If you can get around the interviewer in this video, there’s a decent amount of good information about the upcoming Fiat 500 Abarth in it. For instance, Dan Fry, lead vehicle engineer, explains the differences between the 500 Abarth sold here and the same model sold in Europe. Dan covers the suspension differences between standard Fiat 500 models and 500 Abarth versions, too, and it’s pretty clear that the Abarth is more than just a trim package with a few extra horsepower.
Alison Singer, vehicle integration engineer, explains the benefits of track-testing the car at Nelson Ledges, and even goes into a bit of detail on why the 500 Abarth will challenge the MINI Cooper for “best handling front-wheel-drive” honors. Getting a front-wheel-drive car to rotate with the throttle can be a challenge, since most simply want to understeer at the limit. If you can induce controllable oversteer with a lift of the throttle in your front-drive car, the engineers behind its development deserve extra credit.
Also, don’t forget that you can get discounted new car pricing with a free quote through qualified local dealer partners.
Enjoy the video below, but here’s a note to Fiat: next time, can you get an interviewer that doesn’t come across as a complete tool?
