This is the new Fiat 500X Sport, the company’s
latest addition to the range after the Urban and Cross models, claiming to be
the, well, sportiest of them all.
The new range-topping edition of the Euro-spec 500X
comes with a model-specific sports suspension that drops the ride height by 13
mm and can be fitted with sticky 225/40 tires mounted on 19-inch alloy wheels
as an option.
Under the bonnet lies the most powerful engine in
the 500X range, namely the turbocharged 1.3-liter FireFly petrol unit with 147
HP, which is paired to a dual-clutch automatic transmission. Fiat says
that the steering has also been recalibrated for better precision and more
feedback while the suspension utilizes trick dampers with Frequent Selective
Damping (FSD) technology front and rear.
You can also have the new 500X Sport with the rest
of the engines in the range, combined with front-wheel drive. These include the
base 1.0-liter FireFly petrol with 118 HP, the 1.3-liter Multijet
diesel with 94 HP and the 1.6-liter Multijet with 117 HP.
The result is a model that
offers “an 8% increase in lateral acceleration” compared to a 500X Cross riding
on 18-inch wheels, with the new suspension tuning “reducing understeer by 26%,
and oversteer, in extreme conditions, by 17%”.
The exterior of the new 500X Sport wears an
exclusive “Red Seduction” paint job. The bodywork also features titanium grey
details, including the handles, bumper inserts, door mirror caps and more.
There are also deeper side skirts and wheel arches, a diffuser-style rear
bumper and a dual-chrome exhaust, as well as full LED headlights coupled with
LED fog lamps.
Inside there are specific TFT graphics on the
instrument cluster, an aluminum gear knob, a techno-leather steering wheel with
a flat bottom, a titanium grey inlay on the dashboard, black fabric seats with
vinyl inserts and special stitching in red and grey. Customers will also be
able to option Alcantara cover for the steering wheel and the instrument panel
cover.
As the new range-topping version, the 500X Sport
comes pretty much loaded, as features like Traffic Sign Recognition, Lane
Assist, Speed Advisor, a 7-inch Uconnect infotainment system with Android Auto
and Apple CarPlay, automatic climate control and cruise control are all part of
its standard equipment.