Fiat 500L (2012) first official pictures

Fiat will show its new addition to the 500 range at the 2012 Geneva motor show: the new 500L mini MPV.

It's designed to squeeze MPV practicality into the footprint of a B-segment city car – with a sprinkling of SUV style raised ride height.

Turin says the 'L' badge stands for large. So, you guessed it, this is a larger, more practical version of the chic 500 city car. Do they look similar enough to warrant the same badge? The jury's out on that one…

This is a five-seater stretching the tape measure out to 4140mm long, 1780mm wide and 1660mm tall. That makes it a similar footprint to a Skoda Yeti.
Fiat says the cab-forward stance is reminiscent of the original Fiat 600 Multipla, 'a precursor to the concept of the compact people carrier.'

Expect it on sale in Europe in the final quarter of 2012. Engine choices will mirror those in the 500 city car.

Pick from a pair of petrol engines: the 875cc Twinair two-cylinder and a 1.4, or a 1.3 Multijet turbodiesel.

The 500L is built in Fiat's Kragujevac, Serbia factory.

By Tim Pollard