Fiat confuses its 500X offering by adding Sport tag
Optical illusions abound within the motor industry and Iain Robertson was convinced that the latest version of the popular Fiat crossover had benefited from more than mere superficial detail upgrades…but closer inspection proved him wrong.
Apart from the occasional military vehicle, Fiat Group, in its pre-partnership days, was devoid of 4×4 models. Its subsequent and abysmally failed relationship with American giant, General Motors (GM), scarcely helped its representation in a field that would soon grow like Topsy into ‘SUV’, which would later develop into popular ‘crossover’. However, at the same time, GM had ‘temporary’ stakes in Subaru, Isuzu and Suzuki and cross-brand fertilisation was like the US firm’s new cowboy outfit.
While Subaru lent its capabilities to Swedish brand, Saab, resulting in a model known jokingly as the ‘Saabaru’ but sold solely in North America as the Saab 9-2X, Suzuki would foster a new class of crossover model in the Sedici. This type of exercise is known as ‘badge-engineering’, which costs very little to execute but has the potential (if managed correctly) to increase market shares. Based on the Suzuki SX4, with typical Italian guile (and a more than a whiff of light comedy), Sedici, which translates into English as ‘Sixteen/16’, is the result of multiplying 4×4…get it?
Exercising more than a soupcon of irony, Fiat received the lion’s share of the all-wheel drive variants, while Suzuki, which also had a 4×4 variant in its SX4 range but was the acknowledged 4×4 exponent, contended with the majority of the front-wheel drive versions. There is no real answer to GM’s often strange marketing decisions but the car worked for Fiat and gave it a more upmarket presence alongside its fairly agricultural Panda 4×4 alternative.
Needless to say, the GM partnership was dissolved not long afterwards, leaving the Italian firm to seek a new partner, which it did, a few years later, in the form of the frequently ill-fated but equally American Chrysler-Jeep Corporation. To be frank, I have never quite comprehended the reasons for Fiat jumping from frying-pan into the fire but it is making a moderate fist of things and shared engineering and production helps to reduce its corporate overheads by an appreciable amount.
From the first reveal of the Fiat 500X in 2014, I became an immediate fan. You see, I have always liked the regular 500 but my personal dimensions (two metres tall) have never fitted with its Italianate dimensions. However, the much larger 500X, which was so much more than a lookalike and not an optical illusion, when viewed up close, allowed me the cabin space and the 500’s cheeky retrospective styling cues in a capable crossover that fulfilled several desires. The fact that the car was significantly more attractive than the ugly duckling 500L helped loads.
Based on largely the same hardware as the Jeep Renegade (another personal favourite) and built at the same Melfi plant, Turin, the 500X is Fiat’s contender in the important junior league SUV scene. Why Fiat has not explored the potential of an Abarth version of this model remains unexplained, after all, it has those treats in its ‘goodies cupboard’, but a Sport designation allows Fiat to compete head-on with the likes of the FR variant of Seat’s equally popular Arona model, or the Peugeot 2008 in GT-line trim and, with list prices starting from £22,500, it is pitched right into the heart of that territory.
As to the optical illusion that could differentiate earlier versions of 500X from the Sport derivative, the test car’s brilliant red paint finish gives the body panels a more bolstered appearance, while the Botox-enhanced bumpers front and rear seem to hunker the car closer to the road surface. In fact, the ride height has been reduced by 13mm, while both the suspension and the steering geometry have been revised to gift the 500X a significantly crisper turn-in and more controlled handling characteristics…more befitting of a sportier model.
Yet, apart from some very attractive, 19.0-inch diameter (optional extra) alloy wheels (18s are standard) and a slightly wider front ‘grille’, the changes are more cosmetic than hardcore, almost as though Fiat were able to delve into its parts bins and create a new car without much fuss, thereby avoiding additional development costs, especially as the line-up received its mid-life ‘refresher’ earlier this year. Yet, its importance to Fiat, which anticipates the Sport model producing around 40% of total 500X sales, is abundantly clear. The sporty versions of its rivals’ equivalent models all sell strongly.
The car pictured is the 1.3-litre, 147bhp four-cylinder version hooked up to a 6-speed twin-clutch, automated-manual gearbox with paddle shifters, driving the front wheels. It is a sweet gearbox, not dissimilar to other twin-clutch ’boxes and can be hustled most fruitfully along the back doubles, accompanied by a slightly noisier, twin-pipe exhaust. It responds better using the paddles but cracks the 0-60mph benchmark in a modest 8.8s, topping out at around 126mph, while returning a fuel consumption of 46.3mpg and emitting CO2 at a rate of 139g/km (all WLTP figures).
The alternative power unit is a 1.0-litre triple developing around 117bhp mated to a 6-speed manual transmission. If anything, the three-pot unit feels slightly the sportier option, even though it is a bit slower ‘on paper’. It is one of the benefits of a lesser reciprocating mass and a slightly off-beat ignition. The multi-adjustable driving position is comfortable, if lacking a little in lateral support (a common Fiat complaint!), with a commanding view outwards, and there is good space within a darker-trimmed cabin (that also contains a practical and well-shaped boot), thanks to the use of black and grey trim materials. The flat-bottomed steering wheel is pleasant to wield and the 500X Sport is well-equipped, with the full range of connectivity and drive enhancing safety features incorporated.
Fiat has elected to pursue a style-led evolution with the 500X Sport and the result is a classical elegance, with lightly sporting intent that most buyers will appreciate. If higher performance is not on your wish list, the 1.0-litre model need not be the lesser choice and costs less into the bargain, thereby enhancing its low-cost potential as a business vehicle.
