I like the Abarth Fiat's - what is going on with the prices dropping fast? I imagine they are not Honda reliability but what is really going on? I know we have owners here - do they really fall under the "Fix It Again Tony" syndrome or does nobody really like them?
Are these the bargain cars we wish we would have picked up when 2027 rolls around?
https://milwaukee.craigslist.org/cto/d/2013-fiat-500-abarth/6338014943.html
with as much wrong with that particular car, it's crackpipe pricing.
I do like them though, a LOT
They are fairly good little cars but there are a few things hurting the prices. For a while new ones were sold below sticker and judging by the people I know with similarly modded ones it probably spent many of it's 39K miles at or near redline because they are fun little cars that make a sweet noise. There are two in my depot and when they come in on saturdays and the basement is clear they usually do a couple laps letting the sound echo when they think no one is there. Some of the interior bits are also a bit flimsy so they show their age more than other cars.
All I know about these is that its very weird seeing one fly past you on I65 at 6 in the morning.
They catch my eye as well. I hear the seating position is weird for taller folks but haven’t had the chance to try for myself yet.
I remember talking to an owner of one. Gentleman said he had owned Porsches and Vettes in the past, but the Abarth was the most fun he had with a car without being in danger of going to jail
They are of the barrel of cocaine fueled terriers variety. The biggest negative of them IMHO is the super short gearing....
Only issue I have is a likely blown turbo that the dealer is dicking me around with because they don't want to replace it. Unfortunately the only two Fiat dealers local to me are Chrysler dealer offshoots, and they unfortunately have E36 M3 for brains.
Also, that one looks beat to E36 M3 for the price......but that could just be those garbage add on flares and crap wheels.
They sound awesome. They look funny. They didn't cost too much to start with and they deprecate like a FIAT so they aren't worth anything except to people who love them.
So, that said, I think if they appeal to you go look for the nicest one you could find, not the cheapest.
They're so much fun! I really loved mine. I had a '15 that I had for two years (an eternity for me!) and I had so much fun in that car. It's surprisingly roomy. It's true that they aren't super fast, but they really are super fun. They sound wonderful and they're a pleasure to drive.
I traded in an '09 MINI Cooper S coupe for my Abarth and I never regretted my decision for a single day. The MINI may have been slightly faster, but the Fiat was way more entertaining to drive. It's impossible to go through a tunnel or under a bridge without rolling the windows down and downshifting, simply to hear the noise.
I never had any mechanical difficulties with mine. My driver side door handle broke twice, and my passenger side door handle broke once. All three were replaced under warranty. I had an issue where if I didn't have anything plugged into the AUX port, it would sometimes randomly give an unpleasant staticky noise and cut the Bluetooth out for an instant.
The '13s are supposed to be easier to modify for power. The '15s and up had the LCD gauge pod and Bluetooth streaming. My vote goes to the newer cars.
I give it a definite thumbs-up. I'm not sure about that particular car. It looks a little rough around the edges.
Huckleberry said:So, that said, I think if they appeal to you go look for the nicest one you could find, not the cheapest.
It wouldn't cost much/anything to get one that didn't have the bumper falling off and the missing trunk badge.
The broken door handle is common. Fiat USA will only sell the whole handle assembly but if you have time you can get just the hinge from Europe. I plan to pick up a few as everything I've stocked so far hasn't been needed.
In reply to Lugnut :
FWIW it costs about $8 to add Bluetooth streaming to a pre-'15 MY.
I haven't had broken hinges though....:/
I love the darn little thing, but it slaughters front tires.....that's probably just me though. LoL
I got to take one for a few autocross hotlaps and was not a fan. Wanted to like it, but just couldn't. I've sat in trucks with lower seating positions. The steering weighted up strangely and the clutch pedal was dead. It was also an absolute dog out of boost, and the car just felt very sloppy and incommunicative. The owner also complained about a large number of issues with the shifter and shifter cable and transmission sticking in gear, which the dealer repeatedly failed to duplicate. There was also the time the BCm died for reasons unknown, requiring about $2500 worth of BCM, keys and programming.
They break a lot, but they depreciate like Yugos.
53k miles and closing in on 4 years, nary a problem. Check engine light about 1k ago, ...gas cap. Done.
Track days, autocross, 3 trips to Tail of the Dragon with 100+ other screaming little Fiat's, all full of smiles. I'm watching to a point, if they start hitting the $6-7k spot I would seriously consider a new rallycross car if it's still stock.
I liked my 2013 that I had for a couple of years, but ultimately wasn’t driving it enough to justify the payments. If I was likely to be a repeat owner of a car, I’d consider a cheap Abarth. Regarding the seating position, definitely spend a bit of time test driving it. I was able to find a comfortable position (enough to do a 3 week, 7K mile cross country trip), but everything had to be just right. Any deviation from my settings, and it was not comfortable. For comparison, I’m six feet tall, 32”inseam. Someone with shorter legs and longer arms than me would probably have an easier time.
It was really fun to drive, though, and while I usually prefer a quieter exhaust, I loved the sounds it made.
A few months back I saw in one the Phx metro area for sale for $5500 with a blown turbo and 80k miles. I was really really tempted.
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