A friend of mine bought a Fiat 500e for his daughter and son to learn to drive in - he wasn’t prepared to let them loose in his diesel Range Rover Sport. It’s such a fun car that he uses the Fiat for commuting, it’s so much easier to park and costs next to nothing to home charge. He and his wife have so enjoyed driving this tiny EV that they are sold on electric driving and have placed an order for the forthcoming electric Range Rover (due late 25 or early 2026 here in the UK) to replace their RRS.
I think "fun" can be subjective. 🙂 I agree that the Fiat 500e is best categorized as a "city car," but I'd say that I don't think the Chevy Bolt EV fits that category, simply because of its range. The Bolt EV is a car that my father would have called a "puddle jumper." Basically, the Bolt EV is really perfect for rural folk who frequently drive 200+ miles in a single day but who rarely go on long, cross-country road trips.
Casey over at TFLEV just bought this exact same color and car to commute back and forth to work, we'll see how he likes after awhile. This is the mine a key car.😊
I'm assuming you purchased it primarily for the city car attributes? Have you taken any long highway trips with it yet? I've been through southern Spain and they drive fast, 140 kph
@otm646 The farthest trip I took was about 330km away, got it with 1 charge along the way there, then 2 on my way back. Top speed is 150km/h , and it gets there pretty quick indeed !
I am sure that wind did a number on that range. That was pretty bad wind. These little city cars I am sure are tuned for the slower stop and go traffic. I would rather have a I3 Rex for a city car with some legs if you needed it. The Bolt would be fine with faster charging and battery preconditioning/heat pump. I enjoyed my Bolt and probably would still have it if it had these features. Small cars can be a lot of fun. I actually prefer the format of the Bolt for it's size and functionality. I like the styling of the 500e, but I certainly would just have it as a second car for work commute in the city sort of thing. Prices are not cheap on these sadly.
Looks like you were at 981 or 982 when it clicked over 4% and you were no longer able to maintain 70 mph, so the 70 mph range is either 117 or 118 miles of range at 70 mph.
I'm seriously considering the Fiat because it is an extra car. I know a used bolt or model 3 looks way better on paper, but for an extra car, I really want the character. Also, as an extra car, it's nice that it has a smaller footprint in the garage. That being said, I was really hoping for a better result.
It’s a lot of fun,however my girlfriend has a Mini SE and I think it’s a better and more fun car all around. I’d definitely recommend taking a look, you can find some good deals as it’s going out of production
It's definitely a city car, designed for 50 kmh / 30 mph speed limits. But it's also very inefficient. I have a Renault with a 52 kWh battery, and can average about 250 miles under similar driving conditions to those. 300+ miles is easily achievable at U.K. motorway speeds, with maximum legal speed limits of 70 mph.
I'm an curious how the Fiat is more fun than a Bolt?.. other than looks. Both are FWD, Bolt does 0-60 in about 6.5 the Fiat is 7.9 sec. Maybe handling? It certainly is cute. Bolt is actually large inside, can fit 4 people easily, and some cargo. Bolt is a terrible road tripper compared to any other car.. but it CAN road trip if you needed it to... the highway range on the fiat is not enough to even GET to the next charger. The Bolt can do that. You just spending a ton of time doing it. I have done several 1500 mile road trips in my Bolt. I use it 99.9% as a local rideshare car.
As an EV it's terrible, the Fiat 500 Abarth ICE was a fantastic, fun mini cooper S alternative that you could just fill up in a couple minutes. As an EV it just doesn't translate.
It's great if you keep it in town which is how most people use their cars ICE or EV. I want to be able to road trip if needed though, so I got a Kia EV6.
There's no such thing as a city car. Do you think people who live in the suburbs and rural communities exceed 149 miles on a daily basis? Cities don't require a car, because public transit.
