Fiat Tipo Station Wagon (2016 – 2021) Review

The Fiat Tipo SW is yet another spin-off estate in the packed compact sector, designed to compete with popular offerings like the Ford Focus Estate, Kia Ceed SW and the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer. Despite the massive success of the Fiat 500 and its siblings, Fiat has had somewhat less success with its larger cars, and the Tipo is something of a bit player in the segment. However, both the SW and the hatchback version major on value rather than dynamics or premium quality, so for some buyers it will be worth taking a closer look.

The load area provides an extra 110 litres of capacity over the hatchback, at 550 litres. In real world terms, what you get is a low, flat load deck with no lip and a wide tailgate opening. There’s plenty of space for things like buggies and baggage, but if more is needed then the rear seat backs fold flat.

The back row of seats is spacious enough for adults to sit in a reasonable amount of comfort and access is good but, while practical, the cabin is drably styled and feels quite dark and dull. It feels pretty well made though, so should stand up to kicking children and spilled drinks.

The Tipo Station Wagon is unremarkable to drive, but the controls are nicely weighted so no real effort is required to get down the road in comfort. The handling is adequate and the ride quality is okay, but there is some body roll through bends. It’s not enough to make driving a chore, but neither is it going to get you excited about the drive home. If you want fun driving dynamics, go for a Ford Focus Estate - it's a lot more enjoyable.

Engines mirror those in the hatch, with 1.3 and 1.6-litre MultiJet diesels, along with 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre petrols. The pick of these is the 1.4-litre 120PS T-Jet petrol, since it provides a good blend of affordable pricing, reasonable fuel economy and useable everyday performance. As a result it should be relatively inexpensive to run and on a par with rivals in the class.

Basic Easy models come with DAB radio, Bluetooth, steering wheel-mounted audio controls and air conditioning, but we’d opt for Easy Plus. This adds alloy wheels and a touchscreen system, along with cruise control and parking sensors. The touchscreen is tiny at just five inches corner to corner, but it’s better than no touchscreen at all - just about. You can also get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but only if you go for one of the later models, so it’s worth checking if you’re buying used.

There’s nothing outstanding or exciting about the Fiat Tipo Station Wagon, but equally there’s not a lot wrong with it. There is one issue that stands out most of all, though - the active safety tech comes in optional packs instead of as standard and without it the car only gets a three star safety rating. With one of the packs it gets four stars. That said, it’s practical enough for family life and comes with all the essentials.

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.

The ride quality is comfortable over most surfaces, with the occasional thump over lumps and bumps, while the steering and pedals are light. 

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.

Euro NCAP tested the Fiat Tipo in 2016, and awarded it two separate scores; three stars overall for the standard version and four stars overall for the version with the safety pack. The scores for both versions are broadly identical.

Euro NCAP awarded 82 per cent for adult occupant protection, 60 per cent for child occupant protection and 62 per cent for pedestrian mitigation. The standard model was awarded a lowly 25 per cent for safety assist, while the safety pack version had this increased to 57 per cent.

ESC is fitted as standard, but there is no option for lane assist, an active bonnet or automatic emergency braking activated by a pedestrian. When EuroNCAP tested the Tipo the optional safety pack adds automatic emergency braking that is triggered by another vehicle as well as a speed limiter - now new vehicles are fitted with AEB as standard. 

Fiat does not quote an official unbraked maximum towing weight, but the braked towing weight depends on the engine and gearbox choice. Bottom of the pile is the 1.6 petrol automatic, at only 800kg, so is best avoided if you plan to tow.

The 1.6-litre MultiJet 120PS with the DCT gearbox offers 1000kg braked, while the rest of the range including the 1.4 petrol and T-Jet, and the 1.3 and 1.6-litre MultiJet diesels with a manual gearbox can tow up to 1200kg.

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.

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.

The basic system in the Easy model is perfectly adequate, and given that it is the entry-level model the inclusion of DAB and Bluetooth is welcome. If you’re on the tightest budget you won’t feel left out in terms of audio entertainment.

On the higher grades the 7-inch touchscreen sounds good on paper but can actually be quite fiddly to use, particularly on the move. Many of the icons and buttons are quite small on the screen, making it difficult to tap on the desired area. 

The most recent Tipo models have added a new design of touchscreen with a simplified button arrangement, and also incorporating Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, allowing you to use native apps and also bypass the need to go for the top spec models in order to get navigation in the car. 

Prices for the Fiat Tipo SW start at £16,550 for the Easy trim level, which is only available with the 1.3-litre MultiJet diesel engine. That’s considerably less than the Ford Focus 1.5 EcoBlue 95PS in Style trim at £20,945 and the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer 1.5 Turbo D SE at £21,355.

Above that is the Mirror trim level, starting at £18,070 with the 1.4-litre petrol and it is also available with the 1.4-litre T-Jet petrol and the 1.6-litre MultiJet diesel.

The top of the range model is the Lounge, which starts at £19,820 for the 1.4-litre petrol but can be specified with all the engine options, including 1.6-litre MultiJet at £22,775. That’s still significantly less than much of the key competition.

As for used examples, because the Tipo has not been a massive success in the UK, and the Station Wagon was less popular than the hatchback, the number of used examples to choose from will be somewhat limited.

However, there are some out there. A search of the classified ads turned up some examples at a range of prices. A number of 2019 examples with very low mileage were available, including a 1.4 Easy model with just 120 miles on the clock for just £10,000.

At the cheaper end of the scale we found an early 2017 model with the 1.4-litre petrol engine and in Easy Plus trim and with under 30,000 miles on the clock for just £7500.

The basic 1.4-litre petrol is cheap to buy but is an old engine and offers a best combined figure of 37.2mpg combined under the tougher WLTP rules, so expect mid-to-low 30s in normal driving. The turbocharged version of this engine is no better at 36.7mpg, but this is offset by significantly better performance that makes for easier driving.

The 1.6-litre diesel is the pick of the range in this respect, with a combined figure of 50.4mpg - certainly the best here but in the grand scheme of things it is not particularly competitive..

Because the Tipo Station Wagon range offers relatively modest performance, the result is the insurance groupings it falls into are also pleasingly low. In Easy trim with the 1.4-litre non-turbo petrol engine it falls into group 7, lower than some cars in the size class below.

Easy Plus trim and above moves most engines up one insurance group, with the 1.6-litre diesel moving into group 15 and the highest of any model. If your premiums are generally low this could mean the Tipo costs peanuts to insure, and also may be a good choice if your premiums are usually on the high side.

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.

Mirror 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.