Fiat has introduced the updated 2016 500 at a special event held in Turin, Italy, its home town.
Far from an all-new model, the 2016 500 stands out from the eight-year old model that’s currently found in showrooms thanks to minor visual tweaks like a new front bumper with a large air dam framed by a thin strip of chrome trim, oval LED daytime running lights, new-look headlights and redesigned tail lamps with body-colored accents. New paint colors and additional alloy wheel designs essentially round out the list of the major exterior modifications.
Perhaps the most important update for 2016 is found by stepping inside the city car. Upscale 500 Lounge models can finally be ordered with a five-inch touch screen that runs Chrysler’s Uconnect infotainment system. Other updates include more ergonomic seats, a new three-spoke steering wheel and additional sound-deadening material.
In Europe, the 500 is available with a 1.2-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 69 horsepower, a 0.9-liter TwinAir two-cylinder mill offered with either 85 or 105 horsepower or a 1.3-liter Multijet II turbodiesel that makes 95 ponies. A manual transmission comes standard, and select engines can be ordered with a semi-automatic gearbox at an extra cost.
Full technical details about the U.S.-spec model are not available yet, though it looks like the 101-horsepower 1.4-liter MultiAir will carry on without any changes.
The 2016 Fiat 500 will greet the public for the first time this September at the Frankfurt Motor Show, and it is scheduled to go on sale shortly after. Pricing information will be published in the coming weeks.
What’s next?
The aforementioned changes also apply to the 500C. The hot-rodded 500 Abarth will also benefit from a handful of minor updates, but it is not expected to make its debut until later this fall.
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