Fiat stops production of 500L."Temporary"

Nobody wants the ugly thing...

...Chevy did the same thing with the oh-so-popular Volt.
 
Ha Ha!

...At least the Aztek had a cool camper accessory you could hide from public view in. Who designs these things?!?
 
I don't know why they call is a 500L?

It should be the new 128. Which would be one step closer to a new X1/9.:)
 
Agreed.

Extremely Functional.
Extremely Fugly.
500L = Strada.
Fail.

Sad, but true. :sad:

I think if Fiat had only followed their own design history with the old 500 Nuova, they would've had a much better-looking product. Back in the late 1950's/early 1960's, Autobianchi (a subsidiary of Fiat) took the old 500 Nuova & made a station wagon out of it. It was called the Autobianchi 500 Giardiniera, & was very popular. The relation to the Fiat 500 Nuova Sedan was instantly recognizable:

Sedan:
800px_Fiat_nuova_500_02.jpg


Giardiniera:
fiat_500_giardiniera_2.jpg


Had Fiat simply done the same thing with todays 500, it may have been seen in a more favorable light by the general public & enthusiasts alike. All Fiat had to do was keep the same front half of the car & extend the rear similar to the old Giardiniera, but nooooo... :hrmph:
 
Last edited:
They will likely save it...

The Strada lived on as the restyled Ritmo quite successfully, but the looks of the original were so polarizing that it set the tone for the car.

I joke that the Strada had a face only a mother could love. It won multiple car of the year awards but was downright ugly.

I said the same thing about the 500L when I first saw it, regardless of the "European flair, attitude and functionality" I was being sold on TV and in person. Sorry Tim.

Let's face it. Automotive and aircraft style, when done right is simply magnetic and can blend both utility and style.

79_piperaztec.jpg


But it can sometimes be "art for art's sake" or a design where form follows function, and is downright off-putting. Thank AMC Pacer, and
Russian planes... lol.

Shorts-1024x383.jpg
 
Last edited:
I've flown the one on the left...

...as a passenger.
That plane doesn't give you a very high level of confidence while in-route. :pigsfly:
 
Aztec

I.... Just..... Threw..... Up..... in.... My..... Mouth...


ugh... (although the camper add-on was a cool idea. at least on paper)


Odie
 
One of our Newbies here owns and flys one!

mzwijacz... aka Mike Zwijacz of South Lake Tahoe flies one stored in his "hanger" along with a friends.

Hopefully he'll pop in with some photos and their models. I understand his pusher does over 200 mph and his buddies does 280+!

These ain't your typical hobbyist's Cessnas...
 
Wow that hurts

My Wife and I bought a 500L two months ago and we love it. It handles great and has get up and go with the turbo. The front looks good to me, but the back is a little ugly. The space is unbelievable and I have been getting close to 30 mpg combined over this few months. We wanted a New Fiat but our family would not fit in a 500. I like Fiats some are super ugly and some are great. Of course my first love is an X1/9 I wish Fiat would make a new spider or X I would be the first one at the dealership. The 500L is a great car and we enjoy it greatly.

Brian Benson:nana:
 
Glad to hear that you like your new 500L

I have to tell you guys that I am a little disappointed in the strong negative comments made by some of you guys on this forum about the new Fiat 500L. I am not saying that you are not welcome to your opinion and if you don't like the car that is just fine. However, I am beyond tired of the continual mocking of Fiat and I would have expected that there would be a "little bit" more support towards Fiat on this forum than from the generally too ignorant public and automotive journalists at large.

I don't think that the 500L is a beauty queen, but it is very functional and I admire its European style that puts function and practicality above just flashy style for the sake of style alone. The car has more room inside than any other car of the same external dimensions. It is very respectable to drive and as noted by the happy owner who just posted, gets very reasonable fuel economy too(real actual fuel economy, not just over hyped fuel economy like Hyundai and Ford claim for instance).

Just my two cents for what ever it's worth. I don't intend to offend anyone and I know that the previous people stating their opinions had no intention of offending anyone either. I just feel that the record needs to be corrected in regards to the all to often "bad press" that Fiat gets.

George
 
A co-worker of mine (a car guy too) recently had a red 500L at work. I thought he'd bought one... driving the wife's car, etc.

It was a rental. He said it was funky but he felt he had to FLOG it to keep up with local traffic. Decent space but he was underwhelmed by the power.

I can't fathom the 1.4 turbo being the only engine choice now days.
 
Right-on George... The 500L's production though was NOT...

necessarily stopped because of low sale's numbers... but primarily because of the political issues and military conflicts going on in that part of the world.

I'd stop and GET OUT as well!

Ugly... the 500L can't hold a candle to the Pontiac Aztec... but as an AMERICAN, I believe those that like the style of one car over another can do as they please and drive what they please... just so long as they are reasonably mechanically safe and they are not consumed with talking on the friggin' cell phone! Also... that I NOT be forced to driving the same thing. Back in the days of COMMUNISM, well that's another story... HA!

Hey... Ugly can become beautiful... look at the Bug and Topolino... as well as the Multipla's that came before them!

images


images


52863688_59a05f59a2.jpg


images


Some with owner modifications...

Fiat%20Multipla.jpg


multipla_schwein.jpg


This one claims to have a Viper mod...

3007967_orig.jpg


and back to being beautiful...
 
Back
Top