Vision through the A-pillar and the side windows around
corners is great, though. But steering feel around corners is not. Which is surprising from a company that makes the Punto and the Linea. The steering, while great to
look at and grip, is light for a car like this. Thankfully, pressing the Sport
button drastically improves the feel. Immediately, you can sense the steering
putting on some muscle, bone and a few welcome kilos, and much better feel. But
that additional heft isn’t necessarily helpful. You see, a car like this should
dart around like an intoxicated insect. But the steering seems to be set up
more for taking tight U-turns. So the Abarth would be
great to take one-stop U-turns in Chandni Chowk or Chor Bazaar. But the
steering has too much lock to make it fun around winding roads. Something like
a Mini or even a Merc C-Class barely needs to turn
the steering wheel around tight corners. In the Abarth,
though, you have to dial in more steering inputs for routine bends.
As standard, the
500 Abarth comes on 16-inch wheels with 195-profile tyres
The turning ratio of the steering, more than the steering
wheel itself, is what keeps the Abarth from bothering
the Mini. The standard Abarth, at 135bhp, is less
powerful. And with the Esseesse trim here –
pronounced Ess Ess – you
can get 158bhp with a slight tweak to the ECU. Power isn’t an issue, though. Would just like some more darting ability in the steering.
Ride quality is better than the current Mini’s, as is boot space. I reckon that
has a lot to do with the sloping back of the 500, compared to the Mini’s rather
straight back. But that sloping back also eats up more headroom than the
upright Mini’s.
The gearbox is a five-speed manual. It’s not overly slick
with short throws. But it is precise enough. The 1.4-litre T-Jet engine isn’t a
hungry-for-revs, peak rpm monster. It has good low-end
torque, but it doesn’t sound as rorty as an engine
like this should. Dynamically, the Abarth is
competent. But it just doesn’t leave you grinning like you did when you watched
your first A-rated movie after you turned 18.
Front seats don’t
go low enough and have shortish squabs, but are
comfortable
Frankly, I had a rather restricted drive of the Abarth, but in that short time, it came across more as a
competent, warm hatch rather than a seat-of-the-pants hot hatch. When it comes
to India in a couple of months, prices will be upward of $49,400 (ex-showroom)
with import duty. For that price, you get a great-looking car with great
personality. But with this engine, it lacks the go-kart-like dynamics that
pocket-rocket cars like the 500 Abarth should have.
It’s not mental, it doesn’t behave like it escaped
from an asylum. There is some method, but barely any madness.
The rear seats
split 50/50 to extend the 185-litre boot; the parcel shelf is tiny
So if there is a maximum out of a minimum, the 500 Abarth in this spec, at this price, is still not it. Could
Fiat rather follow the Indian way, extract the maximum from the minimum,
assemble the 500 Abarth in India, and make it cheaper
than a fully-imported Mini? Maybe not because it won’t do the
numbers to justify an assembly facility here.
Or, they could get in a more powerful 595 or 695 Abarth. Or else, it’d be like reading under an emergency
light. It’s not impossible to succeed in that condition, but it just adds
challenges you’d rather not have.
