Recently, Fiat returned to the United States for the first time since 1984. They did so with their new flagship model, the 500. One might recognize the name 500 from the postwar car that, for all intents and purposes, saved the Fiat brand. This new 500, however, is bigger than its father car, sportier, and all around better. The car is fairly strict as far as factory options go. There are 3 trim levels, in ascending order, the Pop, Sport and Lounge. Each trim level has equipped its luxuries, with the Pop being more of a bare-bones car than the others. Each is a 3-door hatch, with a cabriolet version available as well. While this is all well and good, there doesn’t seem to be a real attraction to enthusiasts yet and for good reason, this car, at least from the outside looking in, is just a simple city car. In order to understand the true beauty of this car though, one must delve deeper, inside the engine bay.

Read the rest of this entry »