Review: FIAT Tipo Station Wagon (2016)

FIAT Tipo Station Wagon (2016): At A Glance

• New prices start from £15,320, brokers can source from £11,777
• Contract hire deals from £154.82 per month
• Insurance Groups are between 6–15
• On average it achieves 83% of the official MPG figure

FIAT Tipo Station Wagon (2016): What's It Like Inside?

• Euro NCAP rating of three stars

Dimensions
Length	4571 mm
Width	1543–1792 mm
Height	1514 mm
Wheelbase	2638 mm
Full specifications

The cabin of the Tipo Station Wagon is perfectly practical and user-friendly, but it’s far from stylish and it feels quite dated. Even if you go for a top model you’ll still only get a tiny, pathetic-looking five-inch touchscreen system. But there’s still a lot to like – particularly the boot.

There is a nice wide, square opening tailgate and the deck is flat and low, so if you have big heavy things to load you shouldn’t struggle. It’s handy for getting pushchairs in and out and it’s dog-friendly – you’ll have a much easier time encouraging a pooch to leap in the back of a low estate car than a tall crossover or SUV.

The 550-litre boot floor has two layers – so there’s a little storage area underneath the load deck for small things like laptop bags or picnic blankets to live out of the way. The rear seats fold with a 60/40 split and leave an almost flat load area with no gaps, so you can slide things like flat packs in and out without them snagging on anything.

Rear leg and headroom is sufficient for adults to get comfortable, though the middle seat is raised so whoever has to sit there gets a raw deal. If you have kids to get in and out then you’re unlikely to have too many problems – access is good and there are Isofix mounting points for child seats – so there’s not much to complain about from a practical point of view.

But equally, there is nothing to get excited about. The dashboard plastics are soft touch but textured in the style you’d expect of a 1990s Nissan and the layout has no finesse or style. It all works, though, and the essentials like air conditioning come as standard, along with Bluetooth, a USB port and an AUX socket. The only thing that’s missing is auto emergency brakes, which are optional rather than standard, regardless of trim level. 

Standard Equipment:

Easy comes with air conditioning, DAB, steering wheel audio controls, electric door mirror adjustment, 15-inch steel wheels, 60/40 split rear seats, front centre arm rest and remote control central locking.

Easy Plus adds five-inch colour touchscreen interface, leather steering wheel and gear knob, rear electric windows, rear parking sensors, cruise control, 16-inch alloy wheels, front fog lights and LED running lights.

Lounge adds navigation, auto lights, auto wipers, auto dipping rear-view mirror, chrome details, rear view camera, driver’s electric lumbar support plus 17-inch alloy wheels.

What's the FIAT Tipo Station Wagon (2016) like to drive?

• Engines range from 1.3 MultiJet to 1.6 MultiJet
• Readers report Real MPG to be between 36–66 mpg

The Fiat Tipo Station Wagon has the same engine range as the hatchback, with 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre petrol engines producing 95PS, 110PS and 120PS along with 1.3-litre and 1.6-litre MultiJet diesels.

The best engine of the lot is the 120PS 1.4-litre T-Jet petrol, which is responsive and quiet, reasonably priced and economical.

The diesel options are significantly more economical, with every variant officially capable of more than 70mpg – but the 90PS 1.3 MultiJet diesel is lacklustre and clattery. The 1.4 MultiJet is altogether better, with punchy torque delivery and decent refinement – but it’s also the most expensive engine option in the Tipo range, which will limit its appeal.

On the road the Tipo is perfectly capable, but does nothing to stand out from its competitors. The ride quality is comfortable over most surfaces, with the occasional thump over lumps and bumps, while the steering and pedals are light. The steering doesn’t provide all that much feedback and there is some body roll when driving hard through bends – but nothing to get alarmed about.

Motorway driving is easy, with good refinement and a comfortable driver’s seat that provides decent support on long trips. Go for an Easy Plus model and there’s cruise control to take the strain out of distance driving – but if you want adaptive cruise control then you’ll have to spec one of the optional safety packs, which will also add a speed limiter and auto emergency braking.

We’d also recommend picking an Easy Plus model over the base spec car if you’re planning to drive in town, since it adds reversing sensors, which come in handy in tight spots. Go for a top Lounge model and you’ll get a reversing camera, which is far from the crispest or clearest system, but it does the job and reduces the chances of reversing into a bollard or something else small and difficult to spot. 

Engine	MPG	0-62	CO2
1.3 MultiJet	76 mpg	12.3 s	99 g/km
1.4	44–50 mpg	12.3 s	132 g/km
1.4 T-Jet	40–47 mpg	9.8 s	139–154 g/km
1.6 Automatic	45 mpg	11.7 s	147 g/km
1.6 MultiJet	61–76 mpg	10.1 s	98–116 g/km
1.6 MultiJet DCT	45–72 mpg	10.4 s	101 g/km

Real MPG average for a FIAT Tipo Station Wagon (2016)

Real MPG was created following thousands of readers telling us that their cars could not match the official figures.

Real MPG gives real world data from drivers like you to show how much fuel a vehicle really uses.

Diesel or petrol? If you're unsure whether to go for a petrol or diesel (or even an electric model if it's available), then you need our Petrol or Diesel? calculator. It does the maths on petrols, diesels and electric cars to show which is best suited to you.