Europe, 1996.
Renault launches a compact MPV (multi-purpose vehicle) based off of their C-segment Mégane. Even though the Japanese have experimented in this segment before, with cars like the Nissan Prairie and Mitsubishi Space Wagon, the continent belatedly goes wild for this extremely practical format once Renault puts their twist on it. Imitators quickly come from other European brands. The enthusiasm feels a lot like that during the launch of the Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager just over a decade prior in North America. Like the American minivan, however, the European compact MPV’s popularity begins to wane in the 2010s in the wake of the crossover. Despite this, Fiat launches yet another compact MPV, the 500L.
Fiat is losing market share in Europe and it can no longer muster more than 1 million units annually on the continent. The 500L, a fresh new entry in a declining segment, will not keep the brand afloat. Fiat’s savior is more likely to be the related 500X crossover. In the US, 500L sales are falling well below the numbers posted annually by the Mazda5 during that similarly-sized MPV’s run.
Like almost every other European brand, Fiat offers European buyers a choice between a compact MPV and a converted delivery van. In Fiat’s case, there are two: the Qubo and Doblo. The 500L, also available in a 7-seat derivative not seen in North America, serves as a replacement for the Punto-based Idea and the ungainly-but-capacious Multipla. But MPVs are a slowly dying breed in Europe as replacements come in the form of crossovers. Peugeot’s 5008 MPV will become a more conventional crossover in 2017, while Opel is also following suit with its replacement Meriva and Zafira. For those who want van functionality instead of crossover style, converted vans like the Qubo may soon become the only option.
Some automakers have tried, but the compact MPV never really took off in North America. It didn’t even take off in Canada, a market slightly more receptive to such ideas. If the American minivan could ever have been considered compact, it very quickly outgrew that size as Grand Voyagers and Grand Caravans began to outnumber regular-length Voyagers and Caravans. As for true mini-minivans, Mazda’s 5 is dead, Chevrolet’s Orlando was only sold in Canada before it was axed, and Toyota’s Prius V and Ford’s C-Max seem to only be holding on by dint of their hybrid powertrains.
With Fiat’s acquisition of Chrysler and the formation of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), you could consider both the pictured 500L and Grand Voyager to be Mopar minivans. Although cars seem to be getting bigger and bigger, the 500L still sits in the shadow of even the regular-length, first-generation Voyager: it’s two feet shorter, two inches narrower, although it sits one inch taller. If you want a new, practical family-hauler and you loathe crossovers, you should probably buy a 500L while you have the chance. In North America, it’s one of very few choices you have. In Europe, it may soon be the same story.
Photographed in Hipódromo, Mexico City.
Related Reading:
COAL: 2015 Fiat 500L Urbana Trekking – I Bought One. That’s Got to be a Bad Omen For Fiat.
CC Capsule: 1991 Plymouth Grand Voyager LE AWD – Not Dodging The Options
Very practical, but also just so odd-looking. To my eye at least, the “cute” looks of the 500 3-door made the transition to crossover better than to mini-MPV. I’ll give them credit for trying but it just doesn’t work for me. If I wanted this style of vehicle (which does make a lot of sense for many people) I’d probably try to find a CPO Mazda 5.
YMMV of course.
I drove a 500L for 800 miles around Sicily two years ago. Given a choice between the two vehicles presented for comparison in this article, I’d stick with the US-designed variant.
The 500 L in Europe with a diesel engine and manual transmission gave me close to 50mpg. I loved that. However, it wandered even on the straight and level road, it was a near nightmare the day we drove through the mountains of Enra province in a rainy fog. The 500L is not a joy to drive… and just why did they think it a good idea to take the diminutive cues of the 500 and scale them up to twice their normal size? It ain’t a beautiful car, nor one that hangs together in any sense of design.
