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The 2016 Fiat 500 Abarth. |
Abarth is an Italian racing company founded in 1949 by the late Karl Abarth, who started hot-rodding Fiats in 1952. Fiat bought the company outright in 1971.
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2016 Fiat 500 Abarth. |
In a car that weighs as little as a Fiat 500, an extra 59 horsepower makes an enormous difference. There's easily five grand worth of fun in making the step up to the Abarth.
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2016 Fiat 500 Abarth instrument cluster. |
Our tester had a healthy batch of options, too...including a heavy-duty six-speed automatic transmission (with only seven percent of Americans now knowing how to drive a stick, this is pretty much a survival move for Fiat) for $995, premium leather-trimmed bucket seats for $1,195, white mirror caps with a bodyside stripe for $295, the Beats audio package for $695 and the Popular Equipment Package (which includes automatic climate control, heated seats and SiriusXM Satellite Radio with a one-year subscription for $895.
With $995 destination charges, the bottom line was $25,065. Small, loud and a bit thirsty (we didn't get near the EPA-estimated 28 city/34 highway), the 500 Abarth is not trying to be the subcompact for everyone. But if you like your fun loud and raw, it's hard to beat.