500T and Abarth Convertibles?!

These 2012 Fiat 500 Abarths will reside above an anticipated 500T Sport in the lineup.

Fiat is planning to introduce a 500T Sport for the 2013 model year, according to documents the company has filed with NHTSA and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). This seems to corroborate rumors of a new model that would be positioned between the standard Fiat 500 and the Abarth, which would feature a less powerful version of the U.S.-spec Abarth’s 160-horse turbo four. (The T in 500T is for “turbo,” of course.)

The evidence includes a chart filed with NHTSA, which explains how to decode VIN numbers; it clearly shows a “500T Sport” listed among Fiat’s 2013-model-year offerings. Fiat applies Pop, Sport, and Lounge to the base 500 as trim levels, but this 500T Sport is listed separately from those, as well as apart from the 500C convertible models. Among the convertibles, though, we now see an Abarth listed for the first time. No real surprise there—the car already exists—but it’s a vehicle Fiat hasn’t publicly confirmed for the U.S

Abarths are now at FIAT of Tacoma

The 2012 Fiat 500 Abarth may be small -- smaller than even a Mini Cooper -- but it's a heavy car.

With a curb weight of about 2500 pounds, the 500 Abarth isn't pound-heavy -- it's heritage-heavy. Just look at all the stylized scorpion badges. The 500 Abarth has eight of those badges on its exterior alone, if you count the wheel centers, and all of them remind you of one thing: a reputation for performance that's as large as the 500 is small.

This is the car the most fervent Fiat fans have been waiting for, ardently avoiding local dealers for fear of cracking and buying a regular 500. It certainly looks the part, especially our tester, turned out in Rosso paint and the optional gunmetal-colored 17-inch wheels, red brake calipers peeking out from behind the spokes. The rear valance has the requisite vents to match the restyled front air dam, with inlet and exit ducts for the twin intercoolers mounted just forward of the front wheels. The interior gets a restyled shiftknob and a chunky, flat-bottomed steering wheel. And those Abarth badges...well, they do the intended deed.

Open the hood and you're greeted with a red plastic engine cover that isn't quite long enough to hide the most significant revision to the little 1.4-liter Multiair engine: the small Garrett turbocharger that puts 160 hp and 170 lb-ft of torque on tap. As in the good old days, the heart of any Abarth is the engine, and this one pushes out nearly 60 percent more hp than the standard car. While the engine is somewhat different from the European version despite its identical horsepower to the premium esseesse (Italian for SS) model, the transmission is the same -- a five-speed manual unique to the Abarth (an automatic is not available).

The engine fires with a throaty burble, the din exiting via twin chromed exhaust tips -- a far cry from the normal car's mild rasp. Setting off, a mash of the throttle sends the boost gauge twirling and the Abarth leaps forward, picking up steam north of 4000 rpm and revving strongly to redline. Torque steer, a valid concern with high-output front drivers, is virtually nil in a straight line, thanks in part to an active locking differential that's tied into the new three-mode electronic stability control program. At the dragstrip, we recorded a 0-60-mph time of 6.8 seconds -- 3 seconds faster than the 500 Sport -- and a 15.3-second quarter-mile run with a trap speed of 89.8 mph. The last Mini Cooper S we tested (the Cooper is a primary 500 competitor despite its slightly larger scale) was roughly half a second quicker to 60 mph, but a full second quicker to the quarter mile. A standard Cooper was just over 1 second slower in both categories.

Like the Abarths that have come before it, the 500 Abarth has been tuned to be a well-rounded sport coupe. Engineers tweaked the 500's front MacPherson strut design and added Koni dampers and shorter coil springs that are stiffer by 40/20 percent front/rear.

 

 

 

Abarth also added its own front control arms, beefier anti-roll bars front and rear, and reinforced the rear axle and coiled spring mounts. An Abarth tweak to the electronic power steering makes it 10 percent quicker and improves road feel compared with the 500 Sport's. Front brake disc diameter is increased by an inch to 11.1 inches, and our tester's optional alloys were wrapped in sticky 205/40R17 Pirelli PZero Nero rubber.

FIAT 500L

GENEVA — The 2013 Fiat 500L compact crossover will get several engines, including the new 0.9-liter TwinAir, as well as more than 30 exterior color choices — and "fragrance diffusers." It debuts at the 2012 Geneva Auto Show.
The Fiat 500L will also get a 1.4-liter four-cylinder gas engine and a MultiJet 1.3-liter diesel engine when it launches in Europe later this year. It will deubt in the U.S. early next year.
Fiat said the five-passenger hatchback will also get an eco:Drive application that gives the driver advice for cutting fuel consumption. The EPA has yet to rate the 2013 Fiat 500L. It will also get the optional my:Car, which diagnoses, records and certifies the car's history and state of maintenance.
The 500L — the L in the car's name stands for "large" — is 163 inches long, 70 inches wide and 65 inches tall.
Fiat 500L buyers will get a choice of white, gray or black for the alloy wheels and a range of accessories, including custom graphics, chrome-plating, ski roof bars and a bicycle holder. The 14-cubic-foot trunk can hold up to five suitcases, said Fiat.
The 500L will be built on Fiat's SUSW (Small U.S. Wide) platform, which also will underpin a new compact Jeep crossover in the U.S., as well as replacements overseas for the Fiat Punto and Palio.