Driving a 500L with one of the underpowered 4 cyl gas engines Fiat has makes the whole care pointless. The common rail diesel is a godsend compared to the lack of get-up-and-go of my old Mercedes 240d, but FCA has not brought it here. Any 500 variant without the diesel makes it a gas-hungry, joyless car for its size and cost (arbarth excepted?). I’ll take the convenience, build-quality, handling and demeanor of my 35 year old 240d over a gas-powered 500L any day.
I’ve also moved to the idea that we just can’t live with diesels for the long term…just ask the people of Paris what they thought of their air quality in the last two weeks: It was a toxic pollution smog event that was resultant from the European move to diesel cars.
When combined with the underhanded lies Volkswagen was forced into just to get their engines to the market, we should probably all be on board with a fear of prevalent diesels in the US. We might be in a post-truth world now, but perhaps the best service GM ever did for the US was to produce a diesel that was so bad that this country would never consider it seriously for mass-market passenger car production again!
I really wanted to like the 500L, because I like the basic package. Then I test drove one….https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/new-cars/cc-rental-car-review-fiat-500l-the-unholy-popemobile-or-fix-it-again-sergio/
This Renault Captur completely dominates the market for B-segment MPVs / CUVs. So basically, they did it again, after the huge success of the 1996 Mégane Scénic.
And meanwhile Fiat has almost become a niche-brand.
And this is the current (C-segment) Scénic. Clearly more CUV than MPV, just like the big Espace.
I got a 500X in the rental lottery last month (booked an Astra, received that instead). Unlike the 500L it wasn’t too bad, but it appeared to me like Fiat first took the 500L as a test bed of upsizing the 500, before getting it (sort of) right the second time. They knew the 500X would be the one to make money the real money with, because that format is where the future lies, as evidenced by the Captur replacing the Modus MPV.
The 500L is one of the many cars, over the course of my lifetime, whose design and space efficiency I’ve both loved and admired, but that I could never bring myself to buy because of who makes it and the execution of the design.
(For the record, the first was the Dodge/Mitsubishi Colt Vista. Damn, that was a brilliant design!)
If the 500L was a Honda, or a Toyota, or maybe even a Hyundai, I’d be all over it. But it isn’t.
Regarding Toyota, I was at the dealership this afternoon, where they were preparing this new model for delivery to a client. In the same color.
A crossover between a crossover, a coupe and a hatchback. Sort of.
The Grand Voyager would appear to be a 1994 “10th Anniversary Edition” as evidenced by the small fender badge just ahead of the front doors.
In my view the best MPV on the american market (while it lasted) was the Kia Rondo. Unfortunately it proved unpopular, but it was truly a great 7-passenger vehicle. It had 174hp if I remember correctly, pulling 3700 lbs, with fast ratio steering and pretty aggressive tip in from the transmission. The space utilization was beyond compare and the handling reminded my of a Renault scenic I had rented in Spain in 2005.
Weaknesses were gas mileage (19mpg from a four cylinder!) and only a four speed transmission with the four cylinder. The steering ratio was also a bit fast for highway cruising, as it required a very steady hand.
But as well demonstrated in this article, the category is so unpopular in America that a truly well designed and fun to drive model was unsuccessful.
My vote goes to the Mazda MPV minivan after the too small 2.5L V6/4-speed auto was replaced by the 3.0L Duratec/5-speed after the initial first couple years. It was the Goldilocks ‘just right’ blend of size, driveability, and features (along with the larger Odyssey, one of the first minivans with the 3rd row magic folding seat and roll-down sliding door windows) with the only fly in the ointment being fuel mileage (which was actually still okay for the time).
But, as usual, no one else seemed to feel the same way with SUVs still the hot ticket. Sales floundered and it was replaced by the smaller Mazda5 which never sold all the well, either. And now the 5 is history, as well.
That gen MPV was definitely a “looker” if there is such a thing in this genre. It was unfortunate the gas mileage was barely better than the Odyssey or Sienna.
I also liked the last gen of Mercury Villager/Nissan Quest twins. Almost bought one before I settled on the Trooper in 2001.
