First Drive: Fiat 124 Spider

The General Tire Shootout at The Challenge featured the following vehicles:
In 2014: Fiat 500 Abarths
In 2015: Miata NDs
In 2016: What would be the logical progression?

stroker wrote: I'll be so happy when the styling fad of "jowls" goes away....

I would love me an Abarth 124.. but I would want the base front bumper on it

irish44j wrote: Quick, somebody total one so I can have the drivetrain for my e30 :)

I was thinking the opposite. Someone blow one up on boost that the warranty won't cover. I assume FM kits for LS3 swaps will work on this car. They will just look better doing it :)

33 years ago my first car was a used 76 Fiat 124 spider. I loved that car. I hated that car. I tought my little sister to drive in that car. My wife learned how to drive a stick in that car. She asked me to teach her, and I was busy at the time. Next thing I know she's driving away grinding gears by herself. 15 minutes she comes back and says something to the effect of thanks anyway, but I got this. She's had mostly manual transmission cars ever since. That dang car almost killed me and my wife/girlfriend at the time when one of the front ball joints decided to fail on a twisty road going speeds faster than I should have been going. Passenger wheel pinned against the inner fender and off the road we went. Missed a gigantic non movable oak tree by inches. After it was fixed and sold, I swore I'd never buy another Italian car. Been British and German sports cars ever since. I just might have to rethink my position once this new Fiat comes out.

Listening to the video of the engine revving, it sounds like it takes a while to go from idle to 3,000 rpm, or is it just me? Think flat head truck engine vs a lighter flywheeled motorcycle engine spooling up.

Can I say that the styling comments are interesting?

Go back to the 60's and note how big of a departure from roadsters of the time the Fiat was. While the set back lights were kind of seen in cars before, to have them that set back was a big change. The Fiat and Alfa Duetto were both pretty radical departures from the cars just previously made by each company.

Italians had always been very leading edge in design.

The first Miata was very derivative- it had elements from many other cars throughout history.

Now the new Miata is very fresh vs the retro looking Fiat. And, on my previous comment, I also saw that the Alfa was largely the same as the Fiat, as it had a lot of Duetto in it.

Very interesting.

tr8todd wrote: 33 years ago my first car was a used 76 Fiat 124 spider. I loved that car. I hated that car. I tought my little sister to drive in that car. My wife learned how to drive a stick in that car. She asked me to teach her, and I was busy at the time. Next thing I know she's driving away grinding gears by herself. 15 minutes she comes back and says something to the effect of thanks anyway, but I got this. She's had mostly manual transmission cars ever since. That dang car almost killed me and my wife/girlfriend at the time when one of the front ball joints decided to fail on a twisty road going speeds faster than I should have been going. Passenger wheel pinned against the inner fender and off the road we went. Missed a gigantic non movable oak tree by inches. After it was fixed and sold, I swore I'd never buy another Italian car. Been British and German sports cars ever since. I just might have to rethink my position once this new Fiat comes out.

Years ago there was a serious problem with bad balljoints. I know in my 77, I had one of the uppers only last 3000 miles before falling apart into 4 pieces. These were not fiat branded ball joints, but aftermarket, so it was not Fiat's fault.. but somebody who built them as cheap as possible and shipped them all over the world with many different names on the boxes.

JohnRW1621 wrote: The General Tire Shootout at The Challenge featured the following vehicles: In 2014: Fiat 500 Abarths In 2015: Miata NDs In 2016: What would be the logical progression?

It's like we predicted the future.

Regarding the style: Some people love it, some people don't love it. Honestly, I think that's a good thing. Can you quickly tell an FR-S from a BRZ? Not really. This time we have two different faces for one great chassis.

I checked, nearest dealer is 350-miles away. That would make any potential warranty work a bit of a hassle...

As an 8-time fanatical Mazda-owner, I didn't think I would fall in love with this car. I did. It feels a bit more grown-up than the MX-5, which is in no way a criticism. There's room to love them both.

Lesley wrote: As an 8-time fanatical Mazda-owner, I didn't think I would fall in love with this car. I did. It feels a bit more grown-up than the MX-5, which is in no way a criticism. There's room to love them both.

I feel the same way. I've owned a Miata since they came out in 1990. The first time I saw one, I knew that was the car I'd been waiting for. If I were younger, I might appreciate the newer styling of the ND. But I'm just not in love with it. The Fiat styling is better looking to my eyes. It's not perfect, but I can't think of any car design that is with the possible exception of a Mercedes 300SL Gullwing or E-Type Jag.

