Just as it has for years with the European-market Fiat 500, Abarth has gotten its hands on the version made in Toluca, Mexico for the North American market, taking what is rapidly emerging as a popular choice for style-conscious American drivers and turning it into a proper pocket rocket. Being introduced today at the LA Auto Show, the US-market Fiat 500 Abarth is about as jam-packed with performance goodies as they come.
For starters, the naturally-aspirated 1.4-liter MultiAir engine in the standard Fiat 500 has been turbocharged and intercooled up to 160 horsepower – quite a punch for such a little car to pack. But the Abarth approach would never stop at just an engine mod: the turbo Cinquecento has also been treated to an upgraded suspension, rolling stock, aero package and brake kit.
Sixteen-inch alloys (or optional 17s, also available painted in black or white) ride on Pirelli rubber and let the red brake calipers peek through. Dual exhaust tips protrude out the back, while racing stripes in white, black or red give it a track-ready look. The electronic nannies are also fully defeatable.
And Abarth didn’t overlook the cabin, either There’s a thick-rimmed, flat-bottomed, perforated-leather steering wheel; a pair of heavily bolstered racing buckets; a performance-oriented instrument cluster with turbo boost gauge and shift light; and TomTom sat-nav with Blue&Me connectivity.
autoblog