The issue these days is everything is so swoopy. I like style but I think a lot of the market today is going to age horribly as styling continues to go over the top (ala late 1950’s) and perhaps the trend will head towards toning it down like the styling reaction in the early ’60s. I really would like to know the type of ganga the new Prius designers were on to replace such a simple, efficient design with the current monstrosity….
I want to see out of my windows and I don’t want my car looking angry.
I will say some of the over-the-top designs from 5-7 years ago are finally appealing to me. If I could ever force myself to go pure style and to hell with space or gas efficiency, I’d be all over a QX70.
Oh, yeah, that ‘swoopy’ crap is going to be as dated as tailfins in a few short years. Up until the 2008 model, Chrysler did a really good job of keeping the minivan looking fresh, from the nice, simple original, through the design that ended in 2007.
In fact, maybe there will come a time when a brand-new, ‘retro’ minivan based on the original 1984 version will be produced with modern mechanicals. It really was a timeless design that still looks good today.
I saw a new Pacifica the other day and I have to say it does a very good job of concealing its size and minivan-ness. It looks to my eye more like the first two generations of Chrysler minivan than the later ones.
It’s a shame, but concealing the much more practical, squared-off shape is what it’s all about to sell minivans these days. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like it’s working so well for the Pacifica as I just read over at TTAC that sales are lagging so badly they’re halting production for a while. But that might be more of a function of the much higher price than the old T&C/Grand Caravan. It’s a lot tougher for Chrysler to unload their product when it’s priced about the same as an Odyssey or Sienna (nice as the new Pacifica might be).
Personally, I like the simpler, two-box design with nice, large rectangular windows. But I’m definitely in the minority.
I’ve made mention of my interest in the 500L on here before. Still interested, but awaiting a good reason to spend money on another car.
I’ve been following these cars since their introduction. I consider this an alternative to the Mini Countryman and several other small haulers. I mentioned the other day on another post that FCA could re-body the 500L with sliding doors and make a mini-Pacifica. I was a big fan of the original minivans and something like this would be ideal.
The one overriding issue with the original 500Ls were the DDCTs, which has been replaced by an Aisin torque converter automatic. A couple of years ago, I was seeing 500L Easy (a mid range model) going for $14,000 due to the DDCT. Since the Aisins have become standard issue, the prices have been higher. But it’s still rather inexpensive for a new 500L, and used ones (when you can find them) are even less expensive.
Most likely, we will end up with one of these, new or used. We both like the utility of this little van and I’m hoping FCA has enough of a presence to be around to support them.
Fiat, actually all of FCA, frustrates the heck out of me. I want everyone to make awesome cars and be successful.
Tried a 500 hatchback, a leftover 2015 offered at a mere $10,533, a few weeks ago. The ergonomics were pretty iffy, but the clutch travel was crazy long. Didn’t Italian cars have a reputation back in the day of the steering wheels being far away and the pedals close? Just the opposite in the 500, crazy long push for the clutch. Pull the seat up close enough to push the clutch all the way, and I’m kissing the wheel. Never had this problem in a Ford, Mazda, Honda or Renault. If I had a 36″ inseam it might have been OK, but it’s a no go with my 30″ pins.
So what is Fiat’s solution? Reportedly, for 17 all versions of the 500, except the Abarth, with have the Aisin automatic standard.
There was another contributor to CC who bought a 500L not too long ago. I wonder how it’s working out for him?
The rest of FCA? Loved the looks of the 200. It bombed. The last one rolled off the Sterling Heights line a week or two ago. The last Dart was built in September.
FCA just announced an extended winter shutdown for Windsor assembly. Their latest minivan science, the Pacificia, is selling in significantly lower numbers than the T&C did last year and inventory has built to excessive levels.
That blue Grand Voyager in the pic looks pretty nice. This was my Aunt’s 94.
