The 2024 Fiat 500e Is What An Electric Car Should Be
After announcing that the adorable EV-only Fiat 500e would finally reach North American shores, Fiat invited us to look and touch, but not drive the new city car at an event in Los Angeles. We’ve previously reported on all of the car’s features, but we did get some updates and learn some new tidbits worth sharing.
Based on a new platform that was developed from the ground up as an EV, this new generation of 500e is roomier than its predecessor but about 50 pounds lighter, making it the lightest EV on the market in North America. That might sound like an odd claim to fame, but it’s significant. EVs are a more sensible proposition when they’re lighter, smaller cars that carry modest price tags. They don’t all need to be three-ton, seven-seated mega SUVs serving as primary cars. If you think of the 500e as a second or third car in a household, used to zip about the city for day trips or quick errands, the need for size and range decreases dramatically.
Despite its compact proportions, the 2025 Fiat 500e has about double the range of its predecessor thanks to a more power-dense 42-kWh lithium-ion battery pack. Its EPA-estimated range of 149 miles includes mixed driving. In the city, Fiat expects the range to increase to 162 miles. Its 118 horsepower and 162 lb-ft of torque are reportedly good for 0–60 sprints of 8.5 seconds, so nothing too exciting, but EV horsepower ratings tend to belie how quickly they can surge off the line.
At the event, Fiat’s Aamir Ahmed noted that almost 200,000 of the EV runabouts have been sold in Europe since the model’s debut in 2020, the majority of them going to first-time EV buyers. The brand expects the same in North America. The first batch of 500e runabouts will all be (RED) edition as a collaboration with the (RED) charity, which was created by U2’s Bono and Bobby Shriver in 2006 to fight HIV and AIDS around the globe. As such, each of the (RED) edition models will feature a red painted dash. They’ll come rather loaded with options in one of three colors: red (naturally), black, and white. Standard features include a 10.25-inch UConnect 5 screen, wireless phone charging, and a suite of advanced driver assistance systems. The only options will be a choice between summer and all-season tires, and whether the buyer will opt for a free charger, which can then be installed in their home, or an as-yet-undetermined value of EV charge credits.
This generation of 500e is two inches wider, and two inches longer, and because it wasn’t hemmed in by the packaging requirements of an internal combustion engine, Ahmed told us the outward visibility was improved. We got to poke around and sit in a 500e and marveled at the car’s ability to fit four adults, even when taller occupants had the front seat moved back to bolster legroom.
Ahmed was confident in the 500e’s ability to win over first-time EV buyers, noting that it’s not just a solid EV, but that, “It’s just a damn good car, period.” Fiat is banking on the car’s ability to convert buyers to EVs by giving them a driving experience they’re used to, albeit with the benefit of a low center of gravity. To be more accessible to first-time EV buyers, the normal driving mode will have little regenerative braking so that it will coast as you’d be used to in an ICE vehicle. Optional driving modes will increase regen braking and even offer full one-pedal driving.
We should be seeing the 500e in showrooms by the end of March, with a starting MSRP of $34,095, including a 1595 destination fee. The (RED) editions are just the first, as Fiat promises to release other special editions as part of its “product drop” strategy to keep the car fresh. We’re eager to see how the city car feels now that it has been designed as an EV from the ground up, and we won’t have to wait too long. Expect our first drive review to surface sometime in April.
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Overpriced , lousy range , useless in sub zero temps , unreliable with not nearly enough places to charge it once you leave your home . Yep that’s pretty much what all EVs are to the motoring public . Toyota is smartly focusing on hybrids while other carmakers are foolishly focusing on EV tech that is not ready for prime time .
But the future of automobiles before and after you and I leave this earth. Might as well speak on a positive note and hope for the best 🙂 BTW, No need to tell me you will never own one. I surmised that from your comment.
Toyota is focusing on everything.
They didn’t let you drive it? Such confidence.
What An Electric Car Should Be? If a crapcan appliance is what an EV should be, no thanks.
I am not a massive fan of the EV concept, however I am not wholly opposed to the notion of one day adding one to the collection. An EPA range of 150 miles (meaning a real world range of 110) isn’t going to get me there.
I like it! As a second car. How many people really need to drive more than 150 miles in a day?
I agree. I have a Dodge Charger Scat Pack if I need to go on a road trip. I have a Tesla 3 (200 mile range) which equates to about 160 miles real world (heater, headlights, wipers, etc). I drive 110 miles round trip to work, and that car saves me $16 a day in gas. I have a 220V charger at home and at work, so I can even charge up there if needed… but I don’t need to. I am fine driving round trip and getting home with 50 miles left.
There are a lot of haters on here, and they have never experienced it, or they are simply narrow minded.
The Scat Pack is a ball to drive, and I love the tire-spinning, awesome sounding hemi… it takes me back to my youth, when I was rocking a 69 Road Runner. But the Tesla will surprise you as to how quick it is. It is probably a 1/2 second behind the Dodge to 60 mph, but doing it in absolute silence is weird.
Only one problem with this: good pre-owned EVs. Just yesterday (2/24/24) I drove a 2019 Model 3 Performance and a nearly-new Ioniq6 back to back. The Tesla was $28k and the Hyundai $36k. I can’t see paying $34k for a new EV when $2k more will get me probably the best EV sedan on the market (with almost 2x the range) or $6k less will get me a usable EV with supercar performance. And unless the Fiat qualified for the tax credits, it’s even harder to see in my driveway, especially since my state waives sales tax on used EV purchases under $30k.
Easter is right around the corner, who doesn’t love a red jelly bean??
Perfect car and range for my wife and I know she would like it. Higher price than I like though. The upcoming Tesla Model 2 will be a better deal I imagine. The Fiat is an EV so it will be so much better than any antiquated ICE vehicle.
Yeah, right. Better than any ICE vehicle. Fantasy stuff.
We had a 2014 500e and loved it for city driving and parking. We’ve had 2 Chevy Bolts since – not as much fun, but more room and more range. As soon as I send this article to my wife, we’ll probably have one on order. I’ve got plenty of ICE cars for long distances, but this little thing will be a perfect city car.
It’s meant to be a commuter not to take trips across the country. They are offering a charger with the car for that reason. Plug it in when you get home and get in it and go in the morning.
Mighty expensive to just be a commuter car.