Chrysler Ypsilon

Chrysler Ypsilon

Average. The Ypsilon returns 20 years after the old Y10 was dropped. Can it finally succeed as a small luxury car?

Since the original Panda-sized Y10 was dropped (one wag called it the Y indeed?), there have been three more generations of Lancia's chic city car. This, the fourth generation is the biggest change in its history. Apart from being badged as a Chrysler in the UK (Lancia having the same radioactive half-life as nuclear waste), it is also a five door. Fiat Group has clearly decided that the Fiat 500 is now the chic three-door city car, so the Ypsilon is being positioned as the bigger five-door alternative.

The resulting styling compromises are a bit of an issue. The last generation Ypsilon was a genuinely stylish city car, but this one looks a bit tall for its length, especially from the front. There seem to be a lot of styling cues from bigger cars that have been grafted on to the little Ypsilon to try and make it look a bit more imposing.

Inside, things work better, as the Ypsilon does feel more luxurious than most superminis, while the unusual dashboard, with its centrally mounted instruments (designed with the return of right-hand-drive production in mind, perhaps?) works well.

On the road, the Ypsilon is true to its promise of 'compact luxury'. The ride is generally good, in return for less agile handling than, say, a Fiesta. It is very light and easy to drive, although the TwinAir engine option will take newcomers a bit of getting used to. It makes pretty much the same noise (quite an attractive thrummy sound thanks to its twin-cylinder configuration) at 5000 rpm as 2000 rpm, so it is easy to rev it like crazy and completely ruin the fuel consumption. Spirited driving can knock one-third or more off the official figure of 67 mpg.