As constant at the Northern Star, the little 500 has been on Fiat's books since 2007, and is indeed really the car that saved Fiat from a major financial crisis and, eventually, gave it the financial wherewithal to buy out Chrysler and Jeep. In thanks, Fiat has recently given the 500 a major makeover (you can spot it by the larger low-set LED driving lights) and for a car approaching its 10th birthday, it still feels pretty brilliant.
Okay, so the rear seats are basically tiny, the steering isn’t great and the ride still has a whiff of the space-hopper-bounce of early models. The fact is that the 500 has what many cars don’t – charm, and that’s charm which is now backed up by much-improved build quality (why can’t Fiat make all its cars feel this good?) and some added optional niceties such as an excellent 7” uConnect touch-screen and digital instruments. Diesel engine is a bit pointless (although very economical), and TwinAir very pricey so just stick with the trusty old 1.2. Special order-only Abarth models are properly good fun, but can be eye-wateringly expensive.
Price range: €13,600 to €20,800
Co2 emissions: 89 to 110g/km
Which one? 500 S 1.2
PCP from €146 per month