THE famous Abarth family is growing and that means bags more thrills from Fiat.
Abarth is the tuning arm of the Italian company, formed in 1949 by Karl Abarth, and there have been some memorable models along the way.
Demand died as hot hatchbacks became a dirty word but the company was relaunched two years ago and the Punto Evo and baby 500C cabriolet are the latest models to get an injection of Abarth aggression - inside and out.
What a contrast with the Abarth Punto and the equally hot Skoda Fabia vRS I was driving a couple of weeks ago. The Skoda had a great engine but zilch image while the three-door Fiat is dressed to thrill.
For starters the Punto’s shape is ready made for a sporty makeover and it looks the business with twin air intakes in the deep front bumper, back spoiler and diffuser, lowered suspension, and smart 17in alloys.
To finish the job you can have red side stripes and red door mirrors. It costs an extra £160 but do it because it looks as if it adds an extra 10mph on the top end! Inside there are some neat Abarth touches to make you feel you are in something a bit special.
Under the bonnet is Fiat’s new MultiAir 1.4 litre tuned to 165hp and helped along by a Garrett turbocharger. It is not the fastest hot hatch on the planet, 62mph comes up in 7.9secs, but the 250Nm of torque is mightily impressive and a real bonus on our twisty roads.
I was lucky enough to take it around a track and while it is nicely balanced and good fun, it could have done with some extra oomph - and it is going to get it with 180hp offering towards the end of the year.
Something that will please enthusiastic drivers is a selector switch that can change the car to a sport mode. The result is sharper throttle response, more weight to the steering, and a torque transfer control system which takes over from the electronic stability programme and is less intrusive.
Unfortunately the best way to feel the benefits of TCC is on the safety of a race circuit where you can switch between normal and sport modes while going like the clappers.
The good news is that the Abarth Punto has a tempting price of £16,500, is said to be capable of averaging 47mpg and has CO2 emissions of just 142g/km so a tax disc costs £125.
The cheeky little 500C seems a strange bedmate for the Abarth treatment and I really can’t see the point although I suppose some cabriolet owners will enjoy having their car spiced up a little, even if they do have to part with a whopping £17,500.
The 500C is a super little car in its own right and here its 1.4 litre engine is boosted to 140hp, a tad more than the hatchback to make up for its extra weight.
Like the Abarth Punto this tiddler also get TCC but it didn’t do as well on the track in my hands as big sister.
Out on public roads it zips along and can even manage 62mph in a commendable 8.1secs, but my main problem with this car is the semi automatic gearbox which has an awful delay in changes.
I have never liked it on any car I have driven, whether it be a Citroen, Vauxhall, or Fiat, and still don’t. Not even paddle change helps although it is best used in manual mode because at least you can anticipate the changes so the lurching effect does not catch you out.
As a package the 500 is a little charmer and the convertible, with its rollback canvas top, is the icing on the cake, but does it need the Abarth treatment? It’s your money and it’s your choice.