, sometimes struggle to fit their kids stuff on their 2008 Jetta, which is by far more spacious than any hatchback. I can judge a poor management on their side for fitting all, but I will be honest here, if I had such a lagoon for a trunk like the Jetta I would just throw everything in, no matter the order.

The 500 will be our sole car, and this for many reasons. Small city car since our commute is based on a big city, easy parking a must, economy engine while capable for a decent and relaxing journey through highways fully loaded (thats why i am keen on the Twinair 105 version), and easy enough for my wife to drive. Now I do believe a kid safety seat will be fit just fine on the back, but a stroller could be a nightmare to fit (or maybe a complete folding one able to fit in the trunk? - How you guys manage the strollers in the 500?). About the stroller issue I was also thinking to include a roof rack and a small Thule-like case to have up there at all times.

Will we manage to do fine on a 500 with a kid coming our way and all the gear that it brings? I know for a fact that I was a kid on the back seat of a Fiat127p with my parents driving amazing distances back in the early 80s, and the roof rack was having about 4 large suitcases facing upward, eliminating every sense of aerodynamics and making the tiny engine struggle with each km. I guess all our folks managed to do everything with their car selections back then (in similar setups of having a damn small car of 35hp at best to do all a car could do), but we got so modern and convenient that even the smallest inconvenience can drive us to the nearest dealership to switch our car to a bigger one. Me and my wife intend to keep the 500 for at least 7-8 years (most probably even more if it proves reliable) so please keep that in mind.

I apologise for the long sheet. Feel free to share your thought and most important, your tips (!), to make this work for me.

Are you in Athens? If you are i would get the 1.3 JTD diesel edition. It is as fast as the TA 105 and much much cheaper to run. I drive all around Athens and parking is just so easy with the 500. I am sure, as you said, with good space management, you can fit everything in the car.

 

[Melanabb]

As a owner of 500 as a sole car and with a toddler in tow I had coped fine with the issue of space. I had a very foldable pram (2 wheels had to be taken off though) and organised manner. There were no problems. Remember that big prams are in use just for the first year, then you swap for lightweight and easily foldable stroller. If you like the car so much, extra 3 minutes spent on organising your boot space on each trip shouldn't come as a big chore. Having said all that, I've swapped 500 for Grande Punto as I got tired of spending time rearranging things in the back... I guess I didn't like the 500 that much...

 

[Piccolo Nero e Bella]

As a owner of 500 as a sole car and with a toddler in tow I had coped fine with the issue of space. I had a very foldable pram (2 wheels had to be taken off though) and organised manner. There were no problems. Remember that big prams are in use just for the first year, then you swap for lightweight and easily foldable stroller. If you like the car so much, extra 3 minutes spent on organising your boot space on each trip shouldn't come as a big chore. Having said all that, I've swapped 500 for Grande Punto as I got tired of spending time rearranging things in the back... I guess I didn't like the 500 that much...

Speaking for myself it would come down to a choice of kids or a 500 - no contest!

 

[PsFiat]

It's also a 'soul' car...?

 

[MarginWalker]

Sorry to be a naysayer but I don't think the 500 is big enough to hold the full range of baby gear that you're likely to need if going away for anything more than a weekend break with your little one. When we went for holidays with my baby daughter, the Ford Focus I owned at the time was often found wanting for load space - once the pushchair, travel cot, baby bath, changing mat, bottle steriliser, cot bedding, nappies, etc were all in together with our luggage, the boot would usually be packed to roof level and the back seat also occupied with the stuff that wouldn't fit in the boot. The Ford Focus has around 400 litres of boot space vs 185 litres for the 500. Yes, you could certainly take less baby gear than listed above but it's surprising how much kit a baby needs even with just the basics. Once the child no longer needs a pushchair and can sleep in a normal bed, smaller loads become the norm - until that stage is reached, I reckon a 500 's limited load lugging capability would force you to leave important baby gear behind.

 

[306maxi]

when I was a baby my parents had a tiny Honda Civic AND I had two older brothers too. If you want to then you'll find a way.

 

[chicco]

Thank you all so much for all the important information and advice. It is true that a small car makes things hard when a baby comes around, but I believe that we can manage all with whatever car we may have around. Modern convenience suggests that we carry all and fit all in a car, so the only logical step seems to be a big car. But a big fraction of people really cant afford a big car and they do manage to have kids and all family needs in cars such as the Hyundai i10, Seat Mii, Chevrolet Matiz, Kia Picanto and so on. So it is really a question of how prepared we are to take the extra time and thinking into making this work.

And for a fact I know it can be done. In my first post I made a mistake about the first car my dad had, it was actually a Fiat 126p not a 127p. Imagine this as a do it all family car back then, as well as our vacation vehicle that had to cross a distance of 1600km back and forth to our grandparents village each summer. My task on long journeys was to be the back window observer so when smoke would start to go off from the engine, I would tell my dad! Great memories from this car (as all the cars of that time and their stories, like my uncles Wartburg 353 that he used to have a bucket of beige paint in his trunk along with a paintbrush, and he used to paintcoat the old car every now and then - yes with a paintbrush, no spray or clear coat! Who gave a damn, he liked it that way!), memories that modern kids will never experience. Now everything is filtered and cars just seem an extension of the home we have, with all the soundproof isolation, smooth handling, tons of horsepower, back seat tv screens, air conditioning and so on.

Nothing near like the following car trying to make a pass to a truck, going 45 miles on the highway with 25hp loaded with 3 people, a roof rack loaded with 3-4 suitcases, revving like crazy to make it through. Each meter was a triumph and I could certainly read a first chapter of a book till the pass was through! Oh, and under a midday summer blasting sun with no a/c. Try that adventure now!

The 126p managed to do the work, so I am pretty convinced that the 500 will do just fine.
No matter what it has to be a Fiat!

 

[Mila]

There is a young couple few houses down the road from me recently bought a new 500 pop 1.2 (about6 months back).

Fuel in Australia is expensive so they sold their SUV. They have a small 2 year old child and seems to manage really well using the 500 as their only mode of transport.

I have spoken to them briefly few weeks back when they saw me in my 500 lol. They do regular long distance trips in to to other states and the car racked up near 12,000kms in 6 months!!

You'll be amazed what you can fit if you know how to organise well and use the available rear seat room including the floor at the back.

 

[griff74]

I would buy a model without either of the glass or fabric roof options so you can fit roof bars if I was you!

 

[MarginWalker]

You could certainly manage as a new parent with a 500 on a day to day basis - the car will be absolutely fine provided you chose a pram/travel system that fits in the boot. It's the long holidays away that would present a challenge. I hear what people are saying about how parents managed with 4 kids in a mini back in the '70s, the need for efficient packing with a small car, etc. but in my experience, one would definitely need to compromise on baby gear if going away for a week or more in a car with 185 litres of boot space and a small spare rear seat. For example, if the place you are staying in doesn't have a bassinet or cot available for guests, then you will surely need to take one. Even the most compact travel cots would take up a significant part of the available space. Nappy changing gear, feeding utensils, cot bedding, all the clothes needed for several days away, plus normal luggage would then be cleverly packed in. Oh, and a pram/buggy/stroller would be useful!

If you're set on getting a 500 and intend on going away for regular breaks with your baby, follow the advice above and get a roof box!

 

[purf]

We have two kids 3 1/2 & 18 months and find our 2000 renault megane scenic is still to small for a weeks holiday. We need a Fia Ulysse!