Let the slagging begin - I think I'd like one, for the color alone: The new EV 500 Abarth-e

Lowtechprime said:
Just hoping the Electric Abarth is coming to the States.... (And that it doesn't cost $60,000) The range on my 2015 500e has dropped pretty sharply this last year...😫 I fear it won't be long before it lacks a useful range, and there doesn't seem to be any viable battery replacement strategy as of yet...
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I think I saw the Abarth-e in the high 30k euro range. So if it comes here, $45k? The 500e batteries get 10 years, 150k if they're sold in Ca., unlike the rest of the country I believe? Just read an article about a guy who bought a BMW i3 for $10k, and BMW had to replace the battery because it was under 70% I think - not sure if that's a state policy, or a manufacturer's policy.
That's still the big mystery about EV cars - at 10 years, if you're lucky enough to make it that far, what does it cost to keep the car, $10-$15k in battery costs? Jury's still out in my opinion on how long you’d keep an EV, but when there's a verdict, I'll be in the market. Maybe the Abarth-e will be an affordable USED car by then...lol
 
Lucky to get 10 years? The evidence is showing properly managed batteries are lasting much longer. I dont know if Fiat air cools or uses the entire battery.... Tesla has excellent Battery management and they are holding up very well. My own car is 8 years old with 100,000 miles and I've lost 12-15 miles.

But lets say 10 years from now the battery is the same price it is today, under warranty.

10 years.....$15,000 battery is $1,500 a year.

$1,500 a year is $125 a month.

$125 a month is $31.25 a week.

Here in St Louis, $31.25 gets you about 10.5 gallons of gas. At 30 MPG that 10.5 lets you travel 315 miles.

Before solar I was paying 50 cents every 30 miles in electric. 315 miles in my electric would cost $5.25

Weekly difference in fuel cost is $26.

$26 times 52 weeks is $1,352 times 10 years is $13,520.

So in 10 years it cost $13,520 more to fuel the gas car than the electric. That is a certain cost. Over 10 years if the battery fails completely, and the price stays static the battery really cost $1,480. Thats if it fails completely, which is unlikely.

That's not figuring Fluids, filters and check engine **** that always comes up.


When Prius showed up years ago, the same argument was made. People would call the dealer for battery cost and since they were all under warranty and there was no aftermarket supplier the price was off the rails stupid.

Toyota warranties Prius batteries for 10 years. One can get a rebuilt battery for an 11 year old prius for $1,250. No reason not to think as demand increases the other electrics will have a similar situation.

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Chris-St Louis said:
I'm curious abut your battery range.... How much did you loose, how old is the battery, how many miles?
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The Fiat's battery pack is liquid cooled .. We used to get between 75-110 miles depending on how we drove, or hills etc... Now it's more like 50-75 miles... It's a 2015, 63,000 miles... We already tried to get Fiat to replace it before the warranty ran out (8 years), but they said no...😡
 
Lowtechprime said:
The Fiat's battery pack is liquid cooled .. We used to get between 75-110 miles depending on how we drove, or hills etc... Now it's more like 50-75 miles... It's a 2015, 63,000 miles... We already tried to get Fiat to replace it before the warranty ran out (8 years), but they said no...😡
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Yup, I hear this from other people too. Will companies continue to manufacture specific batteries for 20 years? I suppose China will, lol. Order your battery on Alibaba. It’s amazing how people forget they often paid a $15k premium for an EV as well. Without govt. refunds it would be out of our price range. EV may be the future for short-haul trips, but I think hybrids have a better chance of mass-acceptance. Our neighbor’s had her three-year-old Bolt battery replaced twice now. Lucky she has a warranty.
 
tvmaster said:
Yup, I hear this from other people too. Will companies continue to manufacture specific batteries for 20 years? I suppose China will, lol. Order your battery on Alibaba. It’s amazing how people forget they often paid a $15k premium for an EV as well. Without govt. refunds it would be out of our price range. EV may be the future for short-haul trips, but I think hybrids have a better chance of mass-acceptance. Our neighbor’s had her three-year-old Bolt battery replaced twice now. Lucky she has a warranty.
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Its not like the battery internals are specfic to the car. Just the box they are held in. Batteries will be remanfactured like every other auto part in the history of cars. 20 years from now it will be going into a autozone and picking one up.

Heard the same stuff about Fuel injection back in the 80s.

Lets look at the Fiat Battery internals - Fast forward to 9:00


Lithium Batteries are happiest when they have 2 things.

- They are at 100F or less.
- They are in a state of charge between 20-80 percent.

I don't know enough about Fiat, but if they liquid cool and heat that takes care of one. But, I bet it uses 100% of the battery because its so small.

(Edit - I wonder if the Guess-O-Meter has adjusted itself to you driving technique? It does learn the drivers habits and gives a range based on that algorithm.See Here -> https://www.fiat500owners.com/threads/guess-o-meter-actual-charge.151245/)

Tesla does a great job at giving their batteries those 2 things and they are lasting very long.
Nissan did neither on first generation Leaf and they didn't last.


So the car is still usable, and he paid $15,000 to help keep American troops and treasure here.

$15,000 over 8 years is $1,875 a year

$1,875 a year is $156.25 a month.

$156.25 a month is $39 a week.

$39 a week here in St Louis ($3/gallon) is 13 gallons.

13 gallons at 30 MPG is 390 miles.

30 Miles of electric here is 50 cents.... So 390 miles cost $6.50. A $32.50 a week difference. That's $1,690 a year or over 8 years $13,5000

And that's not considering fluids/fuel/check engine light stuff.

And the car is still driving......

At worst its a wash compared to gas. Using general numbers.

Ive taken many extended trips with my tesla and jaguar.... Not a big deal.

A 500 Gas or electric is a lousy distance car.... Right tool for the job.
 
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I think a 500 gas would get 30 average. Tried for apples to apples as much as I could.


None of my commute fleet is Fluid Fuel. The Fiat is , but I use that for TopGear cosplay and I have a Pickup truck I use for pickup ****.

Gas is just too expensive.
 
ng_randolph said:
Just about 20%, but only in the UK. In the rest of Europe they will wonder what century you just came from if you start talking about gallons.
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The world is a confusing place…I DO enjoy saying “liters per 100km” to an American though…
 
ng_randolph said:
But those numbers are for tiny cars and large (imperial) gallons, no?
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What we call a hatchback or family car will get you 55mpg on a freeway cruise. Ok the imperial gallon may be the issue here but it’s only 20% difference so 30mpg still doesn’t make sense, more like 38. The 1Ltr 500 could get 30mpg if you thrash it but realistically it will be around the 38 US mpg mark.

Fiat 500 (2024) mpg, costs & reliability

Read Parkers' expert advice for the Fiat 500 running costs, mpg, fuel economy, how it performs compared to its rivals and more.
www.parkers.co.uk www.parkers.co.uk
 
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NEG said:
What we call a hatchback or family car will get you 55mpg on a freeway cruise. Ok the imperial gallon may be the issue here but it’s only 20% difference so 30mpg still doesn’t make sense, more like 38. The 1Ltr 500 could get 30mpg if you thrash it but realistically it will be around the 38 US mpg mark.

Fiat 500 (2024) mpg, costs & reliability

Read Parkers' expert advice for the Fiat 500 running costs, mpg, fuel economy, how it performs compared to its rivals and more.
www.parkers.co.uk www.parkers.co.uk
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We get around 24mpg (U.S.) in the 2017 500 Abarth. Others I read about get 35. I have absolutely no idea how, unless they aren’t having any fun at all…
 
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