City Car: Fiat 500 Twinair 2011 Review

fiat500twinair_2011_carzpageThe 500 TwinAir is a fascinating prospect. This is the point raised at the Fiat-kitsch review of its iconic 1950s city car to a new level of the 21 Century meaning. The TwinAir engine tested here, according to Fiat, “the greenest gasoline engine in the world,” but it has no batteries, EV fraud or hybrid. It’s just a highly efficient, low-friction, lightweight 875cc gasoline engine with two cylinders and a turbocharger. We expect it to be fast. But we can live with that?
Two cylinders and 875cc? The 500 TwinAir be terribly slow, I suppose? You know, it is not. There are 85bhp to play and more relevant, 107 pounds ft of torque from just 1900rpm, so if you push around in the city you never have a lack of buzz. City Car: Fiat 500 Twinair 2011 Review.

“Hum” is the operative word, as the engine has a distinctive touch – a sort of bubble-level V8 three octaves too high. It is very appealing, full of character and not at all intrusive. I have not driven the twin-pot 1957 Fiat 500, but I bet it sounded a bit like this. And that’s a good thing. It fits the car.
How flexible is the power of the 500 TwinAir, especially from the city?

fiat500twinair-2011_2The car is a function of its transmission – a five-speed manual transmission with very specific conditions. The first two courses are incredibly short, but you must keep the momentum all the time, even resorted to first while rolling up to a roundabout. But third is wonderfully long legs, and you can do most of your city driving without stirring up further. A 70 mph cruise on a dual carriageway is comfortable, but a slight tendency to have reached the fourth. The shifter is rubbery and imprecise, but pole affixed to the columns is fun to hold and to harass. It feels like driving an old car, but in a good way. The maximum speed of the 500 TwinAir is at 107 mph and 0-62mph takes 11sec. But we would say it’s like your clock’s ability to be water resistant to 50 meters – you do not need to test. Has downsizing means a clean engine? City Car: Fiat 500 Twinair 2011 Review.

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