Fiat 500 Twin Air Lounge aka Pootle
Discussion
acquired a new addition to the wigit household a few months ago as a more sensible daily driver which has allowed me to do a few more bits on the scirocco start thinking of a less practical replacement for it in the medium term 
some might say an odd choice but wanted something not quite the norm and test drive sold it to me given the noise, i picked up late July and has now cracked the 3,000 mile barrier and should be at the SS at MB World
not done any proper pics but a couple below, car was always nick named Pootle in honour of the flumps character and definition 'move or travel in a leisurely manner', when P500TLE was spotted as available it had to be done
have to admit i was a bit worried having a small car given the drop in performance between compared to the other two, but pootle was bought to pootle along on and be cheaper to run for the daily grind
its current commute is not ideal as 100 miles a day on a mix of dual carriageway mixed with city centre use, thoughts so far
Options:
16 multispokes - bring out the best in the car looks wise for me and look bigger than they are, never tried 15s to compare on ride but all boils down to what your used too
parking sensors - other two have them and been great in those tight city spots
privacy glass - never used to be a fan but other tow have it and again like the look
memory seat - prob a mistake given i'd have probably found the seat storage more useful
climate - pleased i specced it but oddly i find i use the ac a lot less in the fiat, all be it can warm up nicely
black ambience - i'd not seen a BA lounge so took a punt, love the contrast on the dash and the seats have grown on me
Performance:
i really find the TA fun to drive and a real jerky & hyde car, car has a sporty ride and great turn in (its great up the multistory in oxford), sometimes you do tend to bounce over things but put that down to short wheel base
economy is getting there but i love the character of the TA in terms of torque and noise, car happily sits in the out side lane of the motorway does make you smile, a sixth gear would help as i feel sometimes the ratios are a little too spaced out, been said before but its a car you can drive using not much of the rev range, once you've got it cranked up you can carry speed nicely on a twisty road
Interior
i'm a big fan of the ergonomics and ambience inside, never been a fan of using hands free but on the couple of uses i've no complaints
in reality the only bit that irritates me is the internal boot strap which is a bit naff
General
8 times out of 10 its the car whose keys i pick up first as its just great pootling around oxford and gets into spaces i've only dreamed of, that said it doesn't feel that small
oddly i'm a bit more chilled out after a drive in the 500 as you get there when you get there
always been a massive fan of the looks and oddly i've delayed putting some company coloured racing stripes on it as love the simplicity of it, just looks so right as it is
needless to say i lot of my friends don't get the 500 but most of whom who have mocked have actually fallen for it
i've no desire to modify it (but would be gokart esque on coilovers) as it does what it says on the tin and its not what its about, that said i've been busy on the roc since it arrived at will post and update on that thread
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
thanks for reading
some might say an odd choice but wanted something not quite the norm and test drive sold it to me given the noise, i picked up late July and has now cracked the 3,000 mile barrier and should be at the SS at MB World
not done any proper pics but a couple below, car was always nick named Pootle in honour of the flumps character and definition 'move or travel in a leisurely manner', when P500TLE was spotted as available it had to be done
have to admit i was a bit worried having a small car given the drop in performance between compared to the other two, but pootle was bought to pootle along on and be cheaper to run for the daily grind
its current commute is not ideal as 100 miles a day on a mix of dual carriageway mixed with city centre use, thoughts so far
Options:
16 multispokes - bring out the best in the car looks wise for me and look bigger than they are, never tried 15s to compare on ride but all boils down to what your used too
parking sensors - other two have them and been great in those tight city spots
privacy glass - never used to be a fan but other tow have it and again like the look
memory seat - prob a mistake given i'd have probably found the seat storage more useful
climate - pleased i specced it but oddly i find i use the ac a lot less in the fiat, all be it can warm up nicely
black ambience - i'd not seen a BA lounge so took a punt, love the contrast on the dash and the seats have grown on me
Performance:
i really find the TA fun to drive and a real jerky & hyde car, car has a sporty ride and great turn in (its great up the multistory in oxford), sometimes you do tend to bounce over things but put that down to short wheel base
economy is getting there but i love the character of the TA in terms of torque and noise, car happily sits in the out side lane of the motorway does make you smile, a sixth gear would help as i feel sometimes the ratios are a little too spaced out, been said before but its a car you can drive using not much of the rev range, once you've got it cranked up you can carry speed nicely on a twisty road
Interior
i'm a big fan of the ergonomics and ambience inside, never been a fan of using hands free but on the couple of uses i've no complaints
in reality the only bit that irritates me is the internal boot strap which is a bit naff
General
8 times out of 10 its the car whose keys i pick up first as its just great pootling around oxford and gets into spaces i've only dreamed of, that said it doesn't feel that small
oddly i'm a bit more chilled out after a drive in the 500 as you get there when you get there
always been a massive fan of the looks and oddly i've delayed putting some company coloured racing stripes on it as love the simplicity of it, just looks so right as it is
needless to say i lot of my friends don't get the 500 but most of whom who have mocked have actually fallen for it
i've no desire to modify it (but would be gokart esque on coilovers) as it does what it says on the tin and its not what its about, that said i've been busy on the roc since it arrived at will post and update on that thread
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
thanks for reading
I drive a Panda 100HP for similar reasons. 95% local driving in Wycombe which is very hilly. Average 40mpg on the computer (38 real). If I get out of town and drive to work (near Slough) I can easily hit 50mpg, and that's not hanging about - generally driving like a loon and overtaking repmobiles for a laugh.
