Hey all,
In another thread where I posted pictures of my FFE, Hybridbear asked about differences that I've noticed between the FFE and the Fiat 500e, which I've had for a year now. I figured I'd post it here in a more relevant section, with a few more additions now that I've gotten to drive the FFE a little more. I'll add to these as I think of them, and if you have any specific questions about the 500e, I'm sure I can get you an answer.
So far:
1. The FFE is more comfortable for bigger people. I'm 6'4", 240. I sit lower and the telescoping steering wheel is a huge asset for taller folk. The Fiat doesn't have a telescoping steering wheel and you sit a little higher in it. I fit in it fine, but I fit in the FFE better.
2. The "shifter" (it's just buttons) in the Fiat is a huge waste of space, and I hit my right knee on it when driving. They could have made it skinnier and avoided having that happen to people like me.
3. Surprisingly, the Fiat has a better use of trunk space. The actual trunk of the FFE is bigger, but when you lay down the back seats in the Fiat, it's flat from trunk door to front seats. The hump in the FFE for the battery really limits the single size of items you can put in there. For example, I just transported a 9,000 BTU rolling air conditioner in its carton in the Fiat, that would have never fit in the FFE.
4. The Fiat is significantly peppier by a large margin, especially from a rolling start. That little car is quick! The FFE also seems to have its sweet spot around the same speeds, it's just not on the same level.
5. The FFE has a quieter ride. The Fiat has a good amount of road noise.
6. The Fiat does not have Bluetooth streaming capability. There is an AUX jack, but I use streaming radio on my phone any time I'm in the car, so SYNC is much better for phone integration. The Fiat does have Bluetooth connection for hands free talking, so I was a little surprised to find out I couldn't Bluetooth stream.
7. The FFE has a relatively poor turning radius, it seems. Sure, the Fiat can turn tighter because of its shorter wheel base, but I have a 1978 Chevy Malibu station wagon that can turn tighter than the FFE, and it's probably 2 feet longer. But in comparing the 500e to the FFE, the Fiat is much more maneuverable into tight spaces.
8. I'm pretty sure the Fiat can go quite a bit further on a charge. IIRC, the EPA ranges are 87 for the 500e and 76 for the FFE, and there does seem to be at least that much of a difference in real world driving. I'll have to pay more attention this as I put some more miles on the FFE.
9. The 500e doesn't have a "L" setting. Now that I've gotten a little more wheel time in the FFE, I really like being able to pop down in "L" mode instead of getting into the brakes when I want to slow down. The 500e has relatively decent drag when coasting, but I personally prefer being able to apply maximum drag (regen) on the fly.
10. The Fiat can show actual KW demand in real time, during motor and generator operations. I don't think the FFE has the option to see the actual number (please correct me if I'm wrong, but I haven't seen it). It's interesting to be able to see the actual power number while you're driving.
11. Some people may not like this, but I love that the FFE is completely silent. The 500e will play a sound when less than 20 something MPH (25 I think?). It's not an obtrusive sound, but it's similar to the Fisker Karma if you've ever heard one of those.
12. The 500e shows speed in a digital read out, which also shows cruise setting in digital read out. I don't like that the FFE doesn't have that. My Fusion Hybrid showed the cruise setting in a digital read out, I don't know why the FFE doesn't do that.
13. The 500e has a GOM (guess-o-meter) and battery %, whereas the FFE has a GOM and a bar for battery level (no number). The GOM in the FFE is all over the place. My morning commute is a lot of downhill, traffic, and no climate control; which equates to very efficient driving. My afternoon commute is mostly freeway speed, uphill, and AC on, which is very inefficient driving. The GOM will give me my starting budget based on the last driving session, so when I get to work, I have a huge surplus, and when I get home, I have a huge deficit. In other words, it's not very accurate for my purposes. Having the actual battery percent would be nice because then I can say I used X% driving to work and X% driving home, which would give me a better idea of how much I'm using.
