Fiat 600e review

Pros: smart exterior, decent range, big boot

Cons: average driving experience, interior finishing

Fiat 600e Design

This is arguably the Fiat 600e’s strongest suit. While it is not based on the same platform as the smaller 500e electric city car, it nevertheless borrows heavily from that car’s styling themes – and with a fair degree of success, too. The round-shaped lamps at the front of the car, the profile of the vehicle and the rear lights which look like those on the outgoing 500X crossover all work well on what is a fairly compact shape, while there’s a raised ride height and some black lower body cladding to give the 600e a crossover flavour. To ensure there’s no misunderstanding about whether you’re looking at a ‘Cinquecento’ or a ‘Seicento’ – beyond the very obvious point that this newcomer has rear doors – then there are prominent ‘600’ logos on the front, sides and rear of the 600e, the latter including the Italian tricolour, while all the wheel centres are marked up ‘600’ too.

Fiat 600e Interior

This is an area which isn’t quite as on the money as the exterior. High points of the Fiat 600e’s cabin include a two-spoke steering wheel, a heritage touch that ties into the company’s incredibly popular cars from the 1950s and ‘60s, while the seats are decorated with a tasteful stitched ‘Fiat’ logo in a repeating pattern; they’re also good on the environment, as they are made of recycled plastic bottles.

However, some of the materials you lay hands on feel cheap to the touch – that fillet of brightly coloured trim in the dashboard and the door cards in particular – and despite the fact this is marketed as a more practical version of the 500e, given it’s a five-door vehicle, the rear-seat space for passengers isn’t particularly generous. At least there’s a useful 360-litre boot at the back of the car, one area it is well in advance of the 500e.

Fiat 600e Performance & Drive

For the most part, the 600e does things well enough. The ride is generally comfortable around town, and the 156hp electric motor has more than enough get-up-and-go for urban motoring. However, as speeds rise, or as road surfaces get worse, you’ll hear the suspension working hard to smooth out lumps and bumps in the tarmac. There’s also quite a lot of wind noise from around the doors, as well as elevated levels of tyre chatter – for an EV, that is.

Most of this wouldn’t be so bad if the 600e drove with the sort of brio you expect of Italian cars, and we were told by Fiat’s engineers that the chassis had been tuned for just that purpose. But, in truth, it’s all rather uninvolving. It’s tidy enough, but there’s little fun to be had, thanks to lifeless and lightweight steering, and a degree of initial body lean too.

One final plus point here, though, is a 406km range from the 54kWh battery pack (that’s the gross energy capacity, of which 51kWh is usable). Driven only at city speeds, the 600e will go even further – at 591km, it’s potential one-shot driving range almost matches its model badge.

Fiat 600e Pricing

We don’t have prices for the 600e as yet, but the hope is that it will be better value-for-money than some of its rivals, and indeed some of the electric cars in the wider Stellantis group – owners of Fiat and other automotive manufacturers – which use much of its hardware.

Carzone Verdict

The pricing of the Fiat 600e will go a long way to determining its success. There’s no doubt its appearance and its connections to the excellent 500e will give it plenty of showroom appeal, while its all-electric drivetrain and admirable driving range further enhance its credentials. However, it’s not quite as polished or enjoyable to drive as other electric vehicles in this class, which is why how much it will cost could swing the balance between it being a sales hit, or a slightly disappointing miss.