Drove a 2013 Fiat 500 for a week; Love my Yaris even more

[ilikerice]

same here, and i abuse the shit out of mine at least once a month, just broke 65k miles last week

[Thirty-Nine]

My Yaris had a couple of issues, but all covered under warranty and all around 23,000 miles.

-Replaced A/C condenser
-Replaced clutch (slipping at 23K; replaced for $40 with TRD unit)
-Fixed some rattles in door pillar
-Replaced rear hatch struts

Other than that, it's been trouble-free and extremely reliable. If it keeps it up, it'll be just as reliable as our 1998 Honda Civics with never had a single issue.

As far as a Veloster turbo, you can read my review here:

http://www.subcompactculture.com/201...ter-turbo.html

I didn't find it all that sporty, frankly.

[jcboy]

This.

http://tsikot.com/forums/ford-cars-t...13/index6.html

some, if not all remarks are in tagalog. basically, the complaints are from a ford owner who loves his fiesta. so it's not like he's a whiner who's just ranting as he pleases.

[428CobraJet]

I've test driven both the 500 and the Abarth. Both in 5speed form. The regular 500 is slower than my Yaris. ..and softly sprung. I would worry how it feels at 100k. The Abarth is much better....but the mpg is in the toilet. I like the interior of either much more than my 09 3 door.

My Yaris feels about as sharp at 106000 miles as it did new. That is very important to me. I dont know any 500 owners approaching 6 digits. On their forums ,the owners appear much more for giving of repairs than we do.
Craig

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by 428CobraJet

I've test driven both the 500 and the Abarth. Both in 5speed form. The regular 500 is slower than my Yaris. ..and softly sprung. I would worry how it feels at 100k. The Abarth is much better....but the mpg is in the toilet. I like the interior of either much more than my 09 3 door.

My Yaris feels about as sharp at 106000 miles as it did new. That is very important to me. I dont know any 500 owners approaching 6 digits. On their forums ,the owners appear much more for giving of repairs than we do.
Craig

Yea, I like the interior of the 500, the Abarth, and all of the MINI models better than the Yaris. However, I'd be concerned re repairs with any of them. That would be enough to chase me away.

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by nookandcrannycar

Yea, I like the interior of the 500, the Abarth, and all of the MINI models better than the Yaris. However, I'd be concerned re repairs with any of them. That would be enough to chase me away.

this iteration of the 500 had been around since 2007 in Europe, though with some different engine choices than we don't get and less of the structural/safety requirements we have.

longer term reliability with those older 500's is proving to be average to above average. these days, that makes for a pretty reliable car. I don't expect it to be a Toyota or Honda reliability wise, but I also don't expect it to be the headache that mini or vw have been.

I would also add that both cars are slow (of course) and in fact my best 0-60 times at the track in both my 500 and yaris (both manuals) were within .04 seconds. getting 40+ mpg's in both was also pretty easy, but a little less effort was needed for that in the 500 (ie it was easier to have fun and bang on it here and there and still achieve that)

imo, the negative part of owning a 500 at the moment is the lack of dealers and the fact that most studios are using Chrysler dealership service centers. there are a lot of mediocre (at best) concepts still lingering about what constitutes quality service at the old CJDR dealerships.

[nookandcrannycar]

Originally Posted by roxy1

I don't expect it to be a Toyota or Honda reliability wise

Then wouldn't handling, styling and color preference, and slightly better ease of parking be the only reasons one might choose the 500?

but I also don't expect it to be the headache that mini or vw have been.

Didn't mean to insult your previous choice. This is anecdotal, but I was thinking about Europeans in Europe telling CTScott why they chose the Yaris over the 500.

imo, the negative part of owning a 500 at the moment is the lack of dealers and the fact that most studios are using Chrysler dealership service centers. there are a lot of mediocre (at best) concepts still lingering about what constitutes quality service at the old CJDR dealerships.

