New car news

09 February 2009 - 12:00

A fresh start

Dontcha just hate the Fiat 500? The little Cinq is unbearably cute, good to drive… and now just a little bit greener.

The petrol 500 is now available with stop-start technology – or Start&Stop, as Fiat is branding it (which makes sense, we guess, because you've got to start in order to stop) – improving economy and lowering CO2 emissions.

Fitted with the Bosch-developed stop-start system, fuel consumption for the 1.2-litre petrol 500 rises from 55.4mpg to 58.9mpg, while CO2 emissions fall from 119g/km to 113g/km, making it the cleanest, most frugal 500 in the range.

The stop-start technology will cost a £200 premium over the stock 500, which sounds like a pretty fair deal for us – and, we’d guess, the entire population of Kensington, Chelsea, Notting Hill…