Fiat Tipo Hatchback (2016 - 2023) S-Design 1.4 T-Jet 120hp 5d Owner Review

Admittedly the Tipo isn't the best family hatchback available. There's a bit of road noise, it's a bit bouncy, the steering feels odd, with two selectable settings; one of which is too heavy and one of which is too light, the 9,000 mile service interval is disappointingly frequent and some of the plastic is pretty rubbish. This said, everything you are likely to touch, like dials, switches, seats, arm rests, steering wheel, are really quite premium feeling. It's more spacious than most in its class, and much, much, much cheaper. And that's why I'd recommend it. It's awesome value for money. An equivalently specced VW or Ford would have cost nearly twice as much as my S-Design Tipo, which has adaptive (radar) cruise control (my favourite feature) a 7" touch screen, auto lights and wipers, leather seats, 18" alloys to name just a few toys and gadgets - all of which, despite fiat's historic reputation, are still working fine. The fuel economy is reasonable (Combined 41 mpg) which, to the manufacturer's credit, is pretty much exactly what Fiat claim. Sure, it won't set your pulse racing, and it isn't exactly fun to drive, but I do find it much more relaxing to drive than other cars in this class I've owned or rented. The seats are supportive and comfortable on long journeys and I can get out of it after a 3 hour journey without feeling tired. The assuredly heavy steering and the adaptive cruise control contribute to this feeling of ease. The boot is pretty large for it's class, bigger than the previous generation ford focus, for example. Rear leg room is also generous. I am also impressed by how well screwed together it seems. No trim rattles or buzzing to report, which is great, because sloppily put together rattly trim is a pet hate of mine. (I'm looking at you, Peugeot / Citroen!) It also has a proper hand brake (I'm looking at you VW group!), which is great because electronic hand brakes are functionally inferior than their old school counterparts in manual cars. The Tipo is a budget, almost utilitarian car, but manages to be almost as good as much more expensive rivals in many areas, and unlike other budget cars like the Dacia Sandero, in some areas, it manages to be better. You can buy a brand new one for the price of a year old rival, and for this reason, you should consider it.