In the United States, Fiat is attempting to claw its way into a new, more buoyant era, and the new Fiat 500e is leading the charge. Unfortunately, it’s proving to be a slow and painful rebirth, with the Italian brand still struggling to move product. Dealers are now pulling the big levers to try and give it the jumpstart it needs to get cars moving off the lot again.
According to sales stats from CarEdge, the new Fiat 500e is unfortunately one of the slowest selling cars in America right now. Just 164 units have sold in the last 45 days, with a total of 1,048 examples sitting in inventory. That adds up to a total of 288 days of supply. In other words, if Fiat stopped importing the 500e tomorrow, it could keep selling cars for almost a year before it ran out of stock. Not only that, but there are some older Fiat 500X models sitting around that are going cheap, too.
As is almost always the way, when the cars don’t move, the prices go down. What that means is that you could get yourself a gorgeous little city car for a barnstorming price right now. We’re talking five figure discounts here!
Pocket-Sized Fun
If you haven’t tried the Fiat 500e, you really ought to do so. I drove the hot model—the Fiat 500e Abarth. The fluro yellow rocket blew my socks off, but the price was a little rich for my blood. Now, America doesn’t get the Abarth, but it does get the regular 500e. Our own Thomas Hundal got behind the wheel, and found it to be an absolute hoot, even in the basic 118-hp trim. It does have a limited range—only 141 miles—but it’s a city car par excellence, just ask anyone (not David).
The problem is that Fiat still isn’t shifting these things in any real numbers. The company sold 41 examples in Q1, 164 units in Q2, and 235 examples in Q3. I hate to say it, but those are rookie numbers. It’s a long way from the big splash you’d want to see when a new headline model hits the market.
Slow sales mean discounts. Where the 500e is concerned, they’re getting sizable. Bob Allen Motor Mall in Kentucky has a 2024 500e for a full $11,185 off MSRP. What that means is you can score a rad Italian electric hatch for just $23,095—that’s Corolla money. The Japanese hatch might be roomier and less likely to feature any quirky quality issues, but it’s also far less charming. It’s not a one-off, either—Bob Allen has another one for $10,000 off MSRP, too. These cars have been lurking around the Motor Mall for over 6 months, so it’s no surprise ol’ Bob Allen wants ’em gone.
In the low twenties, the Fiat 500e becomes pretty appealing. At its original MSRP of $34,095 including destination fees, it’s kind of hard to justify. There are other EVs—like the Hyundai Kona—already dipping beneath the $40,000 barrier, and they come with far more range and space to boot.
Other dealers have big discounts on the little Fiat, though not quite as severe. Down in Indiana, John Jones Auto Group will do you one for $27,020, a good $7,075 under MSRP. Big Star Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Fiat (not a typo) has a similar example on sale in Webster, Texas. Most of these are red, but you can get a white one at Taverna Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Fiat for $26,413 if you’re down in Florida.
If you want a higher trim model, options are more sparse. Still, they’re out there. Bomnin Doral has a Beauty model down in Florida for $32,495, a total of $5,100 under MSRP. Safford Automotive Group will do you a similar deal on a Music trim down in Virginia.
Basically, if you want a fancier color on your 500e? You’ll just have to hunt a little harder.
When it comes to the 500e, I get it—it’s a tough sell. Especially at full price. Drive one, though, and I think you’ll agree—it’s a magical little car. If you’ve got charging at home and a small commute, and you love peppy little automobiles, give one a chance. With a five-figure discount, it becomes a much more compelling proposition.
Older, More Worldy
As it turns out, Fiat isn’t just having trouble selling the 500e. There are plenty of Fiat 500Xs out there, gathering dust as they wait for an eager buyer to take pity on them. Some have been waiting for a long time.
There’s a Fiat dealership down in Santa Barbara that has a 2022 Fiat 500X Pop for sale for $24,995. It was listed 654 days ago—that’s almost two full years—and has been discounted $6,510 compared to MSRP.
Posner Park Fiat in Florida has a better deal, listing a 2023 model for $21,948—a total of $8,612 under MSRP. Thomson Fiat in Georgia has a similar deal, too. Meanwhile, Southern Fiat in Virginia will slash $11,585 off a 2023 model which they’ve had sitting for almost a full year.
It’s worth noting that it’s now December, and 2024 models are starting to look long in the tooth. If you’re buying a 2023 model, or something even older, you’re gonna want to see some serious cash on the hood.
Get In The Game
The most sobering statistic is one we highlighted last year. Fiat has more dealers in the US (336) than it does sales in the last quarter (316). On average, Fiat is selling less than 1 vehicle per dealership per quarter. Imagine working somewhere that sells Fiats and you don’t even move a single car in three months!
I will qualify this fact by pointing out that many of these dealerships are not solely Fiat franchises. Many are Chrysler/Dodge/Ram sites that have added on Fiat as well. Still, it’s a remarkably poor performance all around.
It’s worth noting that these problems don’t extend to Fiat globally. The company was actually the number 1 seller in the Stellantis stable. Its parent company is struggling with poor sales and the departure of its CEO. Meanwhile, Fiat has continued to post strong sales in markets like Europe and South America, where it has a range that extends to affordable SUVs and small trucks, rather than just tiny hatchbacks. Critics will argue that Fiat just doesn’t have the right cars to play in the United States, but ultimately, they’re giving it a red hot go regardless.
Still, Fiat will want to start posting some real numbers if it’s going to stick around Stateside. It’s ultimately sad to see one of the world’s longest-running manufacturers struggling to break a thousand sales year in, year out.
