Under The Sign Of The Scorpion
by David Finlay (04 Aug 08)

I'm afraid I may be leading you astray in describing this car as a Fiat. It's Fiat-based, of course, and the company at the head of the scheme is Fiat Group Automobiles, but what you see here is the first Abarth-branded car to be introduced to the UK (in the 21st century, at least), and the name of the celebrated Italian tuner is being promoted almost to the complete exclusion of that of the manufacturer. So, no more Fiat references.

In standard form - we'll come to the non-standard forms shortly - the Grande Punto Abarth is the most powerful car in the range, knocking the 130bhp turbo diesel off its pedestal. The power comes from a version of the 1.4-litre T-Jet turbo petrol engine, tuned in this case to provide a maximum of 155bhp, which is enough to push the car from 0-62mph in just over eight seconds and on to its ultimate of 129mph.

This puts the Grande Punto Abarth into warm hatch territory, and it has the brakes and suspension to match. Compared with the standard car, the Abarth has stiffer front springs and a thicker front anti-roll bar, it rides 10mm lower, and it makes contact with the tarmac through 215/45 tyres on 17" alloy wheels.

This isn't an especially sporty set-up, though you'd think it was from the way the tyres transmit every last bump into the cabin when you're pootling through town; not only could you tell which way up a 5p piece was by driving over it, you could identify who dropped it from their fingerprint.

Once you get out into the country and start driving with a dash of enthusiasm, though, the Abarth becomes a lot smoother. In fact, if anything it feels pretty soft, though the suspension is well controlled, and the car will charge over rough stuff that would either fling many other hot hatches towards the scenery or leave them floundering in a fog of traction control.

More . . .

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