Fiat 500: Suspension tweak and 2-pot engine

The Fiat 500 is to get stiffer suspension and a range of 2-pot engines

It’s not hard to see why the Fiat 500 has been a runaway success. It has the cute factor going on, but on the right side of pastiche; prices are much more reasonable than its rival in the ‘small car icon revisited’ stakes – the MINI, and Fiat have done a sterling job on the marketing side.

And it’s not just been the tin-top, bog-standard  Fiat 500 that’s flown out of showrooms. The rag-top Fiat 500C has proved to be a ridiculous amount of fun at a very sensible amount of money, and the Abarth 500 (and the soon to arrive Abarth 500C) a complete hoot.

But actually, it’s not just the extra oomph in the Abarth or the rag-top in the convertible that make it so appealing, it’s also the handling. Both the Abarth and the Convertible have come with a 30% stiffer suspension setup from the start, which has made the handling much more appealing.

And now the standard Fiat 500 is to get the same setup. In fact the setup is straight off the Ford KA, which is the same under the skin as the Fiat 500 – even coming off the same production line. But there are more changes in the offing for the 500 this summer. It’s going to get a lawnmower engine.

Fiat announced its small GasolineEngine (SGE) at the end of 2009, which is a 900cc, 2-pot lump destined for the 500, Panda & Punto. Expected to come in three options - a naturally aspirated 65bhp and a blown 78bhp and 103bhp – this is the ultimate illustration of how barking mad the CO2 regulations are. What these 2-pot engined will do is get CO2 emissions down below 100g/km, reduce weight and improve economy. But however capable these Multiair 2-pots are – and reminiscent of utilitarian cars of the past like the old 2CV – a 2-pot will never be as smooth as a 4-pot, will never be as smooth as a 6-pot…

Still, we live with reality and a stiffer Fiat 500C with a turbo’d lawnmower engine does sound a bit of a hoot.

By Cars UK