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 Citroen representing city car vehicle class. The first one has a FIAT-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 2-cylinder, 8-valves 85hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 3-cylinder, 12-valves 82hp engine designed by Peugeot.

A starting point here would be to take a look at the results from European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) tests which were performed on both of the cars, with the Citroen displaying significantly better structural stability. Moving further on, let's take a closer look at some additional safety-related facts. 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. Furthermore, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, the French car offers a marginal difference of 2% 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 results of an independent reasearch, while our visitors describe reliability of FIAT with an average rating of 4.3, and models under the Citroen badge with 4.1 out of 5. Unfortunatelly, I don't have enough insight that would allow me to comment in more details on the specific models level. That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as the Italian car rank it on average as 5.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.2 out of 5.

FIAT is undoubtly more agile, reaching 100km/h in 1.3 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 173 kilometers per hour, 1km/h less than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy the winner has to be the Italian car, averaging around 3.8 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (74 mpg), in combined cycle. We can't ignore that 18% difference compared to the French car.

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, the French car beats the other contender by far, making it the best choice without even considering other things. From there things take a different direction, with FIAT being considerably quicker, thus putting more smile on driver's face. To make things even better, it consumps less fuel! It's really tough to make a final decision here, but if I'd need to, I'd say 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 more than 12.000 different ones in our database.