Abarth 600e Interior Layout & Technology
Interior
What is it like on the inside?
As you probably realise by now, this largely depends on which trim you've chosen. The Scorpionissima gains bucket seats with the swankier upholstery, which does more to create a sense of occasion over the Fiat version.
One niggle is the vents in the backs of the bucket seats: should you be at odds with your rear passengers (and you will, because they won't have any legroom), they've got easy access to your kidneys. Death by a thousand pokes.
Advertisement - Page continues below
The Scorpionissima also gets more badging and Alcantara in places like the centre console cover, whereas the 600e makes do with vanilla Stellantis parts. It's a shame only 1,949 will be getting the top treatment. How's the tech?
The 10.25in infotainment screen is responsive and easy to navigate. There's a TomTom-backed satnav as standard, but we found that the map display wasn't very intuitive to follow. Fortunately there's Apple/Android connectivity as standard too, so you can deploy your app of choice.
The menus are laid out well though, and Abarth has even thrown in some funky game-like gauges and readouts for when (!) you hit the track, measuring things like g forces and torque. You also get ambient lighting, a six-speaker audio kit and a few USB slots – though only one for your back passengers to fight over.
The interior SFX need some work – the indicators sound like a slow handclap and the warning bongs from the safety kit are infernally loud. Fortunately you can program the latter to turn off with a long press of a dashboard switch.
Advertisement - Page continues below
Electrical gremlins raised their ugly little heads too – on our UK test the car spent a couple of days turning the speed limit warnings straight back on after we'd switched them off, the electric tailgate worked two times out of five, and the start button was a lottery too. This is what will pass for character in the EV era.
Is it spacious?
A lot of small crossovers look bigger than they actually are, and the same goes for the 600e: there's lots of headroom but a questionable amount of legroom. Front seat passengers have decent footwell space but at the cost of any meaningful room in the rear. So either those up front are happy, or nobody's happy.
In the Scorpionissima those cutouts in the bucket seats add a little nook for you to stick your knees in, but you'd have to be a glass-half-full type to see that as a win.
The boot measures 360 litres – 40 less than the Alfa Junior – and 1,231 litres with the seats popped down. It's bigger than the Alpine A290's boot, but nothing to write home about.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Auto Blog
3 hours ago
- Auto Blog
Major Nissan Supplier Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy
The tier-one supplier cites tariffs, COVID, and the failing to adapt to the EV market as the reasons for its downfall. A perfect storm In a move that emphasizes the financial pressures faced by major global auto suppliers, one of the largest tier-one suppliers in the world has recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States. Marelli supplies lighting systems, electronics, and other critical components to automakers like Nissan, Jeep, Dodge, and Ram. Its parent company, Stellantis, said in its court filings on June 11 that it faced a perfect storm of pandemic-related disruptions, global tariffs, and industry-wide shifts toward electrification prior to its decision to file. 0:02 / 0:09 2025 Ford Maverick: 4 reasons to love it, 2 reasons to think twice Watch More A picture taken on October 22, 2018, in Corbetta, west of Milan, shows the headquarters of the Italian multinational company Magneti Marelli. — Source: Getty Images COVID, semiconductor shortage, and tariffs affected the company For an industry used to navigating cyclical turbulence, Marelli's story reflects just how volatile the landscape has become after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. In court documents, Marelli CEO David Slump pointed to long-running disruptions that occurred during the pandemic, including labor shortages and difficulty sourcing raw materials. As if that wasn't a huge problem already, Marelli also got caught up in the global semiconductor shortage, which limited production and halted factories of major automakers and their suppliers. However, Slump says that the final nail in Marelli's coffin was the impact of wide-reaching auto industry tariffs that were imposed earlier this year. Back in March, the Trump Administration announced a new round of levies on imported vehicles and auto parts. For a company like Marelli—formed from the 2019 merger of Fiat Chrysler's parts division, Magneti Marelli, and Calsonic Kansein, a Japanese supplier owned by American private equity firm KKR, and heavily reliant on international trade—the tariffs killed any potential to recover financially. 