EXPENSIVE FIAT ABARTH 695 TRIBUTO FERRARI NOW HERE

Fiat South Africa has launched the 500 Abarth 695 Tributo Ferrari. It’s a car launched in Europe two years ago and one that’s dedicated to highlighting the link between Fiat and its illustrious racing baby Ferrari. In a way this is Fiat’s tribute to Ferrari, or as some might see it, it’s one way of leveraging Ferrari’s heritage to lure buyers into a performance Fiat.

They shouldn’t have gone to all that trouble actually. If you think about the fact the Abarth 695 Tributo Ferrari already looks worlds apart from normal 500s, they could have called it whatever they wanted and people would still look at it. Look yes, but buy? The cars will obviously be very limited and the price – which you’ll see later – is also very exclusive.

What you are getting for the price is a 4-cylinder 1.4-litre Turbo T-Jet with 16 valves. It kicks out 132kW and 230Nm of torque, matched to an MTA (Manual Transmission Automated) electromechanical gearbox. It is said to accelerate from 0 – 100km/h in under 7 seconds and top off at 225km/h.

Some modifications were obviously done, inside and outside, to differentiate this car from the rest. Some of these are the exterior colour, which is either Scuderia Red or Modena Yellow with carbon fibre door mirrors. Wheels are 17-inch alloys, decorated with Brembo brakes, racing stripes, a rear air diffuser and four exhaust tailpipes.

The inside is decked out mostly in black leather, featuring things like aluminium-covered racing foot pedals and lightweight racing seats.

Pricing

500 Abarth 695 Tributo Ferrari (R550 000)