I'm not a fan of the 500 styling, but I see why everyone likes them.
Let us know how the economy goes.
I'm not a fan of the 500 styling, but I see why everyone likes them.
Let us know how the economy goes.
Love the nickname/numberplate!
The 500 has always struck me as a fun little car to pootle about in. Friend of mine had one a few years back and it always served him very well, the couple of times I had a ride it seemed fairly well put together and a pretty comfortable place to be.
Another friends parents have just bought a Twin-Air, but its been back to the garage as of late, he told me it was a recall, something to do with the turbo? Have you had any problems with yours?
How are you finding the MPG in the real world? Obviously higher than your Scirocco but does it live up to the quoted figures?
Must admit though, when it gets to the warm/hot versions, I'd still pick the Twingo RS Cup, mine puts such a smile on my face!
The 500 has always struck me as a fun little car to pootle about in. Friend of mine had one a few years back and it always served him very well, the couple of times I had a ride it seemed fairly well put together and a pretty comfortable place to be.
Another friends parents have just bought a Twin-Air, but its been back to the garage as of late, he told me it was a recall, something to do with the turbo? Have you had any problems with yours?
How are you finding the MPG in the real world? Obviously higher than your Scirocco but does it live up to the quoted figures?
Must admit though, when it gets to the warm/hot versions, I'd still pick the Twingo RS Cup, mine puts such a smile on my face!
doodles19 said:
Must admit though, when it gets to the warm/hot versions, I'd still pick the Twingo RS Cup, mine puts such a smile on my face!
I'm trying to decide what the replace my Panda with. It has to be tiny, sporty and fun to mince around in. The Twingo twitches my fancy. How reliable has yours been? Is there anything to watch out for when looking at cars for sale? What mpg do you get on average pootling around? Finally will a 6ft 5 beanpole fit in one?Thanks.
Targarama said:
doodles19 said:
Must admit though, when it gets to the warm/hot versions, I'd still pick the Twingo RS Cup, mine puts such a smile on my face!
I'm trying to decide what the replace my Panda with. It has to be tiny, sporty and fun to mince around in. The Twingo twitches my fancy. How reliable has yours been? Is there anything to watch out for when looking at cars for sale? What mpg do you get on average pootling around? Finally will a 6ft 5 beanpole fit in one?Thanks.
So far its been utterly reliable, its just done a trip round europe including the 'ring, no problems or faults to report whatsoever!
I've only had mine for about 5 months, but I've not heard of anything to watch out for so far from any other owners have a look on www.twingo133.net, thoroughly helpful bunch, and will give you an idea of common faults.
Mpg isn't amazing, motorways are not especially its friend, it needs a 6th gear, but will cruise at 70 all day returning acceptable mpg, I'd say pootling it would average about 34-7mpg depending on how careful you are with the throttle/traffic etc.
I'm a fairly stocky build and about 6ft and its fine for me.
But for something small, that will put a smile on your face I didn't drive anything close. The 500 Abarth does have a smidgin more poke, but the engine didn't really do it for me, I love how the Twingo was n/a, revs to 7k and sounds pretty good as well!
The other thing that made me choose it over the Abarth was the chassis, it seemed much more agile and light on its feet, it really does grip well. The esp can be fully turned off as well, so its not such an irritation if you're doing a track day, unlike the Abarth which is always on
. The Abarth's cabin is more plush, but I'd say the Twingo more than makes up for it in character and ability. I didn't find the Swift Sport as rewarding either. It seems to be the Twingos trump card is its chassis, there isn't really much that can beat it in class.
In conclusion, go and test drive a Cup!
Sorry for the huge essay, got carried away!
Also sorry to the OP for the thread hijack!
doodles19 said:
In conclusion, go and test drive a Cup!
Thanks for the info. To be honest, I won't be going for the Cup pack. I have two more sportier cars in my garage already, and the Panda suspension is too damn hard for Wycombe s
t roads. I don't mind a bit of lean. The economy doesn't sound too bad.If I find the std suspension 'pleasant' then I will try a cup pack to be sure though :-)
Put an order down for one of these, in new TwinAir Plus spec, as seen in the Alonso commercial.
Test drove one 15 minutes after watching the commercial, loved it, and took another 1 hour testdrive the day after, signed the form. www.fiat.co.uk/twinair
I've never driven a car that puts a smile on my face like this one does!
The combination of the great amount of torque and fun noise is very special indeed. I also love how you can hear the air moving through the turbo, that hissing sound that you normally only get in a high pressure turbo car.
You can really make great pace through the city using the torque and the handling isn't bad either. Fancy taking my new one on a smallish track to see how it copes!
Test drove one 15 minutes after watching the commercial, loved it, and took another 1 hour testdrive the day after, signed the form. www.fiat.co.uk/twinair
I've never driven a car that puts a smile on my face like this one does!
The combination of the great amount of torque and fun noise is very special indeed. I also love how you can hear the air moving through the turbo, that hissing sound that you normally only get in a high pressure turbo car.
You can really make great pace through the city using the torque and the handling isn't bad either. Fancy taking my new one on a smallish track to see how it copes!
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