Fiat Qubo Review (2009-2019)

What is the Fiat Qubo?

Van-based MPVs like the Fiat Qubo certainly aren't as fashionable as SUVs in the modern car market, but there are buyers for whom such absolutely spot-on thanks to the fact that they're flexible in layout and cavernous in capacity. In years gone by, cars such as the Peugeot Bipper Teepee and Citroen Berlingo Multispace quietly won over cyclists, mountain bikers, kayakers and other outdoor sportspeople, as well as families who just want a bit of extra space for regular trips.

The Fiat Qubo was just one such model meeting the needs of this niche sector of the market, and it shared shares much of its underpinnings with the Bipper and the Citroen Nemo. The Qubo, as the name suggests, had something of a cube-shaped design, but Fiat’s designers attempted to make it less van-like with its underbite grille, plastic mouldings that added an air of ruggedness, and roof rails to enhance its adventure sports credentials.

The Qubo was discontinued at the end of 2019, but it makes a tempting second hand buy for those in search of a compact yet practical car.

How practical is it?

The interior of the Qubo is truly cavernous for a car that is actually shorter than a Fiat Punto hatchback. There are five seats, and the three rear seats have plenty of legroom and headroom. They can also fold in a 60/40 split, and tumble forward to create more space. You can remove them completely, too. Even the front passenger seat folds, which is handy if you need to carry a long load. When all those seats are folded, there’s a van-like 2,500 litres of boot space, which reduces down to a still-usable 330 litres when all the seating is in place.

Adding to the practicality is a series of cupholders, trays and storage solutions that are ideal for family travels, plus rear sliding doors that can easily open in relatively tight spaces. The one potential drawback is that the rear tailgate is rather long and is hinged to the roof, so it opens upwards and needs a fair bit of space to do so.

What's it like to drive?

Propelling the Qubo on its travels is a small selection of engines: a single 1.4-litre petrol engine and a pair of 1.3-litre diesel units. All are economical, but the diesels are better suited to longer distances and pull stronger than the petrol engine. The engines are also refined, with minimal noise intruding into the cabin.

Rather surprisingly, the Qubo isn’t too van-like on the road. There does tend to be some pronounced body roll if cornering quickly, but you're not going to be barrelling into corners like your hair's on fire in the Qubo, and will likely only ever do so by mistake, and it stays feeling safe when that happens. The steering is accurate and the ride quality is very forgiving, the soft suspension helping the Qubo to soak up most road surface imperfections.

Technology, equipment and infotainment

Qubos built between 2009 and 2016 have a pretty basic dashboard layout. The materials are very similar to those in its van relative: the plastics are hard and durable, which is good, but they do lack the sophistication of the soft-touch materials found in more expensive cars.

Equipment levels are correspondingly sparse, especially in early cars. Standard equipment doesn’t include air conditioning, DAB radio or Bluetooth connectivity, while the rear windows don't open fully, either. The security features aren’t great, so buyers might want to pay extra for an alarm system to be fitted.

The Qubo was facelifted in late 2016, when there was an upgrade of the interior, which featured a new steering wheel design, new instruments, new seat upholstery and infotainment options. From this point onwards, the Qubo came in three different specifications: Pop, Lounge and Trekking.

Standard equipment on the entry-level Pop includes remote central locking and electric front windows and door mirrors. Lounge adds air conditioning, front fog lights, a 5.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Bluetooth, steering wheel remote controls and 16-inch alloy wheels. The range-topping Trekking is a rugged outdoorsy model with raised suspension and extra body cladding, tinted windows and roof bars. It’s still only two-wheel drive, but you do get Fiat’s clever Traction+ system that’s designed to maximise grip on slippery surfaces.

Fiat Qubo running costs

The Qubo, despite its less-than-aerodynamic shape, is a pretty frugal car to run, especially if you choose a diesel version.

Not surprisingly, the 73bhp 1.4 petrol engine is the least economical: it returns 40.4mpg (measured under the old NEDC testing regime) and emits 165g/km of CO2, so annual car tax (Vehicle Excise Duty, as the government calls it) will cost £220 a year if it was registered before 1st April 2017. Under the current tax system, this actually drops for the more recent versions, which fall into the fixed rate £190 a year category.

The lower-powered 79bhp 1.3 diesel improves the MPG figure to 62.8mpg and CO2 emissions to 119g/km, so car tax is just £30 for examples registered before 1st April 2017 (£190 thereafter). Stepping up to the 95bhp diesel actually improves efficiency, with official fuel economy at 68.9mpg and CO2 emissions of 107g/km, which means just £20 a year car tax on older examples (£190 a year on those registered from 1st April 2017).

There’s more good news when it comes to insurance premiums, with the Qubo ranging from groups 2 to 9 (out of 50), so it's at the cheaper end of the scale. The insurance group is just one factor in determining premiums, but it’s a good start.

One concern with any Fiat is servicing and maintenance, as the marque doesn’t have great record in this area. Fiat dealers don’t have the best reputation for quality of service, which tends to scupper the brand’s showing in the various customer satisfaction surveys.

Fiat Qubo reliability

'Fiat' and 'reliability' are not words that frequently appear in the same sentence, but the Qubo’s commercial vehicle origins are well engineered and designed to contend with the harshest of treatments. This augurs well, as does the fact that the Qubo’s engines are used pretty much throughout the Fiat model range, meaning that they have already been tried and tested. The plastics in the car are pretty sturdy, too, so they should be able to withstand the demands of most owners.

The Qubo doesn’t appear in many reliability surveys, largely because of the small volumes it sold in on these shores, but Fiat historically is poorly rated in such surveys. Owner feedback tends to be a fraction more complimentary, but some reviews cite electrical issues (warning lights have a habit of illuminating randomly, according to some accounts) and the failure of the front suspension’s top mounts.

There have been just two recalls for the Qubo, both in August 2018. One issue was unintended airbag deployment, while the other covered the connector on the brake servo pipe, which may fail and cause a reduction in braking efficiency. These should have been sorted by now, but it's worth double checking any potential purchase by speaking to any Fiat dealer.