Several high-ranking executives from Alfa Romeo were keen to see how the launch of the new MiTo materialized. While they were there, we had the chance to talk with one of Alfa's top marketing officers over dinner and discuss the latest news churned out of the rumormill concerning upcoming products from Alfa and its sister-brand Abarth.
For starters, we discussed the next model coming down the pipeline for Alfa Romeo. The MiTo, which we were driving the following day, replaces the three-door version of the ageing 147 hatchback, with a larger 149 slotting in above the MiTo with five doors. While previous reports had concluded that the 149 would share its platform with the Fiat Bravo, our hosts confirmed the later reports that the 149 would sit on its own unique platform.
Although Alfa is considering a new, small convertible model, it would not come as a MiTo spider, instead it will get its own designation and coachwork that's distinctly different from existing models.
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Rumors of a new sports car from Abarth have been circulating for months, and although details are still sketchy, one thing's for sure: a mid-mounted engine is part of the package. Autocar is confirming previous rumors that Fiat's sport division has struck a deal with Lotus to use the next Elise as the basis for the new sports car.
The third generation Elise will debut in 2010, with an all-new aluminum architecture that will be slightly wider and longer than the current model. The Abarth version will feature different composite body panels, and will make use of new 240 hp, turbocharged and direct-inject four-cylinder currently being developed by Fiat. The Abarth roadster will debut in Europe a year after the Elise, and if Fiat's plans of coming to the U.S. are realized, we might even get our own version in the States.
We've always been fond of the Smart roadster, which never officially made it to U.S. shores and proved to be a flop across the pond. But this rendering, courtesy of WorldCarFans, has us thinking that a second attempt might be worthwhile.
If the Abarth roadster ever comes to fruition, it would be an exercise in balancing a lightweight structure with a small price tag. Cost prohibitive carbon fiber couldn't be used, so some other form of composite would have to be employed for the chassis and body panels. Abarth could source the 135 hp, 1.4-liter mill from its own version of the Fiat 500 for power, mount it amidships and call it done.
WCF dons its speculative cap and figures that if Abarth gives the roadster the green light, Europe could see the minimalist two-door by 2013 sporting a £12,000 sticker.
At its unveiling at this past March's Geneva show, it was immediately apparent that Abarth had carried off a transformation of the Fiat 500 from a demure retro-hatch into a veritable pocket rocket. But for those for whom the 135 hp turbo four is just not enough, the performance division has unveiled a new limited edition "500 Abarth Opening Edition".
Although the name might suggest a convertible, the 500 Opening Edition is a fixed-roof hot-hatch distinguished by a 160hp engine, dropping a half-second off the conventional 500 Abarth's 0-60 time, now down to a sprightly 7.4 seconds. The Opening Edition also gets red brake calipers behind special 17" alloys in white or titanium finish, tinted glass and a revised interior with red leather and special badging with a serial number plate. Available in either pearl white or Campovolo gray (the latter available with a red-and-white checkered roof), only 100 examples of the 500 Abarth Opening Edition will be offered, complete with a special car cover to keep the exclusive vehicle protected from the elements.
Fiat's tuning workshop Abarth has released details for two new performance kits for the Grande Punto Abarth: the Assetto and esseesse (read: SS, for Super Sport) kits.
Starting with the standard 155-horsepower 1.4-liter turbocharged Grande Punto Abarth, both kits can be ordered after the fact and installed by specialized Abarth centers being established in markets around the world. The Assetto package includes an upgraded brake kit with cross-drilled discs front and rear and beefier brake pads, plus high-performance coil springs that drop the suspension an additional 15+ mm and special 18" white alloys with 215/40-ZR18 Pirelli PZero rubber. Customers who opt for the esseesse kit also get a bigger Garrett turbocharger, a BMC Carbon Dynamic induction kit, twin exhaust with chrome-tipped tail pipes, and a remapped ECU, boosting power up to 180 hp.
The kits are hitting the market in Italy this weekend for €2,500 and €4,500 respectively, and coincide with a concerted new Abarth marketing campaign and the opening of the Abarth performance driving school.
