What a Car - UK - (2020-04)

whatcar.com^ April 2020 25

Chicvaluecarmakesaneffort

togogreenwitha newmild

hybridengineOnsaleNow

Pricefrom£12,6 6 5

IFIT’SRETROcharmyou’reafter,therearen’t

manynewcarsonsalethatcomecloseto

theFiat500.Morethanadecadeonfromits

launch,itremainsoneofthebest-sellingcity

cars,despitethefactthatit’swellbehindmost

ofitsrivalsintermsoftechnology,safety,

practicalityanddrivingmanners.

Theregular 500 isduetobejoinedbyan

all-new,fullyelectric500elaterthisyear,but

inthemeantime,it’sbeentreatedtoadoseof

electrificationwiththeintroductionofanew

1.0-litrethree-cylinderpetrolenginefeaturing

mildhybridtechnology.This

isnowtheonlyengineoption

youcangetinthe500.

Withatinyelectric

motorandbatteryto

sharetheeffort,thisnew

enginepromisesimproved

accelerationandfuel

economycomparedwith

previous 500 variants,while

reducingCO 2 emissions.The

carcan’ttravelonelectric

poweralone,though.

Newengineis hardlyan

improvement,whilerivalsare

betterin virtuallyeveryway

S AY S

Don’texpectTesla-likeacceleration,either.

Sure,there’senoughzipforthe 500 tokeep

upwithhecticcitytraffic,butifyouneeda

meaningfulburstofpace,you’llsoonhavethe

enginewheezingawaylikeanoverlyambitious

joggerontheirfirst(andlast)runoftheyear.

RivalssuchastheHyundaii10andKiaPicanto

soundfarquieterandmorecivilised.

Theyrideandhandlebetter,too.Therideis

jigglyaroundtownanddoesn’tsettledownat

higherspeeds.Thesteeringis

reasonablywellweightedbut

feelsvague.Andforsucha

smallcar,the 500 leansalot

throughcorners.

Inside,youcannowgeta

seatupholsterymadefrom

recycledplastic–ofwhich

Fiatsays10%comesfromsea

waste–andsomehybrid-

specificdisplaysonthe

digitalinstrumentpanel.

Therestoftheinterior

remainsasbrightandbubblyasachildren’s

TVpresenter,butthei10andPicantoaremore

solidlybuilt.Theinfotainmentsystemdoes

littletoinspire,withsmalltouchscreenbuttons

andaslowresponsetime,whilerearseatspace

istightandthebootremainssmall.

Ifyou’rehopingthehybridtechmakesthe

500 anecowarrior,you’llbedisappointed.Fuel

economyandCO 2 emissionsremainaverage

comparedwithrivals.

Thefactis,thei10andPicantohavethe 500

soundlybeateninallareas;they’recomfier,

morepracticalandbettertodrive,plusthey

costaboutthesametobuy.

Price £16,795

Engine 3 cyl,999cc,petrol,plus

electricmotor

Power 69bhp@6000rpm

Torque 68lbft @3500rpm

Gearbox 6-spdmanual

0-62mph 13.8sec

Topspeed 104mph

Economy 53.3mpg(combined)

CO 2 , taxband120g/km(WLTP),27%

Fiat 500 HybridLaunchEdition

BUYER’SFILE

Thepickofthe range thanks to

its strong engine, but missing

some handling delicacy

S AY S

Jaguar F-Type Convertible

JAGUAR’SF-TYPESPORTScarhasanewlook

andanewengineoption.The5.0-litreV8P450

slotsintotheline-upbetweenthe2.0-litre

P300andtherange-topping567bhpV8R.

With444bhpand516lbftoftorque,theP450

isabrute,seeingoffthe0-60mphdashinjust

4.4secinbothrear-wheel-driveandfour-wheel-

driveguises.Theenginemakesathunderous

noiseunderacceleration,andperformanceis

strongenoughtopinyoufirmlytoyourseat.

Evenwithallthatpowersenttotherear

wheelsalone,acceleratingoutofacorner

isentertainingratherthanscary,thanks

totweakstothetractioncontrol.Butwhile

twistingB-roadsarefunintheP450,it’s

notblessedwithgreathandlingfinesse.

Adjustmentstothesteering

haveaddedalittlemorelife

toit,butthereisn’tenough

weightbuild-upduring

corneringandtheF-Type

doesn’tfeelasnimbleoralert

asrivalssuchasPorsche’s 718

BoxsterandCaymanmodels

andthemoreexpensive911.

Price £75,470

Engine V8,5000cc,s’charged,petrol

Power 444bhp@ 6000rpm

Torque 516lbft @ 2500-5000rpm

Gearbox 8-spdautomatic

0-60mph 4.4sec

Topspeed 177mph

Economy 26.5mpg(combined)

CO 2 , taxband 241g/km(WLTP),37%

JaguarF-TypeP450R-Dynamic

ConvertibleRWD

BUYER’S FILE

On the motorway, the F-Type munches

through miles effortlessly, thanks to strong

straight-line stability and an impressively

supple ride (on standard adaptive suspension).

Inside, build quality remains reasonable

rather than outstanding, and there’s a new

12.3in digital instrument panel, replacing the

old analogue dials. Large, razor-sharp graphics

make it easy to see. Standard Apple CarPlay and

Android Auto are welcome additions, although

the infotainment still isn’t as user-friendly as

the class best.

The convertible version’s

fabric roof opens or closes

electrically in just 12 seconds

and doesn’t rob any space

from the boot. But you’ll

be lucky to fit much in

there anyway; it’s small and

awkwardly shaped.

The price jump from four

cylinders to eight is around

£13,000. For that, you gain

a lot of performance, noise

and smiles for your cash,

making the P450 feel far more special than the

P300. However, the cheaper, sharper-handling

Boxster remains a better sports car.

Revamp for Jaguar’s sports car includes a tantalising new

444bhpV8engineoptionOn sale Now Price from £54,060

Fiat 500 Hybrid

Doug Revolta

[email protected]

FIRST DRIVE

P450 F-Type comes

in coupé form as

well as a convertible

Doug Revolta

[email protected]