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Poole, Dorset – February 17, 2009
Words by Glen Smale
(Photos supplied by Fiat UK)
With its roots firmly established in the multiple motorsport successes of the diminutive Fiat 500 of the 1960s, this 2009 model Abarth 500 has much to live up to. For instance, the writer has serious misgivings about the success and so-called ‘legendary’ status of a vehicle that is swamped by so much marketing hype in order to ensure its success. Secondly, the engine in the new Abarth is in the wrong place for a true Fiat 500.
You see, a car that achieves legendary status only does so through the eyes of the buying public, in other words, you cannot manufacture the iconic status of a car into that car on the production line. The original 1957 Abarth 500 reached the lofty heights of an automotive icon through more than 10,000 hard won race victories and 10 world records, and not because Fiat decided at its birth that this car would be an icon. This lofty status is also not reached in its first or second year of production – the original 500 is only today reaching the iconic status being bandied around by the press, some fifty years after the original car left the production line.
So you might join with me in thinking that the iconic and legendary status surrounding the launch of the 2009 Abarth 500 is perhaps largely marketing hype and a little premature. However, there is a lot of history behind the Abarth 500 and so it would be prudent to consider this when looking at the newcomer.
For starters, the company have been very astute in building as much of the Abarth’s heritage into the new model as possible, naturally, and this has resulted in a powerful and fun-packed everyday car with great kudos. No need to drive with your engine cover propped open on stilts, the engine is up front anyway, and there is none of the race track idiosyncrasies that went with the original Abarth. No sir, this is an easy-to-drive, shopping, posing, track-day car bulging with character that will satisfy the needs of most modern day motorists while being a stunning looker at the same time.
ON THE ROAD
Open the wide door, slide into the very firm and supportive sports seats, and, turning the key, you are greeted with a purposeful burble emanating from the twin exhausts at the rear that promise great performance. A few aspects become apparent as soon as you start driving and look ahead through the windscreen. Firstly, due to the inward sloping cabin windows, you get the impression of being cocooned in your seat with almost a tunnel vision looking forward, but unless you have a tendency to claustrophobia or are quite tall, say 1.8m, this is not a negative feature. The ‘tunnel vision’ actually helps to focus your attention on the road ahead and one must realise at the outset that this is a Fiat 500 you are driving, so don’t expect masses of cabin space.
So, once settled and with mirrors adjusted, we navigated our way through the centre of Poole before heading for the open road. Immediately an irritating light began flashing on the dash telling the driver to ‘CHANGE UP’ despite being at very low revs, a feature which informs the driver when to change gears in order to extract the maximum economy out of the car’s engine. Being a performance oriented Fiat Abarth one may wonder why we are talking about economy, but Fiat have stressed that they are offering the customer a ‘greener’ performance car. However, by selecting the Sport option on the dashboard, the engine mapping is changed, the level of power assistance given to the steering is reduced and the annoying gear change warning light disappears as the gearbox brain prepares to unleash an eager 135bhp on the road.
With the Abarth 500’s main rival being the Mini Cooper, it is perhaps not surprising that the car is aimed at the younger driver and the car’s interior appointments are, well, quite funky. Just like the Mini, there is a separate pod mounted on the dash top which houses the turbo meter indicator as well as the annoying gear change warning light, so it really is in your face – the left hand drive car, however, does not have this. The driver is then faced with a single large dial housing the speedometer, rev counter and a host of digital read-outs and indicator lights. This dual dial arrangement is a most confusing set-up at the best of times, but when the cluster is peppered with digital numbers, readings and words, it becomes difficult to read.
So, with the complaints out of the way, one can get down to the business of driving, and this is where the fun starts. Floor the right pedal, and the 500 shoots off the line with wheels spinning, and with loads of fanfare. Space around the pedals is limited, so one needs to get accustomed to this tight fit, but it just means that your feet are closer together and don’t have to move about so much meaning that you can do some nifty heel-toe gear changes.
Just in case you have taken off too enthusiastically, the brakes can pull you up to a sharp stop in no time, and should that stop be too sudden for other motorists around you, the hazard warning lights will automatically flash momentarily. The Abarth 500 is not simply a reworked 500 with a few go-faster stripes plastered down the car’s flanks, as one journalist put it, “This is one hot little dancer!”
One of the most praised features on the Abarth’s launch was the new Fiat TTC system. An acronym for Torque Transfer Control, this electronic system replicates the effects of a limited slip differential on the driven front wheels.
