Fiat COO: 124 Spider Abarth Will Perform, "Otherwise It Is Useless"

by Mark Stevenson

July 20th, 2015 3:04 PM

fiat coo 124 spider abarth will perform otherwise it is useless

Remember earlier this month when Mazda MX-5 Miata program chief, Nobuhiro Yamamoto, said if you wanted to complain about the roadster’s lack of power, you could shove it down the aftermarket hole of your choice? Those were good times, two weeks ago.

It seems Fiat COO Alfredo Altavilla is of a completely different mindset when it comes to their own MX-5-derived 124 Spider, specifically any version of the car wearing a scorpion badge.

“You like performance? There will be an Abarth version [of the 124 Spider],” Altavilla confirmed to AutoExpress.

“Abarth is all about performance, and so I’ve told my team to stop working on colors and trims. Any new version of an Abarth car should deliver some sort of a performance enhancement, otherwise it is useless.”

An Abarth-tuned 124 Spider would complement a “comfortable” base model for the reborn nameplate.

The first Fiat 124 Spiders are expected to arrive in the U.S. next year.

#124 #Abarth #Fiat #Mazda #Miata #MX-5 #Performance #Spider

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6 of 39 comments

SexCpotatoes on Jul 21, 2015

Okay, I'm not sure if everybody does it or not, but what is the deal with watermarking an already watermarked photo? I mean, you can get the photo without the TTAC watermark on it by going to the first watermark site, presumably, or is that enough of a hindrance to lazy autobloggers that it stops them from stealing the photo from your site?

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Rod Panhard on Jul 21, 2015

It would be one thing if both the Miata and the new Fiat 124 will be the exact same price with the exact same equipment. However, they won't. Consider that Fiat has to pay Mazda to build it. So Mazda has to make some money off that. Then Fiat has to package the product so that customers are willing to pay more for it. The easiest way is for the Fiat version to be a little faster. There's not that much to debate here. It goes back to the old adage... "Well son, how fast do you want to go? That depends on how much you want to spend."

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Honda_lawn_art on Jul 21, 2015

I'm missing an Axis of evil joke somewhere.

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- Chan on Jul 21, 2015
  
  You would be missing a Porsche connection there.
  
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DrGastro997 on Jul 21, 2015

I'd take the smarter choice with Mazda. Yamamoto-san has shown brain power and logic works exceptionally well. Fiat may have more muscle but they lack quite a bit of brains, as seen in their product line.

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- Chan on Jul 21, 2015
  
  Fiat does things the way Italy does things--slightly irrationally but very charmingly. Several aspects stand out in Italian cars--mainly the sensory assault of style, performance and sound--at the expense of others like practical design and reliability engineering. Fiat also has some innovative technologies (such as Multiair hydraulic system replacing a DOHC engine's mechanical intake cam) that can be left of mainstream. Their method of maximising interior space has also produced some strange results (see Multipla, 500L). In segments that sell on performance and an emotional connection to the car, Italian cars have a strong appeal. In segments that sell on reliability, Fiat has trouble competing.
  
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