Let’s face it, the re-entry of Fiat into the American marketplace in the wake of the Italian company’s post-bankruptcy absorption of Chrysler has not gone as well as CEO Sergio Marchionne had hoped. The diminutive 500 never reached the sales targets expected of it and the larger 500L MPV did even worse. We still have some months to wait before the Miata-derived 124 roadster hits the streets but there is one other Fiat entry that may yet have the potential to be a breakout hit, subcompact crossover 500X.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) launched a pair of subcompact crossovers in 2015 that share mechanical bones but none of their styling, the 500X and the Jeep Renegade. These twins under the skin parallel an approach we are likely to see in the next couple of years from Ford and other automakers by bifurcating the utility line-up into models that are either more car-like or traditional SUV style.
At a media event in Dearborn last December, Ford of Europe chief Jim Farley spoke animatedly about the market there where non-traditional utilities like the Citroen Picaso, Mini Countryman and the Mercedes-Benz GLA are rapidly gaining in popularity. These models offer the higher hip-point and easy entry/exit of an SUV but with a completely different look. In February, Ford announced plans to introduce four new global utility nameplates among which are expected to be just such a non-truckish utility to accompany the existing EcoSport.
Coming back to FCA, the 500X holds that position relative to the classically Jeep-ish Renegade. Unlike the ungainly 500L, the Fiat design crew has done a far more admirable job of applying classic 500 styling cues to a different kind of body style. The headlamps are bit more oblong than the circular versions on the base car but the grille that hearkens back to the 1950s original is still immediately recognizable.
The one utility cliche that Fiat has adopted is the contrasting dark plastic trim around the bottom perimeter of the body, but it looks fine against the optional $1,000 triple-coat yellow paint and the 18-inch alloy wheels. The rear of the five-door hatchback body has a forward lean that echoes the profile of the 500 but the extra-length provides an overall effect that is more chunky and less egg-shaped than the car.
Inside, the cabin has room for four adults in a more contemporary style that eschews much of the overt retro-style of the 500. The back seat can accommodate a pair of six footers, easily outshining the Mazda CX-3 although overall, the Honda HR-V still leads the class in packaging efficiency and offers the double the cargo volume of the Fiat. The nicely supportive seats in the mid-level Trekking trim are covered in a premium cloth and faux leather combination that looks durable and attractive with the contrasting piping and 500X logo in the seat back. The one notable issue found in the 500X interior was a surprisingly sharp edge left on the plastic over-mold on the front passenger seatbelt buckle. The inadequately trimmed parting line gave my wife quite a surprise the first time she went to buckle up.
My tester was equipped with the Trekking package 5 that brings blindspot monitoring with cross traffic alert and the 6.5-inch touchscreen Uconnect system with navigation. While the interface was fairly responsive and easy to get around, the navigation system did highlight one of the downsides of pretty much all current embedded navigation systems. When I’m evaluating cars, I like to try out the navigation even when I’m going somewhere that I know just to see how well the routing works. As it turned out, I had a meeting at FCA headquarters while I was driving the 500X and there is a highway interchange that has been completely rebuilt and reconfigured in the past year. The navigation system tried to guide to a ramp that no longer existed in a direction that was no longer possible. While most drivers would simply ignore this, someone in an unfamiliar area may be tempted to try to pull over in an unsafe location to figure out where to go.
I checked the same location in Google maps on my phone and the map properly reflected the true current state of the road. The reality is that roads change on a fairly regularly basis, construction detours are put in place and points of interest are constantly coming and going. Static navigation systems simply can’t cope with the changing reality as well as connected systems. In the next several years, we’ll see many of these embedded systems gain cloud connections as automakers prepare for autonomous vehicles that rely upon them but for now, you still need to take care when using navigation.
Under the hood, the 500X is available with two powertrain options. The Fiat-designed turbocharged 1.4-liter Multi-Air four-cylinder is offered with a six-speed manual gearbox and front-wheel-drive in the entry-level Pop trim. The other four trims all utilize Chrysler’s aging 2.4-liter four-cylinder along with a state-of-the-art nine-speed automatic and either front or all-wheel-drive. At 3,278-pounds with AWD, the 500X isn’t particularly svelte, but the 180-hp engine and this transmission do an adequate job of motivating it although it was a bit on the unrefined side while doing so. Even with the mode selector in Sport mode, it doesn’t feel as spritely as the Nissan Juke, but it certainly feels better than the CVT-equipped Honda.
When the road changes the direction, the 500X does an admirable job of keeping up and the steering feels relatively tight and precise. You’re certainly not going to mistake this for the upcoming 124 roadster but it won’t be wandering around aimlessly on the pavement either. The EPA rates the AWD 500X at 21 mpg city, 30 mpg highway and 24 mpg combined and I managed 25 mpg in a week of blended driving.
The base-level 500X starts at just $20,000 and as tested, my AWD Trekking came $28,795 with delivery charges. A maxed out leather-clad Trekking plus model can run the tab up to more than $34,000. So far, the 500X hasn’t been as popular as the Renegade, selling only 9,500 units in 2015 compared to 61,000 for the Jeep. However, as the small utility market continues to grow in America, I do see a bright future for the 500X in the coming years, especially if FCA brings forth a new generation four-cylinder engine to replace the 2.4. This is a market segment that is gaining traction, and the 500X has the looks and the right size to be successful.
Click here for full specifications of the 2016 Fiat 500X
