For such a small car, the Fiat 500 has enough retro style to fill the trailer of a Mack truck. It oozes so much coolness from its Italian pores that designers took a can opener to its tin top just to relieve all the excess mojo -- hence the convertible you see here. OK, that's not exactly how the story goes, but Fiat calls the result of its engineering surgery the 2012 Fiat 500C. We call it a Fiat 500 with a glorified sunroof.
2012 Fiat 500C
But said head-burner is a bona fide head-turner. While zigzagging through L.A. with the top slid back past its rear headrests, you'd have thought a bikini-clad Olivia Wilde was seated to my right. The kinked necks and wide smiles emanating from passing cars were proof positive of the innate attractiveness of the retro-themed ride. No doubt about it, this drop-top drops jaws.
It isn't surprising that women especially love our Bianco Perla Fiat's bug-eyed and blunt-butt design. Note to those single men out there contemplating a tiny new ride: The 500C is the automotive equivalent to a restless puppy or a snoozing newborn baby. If you drive one, be prepared for an onslaught of stares and a collective "AWWWWW" from random ladies. Mini Coopers and Smart Fortwos, take note: The Fiat is the new hotness.
Inside, it's just as 1960s-inspired as its compact physique. The Tessuto Rosso and Avorio color scheme instantly reminded passengers of an Italian heritage well-versed in fashion; same with the extra-large, Cinquecento-inspired speedometer. Supple red and white leather wrapped nearly all of the interior's facades for a luxurious touch. Not so appealing was the overabundant white plastic that adorned the hard dash, or the monochromatic stereo's confusing interface. Horrible blind spots on either side of the car made changing lanes a triple-take affair.
2012 Fiat 500C Cockpit
The 500C comes only in a lower Pop ($19,500) and an upper Lounge trim ($23,500) like our tester. Standard creature comforts such as a six-speed automatic transmission, Blue&Me Bluetooth connectivity, Bose stereo with Sirius satellite radio, chrome exterior accoutrements, and an ECO Drive application differentiate the two. Two niggles I noticed during my stint in the convertible: While using the Bluetooth phone function, people on the other end had trouble hearing me clearly, especially with the top down. And, although the cute little cabrio has 1.2 more inches of rear headroom than the coupe, anyone standing 5-foot-8 or taller will feel cramped when belted behind the front row.
Interestingly, the Sport trim level is absent from the convertible lineup. But then again, the little Fiat in its soft-top form isn't much of a platform for the performance-minded. When prompted to hustle, the 2516-pound 500C happily takes its time to get to wherever it's pointed. Reaching 60 mph from a dead stop means waiting 11.6 seconds with your foot planted. Continuing to mash the throttle in Sport mode had the six-speed automatic struggling mightily at the rpm limit to wring out every drop of power from the 101-horse, 1.4-liter four-cylinder. After 18.4 seconds of heaving and sweating, the Fiat finally ticked past a quarter-mile while travelling 74.5 mph.
2012 Fiat 500C Front Seating
The 500C's very light steering transmitted little road feel to the attractive helm. An innate tendency to dramatically change directions almost immediately after driver input made the Fiat a decently fun compact car to toss around -- that is, when there was enough power running to its front wheels.
As you can imagine, the 500C's keen ability to navigate an urban space immediately overshadowed any annoyance with straight-line sluggishness and lively handling. The answer to the common "Can I fit into that parking spot?" question was almost invariably "Yes." When playing nice with the throttle, fill-ups were few and far between. Throw in an iconic silhouette that radiates the pure Italian style of a bygone era, and the tiny 500C puts up a very good fight against its main competition.
