We will find a way to live with that.
Sometimes life isn’t all too fair, but in this case it doesn’t seem like such a tough pill to swallow since Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles Australia (FCAA) revealed that the Group will be bringing in the hotter Abarth branded version of the Fiat 124 Spyder, saying it has “no plans” to introduce the standard car.
Boo hoo. Looks like we’ll have to make due with a faster and harder version of a fun roadster. The Fiat 124 Spyder, in case you need a refresh, is a car that’s sort of an Italian twin to the current fourth-generation (ND) Mazda MX-5 that was first seen at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show.
So closely related, in fact, that it’s even produced in tandem with the Mazda at their Japanese factory. Shortly after which, however, Fiat takes it away to awaken its latent Italian-ness.
The 124 Spyder has a distinctive body dressed over its Japanese underpinnings, recalling the Pininfarina-designed 124 Sport Spiders sold from the late 60s to the mid 80s.
Under the hood sits a 1.4-litre turbocharged 4-cylinder engine, the same trusty unit found in other Fiat models but, naturally, in the Abarth version we’ll be getting, this engine is tuned up to produce 126kW and 250Nm, which is a healthy amount more grunt than the equivalent 2.0-litre SkyActiv engine in the MX-5.
There’s no set price yet, with that planned to be revealed in May, but a sample of standard kit includes special dampers that’s branded as ‘Abarth by Bilstein’, Brembo brakes with aluminium front calipers, uprated anti-roll bars over the standard 124 Spyder, and a mechanical limited slip differential.
Buyers here will be given the choice to select either a six-speed manual or a Sequiziale Sportivo automatic option with paddle-shifters.
We’ll have to wait untl the the fourth quarter of 2016 to know more concrete details about the Abarth 124 Spyder, which is when FCAA is planning for it to hit showrooms.
