Back on topic:
500L is oriented towards being a "young family" kind of car. It's pretty huge inside with plenty of room for prams, car seats, pets and even small children. The engine choice consists of 0.9 (Twin Air) and 1.4 petrols and a 1.3 and 1.6 diesels.
If you only do a few miles most days then I'd say go for petrol since diesels like a regular good run to heat up their emissions control equipment. 1.4 might be the one for you, rather than the 0.9 which is willing but ultimately limited in what is quite a large car.
Don't worry about people who thinks it a bit aesthetically challenged. It's a pretty competent beast and it's a bit Multipla "fugly". The longer you look at it, the more you notice it's actually quite cool.
500X might be more up your street though (unless you have "young family" anywhere near your now or future). It's more funky and trendy I suppose and it's an easier shape to love.
It has the two basic styles; Urban and Cross depending on what you fancy. The engines are bigger too (i.e. there is a 2.0ltr diesel option avalable second-hand... but we already decided diesels aren't for you, so this is just for information).
There's no 0.9 petrol option... you can get a (new) 1.0ltr three-cylinder engine called "Firefly" which has about 100bhp and there's a 1.3 (auto) and 1.6 E-Torque engine. You can't get every engine in every body shape though. (Fiat reasoning which I've yet to work out and constantly moan at them for).
Second-hand they used to have a 1.4 petrol as in the 500L and one of these would similarly be a good choice.
If you read the 500L and X forums you'll see they're pretty good for reliability.. most of the problems seem to be door handles, trim and Blue and Me or infortainment related rather than serious issues. The 500X is quite a firm ride if you believe the road-tests in the magazines.. I suppose since Fiats stopped rusting 40 years ago, there's little else for the nay-sayers and certain fiatforum members to whine about..
Take one out for a test drive over your usual route and see how you get on.
Both X and L are not the most popular cars on the market but that's because people read these forums and assume that French and German cars are better somehow, even though the components are made by the same suppliers - Bosch, Valeo, Sachs and etc. You don't get many people taking the Fiat choice, because most people are ultimately unadventurous and afraid of being different/the dark horse choice, I guess.
Still, if you buy new you will find that it does depreciate a bit... although not as much as legend would have it. 500X keeps value better than L, since L is slightly more niche than the X, if that was possible (and didn't have the viagra in the fuel tank advert to help it). Both would be a better prospect if you keep them for a few years.
You should however be able to get a good discount when you buy new. Once you know the spec' you want, look on Carwow.co.uk for a more sensible price than the RRP and then it makes sense. Second-hand there's plenty about, not badly priced but you can still haggle.
Either would be a pretty good car... and obviously if you had any issues you have the might and accumulated wisdom of the whole fiatforum to ask for help and advice (although some of it will inevitably be "Ooooooooh I said you should have bought a Kia.... but you can ignore those)..
Ralf S.