You sure about that with the Pacifica? Everything I see says they had a shutdown in November due to a parts shortage caused by a fire at a supplier.
They did stake a lot on a still-declining market segment though. It’s selling competitively, within a hundred or so units per month of the #1 Sienna, but overall minivan sales are down. FCA is really hurting right now.
You sure about that with the Pacifica?
The news hit the wires yesterday. Windsor is the minivan plant.
Fiat Chrysler said it’s adding four off days following the Jan. 2 observation of New Year’s Day at plants in Windsor and Brampton, Ontario.
The shutdown due to the fire at the Marelli plant was only supposed to be a week in early November.
Looking at the YTD numbers on FCA’s November sales report, it looks like the Pacifica got off to a hot start, but in November, both Pacifica and Caravan sales were down sharply from 2015. Pacifica 8753 vs 12537 for the T&C last year. 6696 vs 10926 in 15 for the Caravan. Around here, most Mopar dealers have both Dodge and Chrysler in the same showroom now. I would have expected the old Caravan to be down with a new model being available, but to see the new model down too is something else.
Here’s the link for the GM and FCA shutdown announcements yesterday.
http://www.industryweek.com/labor-employment-policy/gm-fca-cut-jobs-sales-pendulum-swings-suvs
Thanks for the details.
Remember though one of the goals for FCA with the Pacifica was to make it more profitable and not just a volume leader. It’s a much more premium product than the T&C was and they don’t discount it near as much. So with that and the overall minivan market being down, it’s not too surprising. Still, not good.
I saw they are starting production on the hybrid, it will be interesting to see how that affects sales.
FCA to me is caught up in its past and is headed by a very arrogant man who has so far been very good with short-term gains; that has now ran its course and I’m not at all certain dropping the Dart and 200 and concentrating on Jeeps/Pacifica instead of trying to get the reliability right was a good decision. In Europe someone finally understood that Fiat can no longer assume the market sees its products as viable competitors to what the leaders offer and hence came up with the cheap Turkish-built Fiat Tipo, in the same way Renault (successfully) did with its Romanian Dacia subsidiary. Time will tell whether this works for Fiat. Another problem they have here are the dealers which are pretty awful (I had some experience with them and had I bought a Fiat or any other FCA vehicle, it would have been _despite_ the dealer, they were really useless).
FCA to me is caught up in its past and is headed by a very arrogant man
I wouldn’t say Marchionne is arrogant, but he is a beancounter, and apparently thinks the solution to everything is to make the products cheaper. Lynn Townsend and John Riccardo were beancounters, and they made Mopars cheaper and cheaper and cheaper, until their reliability was a bad joke and people stayed away in droves.
Their problem with the Dart and 200 was that they couldn’t make them cheap enough to sell at a competitive price and make their target profit. Marchionne plainly said they would continue to see the Dart/200 if they could find someone who could build them cheap enough.
I really like the looks of the Tipo, but, from the English language road tests I have seen, the driving experience draws zero enthusiasm, in contrast to Fiats of the past where the driving experience was so good, it almost made up for the car’s fragility. Instead, the road tests sum up as “wow is this car cheap to buy”.
In China, Fiat builds the Viaggio sedan and Ottimo hatchback on the same platform as the Dart. They are very nice looking cars. They are also regarded as a flop.
As to the quality of Fiat dealers in the US, most of them are owned by stores carrying other FCA brands. In the J D Power customer satisfaction survey last spring, all the FCA brands monopolized the bottom of the ranking. The bottom line is FCA is, as it has been for for most of the last 50 years, a beancounter operation with substandard products and substandard customer service, which, outside of the Jeep cachet, sells everything on price.
Here are the Power ratings.
http://www.jdpower.com/press-releases/2016-us-customer-service-index-csi-study
Ford still sells the C Max in Europe, but in non-hybrid form. Unfortunately the US hybrid model has a raised rear deck to fit the batteries in and no place for even a real compact spare, and the Energi plug in model is worse. There are dealers with new 2014’s and 2015’s in stock. They have maybe a $6K rebate and 2016’s have about $4K. I think most of the production of them are NYC taxis.
