First Impressions

[alfista]

I guess I don't understand what "in your expience" means in this context. You've had cars with DRL's and not had any accidents? Even if you expand that to people you know, it's still pretty useless anecdotal evidence. There are no reliable, statistically significant studies that provide proof that DRL's have any positive safety benefits.

[sketch]

No, I've nearly changed lanes into cars approaching from the rear without their lights on in heavy rain, something which would likely not have happened if something on the front of the car had been illuminated.

[Minuszka]

" Sunroof version gets hot in the sun and the sunshade does not do quite enough. An insulated reflective shield is available from one of the vendors that is supporting this site and we can finally support them. http://www.campione500.com/SRS.htm " - for $ 45!? I just made the same thing out of a $ 4.50 sunshade, before seeing what this company does. You can make one yourself in 3 min. and save $ 40

[Mike S]

Hell, you could probably throw a couple of oven mitts up there too.

I wonder if J.C. Whitney still has those 12 volt pizza makers that plug into an aux outlet?

[alfista]

I've posted the US versions of both the Owner's Manual and the Blue & Me manual, compiled from the US DVD, on the Owner's Manual thread in this forum here. These are PDF's, not ZIP's this time!

[Giallo Edizione]

Ok I just got mine and drove it back to work. Dealer did a perfect job of readying the car-everything in order, everything works, no apparent missing or broken pieces and the car was flawlessly detailed. Of course, I did send them two advance emails strongly recommending they go over the car very very carefully given some of the experiences by other new owners so far. I think that likely helped and something everyone should try to do.

A collegue drove me there in his MINI Cooper and I drove back in the FIAT, about 20 miles each way, mostly highway. It was an interesting opportunity to contrast the two cars. MINI was noisier for sure and though I like the interiors, and had a MINI till last fall, he and I both agree the materials and finish in the FIAT seemed just a cut above the MINI. There is a definite difference felt from the low squat of the MINI vs the high chair ride in the FIAT. The FIAT was definitely quieter on my drive back, with much less wind noise and less traffic sound. The FIAT tire noise comes through ( as a result) but they are brand new and will likely quiet down in a month or two. I got plenty of looks and smiles of course-hard to miss that screaming yellow, even on this very cloudy day. I took the exit ramp fairly aggressively and there is where the difference with the MINI really lies-while the FIAT felt solid and stable on the highway it was a bit disconcerting taking the ramp the way I used to in my MINI-there is definitely less stability (or  so it seems perhaps due to the height) and will take some getting used to and adapting. I read that the FIAT throws more g's on the skid pad than MINI but I dunno, this was not like a MINI.

Back at work, everyone got a big kick out of seeing it and all like the yellow finish. Will be playing around with it all night.

I would post some pics I took but when I try , the dialog box comes up but then an advertising banner also pops up and takes the place o fthe post/preview message click boxes.

[Giallo Edizione]

OK here we go-different computer, different results. Very cloudy weather. Color still looks washed out in pics vs actual. But you can see how the tone differs from the yellow lines on the lot.

[Mike S]

I like yellow!

[FiATL]

Yellow is becoming a front runner for me.  Want to see more colors in person but this is in the top 3 or 4.  Now interested in seeing some good pictures of Rame, Olive Green and Espresso too.

[cogtooth]

You can see a little of a rame under the Carrying a bike thread.

[PE#454]

Thanks for doing that! I (a technical writer) have already found a typo in the manual.

[Gavin]

Back to first impressions: this will be short as I'm typing on my iPhone.

Got to see and sit in my first 500...didn't have time for a test ride, just a quick sit and once over.

Outside...A really nice looking exterior...good looking metal, high quality paint...very good looking over all
And the demo was gray with sunroof, so very close to what my prima will be.

Interior...also very nice fit and finish. The sport seats are very handsome (I would have gotten leather, but these seats are very nice). Overall, very well done on the inside.

The complaints: while I love the look and feel of the seats, well the passenger seat 100% needs to be fixed ASAP. Way too high, not enough head room. Just lowering the seat an inch or two would help...and 2 inches would be better than 1. And the levers to raise/lower the seat and the lever to fold seat forward are very cheap feeling ( out of character with the rest of the car). Really feels off and feels like they will break easily.

But that passenger seat is the main issue and just way too High. I'm 5'11 and a half and my head was basically touching the lining. It seems a little thing, and I really like the rest of the car, but that issue alone could easily affect some sales.

I was fine on the drivers side (and inch or two would be nice, but I was ok--more reason for wanting the fixed glass roof :) ).

More later when at computer---I hope by the time they sell the electric version that they have the passenger seat fixed, better levers and fixed glass as an option on all models.

Gavin

[Giallo Edizione]

Gavin wrote

 And the levers to raise/lower seat and the lever to fold seat forward are very cheap feeling ( out of character with the rest of the car).

Time and again car manufactureres make the same mistake of cheapening the surfaces the driver touches-it can be a total turn off. I had a Merkur Scorpio that was like that-nice except every surface I touched was clad in cheap smooth plastic. Last week I sat in one of those new Lexus 200h "Sport" hybrids. The center cluseter extends between the seats with an arm-rest-llike divide that is hard smooth plastic-totally cheesy and uncomfortable feeling. For $36K Yuk

[Minuszka]

" the passenger seat 100% needs to be fixed ASAP " - how can Fiat be made aware of this? I noticed the problem when test driving what looked like the "pre-production" model and was hoping that it will be fixed for the PEs but obviously not.

[PE#454]

Gavin wrote

... the levers to raise/lower the seat and the lever to fold seat forward are very cheap feeling ( out of character with the rest of the car). Really feels off and feels like they will break easily.

I really noticed that more with my second test drive, in particular, what is referred to as the "EZ Entry Feature" in the manual (page 3). I have the beginnings of arthritis in my left-hand thumb and right-hand middle finger, and I found moving the seat forward anything but easy. This lever on my MINI is located on the side of the seat, and all I have to do is simply press on the lever and the back folds forward and, with a gentle push, the seat part glides easily forward on the rails. The lever on the Fiat does indeed feel cheap and requires more effort to pull than I (or my hand) feel comfortable with.

[Fiat500USA]

Minuszka wrote

" the passenger seat 100% needs to be fixed ASAP " - how can Fiat be made aware of this? I noticed the problem when test driving what looked like the "pre-production" model and was hoping that it will be fixed for the PEs but obviously not.

 

 But seriously, I'm working on something related to this and should announce it next week.

[Fiat500USA]

Giallo Edizione wrote

OK here we go-different computer, different results. Very cloudy weather. Color still looks washed out in pics vs actual. But you can see how the tone differs from the yellow lines on the lot.

Looks fantastic!

[Gavin]

Fiat500USA wrote

 

 But seriously, I'm working on something related to this and should announce it next week.

Cool...so Chris is going to go around and personally lower every PE passenger seat in the country... :)   Talk about going above and beyond...

Gavin

[sjmst]

My mother in law just got a new BMW X3. The plastic surfaces are cheesy as compared with the higher quality of my 2002 BMW 3 series.

[Giallo Edizione]

Fiat500USA wrote

Giallo Edizione wrote

OK here we go-different computer, different results. Very cloudy weather. Color still looks washed out in pics vs actual. But you can see how the tone differs from the yellow lines on the lot.

Looks fantastic!

Thanks. Note the licence plate location, for those migrating from the license bracket thread.

Now imagine this car with the whiskers blacked out along with the door handles and mirror caps.