Fiat is in attendance this week at the famous Mille Miglia in Brescia, Italy and it brought with it a whopper of a small car to impress the crowd. On hand is the Fiat 500 Abarth Asetto Corse, a full race version of the little iconic car that sports a screaming 200-hp turbocharged 1.4L four-cylinder that also produces 220 pound-feet of torque. Power is routed through a six-speed gearbox on its way to a set of 17-inch track white ultralight racing wheels that totally look the part. Make no mistake, this is a real race car and a special one-make championship series is being planned that will put it on the most famous race tracks across Europe next year. Only 50 will be made, however, so entry is exclusive.
While we don't know the price yet, your bag of Euros will get you a 500 that's kitted out with an aerodynamic package that adds a front spoiler, big rear wing, fender flares at all four corners and two new hood-mounted air intakes to feed the turbo. The interior has been stripped to save weight, which now stands at just 2,050 lbs., and a racing roll bar has been installed to protect the driver who now sits closer to the center of the car to improve weight distribution and driving feel. The Asetto Corse gets big Abarth badges all around and a pastel grey with red striping livery. The one on hand at the Mille Miglia is No. 00/49 and a pre-production prototype, so there are still plenty left for those who've always wanted a 500 race car.
In speaking with a representative at Abath's show stand in Geneva, Autoblog received confirmation that the Fiat performance division its planning its own offering unique from any existing Fiat models. British weekly Autocar is now reporting that Abarth is preparing two new variants, a coupe and a two-seat roadster, but before that will come out with a convertible version of the 500 Abarth.
The Fiat 500 Abarth bowed at the Geneva Motor Show as the brand's second model following the Grande Punto unveiled a year prior, before the SS version debuted in Frankfurt last year. The convertible 500 Abarth is tipped to debut early next year.
Nestled between designer-edition Bugattis, drop-dead drop-top Alfas and suped-up Maseratis, it'd have been all too easy to miss something as small as the new 500 Abarth. But that would've been a big mistake, because the scorpion-emblazoned, hot little retro number is one of the most compelling sports models on display at this year's Geneva show.
This version packs a 135hp turbo four – not exactly Veyron-beating power, but promises to be plenty to shoot the turbocharged mini-fridge around every corner in Rome like a carnival ride. Plus the Fiat performance division from its new factory in Turin is working up a 160hp kit that also kicks the visuals up a notch, but as you can see in the gallery below, the scorpion's venom is already thoroughly laced with grappa.
You have to admire Fiat's spunky rejuvenated Abarth division. Its first model is barely on the market yet, its second model is about to be unveiled, and it's already taking on challengers and shouting "What's next?" At a media preview for the new 500 Abarth in Turin, Italy, Fiat confirmed speculation that an even more powerful version would be offered as soon as November of this year. The 500 Abarth being shown in Geneva is equipped with a 135-hp turbo four, while the "esse-esse" (read: SS) kit will offer a host of performance and visual upgrades to bring the sprightly retromobile up to 160 hp.
The availability of the optional equipment makes sense, since a similar package was revealed for the Grande Punto Abarth, and the 500's kit is likewise expected to be available direct from the showroom, or retrofitted to an existing 500 Abarth up to one year or 20,000 km after purchase. If the 500 Abarth "esse-esse" is to hit the market in November, we could see it unveiled at the Paris auto salon in early October.
Fiat has been putting a lot of money and energy into the rejuvenation of the Abarth brand as its own in-house racing and tuning division. Now preparing to unveil its second model, the Fiat 500 Abarth, at the fast-approaching Geneva show, Abarth also cut the ribbon on its new headquarters. Called Officine 83, Abarth has set up shop in the old Mirafiori engineering plant, adjacent to Fiat's design, experimental construction and engineering departments.
The facility houses the racing team, the competition vehicles department and the road car unit, with the technical and design offices next to the workshops and the business offices upstairs. The interesting part, however, is not what Officine 83 includes, but rather space they left empty, earmarked for a future workshop to produce small runs of specialty vehicles. Of course any inference over what could be built there would be nothing more than pure speculation at this point, but the presence of that open space lends credit to previous reports that Abarth could get its own unique models. With sister-brand Alfa Romeo – now operated by the same chief executive – readying a 500-car run of the sumptuous 8C Spider, and Lancia rumored to get its own version, the idea of a limited-run halo model for Abarth is about as tantalizing as it gets.
