2009 Fiat 500 Abarth

by Stef

You know the back story on the Fiat 500 . First shown as a retrofashionista-inspired concept at the Geneva motor show a few years back; production followed suit; European Car of the Year; huge sales ensued; blah, blah. It seems nearly everybody loves this thing, which blends cuddly style, reasonable value, and solid driving dynamics.

I know what you’re thinking: “Now that Chrysler and Fiat are swapping spit, will we get the 500 in America?” And, “How does that hot rod Abarth version drive, and will we get that?” Although neither Chrysler nor Fiat has officially announced a North American product plan for the 500, it’s nearly a done deal. The car needs to be crash-tested and certified, powertrain offerings have to be sorted, and production capacity will be made in a North American factory, most likely in Mexico. And what of the Abarth version, the Amped 500? Been there (to Italy), drove that, had a blast.

If you follow such things, you know Carlo Abarth was Fiat’s tuner of choice many decades ago, and the brand is now owned by Fiat. Think Italian version of AMG , BMW M, and such. The 500 Abarth’s closest comparison, in spirit and in dimension, is the Mini Cooper S. Both are enthusiast-spec’d, turbocharged versions of a volume subcompact, hatchback, front-drive coupe. They are relatively close in terms of overall packaging and size, although hardly identical in personality.

Two Abarth-tuned powertrains are offered in Europe. Standard is a 1.4-liter turbocharged DOHC four rated at 133 horsepower. A limited-edition, up-spec version is twisted a little tighter, to produce 160 cavallini out of the same displacement. It’s doubtful either will make it to the U.S. just they are; we suspect a torquier engine of at least 1.6 liters is a more likely guess. The only trans offered is a five-speed manual; this would likely change for U.S. consumption as well. The reason there is no six-speed is that Fiat at the moment doesn’t have a compact transaxle rated for these power outputs that also fits in this chassis architecture. The rest of the Abarth treatment is much as you’d expect: beefier rolling stock, brakes, suspension tuning, stripes, sport seats, and (perhaps a few too many) Abarth badges. Our tester was a somewhat base 135-horse model, wearing 16-inch rubber. A 17-inch wheel and tire package is optional.

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Test Driving Fiat's Little Engine That Could

08.07.10

On my test drive, neither the car nor the engine rattled, wheezed or whined as I accelerated. At least one other car maker gave up developing an engine of the same size because it expected to encounter these kinds of problems. I didn’t sense anything of the sort as I sped along the circuit that wove through a crowded park.

Pushing on the accelerator, the engine made as big a roar as it could as it propelled my two passengers and I forward.

Fiat says the turbo-charged engine can bring the car from zero to 100 kilometres per hour in 11 seconds, but I was only able to speed up to 60 before one of the people monitoring the circuit signalled me to slow down. The engine can also get the car racing up to 173 km/h although I don’t know why anyone in their right mind would want to go that fast in a car this small.

The TwinAir boasts decent savings, too.

In addition to fuel consumption, the money saved on things like circulation tax and insurance bring total savings to €250 a year, according to Sistino, which he boasted was better than what could be gotten from similarly small cars like Toyota’s iQ, BMW’s Mini or Smart from Mercedes-Benz.

Source: Wall Street Journal (blog)

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