IMO, this is important. If you are away from your home area, a Toyota dealership might end up being the most expensive choice, but the best one re getting the repair done right the first time. Among different makes, I would think Toyota dealer repair would be the best or among the best re a quality repair the first time.

[SKurj]

I'm really curious to take an Abarth out for test drive. Currently I have an 09 Yaris 3 dr and a 2013 BRZ.. The BRZ maybe a bit 'cooler' gets more looks for sure, but I find myself grabbing the keys for the yaris more and more... I love my Yaris, its a great car, and its more fun than my BRZ at least around town.
Wondering if the small size of the Abarth would be a better fit more me than the BRZ.. (Cooper S also fits in here though price is scarey)

[428CobraJet]

The Abarth is the only Fiat that could replace my 2009 3dr. But the mpg is nada bueno.

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by nookandcrannycar

Then wouldn't handling, styling and color preference, and slightly better ease of parking be the only reasons one might choose the 500?



Didn't mean to insult your previous choice. This is anecdotal, but I was thinking about Europeans in Europe telling CTScott why they chose the Yaris over the 500.




IMO, this is important. If you are away from your home area, a Toyota dealership might end up being the most expensive choice, but the best one re getting the repair done right the first time. Among different makes, I would think Toyota dealer repair would be the best or among the best re a quality repair the first time.

if they got the dealership/service issues squared away, I would be back in a 500 yesterday (even thought the yaris gives me some needed extra room...id sacrifice it). the long term reliability doesn't much concern me. the 500 in Europe is not proving to be unreliable, and it has been there for 6 yrs.

I will see how this are going when the next gen 500 comes around. the abarth never appealed to me one bit. for the price it uses most of the same interior materials as the regular 500. fine for a $16k car, but not acceptable for a $22k+ car. for an everyday driver, it has a pretty harsh ride. the regular 500 is a blast an a much better choice as a daily driver.

[Thirty-Nine]

Originally Posted by roxy1

if they got the dealership/service issues squared away, I would be back in a 500 yesterday (even thought the yaris gives me some needed extra room...id sacrifice it).

What kind of issues did you have?

for the price it uses most of the same interior materials as the regular 500. fine for a $16k car, but not acceptable for a $22k+ car. for an everyday driver, it has a pretty harsh ride. the regular 500 is a blast an a much better choice as a daily driver.

See, I don't much like the regular 500. I wouldn't buy one. However, I love the Abarth, and would plunk down $22K for one. While the interior isn't a whole lot better, you're getting the turbo engine, a limited-slip setup, better brakes, better suspension, bigger wheels and stickier rubber, and some other exterior stuff. And the sound. Oh the sound! The Abarth to me is just so much fun.

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by Thirty-Nine

What kind of issues did you have?



See, I don't much like the regular 500. I wouldn't buy one. However, I love the Abarth, and would plunk down $22K for one. While the interior isn't a whole lot better, you're getting the turbo engine, a limited-slip setup, better brakes, better suspension, bigger wheels and stickier rubber, and some other exterior stuff. And the sound. Oh the sound! The Abarth to me is just so much fun.

first, there were indications from fiat that there would be a lot more dealers that never materialized. in fact, one confirmed studio that would have been an hour closer to me backed out a month after I bought my car. it was the proximity to this dealer that made me take the leap of faith. beyond that, it had been mostly an inability to fix simple things right the first time (for example a side skirt that was peeling off). this gets amplified when each round trip is 3 1/2 hours.

as far as the abarth, it depends what one is looking for in a small hatch, for me it is about having fun when I want but having a comfortable daily ride and maximizing mpg's the rest of the time. the base 500 did this very well.

the good thing for anyone wanting an abarth (or any other fiat) is that they are getting discounted pretty heavily these days. the downside is that right now the resale value on fiats is quite poor.

to be honest, if I had a dealer within 30 minutes of me, I probably would have stayed with the 500.