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Larger Fiat 500 heading to SA

Fiat’s little city-slicker has become a growing favourite among drivers, especially as it suits the needs of bigger families, so the automaker has decided to grow the car too.

Wheels24 first reported on the larger 500 in 2012 and the news came with a yummy mummy in a funky rap ad video.

BIGGER AND BIGGER

The 500L range will be expanded with the addition of the 500L Living - "the first car for your family" says Fiat, and the Trekking for the more adventurous or free-spirited. Fiat SA’s Richard Sloman says: "We'll be getting the standard 500L from around September 2013 but at this stage the XL (Living) version and the Trekking are not on the cards.

"We will, however, certainly study the feasibility of additional models but in terms of Fiat Group Automobiles SA our Fiat 500 family will be the 500, 500C and the 500L."

The 500 made its debut in July 2007 and the cheerful little car is the Fiat model with the highest sales outside of Italy with more than a million units sold since 2007. It's been assembled in Poland since 2007 and in Toluca (Mexico) since 2010 and is sold in more than 100 countries - from Italy to Brazil, South Africa to Poland, the US to Japan.

SPOILT FOR CHOICE

There have also been several model interpretations since its global launch: the Abarth, 500 by Diesel, Pink,  500C, TwinAir, 500 Matt Black, 500 two-tone, 500 and 500C by Gucci, 500 America Limited Edition and 500 Colour Therapy Lounge; and the latest arrival, the 500 GQ which was launched in June 2013.

Thanks to the success of the car, the 500L was born - L for Large - while maintaining the compact external dimensions typical of a B-segment car. The 500L carries the performance, interior and equipment typical of the C segment.

Fiat is the brand with the lowest average CO2 emissions of cars sold in Europe - 119.8g/km - for the sixth year running.

The entry-level 500L has a 1.4 quad-valve Fire petrol engine capable of 70kW at 6000rpm and 127Nm at 4500rpm. Fuel consumption is listed as 5.2 litres/100km, CO2 emissions of 145g/km.

The new 78kW 0.9-litre turbo is the latest evolution of the TwinAir engine. The 78kW/ 145Nm two-cylinder unit turns a six-speed manual gearbox.

The 1.3-litre MultiJet 2 develops its 63kW at 3500rpm, 200Nm at 1500rpm and returns, Fiat says, 3.5 litres/100km with emissions of 110g/km of CO2.

The top-of-the-range 500L uses the 1.6-litre MultiJet 2 turbodiesel capable of 78kW at 3750rpm and 320Nm at 1750rpm. Fuel consumption here is listed as 3.7 litres/100km and has an emissions rating of 117g/km.

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500L Living
500L Trekking
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