In another thread where I posted pictures of my FFE, Hybridbear asked about differences that I've noticed between the FFE and the Fiat 500e, which I've had for a year now. I figured I'd post it here in a more relevant section, with a few more additions now that I've gotten to drive the FFE a little more. I'll add to these as I think of them, and if you have any specific questions about the 500e, I'm sure I can get you an answer.
So far:
1. The FFE is more comfortable for bigger people. I'm 6'4", 240. I sit lower and the telescoping steering wheel is a huge asset for taller folk. The Fiat doesn't have a telescoping steering wheel and you sit a little higher in it. I fit in it fine, but I fit in the FFE better.
2. The "shifter" (it's just buttons) in the Fiat is a huge waste of space, and I hit my right knee on it when driving. They could have made it skinnier and avoided having that happen to people like me.
3. Surprisingly, the Fiat has a better use of trunk space. The actual trunk of the FFE is bigger, but when you lay down the back seats in the Fiat, it's flat from trunk door to front seats. The hump in the FFE for the battery really limits the single size of items you can put in there. For example, I just transported a 9,000 BTU rolling air conditioner in its carton in the Fiat, that would have never fit in the FFE.
4. The Fiat is significantly peppier by a large margin, especially from a rolling start. That little car is quick! The FFE also seems to have its sweet spot around the same speeds, it's just not on the same level.
5. The FFE has a quieter ride. The Fiat has a good amount of road noise.
6. The Fiat does not have Bluetooth streaming capability. There is an AUX jack, but I use streaming radio on my phone any time I'm in the car, so SYNC is much better for phone integration. The Fiat does have Bluetooth connection for hands free talking, so I was a little surprised to find out I couldn't Bluetooth stream.
7. The FFE has a relatively poor turning radius, it seems. Sure, the Fiat can turn tighter because of its shorter wheel base, but I have a 1978 Chevy Malibu station wagon that can turn tighter than the FFE, and it's probably 2 feet longer. But in comparing the 500e to the FFE, the Fiat is much more maneuverable into tight spaces.
8. I'm pretty sure the Fiat can go quite a bit further on a charge. IIRC, the EPA ranges are 87 for the 500e and 76 for the FFE, and there does seem to be at least that much of a difference in real world driving. I'll have to pay more attention this as I put some more miles on the FFE.
9. The 500e doesn't have a "L" setting. Now that I've gotten a little more wheel time in the FFE, I really like being able to pop down in "L" mode instead of getting into the brakes when I want to slow down. The 500e has relatively decent drag when coasting, but I personally prefer being able to apply maximum drag (regen) on the fly.
10. The Fiat can show actual KW demand in real time, during motor and generator operations. I don't think the FFE has the option to see the actual number (please correct me if I'm wrong, but I haven't seen it). It's interesting to be able to see the actual power number while you're driving.
11. Some people may not like this, but I love that the FFE is completely silent. The 500e will play a sound when less than 20 something MPH (25 I think?). It's not an obtrusive sound, but it's similar to the Fisker Karma if you've ever heard one of those.
12. The 500e shows speed in a digital read out, which also shows cruise setting in digital read out. I don't like that the FFE doesn't have that. My Fusion Hybrid showed the cruise setting in a digital read out, I don't know why the FFE doesn't do that.
13. The 500e has a GOM (guess-o-meter) and battery %, whereas the FFE has a GOM and a bar for battery level (no number). The GOM in the FFE is all over the place. My morning commute is a lot of downhill, traffic, and no climate control; which equates to very efficient driving. My afternoon commute is mostly freeway speed, uphill, and AC on, which is very inefficient driving. The GOM will give me my starting budget based on the last driving session, so when I get to work, I have a huge surplus, and when I get home, I have a huge deficit. In other words, it's not very accurate for my purposes. Having the actual battery percent would be nice because then I can say I used X% driving to work and X% driving home, which would give me a better idea of how much I'm using.