'Marelli was severely affected by tariffs due to its import/export-focused business,' Slump said in the filing. 'Macroeconomic headwinds associated with the imposition of tariffs in countries around the world' worsened the company's liquidity at a critical time. Nissan Oppama Plant — Source: Nissan Autoblog Newsletter Autoblog brings you car news; expert reviews and exciting pictures and video. Research and compare vehicles, too. Sign up or sign in with Google Facebook Microsoft Apple By signing up I agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge that I have read the Privacy Policy . You may unsubscribe from email communication at anytime. Marelli tried to adapt to EV demand As automakers shifted resources toward electric vehicles, suppliers like Marelli became involved in a capital-intensive rat race to retool and adapt to a fast-changing marketplace. Billions were spent across the industry to create and support groundbreaking new EV platforms, but suppliers like Marelli were left with fewer orders and the financial burden when EV demand slowed and automakers adjusted or delayed their EV timelines to react to the market. Marelli's Chapter 11 filing is a warning of what's ahead for others in the space. The supplier landscape is changing amid uncertainty and shifting trends in powertrain electrification, and suppliers operate on tight margins. Companies like Marelli feel financial pressure without consistent production volumes or stable regulatory environments. 2026 Jeep Cherokee — Source: Jeep But while Marelli is going through bankruptcy filings, it should be noted that it isn't a liquidation (liquidations occur in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy) but rather a strategic restructuring. Marelli says it intends to continue operating throughout the Chapter 11 process thanks to over $1 billion in debtor-in-possession financing from its lenders. Marelli has backing from more than 80% of its senior lenders, and its plan is to convert a large portion of the company's roughly $5 billion in debt into equity, essentially giving control of the business to its creditors. Currently, the company has some unfinished business with customers. According to Automotive News, Stellantis and Nissan are the two largest unsecured creditors listed in the bankruptcy filing. Marelli said it owes Stellantis $454 million and $313 million to Nissan. 'For Nissan, securing a stable supply chain is essential. We are committed to support Marelli to maintain its revenue generation and will coordinate with Marelli's other customers while actively monitoring the supply chain to prevent disruptions,' Nissan told AutoNews in an emailed statement. Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack — Source: Stellantis Final thoughts For now, Marelli insists that operations will continue, but its situation is an example of how interconnected and fragile the modern automotive ecosystem is. Tariffs, pandemics, supply shortages, and technology transitions aren't just speed bumps for automakers; they could mean life or death for the companies that keep the car industry running behind the scenes. Marelli may be the first, but it probably won't be the last. About the Author James Ochoa View Profile
Top Gear
5 hours ago
- Top Gear
BYD Dolphin Surf Review 2025
