When talking about power in today's standards it's not just about the quarter mile anymore. It's all about hitting that 200 mph barrier. The Subaru BRZ and Scion FT86 has brought a new concept back into the industry, one that has been often over looked and forgotten. What happened to just having a fun car, something that is all about the driving experience, something that will always keep a smile on your face regardless if you win a race or not. The Fiat Abarth is one of those cars. I got a chance to test drive it yesterday and it's one of the most fun cars I've driven for DD or on a short low speed technical course. You can toss it, turn it and stump it on and she's right there with you the whole way. The power isn't going to snap your head back but it's everywhere, all over the rev's from start to finish. On the highway I didn't have to downshift to get the torque to get up to highway speeds. The clutch is easy on my left foot, it had a moderate engagement travel point when switching gears. The shift lever is tight and offers clean shifts giving you the confidence to shift quickly into the next gears. The gears on this transmission serves the factory power perfectly, not to short where it requires a lot of work and attention and not too long where you quickly lose interest. What surprised me most about the car was how nice initial bite was on the brakes. It was something even I had to get use to, something I don't often expect from such a small car. The Fiat interior has been one of my most favorite over other cars. They've done a great job of bringing the exterior into the interior. I really think this car has a lot of potential and find it difficult to find another car in it's class that would out class it's level of agility and style. The speeds we were able to achieve on the clover leafs were not completely due to the tires the car wore, but IMO it was rather the overall balance between the geometry of it's engineering and designing of components all the way down to the suspension components. I think they call that European style suspension, something you can't find in any of the domestic vehicles except for the Ford Fiesta. My only two complaints were the girth of the steer wheel as sometimes I have to change hand positions away from 9 and 3. And the blind spot on my right which I ended up looking at a 18" wall of darkness of nothing. Other then that I really like the idea of having a much higher seating position in a much smaller vehicle and having the response level to be comfortable to drive it daily and the option to to take it to the track with increased traction sensitivity input with a touch of a button. Oh and her exhaust can purr just like a boxer. Thanks again to my friends at Bloomington Fiat for inviting me back for a personal test drive. http://static.photobucket.com/playe...lbums/nn105/musashiracing/20120521_121655.mp4
It would be good to spell the name of the car correctly if you're going to write reviews like these...
Oh I knew exactly what she smelled like when I first hopped in and it's not J Lo, I felt like the geeky guy in this video lmao
My friends who know me know I drive more like Tanner Foust lol Will have to wait and see but I think I'll be getting another opportunity at this car at DCTC this summer. Last year they brought two Fiat 500 Pop/Sport out to BIR to have to do some testing for their Youtube channel. Thanks for your interests and questions guys.
