ilPistone.com: E' PROPRIO UNA BUONA IDEA: AUTOCAR

Prime impressioni di guida molto positive della nuova fiat Idea.

Il titolo dell'articolo:
SMALL CAR, BIG IDEA

Fiat is not the first with a mini MPV- that honour almost certainly goes to Toyota's now largely ignored Yaris Verso -but the Idea may well be the best in a fast-expanding class. Brilliantly packaged, immensely practical, good looking and, most significantly, priced considerably below the Vauxhall Meriva, the Idea could well be the model (with more than a little help from the Panda) to kick start a product-led Fiat revival.
Here, then, is the winner the Italians need as never before. Both the Idea and Panda are small cars, the species Fiat has always done best. If our experience driving the Idea in Italy is anything to go by, the two are likely to be confused because, superficially, they look alike, and share similar high-bodied proportions. In reality, however, the Idea is much bigger, positioned above the Punto, one-and-a-half classes higher than the new Panda.
Idea (say E-day-err, to be cool), took three years and cost a little over £300m in R&D - a comparatively small sum by industry standards - yet the result is a new body style and far more contemporary interior treatment. Under the skin, Idea is close to a stretched Punto, with a wheelbase extended 48mm to 2508mm, but the real secret to its roominess is a 180mm increase in height to 1660mm. In length, the 3930mm Idea (Punto 3865mm) is a mere 64mm shorter than the Multipla, Fiat's quirky and much wider and taller six-seat MPV, which towers over the latest model.
Fiat says the Idea's styling was a shared effort between Giugiaro and Fiat's Centre Stile. We'd guess the initial theme came from Giugiaro. In appearance it's not unlike the Meriva in profile ? note those four separate side windows -though the concave body styles remind us of the first Punto, a classic Giugiaro original. Boring grille aside, the mono-volume design is neat and clean, and asinoffensive as it is handsome.
It's on board where the Idea really shows off its cleverness and new-found
attention to detail. No other Fiat, regardless of class, exudes such a perception of interior quality. Fiat is desperate to save every possible euro, but it doesn't show in the Idea's classy, soft-finished interior.
I'm not saying it's as good as Audi-best because it's not, but the Italians are rightly proud of what they've achieved. I hope they won't be offended if I tell you that the dashboard, high-mounted central instruments aside, looks and feels very German. Its flat, rectangular-themed console could easily come from a Vauxhall, designed and often built in Germany, remember. But what immediately wins you over is the sense of space,
the attractive two-tone colour scheme and the level of standard equipment, safety and otherwise. Nothing in the interior is shared with the Punto which, despite the recent facelift, now feels tired and undone compared to the Idea, which is so obviously from a more modem generation. Bits like the newly designed steering column stalks work with a polished, quality feel that hopefully will find its way into all future Fiats.
The roominess is a reality, too. You sit high: the hip-point for the driver is 40mm above the already lofty Punto position.
Adjust the steering wheel (height and reach) and seat for my lanky 6ft 4in frame and then try the back seat for space.
Amazingly, there's room for me behind me, knees a couple of inches away from the front seat back, my thighs properly supported. That's more comfort than either a Meriva or Ford Fusion can offer.
Access through the tall doors is terrific and the central rear three-point seatbelt is easy to reach in the roof. In Turin they reckon the Idea's worth four NCAP stars.
There are 25 interior bins, trays and pockets, including two shallow lidded boxes in the top of the dash and two fold-down trays in a roof console that also includes a second, convex-shaped interior mirror to enhance rearward visibility.
Talking of which, thick, obtrusive windscreen pillars are the norm in most MPVs and the Idea suffers badly in this regard.
On twisty roads and at junctions the driver has to look around the A-pillar to make sure it's not hiding a car or pedestrian.
Fiat has taken a slightly different tack to Vauxhall in the context of rear-seat flexibility. You can't turn the Idea into a four-seater by moving the outer seats inwards. What you can do is slide the seats separately on rails and adjust the individual seat backrests through a wide range. Where it really works is in the ability to flop the seat backs forward onto the rear cushions or, if more space and a flat rear load space are required, fold the entire seat forward, the action helped along by a small gas strut. The rear seat
back is split 40:20:40, the cushion 60:40, a central armrest that folds down to form a small table accounting for the difference. You can also flop the front passenger seat down if you need to carry very long loads. Ingenious, though the outer rear belts are too easily caught up when you need to utilise the rear seats again. In all there are 32 combinations of rear seating positions.
Basic boot space of 320 litres is 23 litres up on the Punto, 30 litres smaller than the Meriva, but this expands to 1420 litres (340 above the Punto), 10 litres more than the Vauxhall, with the rears folded away.
Unfortunately, you do need to lift luggage over a high sill, which is apparently essential for body rigidity and crash safety.
Does all this interior room and extra MPV height turn the Idea into a rolling, sluggish, van? Well, it doesn't set out to drive like a hot hatch, but then that's hardly the Idea's role. But neither is it boring to drive, and for that we should be grateful.
Fiat's terrific 1.3 Multijet diesel (soon to appear in the Meriva, by the way) impressed us greatly in the Punto. Here, however, it has another 220kg to cart around. That blunts acceleration and economy - the combined cycle fuel consumption moves from the Punto's 62.8mpg to a still-excellent 53.4mpg, and the official 15.4sec to 62mph is two seconds slower - but because the compact, light, second-generation common-rail diesel is willing and strong from 1800 to 4000rpm, the Idea feels quicker than it is.
Short gear ratios help, for the engine's character encourages a spirited driving style, though the gearchange, mounted on an extension of the console, is notchy, and the brake and accelerator are too close together, at least on left hookers. Apart from a typical oil-burner's rattle at idle, you're not aware of Mr Diesel's combustion concept, for it is wonderfully smooth and, by small car standards, quiet. An 85mph cruise is relaxed and effortless.
Concerned that the higher centre of gravity would induce a high level of body roll, and roll speed, the engineers firmed up the springs and dampers by about 20 per cent over the equivalent Punto diesel.
What roll there is, is well managed, so the Idea changes direction quickly and positively. You can throw it about, safe in the knowledge that the chassis will take a good deal more power than is on offer.
The mild understeer is well balanced and doesn't degenerate into a tiresome plough. The electrically assisted steering lacks any real feel, but it's quick and accurate enough and well suited to the Idea's role. As on the Punto, the driver can choose the level of weighting between an ultra-light 'city' mode and a heavier setting, via a button, at parking speeds.
A definitive judgement on ride quality, an all-too-frequent Fiat failing, must wait for our road test. On Italian roads it works well, and is softer and more compliant than the handling suggests. There is an occasional bounciness, especially from the back seat, that does not bode well for the UK, but it certainly rides more comfortably than the Punto. We'll see. When the Idea arrives in the UK in February, Fiat plans to restrict the engine range to the 1.3 Multijet and the new 16v 94bhp 1.4-litre petrol, offering both with a choice of conventional five-speed manual gearbox or Dualogic clutchless change. Currently, the 99bhp 1.9 JTD is listed to appear in the UK. Prices of the three-tiered range -in Active, Dynamic and Eleganza trim, like the Punto, Panda and Ulysee ? are expected to span a range between £10,000 and £12,000, the diesel being priced about £850 above the petrol. That's around a grand less than the Meriva.
Of the 130,000 Ideas Fiat plans to build in 2004, between 7000 and 8000 are expected to come to the UK. Don't be surprised if demand exceeds these modest volumes, nor if Punto sales suffer. In terms of showroom appeal, the Idea has it all over its sister model. Nice to know Fiat still builds terrific small cars.