The Fiat 500L made its international debut at the 2012 Geneva Motors Show and locally for the first time in 2013. Upon first glance, the Fiat 500L retains the popular 500 stylings with the rounded headlamps, taillamps and silhouette. It is when you take out the measuring tape where things differ, measuring in at 4 150 mm long, 1 780 mm wide and 1 660 mm tall with the large greenhouse.
Related: Fiat 500L – Cool & Capable
Sadly the Fiat 500L is no longer available on the new vehicle floors but you will find clean examples on the used vehicle market. However, Fiat does offer the 500X crossover, which is slightly smaller but still big enough for small families and young professionals looking for a raised ride height with 500 stylings.
Engines
The Fiat 500L was introduced in three derivatives locally, however, only two engines were available with the entry-level model fitted with a 1.4-litre petrol motor and the flagship model with either a 1.4-litre petrol motor or a 1.6-litre turbodiesel option.
| Fiat 500L 1.4 Easy and Lounge | Fiat 500L1.6 Lounge |
|
| Engine | 1.4-litre, 4-cylinder, petrol |
1.6-litre, turbocharged, 4-cylinder, diesel |
| Transmission | 6-speed manual | 6-speed manual |
| Power | 70 kW |
77 kW |
| Torque | 127 Nm | 320 Nm |
| 0-100 km/h | 12.8s |
11.3s |
| Top speed | 170 km/h | 181 km/h |
| Average fuel consumption | 6.2 L / 100 km | 4.5 L / 100 km |
Luggage
One of the main benefits of having a larger vehicle is having more space to stow items and transport items. This is also true for the Fiat 500L which replaced the Mulitpla model. With the rear bench folded up, the Fiat 500L offer 400-litres of boot space which at the time was larger than the Golf and more than double the capacity of the standard Fiat 500 model.
Once the rear bench has been lowered, owners gain access to 1 310-litres of luggage space. Furthermore, the front passenger seat can also fold completely flat which allows owners to easily load and transport items up to 2.4 m long. If this is not enough, the Fiat 500L is capable of towing up to 1000 kg if the trailer is braked and 400 kg for unbraked trailers.
Infotainment
While earlier cars had cumbersome infotainment systems, the Fiat 500L was the first vehicle from the Italian automaker to feature the UConnect system. Installed on to the 5.0-inch touchscreen display, the system was designed to provide occupants with an easy interface and functionality. Occupants can pair their devices to the system via Bluetooth or access, items such as the radio, media player, iPod or navigation system.
Fiat also supplies a USB port as well as AUX port for additional connectivity. Occupants have the ability to listen to conventional radio stations or stream their favourites via Bluetooth or the USB port. The driver also gains access to audio controls on the steering wheel as well as voice recognition which enables text-to-speech functionality such as sending SMS messages without touching the phone.
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