@@churchofmarcus It's not an attack on Ryan's use of the word. It's very likely, Fiat USA themselves are making the same mistake of misrepresenting the insane potential a car like this has to do whatever you need to do with it. I've run a Fiat 500 Abarth for 10 years, and before that have owned many small cars. I don't live in the city, and I don't dismiss the car as a poor choice for the freeway/highway. If you drive your car more than 2 hours in a single direction in a day, it is an exceptional drive, not part of your daily or weekly routine. Can you drive the 500e from LA to Vegas? How about LA to San Diego? Yes to all. But I don't have to do that often at all, and if I need to, it's not a major sacrifice to stop for a DC Fast Charge. That's not even the complaint here. It's that it isn't good on the freeway. Ryan, ride a motorcycle on the freeway, or ride Bus Rapid Transit on the freeway. Then get in the Fiat 500e and you'll describe it as luxurious. The 500e only lags behind more comfortable or more quiet EVs if your only point of reference is $40-50k cars. A 500e is not worse on the highway than a Yaris, and you certainly don't hear reasonable people warning against buying a Yaris because it's no good on the freeway.
I dont know what pack voltage is, you're not amperage limited on those chargers are you? I had an early 500e. What a shitbox, not efficient, no DC charging, it would have been ok if WA didn't try and charge me a new born to renew the registration on it. Waste of time and money after insurance and registration costs. Without those it would be a fine dirt cheap commuter as an extra vehicle.
It wasn’t limited, this was the full charging speed unfortunately. I think it will be a fun backup vehicle in a few years when you can get it for pretty cheap
I'm not convinced oos needed to break the reviews and range tests into a separate channel. But I'm happy you're here, quality content as always
Opinions vary, isn’t life great 😊
Who wants to see the I-90 Surge with the Fiat 500e vs Nissan LEAF SV+ vs 2012 Model S 85?
needs a chevvy spark in there as well
GM EV1, too
@TeslaSnap good luck getting a drivable one yhough
Throw in an 8 year old Chevy Bolt EV while you're at it. ;-)
@ you’ve got a fresh battery, so you get DQ’d!
A friend of mine bought a Fiat 500e for his daughter and son to learn to drive in - he wasn’t prepared to let them loose in his diesel Range Rover Sport. It’s such a fun car that he uses the Fiat for commuting, it’s so much easier to park and costs next to nothing to home charge. He and his wife have so enjoyed driving this tiny EV that they are sold on electric driving and have placed an order for the forthcoming electric Range Rover (due late 25 or early 2026 here in the UK) to replace their RRS.
Just got my first EV and the experience is sensational. Will be hard to consider to go back to petrol.
I think "fun" can be subjective. 🙂 I agree that the Fiat 500e is best categorized as a "city car," but I'd say that I don't think the Chevy Bolt EV fits that category, simply because of its range. The Bolt EV is a car that my father would have called a "puddle jumper." Basically, the Bolt EV is really perfect for rural folk who frequently drive 200+ miles in a single day but who rarely go on long, cross-country road trips.
loving the new channel Ryan, always good to see more of you
Thank you, I appreciate it!
Casey over at TFLEV just bought this exact same color and car to commute back and forth to work, we'll see how he likes after awhile.
This is the mine a key car.😊
You’d make a hot Robin from Batman n Robin. Kinda like Burt Ward. Hotwings puts the anxiety into range anxiety in his Red Robinmobile.
Had one for a year or so, for city drive with home charging is perfect. Highways though, it's doable but not fun! (Portugal here)
I'm assuming you purchased it primarily for the city car attributes? Have you taken any long highway trips with it yet? I've been through southern Spain and they drive fast, 140 kph
@otm646 The farthest trip I took was about 330km away, got it with 1 charge along the way there, then 2 on my way back. Top speed is 150km/h , and it gets there pretty quick indeed !
@otm646 and yeah, got it for city use primarily, as we had a Diesel for longer trips around that time :)
Nice video, I was looking at getting one of these but in winter / sever cold I imagine the range is even more dire
I am sure that wind did a number on that range. That was pretty bad wind. These little city cars I am sure are tuned for the slower stop and go traffic. I would rather have a I3 Rex for a city car with some legs if you needed it. The Bolt would be fine with faster charging and battery preconditioning/heat pump. I enjoyed my Bolt and probably would still have it if it had these features. Small cars can be a lot of fun. I actually prefer the format of the Bolt for it's size and functionality. I like the styling of the 500e, but I certainly would just have it as a second car for work commute in the city sort of thing. Prices are not cheap on these sadly.
4:28 steering wheel buttons left/right
To say a Fiat 500 doesn't drive well on the highway is ridiculous. Spend more time in the rest of the world and understand a small car is normal.
Exactly in Europe this maybe their only car
I think the Fiat 500e really starts to make sense when you live in Colorado and can lease it for $0 down and $0/month
I would choose the Bolt.
