Long-term report: Does Fiat 600e’s ‘Dolce Vita’ work in the UK? We aim to find out

Late summer 2023. The sun was shining bright, the air was hot and dry, and I was on the top of Fiat’s famous Lingotto factory. In fact, sweltering is a better description as I and all of the other assembled media were locked in a perspex building for the launch of the new Fiat 600e. Despite the greenhouse vibes, it was the natural way to launch a new Italian car. Cliched, maybe, but appropriate.

A cynic would say Fiat had ramped up the ‘Dolce Vita’ feels to the max because the 600e’s claim to Italian citizenship is shaky at best. It isn’t built in Italy, for a start, and trundles down the same production line in Tychy, Poland, as other Stellantis cars like the Jeep Avenger. But a car doesn’t have to be built in its maker’s domestic market for it to represent a homely character does it? Take the Toyota Corolla for instance – it’s typically Japanese in character even if it is built in Derbyshire. And there’s nothing new in a car using the same mechanicals as other cars from different carmakers – brands have been doing this for years, not least Stellantis.

Two years on from that launch and living in a slightly quaint part of England, I am about as far removed from that old Fiat factory with its sun-kissed roof-top test track as I could be. I’ve got a few months to see if the 600e’s Italian charm is, firstly, real, and secondly, whether it can woo me compared to the seemingly endless array of other small electric SUVs on the market.

The car in question is a top-spec model. La Prima brings a range of niceties over the Pop entry-level model and mid-spec Icon, such as 18-inch diamond cut alloys, privacy glass, puddle lights, electrically foldable and heated door mirrors, extra safety equipment, and a hands-free power tailgate. The interior also has a very bright feel thanks to an ivory-painted dashboard panel, and ivory synthetic leather seats with ‘FIAT’ embroidered into them in turquoise-coloured thread. Both front seats are also heated and electrically-adjustable, with the driver’s also getting a massage function.

At the car’s launch at Lingotto, Fiat made a big thing about how it was ditching boring, unimaginative colours like greys, and one look at the 600e’s online configurator would confirm this – although, black and white are now also present, and I would call those boring – funny that, it’s almost like those are the colours that sell. The metallic colours, though, are – you guessed it – Italian-inspired and ‘evoke the unique beauty of the Italian landscapes and are inspired by Italian Sea, Sun, Earth and Sky’, says Fiat.

Noticing that ‘Sand’ is rather grey-ish and politely ignoring this, I chose Sunset Orange along with a black roof. In fact, it’s rather more than just the roof as the black has been extended down the pillars, and I chose this as I’ve never seen a 600e in this colour combination before. But, at £950, I’m not sure it’s worth the outlay.

The car is pretty much box-fresh, and arrived with less than 800 miles on the clock. The past few weeks have been very much home-based, so the 600e has been dispatched on very local trips to the shops. Early impressions are favourable – the steering is light and makes the 600e an absolute doodle to park, and the ride is super comfy. Efficiency has peaked at just under four miles per kWh, which is some way off what I would expect. In the past I have run a Vauxhall Astra Electric as a long-term test car, and that car uses the same 54kWh battery pack as the 600e. The Astra would routinely give 4.5 miles per kWh, sometimes more, so I’m pretty confident that once the 600e is used more and settles into a busier working schedule for me in the next month, things will improve.