A year or so ago Ford brought out an extended wheelbase version C Ma xwith sliding doors, so more of a mini minivan. I’d buy one of those. Ford also has the larger S Max minivan, which is still smaller than US sold minivans which are all about the same size now. My Pontiac Trans Sport looks little next to them – four inches narrower, shorter and lower. One reason for minivans growing is that they went to roll down rear windows. Plus, just growing.
But yeah, the crossover disease has spread to Europe. I thought they were smarter than that. Well if the Atlantic gyre shuts down they will need them, and with AWD.
Crossovers are only popular in the B-segment (see Renault Captur above) and C-segment (like the Nissan Qashqai and the related Renault Kadjar).
Still, all relative, as the good ol’ hatchback is still the preferred choice in the A-, B-, and C-segment. Example: VW up! -> VW Polo -> VW Golf.
In the D-segment (VW Passat, Ford Mondeo etc.etc.) the wagon is often the more popular than the sedan version.
E-segment: sedans, wagons, coupes (like the Mercedes-Benz E-Class).
F-segment: sedans and coupes, there’s no such thing as an F-segment wagon
(most obvious example, the Mercedes-Benz S-Class).
So it’s not exactly a disease that spread to Europe. So far…
Ford, at least, believes there’s room in the EU D-segment for a CUV (Edge) alongside the Mondeo estate, S-Max, and Galaxy.
Ford is the champion of MPVs and van related MPVs, given their model range in the B-, C- and D-segment. But the tall D-segment offerings aren’t exactly bestsellers.
In said D-segment the wagons sell really well, in several Euro-countries the wagon model outsells the sedan version. Besides Ford just a few other automakers offer a tall D-segment model, the jacked up wagons included, like the Peugeot 508 RXH below.
I had a C-Max hybrid rental for a few days. I was genuinely impressed with it, much more engaging to drive than a Prius. But the build quality wasn’t great and when I looked into them further I found their reliability was horrendous. They also had a lot of bad press from the overly optimistic fuel economy ratings.
Crossovers over in Europe is also a surprise to me. I always assumed the whole reason they exist here in the US is the CAFE rules allow the automakers to sell a jacked up tall wagon as a “light truck” instead of a car. In Europe, the rules are different so I would assume an American-like CUV would sell poorly next to the cheaper, practical, and more economical European hatches and wagons they have over there. Sure, maybe they could carve out a niche but I would never expect them to actually catch on.
One thing that interested me about the 500l was the 1.4 turbo engine. Early Chryslers had 2.2s the Mazda 5 had a 2.3 and the Colt Vista had a 2.0. It makes sense that with a turbo Fiat could go even smaller, but I wonder if the limit has been reached. Fiat seems to be having a challenge getting it to work smoothly with an auto.
Fiat offers an 875 cc 2-cylinder engine in Europe. Great fuel efficiency in the brochure, a lot worse in real life.
Recently I read that engines won’t shrink any further. On the contrary, they will grow again. From 1.3 to 1.5 liter, for example.
I looked up the twin. It replaced the FIRE engine,( Fully Integrated Robotized Engine). You would think an engine like that would never need replacing.
Robotized FIRE engine mean a how it was made at the factory. Not the motor itself. And it dates back to the early ’80s.
Yeesh, if there was ever a way to make a first gen Voyager look sleek just park it near a 500L. The Fiat looks like Peter Griffin in a speedo.
I love my 500L!!!! It has the 1.4 multi air turbo abarth engine , and is a very fun car to drive, handles great, and has a versatile, if not, brilliantly designed interior. In its 43,000 miles it has performed flawlessly, and has been stone reliable. I know it has gotten a bad rap for its dual clutch tranny, but, I also love it, as it is the best of both worlds. It is indeed a drivers car.