Fiat Multipla JTD 105 ELX review
by David Finlay (3 May 2000)
Not many cars these days make pedestrians stop in their tracks, stare, and continue staring as they swivel through 180 degrees, unwilling or perhaps unable to lose sight of this strange apparition. But the Fiat Multipla does that.
Like it or loathe it, the Multipla's styling is unique. There is very little in its shape to suggest that it is a rival for any car yet devised, though of course it's fighting in the mini-MPV market against the Vauxhall Zafira, Renault Scenic and Mazda Premacy, all of which are suddenly looking rather dull and unadventurous.
Some cars hide their true natures under a bland exterior. Others look as though they are much more exciting than they really are. The Multipla looks like exactly what it is - a complete rethink of the way cars of its type should be designed.
So, for example, it has six seats. That usually means arranging the seats in three rows - but why? The front and rear rows are far apart from each other, and the people in them can't communicate without raising their voices. So why not try two rows of three instead? Everyone is now sitting close to everyone else, and the car does not have to be especially long to accomodate them all.
To open up the floor space, the handbrake is on the right hand side of the car instead of in the centre, and that's a perfectly logical place to put it. The gearlever is in the dashboard, just a couple of inches from where your left hand sits on the steering wheel, which is exactly where it should be (no coincidence that most racing cars have their gearlever equally close to the wheel). Some other MPVs have similar arrangements, but I've never found one in which these controls came so easily to hand as they do in the Multipla.
All the gauges are in the centre, and angled towards the driver. Strange at first, but completely natural within a few miles. There's lots of interior space, and the view out front is tremendous, though the view out back isn't nearly as good unless you remove the rear headrests.
It's not at all bad to drive, either. The diesel engine in the test car was a little noisy, but it performs well, and the extra width - inescapable in something that can seat three people side by side - means it holds the road remarkably well for something so tall.
You do have to watch out for the width, though, both on narrow roads and when manoeuvring into parking spaces. Still, car park choreography is helped by the warning buzzer which sounds at shorter intervals the closer you get to whatever solid object lies immediately behind, until it eventually goes into "don't say I didn't warn you" mode by sounding continuously. This is an idea that always sounds gimmicky to me, but it works very well in practice.
In fact, that really sums up the whole car - a strange idea which turns out to be very sensible in the real world. Some of those stunned onlookers may think Fiat mad for making such a machine, or you likewise for buying it. They're wrong on both counts.
Second opinion: Never mind how weird the exterior is, what about inside? The central console looks as if it was modelled by an alien from some early sci-fi film, and have you ever seen such bizarre doorhandles? Such oddball colour contrasts? And, outside again, how about front lights at three entirely different levels? But hooray for Fiat's Centro Stile. The staff there were given their heads, a clean sheet of paper each, and free admission to the company's psychiatric clinic. It all worked. This is a great-fun machine, especially with the junior version of the JTD engine as fitted to the Alfa Romeo 156. People may think about laughing, but on country roads not many of them will outpace Fiat's creature from outer space. Ross Finlay.
Add new comment