autoevolution
 

Sporty Fiat 124 Spider Has Been Discontinued in Europe

Inspired by the Pininfarina-designed model from the 1960s, the Spider is also known as the Fiata because Mazda makes the drop-top sports car in Japan for Fiat on the Miata’s underpinnings. The most important differences between the two are the engine, manual transmission, and – of course – the way they look.
Abarth 124 Spider 9 photos
Photo: Fiat
Fiat 124 SpiderFiat 124 SpiderFiat 124 SpiderFiat 124 SpiderAbarth 124 SpiderAbarth 124 SpiderAbarth 124 SpiderAbarth 124 Spider
In production since 2015 for the 2016 model year, the 124 Spider has been discontinued in Europe. This unfortunate piece of news comes 11 months after Fiat dropped the open-top roadster from the UK lineup, and more recently, Olivier Francois couldn’t make a business case for a successor to the 124 Spider.

Because not even the CEO believes in the future of this model, does it come as a surprise the 124 Spider is second best to the Miata in the eyes of prospective customers? The 1.4-liter turbo is pretty swell, but Mazda’s SkyActiv powerplant is the more engaging of the two. The manual transmission of the ND differs from that of the Fiat because the latter utilizes a modified version of the NC transmission.

Even worse for the 124 Spider, there’s no MX-5 RF (a.k.a. the Retractable Fastback) equivalent to speak of. All in all, it’s a bit of a shame that Europeans will no longer be able to head to the nearest Fiat dealership to pick up such a flawed yet thrilling B-road warrior. As it stands, Mazda doesn’t have to worry about anyone taking the Miata’s title as the world’s best-selling two-seater convertible.

AlVolante.it doesn’t mention a seemingly unimportant detail, but Fiat Chrysler’s division in North America did confirm that production continues for the 124 Spider in this part of the world. That comes as quite a surprise to our ears given how poorly the Fiat brand does in the United States, selling fewer and fewer vehicles with each passing quarter.

From a total of 15,521 vehicles in 2018 in the U.S. only 3,515 were 124 Spider convertibles. Fiat finds itself in dire straits on the Old Continent as well, contracting to 697,977 vehicles of which the 124 Spider accounted for only 7,698 units last year.

On a related note, Mazda is currently weighing the powertrain options for the NE MX-5. The fifth generation of the Miata is likely to get hybrid assistance in one form or another, and there are talks about making the Japanese roadster all-electric as well.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well.
Full profile

 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories