We are here considering two somewhat similar cars, but we can't deny some of the obvious differences. For a start, they are not even classified under the same segment, with the FIAT being a micro car and the Lancia representing city car vehicle class. Both the engines are FIAT-engineered . The first one has a 2-cylinder, 8-valves 85hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 8-valves 69hp one.

The fact that the FIAT got tested by the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), while the other contender didn't, puts it sky-high safety-wise, in my eyes at least. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. The second vehicle is a city car and that gives it a marginal advantage over the micro car competitor, at least that's what statistics show. On the other hand, if we'd like to consider vehicle mass in this context too, which we definitely should, 500 offers a marginal difference of 1% more metal.

Manufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that FIAT does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of FIAT with an average rating of 4.3, and models under the Lancia badge with 4.1 out of 5. The same official information place 500 as average reliability-wise, and Ypsilon is more or less at the same level.Above it all, drivers of cars with the same engine as 500 rank it on average as 5.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.0 out of 5.

FIAT is way more agile, reaching 100km/h in 4.8 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 173 kilometers per hour, 13km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be 500, averaging around 4.1 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (69 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 20% difference compared to Ypsilon.

FIAT appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, 500 beats the other contender by far, making it the best choice without even considering other things. It all continues in the same direction, with FIAT outracing its opponent in any situation possible, making it better choice for boy racers. To make things even better, it consumps less fuel! All together, there's not much more to say, in this case I wouldn't even consider anything but FIAT. In any case that's my personal view, built upon all the data available to me. What should decide here though is the way you feel about the two vehicles, and I hope you'll find my guidelines useful in the process. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.