Geneva 2016: Abarth 124 Spider with 170PS revealed

The Fiat 124 Spider is a car that we here at ZigWheels love because of its hark back to the original 124 Spider in terms of both the way it looks and of course, its badge. And now the engineering team at Abarth have had their way with it and introduced a more powerful and meaner looking version: The new 2016 Abarth 124 Spider.

The Abarth 124 Spider looks a lot more aggressive than the standard version with beefier and sportier bumpers front bumpers, which come with red accents typical of the Abarth brand. You also get a set of more pronounced side skirts with a larger set of sporty looking wheels. At the rear, the bumpers get an inbult diffuser along with a quad exhaust setup. The new Abarth 124 Spider also features large Brembo brake calipers, which have been painted red.

Of course, the upgrades to the Abarth 124 Spider are more than skin deep. The new car gets a 1.4-litre MultiAir turbo petrol engine that makes 170PS of peak power and 250Nm of peak torque. The new Abarth 124 Spider goes from 0-100kmph in 6.8-seconds and has a top speed of 230kmph. The new car is available with either a 6-speed manual gearbox or a 6-speed automatic with paddle shifters.

The Abarth 124 Spider though is not about top speed or the most power. It is more about the sensation of handling, something that Fiat has always been great at. The new Abarth 124 Spider will get a limited slip differential as standard along with a special ‘Record Monza’ exhaust system that offers a growling exhaust note that is unique to the car. With the Abarth 124 Spider tipping the weighing scales at a mere 1060kg, this is certainly a car we cant wait to drive.

Although it is highly unlikely that the Abarth 124 Spider or for that matter the standard Fiat 124 Spider will make it to India, Fiat India should seriously consider bringing these to India as completely built units (CUB) and making them the halo product for Fiat in India. In Europe, the Abarth 124 Spider will be priced at about 40,000 Euros or about Rs 35 lakh.