Our route took us through the wonderful west Sussex countryside which included a well-known ‘zigzag’ road, consisting of four sharp hairpin bends. This steep ascent surely tested the capabilities of the TTC and it was quite apparent how the system managed to bring the car back in line when it clearly wanted to slide and slip sideways.
Getting the engine to work at the top end of the rev band served to prove just how eager and willing the turbocharged engine actually is. Roadholding and ride were well tested at this point and although the ride is firm, it is not overly harsh. Rear accommodation is not brilliant as the shapely curve of the back windscreen cuts into the rear cabin headroom quite significantly. This design necessitates the use of rear headrests in the back at all times. For what it is, the Abarth 500 has a reasonably-sized boot.
OVERALL IMPRESSION
To be honest, one has to ask the question if the way Fiat are marketing the Abarth 500, was in fact the right way to go. While you consider the pros and cons of that issue, this might be a good opportunity to consider the car’s ancestry.
In 1957, an attempt was made by Fiat to introduce a replacement to the much-loved Topolino and in July of that year the new two-cylinder, 479cc Fiat 500 Nuova, complete with suicide doors, was shown to the motoring press in Turin. Although this model was not without problems, a Sport model was added within a year, a car which boasted a bigger 499cc, 21bhp engine capable of 68mph. this original Sport model was available in grey with a lateral red stripe down its flank.
In the year of it’s launch, Carlo Abarth introduced his own modified version of the 500, also producing a lightened version that won the 1958 Italian GT Championships in its class. Abarth upped the stakes by offering the 595 Berlina in 1963 and the 595SS, capable of 80mph. The following year, Abarth’s 695SS with a 90mph top speed was introduced, which in a car the size of a teacup, was quite an experience.
So, while Fiat was trying to produce the 500 for the public, it was the likes of Abarth and Zagato and others who were making the little 500s go like the clappers on the circuits of Europe. Fiat of course loved the publicity and the diminutive 500 eventually amassed around 10,000 race victories by the time the company ceased production. However, the Abarth 500 played a very small part in terms of overall sales numbers (3.8-million 500s were produced), as the cars were generally intended for track use, and with their engine lids characteristically propped open for improved ventilation, they were hardly the practical everyday shopping trolley.
Which brings us back to the current Abarth 500 – just what are Fiat trying to achieve. Well, quite cleverly as it seems, they are mounting an an effective attack on the ‘pocket rocket’ market currently dominated by the Mini Cooper. However, the difference this time around is that the Abarth 500 and its limited edition 160bhp Esseesse model are being aimed at the general market, but specifically at the suited and booted upmarket ‘young guns’ who are looking for some serious street cred.
With just 700 Abarth 500s being allocated to the UK market, this will be a low production performance car and with 60 percent of the total already sold with paid deposits, it is set to become hot property. The Mini Cooper on the other hand, is produced in much larger numbers and as they found, the initial market consisted of younger buyers who gradually swung around to more mature buyers. The same is expected of the Abarth 500.
The difference in market approach between the original 1957 Abarth 500 and the Abarth 500 of today is that the original car was aimed squarely at the motor sport enthusiast. The current Abarth 500 on the other hand, is aimed at the rich city banker as a character-packed weekend fun car, or the young upwardly mobile graduate who is looking for a bit of an image boost. The car for the track will be the 190bhp Abarth 500 Assetto Corse Trofeo Europa, aimed at the single make series run as a support event to the Touring car races.
The Abarth is not simply a bolt-on, go-fast modification added to certain cars on the production line. The Abarth performance department is a stand alone specialist tuning division within the Fiat Group and employs 100 specialist technicians dedicated to the assembly and preparation of this model.
Whoever owns an Abarth 500, at just £13,600 it represents the most fun per pound on the market.For maximum street cred, another £2,500 will get you the 160bhp Esseesse upgrade.
TECHNICAL SPECS – Fiat Abarth 500 (Standard)
Engine 4-cylinder in line, 16-valve
Capacity 1368 cc with IHI RHF3-P turbocharger
Max. power 135 bhp @ 5500 rpm
Max. torque 206 Nm @ 3000 rpm
Transmission 5-speed manual
CO2 emissions 155 g/km
Max. speed 128 mph (governed)
0-62 mph 7.9 seconds
Brakes Front (mm) Ventilated discs, 284 x 22
Rear (mm) Discs, 240 x 11
Kerb weight 1035 kg
Fuel tank capacity 35 litres
Fuel consumption Urban 33.2 mpg
Extra urban 52.3 mpg
Combined 43.4 mpg
OTR £13,600 (basic Abarth 500 price excluding any optional extras).
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