If Fiat makes a fastback coupe, I'll be standing in line waving a stack of money at the sales people.

I must not be old enough yet, then. I still prefer the ND looks. Must be because I didn't get a Miata until 1993 But I'm looking forward to driving the 124 to see how it behaves.

Tom Suddard wrote: Nearly 50 years after the original Fiat 124 Spider was introduced to America, Fiat is back with an all-new 124 Spider. This rear-wheel-drive roadster gives the Mazda Miata its first real competition in years, costing just $80 more at its $24,995 base price. Funny thing about that: Fiat's new Spider is based on a Miata chassis, and we don't mean it shares a few bolt sizes. Underneath, the two cars are almost identical, but the Fiat sports new bodywork and the turbocharged 1.4-liter engine from the 500 Abarth....

that blue is such a tease, you need to buy the special edition otherwise you get typical bland colors

Lesley wrote: In reply to Fueled by Caffeine: Yes, it's dirty. And if you get the optional Mopar exhaust and pretty anodized bypass valve - it's porn.

I could do without a fancy bypass valve, but the idea of a Mopar sport exhaust for my Fiat-engined Miata is.... well. What strange times we live in!

JoeTR6 wrote: If Fiat makes a fastback coupe, I'll be standing in line waving a stack of money at the sales people.

My salesman is always joking about me buying another car from him. If a coupe happened, he might get a repeat customer.

The 124 looks a little generic and plain to me where the ND at least looks different. I'll have to see one in person. I like the ND better in person than in photos and that might be the same with the 124. The only real complaint I can make about the styling is the dumb windshield surround not being body color.

That's actually dependent on the trim. The Lusso comes with that fancy silver windshield surround.

In reply to T.J.:

Yes, that silver windshield surround is a problem for me. Other convertibles have tried it before (see Crossfire), and it didn't work then and doesn't work now. I'm guessing since it's a retro design they're reaching for the old look of chrome-trimmed glass like the original 124, but the new pillar width vexes the attempt.

I guess that's what they make vinyl wrap for.

Edit - just saw Tom's post and visited the website, which is updated since I last visited. Glad to see not all the trims have it. Captain Assumption away! (whoosh)

In reply to Tom Suddard:

Oh, good. Every picture I've seen so far has the silverish windshield frame. Glad to know it is not mandatory.

T.J. wrote: The 124 looks a little generic and plain to me where the ND at least looks different. I'll have to see one in person. I like the ND better in person than in photos and that might be the same with the 124. The only real complaint I can make about the styling is the dumb windshield surround not being body color.

I see it the other way around. The Miata looks too much like a mishmash of other car's parts. The 124 is a "thoughtful" (not slavish) nod back to the original 124 spider.

mad_machine wrote:

T.J. wrote: The 124 looks a little generic and plain to me where the ND at least looks different. I'll have to see one in person. I like the ND better in person than in photos and that might be the same with the 124. The only real complaint I can make about the styling is the dumb windshield surround not being body color.

I see it the other way around. The Miata looks too much like a mishmash of other car's parts. The 124 is a "thoughtful" (not slavish) nod back to the original 124 spider.

I agree. The Miata is dumpy and disproportionate. The Fiat is well thought out. And I love the fact that as everything gets bigger in it's class, the Fiat is about the same size as the original:

In reply to Chris_V:

About the only similarity other than the name between those two cars is that they are both red convertibles. I'm not seeing any real ties or nod to the original. The new one looks more like it sprung from an NB and NC Miata with a sprinkling of S2000 thrown in to me. (Yes, I see the tailights are similar, but have been italicized like a a 5 year old Camry and that the headlights are slightly recessed).

Just my opinion on it.

T.J. wrote: In reply to Chris_V: About the only similarity other than the name between those two cars is that they are both red convertibles. I'm not seeing any real ties or nod to the original. The new one looks more like it sprung from an NB and NC Miata with a sprinkling of S2000 thrown in to me. (Yes, I see the tailights are similar, but have been italicized like a a 5 year old Camry and that the headlights are slightly recessed). Just my opinion on it.

Let's see. The grille, the headlights inset, the dual hood bulges like the '70s and '80s Spiders, the entire side bodyline with it's kickup over the door handle, the silver windshield surround, the taillights (whihc mimic the later spider taillights) etc. Look at the blue one above and the sides of the original spider:

it also has slightly the slightly raised rear fenders like the original. (look at how the trunk slopes downwards at the sides, but the fenders raise up and then slope down again.

There are a LOT of nods to the original in the new 124