Fiat 600 long-term test

The car Fiat 600 1.2 Hybrid 48V La Prima Run by George Hill, Used Car Writer

Why we’re running it To find out whether this small SUV can be a successful urban commuter car

Needs to Be easy to drive, comfortable and cheap to run, but also practical on trips out of town

Mileage 1059 List price £27,350 Target Price £24,742 Price as tested £28,000 Official economy 57.6mpg Test economy 48.6mpg Options fitted Sky Blue metallic paint (£650)

21 February – Start as you don’t mean to go on

The Fiat 600 marks a moment of change for the Italian brand. It’s the first car to not be a variation of the stylish and popular Fiat 500 since the Fiat 124 Spider was launched in 2016. Before and since then, cars such as the Fiat 500X SUV and Fiat 500L MPV have been the bread and butter of Fiat’s line-up.

I think this change of course is good news, because Fiat has plenty of brand equity to play with. Also, some variants of the 500 haven't been a big success in the UK, so I’m looking forward to seeing whether it can turn things around with its new line-up of new non-500 models.

So, enter my new company car – the Fiat 600. It’s the first car to be developed by Fiat under the full supervision of its parent company, Stellantis, so it has quite a few relatives that you might not be aware of. It shares its underpinnings with the Jeep Avenger, Peugeot 2008 and Vauxhall Mokka (just to name a few), and it’s available with either electric or mild hybrid power.

One area where the car is very different to its Stellantis stablemates is styling. It has a distinctive, rounded look to it, with neat styling details such as semi-circular headlights. I also think my chosen Sky Blue metallic paint, which is a £650 option, really enhances its look and helps to set it apart from its rivals.

Along with choosing the optional paint, I’ve decided to splash out on the range-topping La Prima trim. This means it comes with a huge amount of kit, especially for a small SUV, with features such as a wireless phone-charging pad and faux-leather upholstery offered as standard. It even comes with a massaging driver’s seat – a feature that’s not offered on premium alternatives, such as the Audi Q2.

As a resident of London, I was quite tempted by the fully electric 600e, which I thought would be a quiet and smooth way to get around. However, I don't have a driveway or a home charger, so I would be heavily reliant on the UK’s public charging network, which our research has shown to vary widely in terms of pricing and reliability. So, for extra peace of mind and ease of use, I’ve decided to go for the 99bhp mild hybrid model. 

It features a 1.2-litre turbocharged petrol engine and a tiny electric motor that’s mounted to a six-speed automatic gearbox. The way it works is different to most mild hybrids, because it can operate on electric power alone for very short periods around town. It also has a regenerative braking effect that slows the car down when you lift off the accelerator to help recharge the battery. 

The mild hybrid system has proven to be great so far on my commute, plus it has confirmed that I needn’t have chosen the more powerful 134bhp version. The engine is pokey enough to make navigating London traffic a breeze, while the use of the electric power when crawling through traffic has been great. My only concern is the slight jerkiness from the gearbox at low speeds, as well as a slight delay for the engine to wake up when you accelerate out of electric mode. 

Unfortunately, my ownership experience has already been tarnished by a reliability issue. Last week on my commute to work, the engine began to shudder while driving and the car went into limp mode with restricted power. The dashboard then flashed up ‘engine fault’ and ‘electric traction system fault’ warning lights, so I pulled over and turned the car off and on. This seemed to cure the car momentarily, but after happening again a few miles later, I decided to call my local Fiat dealer and get the car recovered.

Sadly, Fiat's technicians weren't able to recreate the issue despite extensive testing, but my car's electrical brain was checked over and any fault codes cleared.

While this is good news, it still doesn’t give me the greatest confidence going forwards, with Fiat finishing in 25th place out of 31 brands in our latest What Car? Reliability Survey. Even so, I’m hoping this is a minor blip in my ownership experience, because otherwise the car has been enjoyable to live with so far.

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