Photo: CarPix
When Fiat resurrected the 500 model in 2007, few people were expecting the little Italian city car to spawn its own line of (naturally) larger models, but that's exactly what happened.
The 500L was the first addition, and even though it catered to the needs of those who would snub a 500 for being too small, its design was a little hard to swallow even for a family guy. And it wasn't the details that dragged the 500L down, but the overall shape and dimensions.
Which is why the facelift that's programmed for next year can do very little to help the model's desirability significantly. On the outside, we expect the 500L to receive the same treatment as the 500 has earlier this year. That means Fiat will LED the hell out of it, placing the small and economical lights wherever it can to oust the outdated incandescent bulbs.
This should successfully make the 500L look more modern, but not necessarily that much prettier. The car our photographers snapped here is the 500L Living version (or MPW in the UK and Ireland), which is the biggest one in the range. It comes with seven seats and it is as close as you can currently get to a Fiat 500 MPV.
Apart from the larger dimensions - particularly the length - the 500L Living is identical to the standard model, meaning what we see here will go on all the other versions (of which we haven't mention only one, the rough-terrain ready Trekking).
The camouflage on the test vehicle makes it impossible to spot, but the 500L should get new bumpers front and back. The rear will also receive redesigned taillights with 3D effect, and that looks to be about it on the outside.
Inside, it's pure guess work at the moment, but having the experience of the original Fiat 500 facelift, we know what's in store. Bigger infotainment screen - always a good thing - and an updated system all round, plus an increase in the quality of the materials used. Fiat wants to position its 500 range as kind of (not exactly Fiat's words) premium, so less hard plastic and more soft surfaces can't hurt.
Depending on the market, the 500L will be available with 0.9-liter or 1.4-liter gasoline turbo engines as well as 1.3-liter and 1.6-liter diesel mills. They tend to offer a very good power-to-displacement ratio, which is excellent considering the 500L uses quite small engines.
The bottom line is that if you didn't fancy the Fiat 500L before, this facelift is unlikely to do enough to change that. But isn't this the definition of every facelift?
Which is why the facelift that's programmed for next year can do very little to help the model's desirability significantly. On the outside, we expect the 500L to receive the same treatment as the 500 has earlier this year. That means Fiat will LED the hell out of it, placing the small and economical lights wherever it can to oust the outdated incandescent bulbs.
This should successfully make the 500L look more modern, but not necessarily that much prettier. The car our photographers snapped here is the 500L Living version (or MPW in the UK and Ireland), which is the biggest one in the range. It comes with seven seats and it is as close as you can currently get to a Fiat 500 MPV.
Apart from the larger dimensions - particularly the length - the 500L Living is identical to the standard model, meaning what we see here will go on all the other versions (of which we haven't mention only one, the rough-terrain ready Trekking).
The camouflage on the test vehicle makes it impossible to spot, but the 500L should get new bumpers front and back. The rear will also receive redesigned taillights with 3D effect, and that looks to be about it on the outside.
Inside, it's pure guess work at the moment, but having the experience of the original Fiat 500 facelift, we know what's in store. Bigger infotainment screen - always a good thing - and an updated system all round, plus an increase in the quality of the materials used. Fiat wants to position its 500 range as kind of (not exactly Fiat's words) premium, so less hard plastic and more soft surfaces can't hurt.
Depending on the market, the 500L will be available with 0.9-liter or 1.4-liter gasoline turbo engines as well as 1.3-liter and 1.6-liter diesel mills. They tend to offer a very good power-to-displacement ratio, which is excellent considering the 500L uses quite small engines.
The bottom line is that if you didn't fancy the Fiat 500L before, this facelift is unlikely to do enough to change that. But isn't this the definition of every facelift?
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