Checks out the smallest seven-seater money can buy – the Fiat 500L MPW

Matt Kimberley

to create what Fiat calls a 5+2 layout. The legroom in the two rearmost seats is tight and they’re best reserved for the smallest children in the car. They also reduce the five-seater version’s 560-litre boot space by 70 litres when folded flat. With them raised the remaining luggage space is negligible, as with most seven-seat cars.

This is the smallest sevenseater you can buy at just 4.35m long and 1.78m wide. Its high roof and shoulder line make it look bigger than it is, but you’re certainly glad of the slimline dimensions when it comes to urban driving. It’s surprisingly nimble as you dash into side streets and to be honest it doesn’t feel like a people-carrier at all... until you fill it with screaming kids.

While the third row of seats is, well, cramped, there’s much better news from the middle bench seat. There’s acres of space, with a driver of more than six feet leaving plenty of room behind him even for adult legs.

Any family car needs to be practical and the 500L MPW delivers in spades. This 104bhp 1.6-litre diesel engine is hardly a powerhouse, but it does offer useful punch from around 1,900rpm on the stylish rev counter up to about 3,200rpm.

Like the 500 hatchback it’s highly customisable and handy touches like the movable boot floor, in-boot hooks, additional 12-volt charging sockets and large tailgate lip ‘seat’ make it a realworld star.