One of the cheapest electric superminis. And for buyers coming out of a three year old Skoda Fabia, the equipment list will feel like science fiction. It's kitted out with a full suite of connectivity and driver assist. You can unlock and drive it from your smartwatch, and send a link to a friend so they can do it too. External power means you could run a small cook stove in the wild. All of which is right there with the £18,650 base model. Advertisement - Page continues below It comes from BYD, a brand with mushrooming sales and a colossal footprint. Shortly after launch, manufacture of the Dolphin Surf moves to a vast brand-new plant in Hungary. You could accuse BYD of bait and switch with that entry price. It's for a relatively small battery car with just 137 miles of range. Fine as a commuter car, but you'd soon tire of motorway work: call it half an hour of charging for every hour at 70mph. So you're nudged into the middle Boost trim, which ups the electric range to 200 miles. But it costs another £3,300. That said, we suspect BYD knows this is the one you want, so at launch there's a deposit contribution bringing the Boost as close as £10 a month more on PCP than the small-battery Active. Rivals begin with the Dacia Spring and Leapmotor T03 at the bottom end. Although they're cheaper, they're smaller. Heartland rivals are the Stellantis pair, the Fiat Grande Panda and Citroën ë-C3. At the top of the Dolphin Surf range you draw level with the base Renault 5. Which is a problem for BYD. Advertisement - Page continues below How big is it? It's not quite a supermini because it's narrow, so fits only two abreast in the back. Same as the Hyundai Inster. And it's tall, so on its little wheels it looks a bit gawky. It's 4.0 metres in length, a squeak longer than a Toyota Yaris. EV-native underfloor design and the tall roof help with interior space. There's plenty of legroom in the back, and a deep boot. But a 'city car' is the bus. Surely this needs to be more than an urban runabout? Fair point. And to look at the spec, you might think the bigger-battery version will tackle proper journeys. First, its space means no-one is going to get cramp or face a Ryanair-style baggage policy. The seats are comfy and the stereo is fine. But the screen system will drive you bananas. Not least because unless you use Spotify (no other music source) you can't have any kind of navigation indication displayed at the same time as the music track name. So we were endlessly swiping and jabbing between the two display modes. More fundamentally, the ride isn't great, with turbulent low-speed bounce giving way to a float on faster bumps. On a motorway you're assailed by tiring wind noise. The ADAS features aren't much help. And unless you've bought the relatively expensive Comfort spec, which has more power, you'll be mashing the accelerator to accelerate up a slip road. On the bright side, this meek performance is a key to its real-world efficiency. Numbers then? The Active spec has a 30kWh battery giving 137 miles WLTP. Its 89bhp motor manages 0-62mh in 11.1 seconds. Boost ups the battery size to 43.2kWh, and range is now 200 miles. Same motor as before. But performance dips a little because of extra weight and perhaps its larger tyres (on 16s not 15s) gearing it up. It's 12.1s 0-62mph. Sorry, but it feels slower than that. For extra poke, get the Comfort, which has the Boost's battery but a usefully spicier 156bhp, cutting the 0-62mph to 9.1s. Range drops marginally to 193 miles WLTP. On a motorway the real drop will be more, unless you can resist using the extra power to hit the overtaking lane. That bigger battery charges at 85kW peak, for a half-hour 10-80 per cent top-up. Both batteries are BYD's robust and cost-efficient LFP chemistry, so you won't harm them by frequently discharging going close to flat and back to 100 per cent. Use the capacity you pay for. Our choice from the range BYD 65kW Boost 43kWh 5dr Auto £21,885 See prices and specs What's the verdict? ' Truth be told we found much of the Dolphin Surf's fancy tech – the display system and driver assists – annoying rather than helpful ' Can a million drivers be wrong? In China and South America, total sales of this car – known as the Seagull and Dolphin Mini – have already sold that number. But BYD took a while to intro it here, to revise the structure and safety systems in pursuit of all five EuroNCAP stars (the actual test isn't published as we write), and improve the sense of quality. Both those things are admirable. The cabin space and seat comfort are excellent. People are going to look at the rest of the equipment and wonder why the Citroen and Fiat rivals are so sparse. But truth be told we found much of the Dolphin Surf's fancy tech – the display system and driver assists – annoying rather than helpful. We'd likely soon default to phone mirroring and, y'know, driving. And when driving we'd notice the lack of polish and engagement. Small cars should be cheeky fun. This is off-target.