I’ll finish on this. If the Fiat 500e fits your lifestyle, it’s a really fun car. For under $25,000, I’d find it hard to ignore. There are a lot of caveats with this teeny EV, but still… market forces are doing some very fun things right now. Think on it!
Image credits: Lewin Day, Thomas Hundal, Cars.com via screenshot, Fiat
One of the TFL just leased one at $45 per month with Colorado State discounts. Buying one seems dumb given other electric vehicle depreciation problems.
Still far too much. Make the price $11K all-in out the door and we can talk.
And bear in mind, I LOVE Fiat 500s. I bought a ’13 Abarth brandy-spanking new. But these are just stupid.
Still too expensive.
If The Autopian were to ask how much would I pay, whenever they have an article about a car, I’d gladly answer it.
$15K.
No, it is not my problem if they lose money on cars that no one wants. It is their job to know what the Price-to-Range ratio is.
I checked the pricing up here in Canada and I saw some advertised for just under CAD$38K.
But when you realize that price doesn’t include shipping. So it’s more like $40K. And when you look at the details, up here it’s really just a $1000 discount.
So honestly, I’m not that impressed especially given that this thing has a shitty range of around 150 miles.
If I wanted a BEV with crappy range, I can pick up an old Tesla Model S 60 or 70 which you can get for dirt cheap these days… like this one for CAD$16K (which is about US$11K):
https://www.autotrader.ca/a/tesla/model%20s/north%20york/ontario/5_64603691_20190218140303847/
And at least with a Tesla, if you want to spend the money, you can upgrade it to a bigger/better battery pack.
Will Stellantis dealers support the 500e as well as a Tesla service center supports Teslas?
I doubt it.
No way these are fun enough for their limited use and overall costs. Even if the range wasn’t a problem, there’s the depreciation problem and I wouldn’t put my money on this being a dependable beater that will last well over 10 years without trouble to the point where the depreciation doesn’t matter (and there’s not a lot of overhead in that battery to afford to lose much range, especially if one lives in a cold climate). A Corolla hybrid isn’t much more than the lowest stated price here. It’s not fun, but it’s also a more practical car, very likely to be a lot less trouble, and the price difference would be made up in resale value alone.
BTW, never trust online pricing for Florida dealers. It seems that Florida law allows dealers to charge whatever they want in DOC fees. If you do a nationwide search for any car you’d like – on Cars.com or Autotrader – you will *always* find the the lowest listed prices are in Florida, but the OTD price will be the same as it is in any other state.
“According to sales stats from CarEdge, the new Fiat 500e is unfortunately one of the slowest selling cars in America right now. “
And that has been more or less the case everything selling under the Fiat brand for the last 5-10 years.
It boggles my mind that management still thinks its a good idea to throw good money after bad trying to make the Fiat brand ‘work’ in North America while continuing to starve Dodge and Chrysler for product.
Surprised these aren’t leasing for $50 a month at this point.
For $23k, I’m taking the Corolla. Or a used Prius Prime if I want some EV range for errands.
To lease one even at 200 a month, you are paying $7200 for the use of the car, and then Ally, Stellantis, or USBank takes it back, and will own it for, let’s say $30K minus the 7200 you paid.
None of these financial institutions want to be on the hook for $22,800 PER on a 3 year old electric Fiat. This is because as financial institutions, they want to make money, not burn it.
They would have way better luck doing the old “$7500 on the hood plus 0 percent for 84 months”
I’m just saying there have been some dirt cheap leases on Lease Hackr for the Nissan Ariya, Ioniq 5, Chevy Equinox/Blazer. If I want a EV that I am barely driving, I’ll just lease one of those. A little harder to park in the city I guess.
Yup, depending on where at, there’s some steals. I’m in Ohio, and I sell cars for Stellantis. With my dealer employee discount, all rebates, and only 10,000 miles per year, I would be paying $299 down, $299 a month. I just cant do that, when another 200 bucks a month will probably cover a Charger Daytona (once they get desperate)
This means that a used 500e could be competitively priced in a few years. But, they’re still built under Stellantis, and, with few sold, the amount of helpful info for DIY people will be comparatively small.
I like small cheerful cars, so I’ll keep it in mind—just not top of list.
Good points. I’d think a Bolt or Tesla 3 would be a better choice for an “e-beater” down the road.
The Bolt is currently at the top of the list as the whole Xitter kitchen sink thing severely sapped my interest in Tesla. Honestly, it may end up being a clean, well-cared for 2nd gen Prius instead
For Corolla money, I’d rather have the Corolla. Now, if this was an Abarth at this price, I might actually bite, but there’s not enough character in the world to make me pay twice for this thing what a decent used ICE Abarth costs. Or any number of other, much more usable “boring” cars. When it’s down to $15K or a heavily subsidized single-pay lease (something like $5K to cover lease, taxes and fees for 24 months), we’ll talk.
The 500X is an interesting thought as cheap-ish new transportation, but I’d be worried about FIAT’s overall longevity in the States, especially given its questionable quality reputation. And, ye gods, how depressing can an interior get???
Given what small car and EV depreciation curves look like, even at 10k+ off MSRP, you’re still in for a world of pain when you go to sell in 3-5 years. That said, if they’re desperate enough to move them, a lease under 250/mo with little to nothing down would probably move a lot of them as cheap commuters.
The used market is going to bake that $10k++ discount in. On top of the standard EV & Stellantis impact.
I’m going to take the Frank Reynolds’s dating system in a few years for poor selling evs. That’s when i come up, pick up the scraps, and feast like a mantis.