Fiat 500 Abarth Shows Up: Loves It!

  • Thread starter Thread starter YSSMAN
  • 70 comments
  • 2,922 views

YSSMAN

Super-Cool Since 2013
Premium
Messages
21,286
United States
GR-MI-USA
Messages
YSSMAN
Messages
YSSMAN


Autoblog
This morning, we brought you a Fiat-provided doodle showing a super-deformed 500 Abarth meant to give us a gist of what to expect when the Italian automaker pulls the cover off the Scorpion-emblazoned performance variant. What we didn't expect was that we'd be seeing official images on the same day we posted the sketch. Thanks to Carscoop (and one of its generous readers), we've got exactly that.

The first four (of many, we're sure) official images show the Nuova 500 dressed in the equivalent of a tracksuit and running shoes, with a full bodykit consisting of a new front spoiler, side skirts, and rear bumper with a nifty-looking diffuser insert through which a pair of rolled exhaust tips peek. Black, Scorpion-emblazoned 5-spoke wheels with silver and red accents sit inside the hot hatch's flared fenders, while the endlessly-cool Abarth shield adorns the nose, rear quarters, and hatchback lid. Flashes of red make their way onto the rearview mirrors, brake calipers, and side stripes, too. Inside, the leaked cutaway drawing shows us read seats with matching door panel inserts. The whole thing is very butch...like a little bulldog puppy, and it's bound to be one of the stars of the show when the doors are thrown open in Geneva. We can't wait to see it in person.

Just. Plain. Sexy.

SEE MORE SEXY HERE

I demand that this car be brought to the United States through our local Maserati/Alfa Romeo dealers. Please, please, please FIAT. You have to do it!
 
You read Autoblog too? I don't know if I like it, because it's puely aesthetic isn't it? No power upgrades mentioned yet at all, and I don't think there ever were intended to be (I could be wrong)
 
Assuming there is a power increase I will be curious to see how it runs against the Cooper S which I assume will be its main competitor. It looks a bit goofy but that really won't affect the performance numbers.
 
Looks decent. I'm wondering how fun it will be to drive. It sounds pretty promising.

I demand that this car be brought to the United States through our local Maserati/Alfa Romeo dealers. Please, please, please FIAT. You have to do it!

It would be interesting to see the whole Italian giant come over here, with all it's models to compete here. I'm sure they could set up a reasonable dealer network in a few years.

You read Autoblog too?

There are a lot of enthusiasts around here that do. A lot of threads and general news from Joey and myself and others come from them.

Assuming there is a power increase I will be curious to see how it runs against the Cooper S which I assume will be its main competitor. It looks a bit goofy but that really won't affect the performance numbers.

Assuming the performance numbers are comparable, I think the production numbers could play a pretty big role in the battle. Would a tuner like Abarth be willing to make their creation a mainstream trim level like the Cooper S is? We'll eventually see what plans FIAT has for the car.
 
I have to admit that Jalopnik has quickly become a favorite... I like their smart-ass comments.
 
AutoBlog can be fairly funny too at times. I also read caradvice, as they provide Australian car news the Americans don't. Just curiously, what does the Fiat 500 make standard power and performance wise?
 
In top-spec, it shares the same 100 BHP I4 with the Fiat Panda 100. It makes for a spunky drive, it doesn't weigh a whole lot, so anything more would almost be overkill. Slap 110 BHP on the American version and it will likely eat Honda Fits for lunch (in terms of awesomeness).
 
Despite weight it's not much is it? I bet it struggles big time with hills. For this Abarth version to really get hot it'd wanna have at least 160-170hp.
 
110hp in a car that light wouldn't be an issue. My Mini only has 118hp and it doesn't weigh much more then the 500 and I have never had an issue.
 
We have the Alfa/Fiat/Maserati Dealership here in Christchurch, and the Punto Arbarth (not here yet) is meant to have a 180Hp turbo motor, with high and low boost settings as seen in the Bravo sport, so I wouldnt be surprised if the 500 had the same engine, maybe slightly down tuned. That would be mint!
 
We have the Alfa/Fiat/Maserati Dealership here in Christchurch, and the Punto Arbarth (not here yet) is meant to have a 180Hp turbo motor, with high and low boost settings as seen in the Bravo sport, so I wouldnt be surprised if the 500 had the same engine, maybe slightly down tuned. That would be mint!

Yeah that'd be good, downtuned to 160hp and it'd be a pretty good little car. I'd still take an Astra VXR though.
 
