Two-Cylinder 0.9-Liter FIAT 500S Acceleration Test Feels Weirdly Grunty

And even though we'll be glad it's going, you can't deny the fact it has produced a few gems. Just look at Ford's 1.0-liter three-cylinder EcoBoost, a turbocharged engine that could produce up to 140 horsepower. Put that in a Fiesta with its nimble chassis and responsive steering, and you've got yourself a wonderful driver's machine without the usual stripes and oversized spoilers.

Another good example - and an even more extreme one - is the 0.9 two-cylinder (yes, two) turbocharged TwinAir engine from FIAT. Despite having lost just 100 ccs compared to the Ford EcoBoost unit, this one only has 105 horsepower.

But what it lacks in grunt, it more than makes up for in character. With some help from the exhaust system, the FIAT 500S equipped with this engine tickles the ears in a way previously reserved for a lot larger engines, and a lot sportier cars.

With just 145 Nm (107 lb-ft), the FIAT is by no means a fast car. Despite the curb weight of just 1,015 kg (2,237 lb), the TwinAir 500 needs a full ten seconds to reach 100 km/h (62 mph) and will go on to a top speed of 188 km/h (117 mph).

The video below shows two acceleration runs, one filmed from the outside - where we can best hear the superb gurgle of the two-cylinder engine, and one focusing on the instrument cluster, where we can see both the revs and the speed of the car.

The test confirms the ten-second sprint time, with this one taking closer to 11 seconds - but the official ones are conducted under more controlled conditions and with professional drivers, so we'd say a one-second difference is acceptable.

The top speed reached is also below the official number at just 182 km/h (113 mph), but the driver still had one gear to spare, so he probably ran out of space or something before he could use it. Even so, the tiny engine struggled to pick up pace beyond 150 km/h (93 mph), showing its limitations.