The Fiat 500L is a longer wheelbase, five door (it is a hatchback) variant of the standard supermini. It was recently awarded a maximum five stars in the Euro NCAP testing schedule. An overall score of 83/100 was awarded, including 94% for adult occupant protection, 78% for child occupant protection, 65% for pedestrian protection and 71% for driving assistance safety systems.
Best of all is the number of active security systems that make the car even safer than just having a rigid structure. These include:
ASR (Anti Slip Regulation) system, which optimises traction at any speed, with the help of the brakes and engine management, allowing the Fiat 500L to cope easily on low-grip road surfaces.
Hill-holder: the system that assists the driver in starting-off uphill by applying the brakes for about two seconds, thus making hill starts easier without requiring the driver to press the brake pedal or use the hand brake.
MSR (Motor Schleppmoment Regelung): when there is a brisk gear change in poor grip conditions, the MSR function intervenes, restoring engine torque and preventing the wheels from locking and spinning.
DST (Driving Steering Torque): the system improves both driving safety and handling performance. The active electronic steering carries out corrections automatically and also controls oversteer on surfaces with low grip in all driving conditions.
ERM (Electronic Rollover Mitigation) is the function which intervenes when a wheel leaves the road surface: in fact, whenever an extreme dynamic movement is detected, the ERM helps to restabilise the vehicle and returns control of the car to the driver.
This should be one very difficult car to crash indeed. I’ve no doubt that, much like the standard 500, this Fiat will be seen everywhere. I’m desperate for an Abarth version!
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