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Daily Mail
RAY MASSEY: Aston Martin helps usher in era of the 'iDashboard'
Nowadays, modern cars have so much software on board they are often dubbed 'computers on wheels.' Well, brace yourself: the British luxury performance carmaker Aston Martin is the official launch partner for the new Apple Car Play Ultra dashboard system – marking a new beginning for increasingly digitised vehicles. The new Ultra option is set to be rolled out across the entire motor industry, with more affordable family marques such as Kia, Hyundai and Genesis expected to be among those next in line for the update. Despite being an early adopter of the Apple Mac computer (I wrote a book on one in the early 1990s) and a long-time user of the iPhone and iPad, I must admit to being a bit of a slowcoach when it comes to using my smartphone to control key elements of my car. However, taking an Aston Martin DBX fitted with Ultra for a drive, I was among the first to 'road test' the new system – which marks a great step forward in two significant regards. First, while the standard Apple Car Play allows the driver to link their iPhone to the central dashboard screen, the new Ultra System extends that facility to the driver's instrument cluster behind the steering wheel. I could scroll between a variety of driver screen and instrument cluster options – from analogue-looking speedometer dials, to more linear versions and simple numbers. Also included is the ability to display maps and media in full screen, allowing drivers to design their own multi-screen set-up, and the freedom to modify the layout. The added twist is that each manufacturer can, with the help of Apple, create a bespoke design to suit the individual car brand, including a selection of scroll-through options for the look of speedometer and tachometer dials, from which the driver can choose. It all seemed to gel together very well. And I'd never have known that the Car Play Ultra digital driver screen in front of me wasn't the standard one on the car (which is very different). A lot of work has gone into that. Updates will also mean the system can be continually finessed. The system also allowed me to manage vehicle functions such as air conditioning, temperature control, satnav music and radio, phone and so on. One advantage with the Aston DBX, however, was that like its sports cars, it also retains many physical buttons. So if you are sceptical about touchscreen or Siri voice control, you can still resort to actual knobs, switches and dials. And I imagine this is just the start: as the Ultra system expands, I expect AI will play an increasing role, in both controlling, but perhaps also driving our cars. British luxury performance carmaker Aston Martin is the official launch partner for the new Apple Car Play Ultra dashboard system Apple Car Play (along with the rival Android Auto ) is now extremely popular either as standard or as a 'must have' option on modern cars, especially among younger drivers. So I did my Ultra drive from Aston Martin's smart boutique headquarters at Gaydon in leafy Warwickshire – a real-life James Bond-style Q-Branch for sporty luxury cars and gadgets. I could tailor the system's background colours and 'wallpaper' patterns to match my mood. Another key benefit over standard Car Play is that drivers no longer have to log out of an app to alter certain screen functions – it all works together seamlessly. Launch-partner Aston Martin said it had worked extremely closely in partnership with Apple to ensure CarPlay Ultra is consistent with their own brand's design philosophy, adding: 'Understanding the need for balance between touchscreen commands and the positive tactility of physical switches, buttons are retained for the key mechanical operations of gear selection, drive selection, heating and ventilation. There are also override switches for chassis, electronic stability programme (ESP), exhaust settings, lane assist and park distance control 'ensuring the most used controls are always conveniently to hand', says Aston Martin. Drivers can also add apps powered by iPhone that perfectly fit Aston Martin's 10.25-inch infotainment screen or instrument cluster to provide 'information at a glance', it said. Aston Martin CEO Adrian Hallmark said: 'Aston Martin is delighted to have collaborated with Apple, and to be first to launch CarPlay Ultra. 'Building on our in-house state-of-the-art infotainment system, CarPlay Ultra will provide additional functionality and personalisation opportunities which place Aston Martin at the forefront of infotainment in the sector.' Launch-partner Aston Martin said it had worked extremely closely in partnership with Apple to ensure CarPlay Ultra is consistent with their own brand's design philosophy Apple's marketing vice president Bob Borchers said: 'We are thrilled to begin rolling out CarPlay Ultra with Aston Martin, with more manufacturers to come. 'The next generation of CarPlay gives drivers a smarter, safer way to use their iPhone in the car, deeply integrating with the vehicle while maintaining the very best of the car-maker.' He added: 'iPhone users love CarPlay and it has changed the way people interact with their vehicles. 'Together with car-makers we are reimagining the in-car experience and making it even more unified and consistent.' The new Ultra system will be available across the Aston Martin range as standard from August, and available as a retro-fit download on older vehicles with the necessary software. Fine on a luxury Aston Martin, you may say. But what about me? Well, imagine soon doing all of these same things on, say, a Kia Sportage, a Ford Puma, Nissan Qashqai or Peugeot SUV – if they too decide to take it up. Each version specifically designed to seamlessly suit the brand on which it is fitted. And that is exactly the plan as Apple Car Play Ultra is rolled out across the industry to more mainstream manufacturers of family vehicles. It's coming soon to a car near your – perhaps even to your own driveway.