Looks like you were at 981 or 982 when it clicked over 4% and you were no longer able to maintain 70 mph, so the 70 mph range is either 117 or 118 miles of range at 70 mph.
I'm seriously considering the Fiat because it is an extra car. I know a used bolt or model 3 looks way better on paper, but for an extra car, I really want the character. Also, as an extra car, it's nice that it has a smaller footprint in the garage. That being said, I was really hoping for a better result.
They are fun, I really enjoyed the time I spent in the previous 500e. But man given the price it's hard to justify
It’s a lot of fun,however my girlfriend has a Mini SE and I think it’s a better and more fun car all around. I’d definitely recommend taking a look, you can find some good deals as it’s going out of production
It's definitely a city car, designed for 50 kmh / 30 mph speed limits. But it's also very inefficient. I have a Renault with a 52 kWh battery, and can average about 250 miles under similar driving conditions to those. 300+ miles is easily achievable at U.K. motorway speeds, with maximum legal speed limits of 70 mph.
Forgot to say, the Zoe's recharging is 'previous generation', with a true maximum of only 44 kW. It suits my needs though,
I'm an curious how the Fiat is more fun than a Bolt?.. other than looks. Both are FWD, Bolt does 0-60 in about 6.5 the Fiat is 7.9 sec. Maybe handling? It certainly is cute.
Bolt is actually large inside, can fit 4 people easily, and some cargo.
Bolt is a terrible road tripper compared to any other car.. but it CAN road trip if you needed it to... the highway range on the fiat is not enough to even GET to the next charger.
The Bolt can do that. You just spending a ton of time doing it.
I have done several 1500 mile road trips in my Bolt. I use it 99.9% as a local rideshare car.
As an EV it's terrible, the Fiat 500 Abarth ICE was a fantastic, fun mini cooper S alternative that you could just fill up in a couple minutes. As an EV it just doesn't translate.
It's great if you keep it in town which is how most people use their cars ICE or EV. I want to be able to road trip if needed though, so I got a Kia EV6.
There's no such thing as a city car. Do you think people who live in the suburbs and rural communities exceed 149 miles on a daily basis? Cities don't require a car, because public transit.
I think "city" in this context means you don't take the car out of your metro area.
@@churchofmarcus It's not an attack on Ryan's use of the word. It's very likely, Fiat USA themselves are making the same mistake of misrepresenting the insane potential a car like this has to do whatever you need to do with it. I've run a Fiat 500 Abarth for 10 years, and before that have owned many small cars. I don't live in the city, and I don't dismiss the car as a poor choice for the freeway/highway. If you drive your car more than 2 hours in a single direction in a day, it is an exceptional drive, not part of your daily or weekly routine. Can you drive the 500e from LA to Vegas? How about LA to San Diego? Yes to all. But I don't have to do that often at all, and if I need to, it's not a major sacrifice to stop for a DC Fast Charge. That's not even the complaint here. It's that it isn't good on the freeway. Ryan, ride a motorcycle on the freeway, or ride Bus Rapid Transit on the freeway. Then get in the Fiat 500e and you'll describe it as luxurious. The 500e only lags behind more comfortable or more quiet EVs if your only point of reference is $40-50k cars. A 500e is not worse on the highway than a Yaris, and you certainly don't hear reasonable people warning against buying a Yaris because it's no good on the freeway.
I dont know what pack voltage is, you're not amperage limited on those chargers are you? I had an early 500e. What a shitbox, not efficient, no DC charging, it would have been ok if WA didn't try and charge me a new born to renew the registration on it. Waste of time and money after insurance and registration costs. Without those it would be a fine dirt cheap commuter as an extra vehicle.
It wasn’t limited, this was the full charging speed unfortunately. I think it will be a fun backup vehicle in a few years when you can get it for pretty cheap
This is a city car. What are you trying to prove???
He's just testing it. Maybe proving it does what it says.
Trip computer:
ua-cam.com/video/R8Ldt_cz9XE/v-deo.htmlsi=X7d5rnk0QY67-pRF&t=24
This thing is so mediocre that the only way to justify it being is poor resource management. Hard pass!
Useless car, born death.😢
Starting price $32500, you can keep that piece of junk.
Lease it and give it back. Precisely what I plan on doing. Leased my 500e and in 3 years Ill toss it back