Corsa VXR would be the competitor there, and even I would rather have the FIAT in the end...
 
4-pot turbos are nearly all in the same boat through my eyes. But in that case I'd take the Corsa, the new 500 just doesn't "do it" for me.
The competitor:
141kw
260Nm
0-100km/hr= 7.2sec
7.4L/100km
CorsaVXR_1.jpg


You don't have to comment on this car, just thought I'd show everyone what it's up against.
 
We have the Alfa/Fiat/Maserati Dealership here in Christchurch, and the Punto Arbarth (not here yet) is meant to have a 180Hp turbo motor, with high and low boost settings as seen in the Bravo sport, so I wouldnt be surprised if the 500 had the same engine, maybe slightly down tuned. That would be mint!

Only the "esseesse" model will be getting the 180hp engine, the regular Punto Abarth will be using a 150hp version.

The talk is that the 500 will be getting a slightly depowered version of that, seeing as how it's a smaller car. This is a tiny car, 135 or 140 horsepower is perfectly fine. Though the SS version of it should be even more fun...

I really like what they've done with it. Bring it over Fiat! Then that gives Ford an excuse to bring the Ka over whenever it comes around, too!
 
I'd take that SS over about any SS currently offered by G.M. (This does not include the Camaro.)
 
I'd take that SS over about any SS currently offered by G.M. (This does not include the Camaro.)

What SSs do GM even have at the moment in good ol' US of A? Sounds like the Fiat doesn't have much competition in that field. I'll take an SS Commodore. :sly:
 
Let's see. Impala...Cobalt...HHR...I...think that's it. Of course, I'd take a Commodore SS, but we're not gonna get that one as an SS...
 
But you will get it ;)
As for the current GM SSs, even I can see why you would take the Fiat, although that Cobalt closely contends, and it's meant to go turbo soon too. It sucks, we look at all these cars and are never allowed to drive them and compare them that way we want to. I wanna be a Magazine guy, review cars as a job.
 
Assuming the performance numbers are comparable, I think the production numbers could play a pretty big role in the battle. Would a tuner like Abarth be willing to make their creation a mainstream trim level like the Cooper S is? We'll eventually see what plans FIAT has for the car.

Sorry I looked over this last night.

If Fiat were to put the 180-ish hp Punto engine in it you would see one hell of a good fight between those cars. I am almost certain BMW would be worried about that and try to come up with something new for the Cooper S that gives it an edge. As far as I know the 500 weighs less then the Cooper which we all know makes for an awesome combination when put with power.

I wonder if the 500's chassis could take 180hp though? And if it could how would it affect the handling?
 
Assuming there is a power increase I will be curious to see how it runs against the Cooper S which I assume will be its main competitor.

It's expected to have a 150bhp 1.4ltr and then later a 180bhp version.
 
It's expected to have a 150bhp 1.4ltr and then later a 180bhp version.

Gotcha, with it still being lighter though I can see where it will run with the Cooper S with little problem. Even if it doesn't out accelerate it, it very well could out handle it.
 
If Fiat were to put the 180-ish hp Punto engine in it you would see one hell of a good fight between those cars. I am almost certain BMW would be worried about that and try to come up with something new for the Cooper S that gives it an edge. As far as I know the 500 weighs less then the Cooper which we all know makes for an awesome combination when put with power.

I wonder if the 500's chassis could take 180hp though? And if it could how would it affect the handling?

With that much power, I'm wondering if they would run into the power is nothing without control issue that we see in the high power cars of GT4. Would it get much harder to drive quickly than say a Caliber SRT-4 or a Mazdaspeed3 with 280 hp going through the fronts?

And BMW already has something coming down the pipe to make the Cooper that much more special in the form of the JCW kit.
 
I think it looks WAY too busy. I also didn't like that bulge at the front, but this new Abarth when and accented it.

Oh well. I hope it goes like stink.
 
it's not overpowered Vauxhall/Opel/GM chassis...

Zinga Zang!

I've always wondered why Vauxhall never took the Pontiac tip and go about doing the "tire trick" with the Astra and Vectra VXRs. It managed to work pretty well with the Grand Prix GXP, a car about the size of a 5-series, FWD, with a 303 BHP V8 hanging off the front end...
 
What's the 'tire trick'? Do they run a narrower section at the rear to make it understeer less?

Also, the wheels on that poor Abarth 500 are The Suck.
 
Back