Photo: Road Race Motorsports
The world of tuning may cover a wide range of models, from BMWs to full-on Lambos, but the Fiat 500 Abarth hasn't been modded by a lot of tuners since it was launched in 2007. Even so, a company called Road Race Motorsports has tinkered with the pocket rocket and the result is truly staggering.
Wearing the Fiat 500 M1 Turbo Tallini Competizione name, you'd believe that exquisite example of the breed has been developed by Abarth in Italy, but oh no. In fact, Road Race Motorsports is headquartered in Santa Fe Springs, California. Now take a wild guess about what's under the hood.
Nope, but you're partially right. It's the same 1.4-liter turbocharged powerplant as before, but a lot of high-performance oily bits have hiked the engine's credentials to a scarcely believable 250 ponies and 250 lb-ft (338 Nm). Power alone is not much to brag about, so a limited slip differential was fitted, along with go-faster goodies such as a carbon-kevlar clutch, Bilstein shocks, stiffer swaybar and bushings.
This mechanical makeover upped the little Italian hot hatchback's 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) time to 6.2 seconds, a full second faster than the stock 7.2-second acceleration time. As for the stopping power, the tuning firm tells that it has been improved by 20 percent thanks to new brakes and Toyo Proxes rubber.
See that full carbon-fiber widebody kit, with its aggressive front air dam, hood vents, brake ducts, side skirts and rear spoiler? That and the stripped out interior cut the curb weight of the Abarth 500 by a hefty 120 lbs (54 kgs). If you want one, hurry up! Road Race Motorsports will build only 50 of these track machines, with prices ranging from $15,000 to $100,000 on top of the $22k of a stock Fiat 500 Abarth.
Nope, but you're partially right. It's the same 1.4-liter turbocharged powerplant as before, but a lot of high-performance oily bits have hiked the engine's credentials to a scarcely believable 250 ponies and 250 lb-ft (338 Nm). Power alone is not much to brag about, so a limited slip differential was fitted, along with go-faster goodies such as a carbon-kevlar clutch, Bilstein shocks, stiffer swaybar and bushings.
This mechanical makeover upped the little Italian hot hatchback's 0 to 60 mph (96 km/h) time to 6.2 seconds, a full second faster than the stock 7.2-second acceleration time. As for the stopping power, the tuning firm tells that it has been improved by 20 percent thanks to new brakes and Toyo Proxes rubber.
See that full carbon-fiber widebody kit, with its aggressive front air dam, hood vents, brake ducts, side skirts and rear spoiler? That and the stripped out interior cut the curb weight of the Abarth 500 by a hefty 120 lbs (54 kgs). If you want one, hurry up! Road Race Motorsports will build only 50 of these track machines, with prices ranging from $15,000 to $100,000 on top of the $22k of a stock Fiat 500 Abarth.
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