Second-hand sense: Bill Cosby once wryly observed that he didn't know the key to success but he did know that the key to failure was trying to please everyone. It is an observation apposite to Fiat's experience with the Stilo, the car it chose to replace the old combination of the Fiat Brava and Bravo in 2001.
The Brava was a nondescript car aimed at the family market and the Bravo was quite a smartly designed car aimed at those with a slightly more adventurous profile. In both cases, their time had well and truly come by the time the Stilo arrived on the market.
However, the Stilo did not enjoy the success it deserved, thanks to the curious irony of it being a car almost too well equipped for its class. Mindful of the fact that it would have an uphill struggle competing with the likes of the Ford Focus and the Volkswagen, Fiat decided to offer a car that came with a good range of engines, excellent levels of equipment. Every car from the entry level up had six airbags, electric windows and mirrors, power steering, central locking, rear headrests and more - and a good warranty. But it was a tad too expensive, and Fiat found it itself struggling not just with the competition but also with its customer base.
People, it seems, wanted a car with as much equipment as they could get but they were not prepared to pay the premium to get it. The result is that the Stilo stands rather forlornly on garage forecourts, its name hardly recognised by those who have favoured the Golfs and the Corollas. The Stilo has sold in reasonable numbers but it has not represented the renaissance Fiat had hoped for in this segment of the market.
For its time the Stilo was a very smart looking car but others have eclipsed it. But in my view the Stilo still has something very smart about it when compared to the latest Golf, which looks almost exactly like the car it replaced, and lacks any real design passion. There are three door and five door versions, both of them very roomy and spacious inside. Like the Brava and Bravo they appeal to slightly different customers - the three-door is aimed again at the more adventurous - but few would find fault either version. The cabin accommodates tall people, has good leg-room and there is lots of space for storeage.
The car has good ride and handling characteristics and again the three-door has a slightly sportier feel. Everything behaves as it should and even the 1.2 engine is an acceptable unit for city driving, despite the car's relative bulk.
The 1.6, however, is the better option for longer distances and for real work the 1.9 JTD diesel engine featured in other Fiat and Alfa Romeo models is a wonderful performer.
The Stilo is a car that has escaped Fiat's poor reliability ratings. It has only two recorded recalls (for a possible short circuiting of an engine cooling fan unit and unintended activation of the side window airbags) but these only affected fewer than a thousand cars in total. There are no EuroNCAP crash test results for the Stilo.
The Stilo is a good second-hand buy and prices are better than for its competitors. A five-door 2002 model with a 1.2 engine, and 60,000 on the clock has an asking price of €6,950, while a similar 2003 model with 29,000 on the clock is on offer at €13,950.
FOR: Good second-hand value and levels of equipment
AGAINST: Suffers unfairly from traditional image