NF500 / fiat 500

Those clever bods with calculators (or crystal balls, or both) who predict future used car prices for the motor trade have altered and improved their estimations on the value of the Fiat 500 in three years.

The predicted residual values on some 500 models have increased from 42 per cent to 46 per cent of original list price. That equates to a positive adjustment of more than £350 on the car’s value on a typical three year/30,000 mile contract. For buyers funding the car through contract hire or personal contract purchase (PCP) that should reduce rentals by more than £20 per month.

As is often the case in the motor trade, the entry level model, the Fiat 500 1.2 Pop is rated as having the best residual value at 47 per cent after three years.

The residual value guides have reacted positively to the success of the 500 and have increased their used predictions accordingly. This is good news for those who have already bought one and it should help reduce monthly costs,

says Adam Pumfrey, fleet and remarketing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK.

The 500 has also generated a great deal of interest from small and medium sized companies for test drives as it offers drivers a high profile company car that is low on fuel use and CO2 emissions.

Normally HAMANN-Motorsport is seen as a tuning company for BMW and for offering styling and tuning upgrades to luxury cars. But this time the Laupheim-based technicians have taken a break from the norm and devoted themselves to something rather unexpected, the Italian built Fiat 500.

Those clever bods at HAMANN took to the task with great enthusiasm for the cool little retro sports car and developed the new and extensive HAMANN Sportivo tuning programme. The range includes wheels, exhausts, suspension, brakes and tuning gear for the Fiat 500 range, all designed to improve style and performance for those who just couldn’t, or don’t to wait for the official Abarth 500 upgrades.

Available across the Fiat 500 range is the HM sportivo wheel, which HAMANN claim offers both improved style and fantastic handling. The matt black varnish rim in one piece has a diamond-polished outer edge and is offered in the size 7.0 x 17. HAMANN recommends matching tyres in the sizes 195/40 ZR17 or 215/35 ZR 17 by its technology partner Hankook, but we’re sure any other high end rubber will do just as well. A complete set can be yours from 1,420 €.

The HAMANN-set for lowering chassis leads to a further improvement in handling the car and ensures that the vehicle centre which is made up from four progressively spun springs is lowered by 30mm.

For the 1.4 petrol, HAMANN have prepared a sport exhaust system. The system includes a muffler (from 390 € onwards) with two round end pipes made of high-grade steel (70 mm diameter), a pre-muffler with metal catalyst and a sport fan manifold. All components can also be obtained individually.

Also for the 1.4 Fiat 500, HAMANN developed a stable sport braking system for improved stopping power. The set consists of two perforated and ventilated brake discs (diameter 280 x 28mm) at the front axle in connection with red 4-piston fixed yokes and steal flex brake lines. The back axle can be upgraded with brake discs measuring 240 mm in diameter.

For the 1.3 Diesel Fiat 500, HAMANN have joined other tuning houses in offering and ECU program upgrade, which increases power to 90 hp / 66 kW at 4,000 r.p.m. (standard: 75 hp / 55 KW) and a maximum torque of 230 Nm at 1,750 r.p.m. (standard: 145 Nm at 1,500 r.p.m.).

As for a final flourish to your HAMANN Fiat 500 make over, how about an aluminium pedal set including footrest and a car mat set with an embroidered HAMANN sportive logo?

You may remember a while back a Tracey Emin Fiat 500 went under the hammer for charity and sold for £42,000.

Well, despite recent tales of doom and gloom surrounding the economy in the media recently, her latest Fiat 500 to go up for auction, this time a little number titled “Dark, Dark, Dark”, sold for an incredible £200,000.

Absolute Return for Kids charity (ARK) raised £25 million for children at a gala reception in the Royal Naval College, Greenwich last week, with an auction in which this one off Fiat 500 was included.

Thanks (once again) to top news spotter KevinB for finding out the sale details.

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has reaffirmed the company’s desire to launch the Fiat 500 brand in the United States. However, and in contradiction to quotes from the Fiat CEO published by Forbes only a matter of weeks ago, Marchionne stated his desire to introduce a second Fiat 500 production site in the USA.

The full quote, taken on the sidelines of a foreign policy forum in Venice, reads

We are examining ways and means to manufacture the cars in the United States, I don’t want to bring it over made. I want to manufacture [in the North American free-trade area]

You have to feel a little pity for any American eagerly awaiting the Fiat 500, the situation gets more confusing with every turn.

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has once again stressed his desire to relaunch the Fiat brand, and the Cinquecento in particular, in the USA; if only they could find a way to sell it.

Apparently Fiat are seriously considering following in the footsteps of Smart by teaming up with a dealer network with a strong US base to distribute the 500 in America. This would ideally lead to an established and trusted brand stateside offering a foot in the door for Fiat, who haven’t had their own dealer presence there for 25 years.

In an article published on Just-Auto.com, Marchionne is quoted as saying

I am convinced that the full range of the Cinquecento would be a huge smash in the US if we do it right…. I think the full Cinquecento product range is a brand within a brand and can probably carry the market - we’re looking real hard at this now.

Fiat representatives have been quoted in the past as wanting to emulate the success of the MINI Cooper stateside, however MINI had the distinct advantage of a ready and willing BMW dealer network who put not an inconsiderable investment into making the brand a success, with the aid of some very clever marketing. It will be interesting to see how Fiat can make waves to the same degree without a strong parent company to piggy back on.

Max Power have once again set out to prove that in the automotive world the old adage “money can’t buy you taste” holds just as true as ever with their “kick-ass” (there words, not ours) June edition Fiat 500 cover car.

The rather outrageous body kit shown above is supplied by Parotech, and the Fiat 500 in question also features suspension, wheel, performance and interior modifications, which come to a cool £19,500 spent on tarting up this particular vehicle. Yep, that’s a Fiat 500 with more than double its sale value spent on aftermarket goodies (or gaudiness, depending on your point of view).

Max Power are driving the car from Paris to Donnington (apparently more exciting than the Paris-Dakar?!), and you can read all about their excellent adventure in the magazine.

It’s been almost three months since we published the first, full and official 500 Abarth press release on NF500, but today, to coincide with Abarth’s appearance at the Mille Miglia and unveiling of the 500 Abarth Assetto Corse, Abarth have published a further release, many of which is repetition, but does include some previously unpublished details of the new car.

First of all, we have another confirmation that the car will go on sale via the exclusive Abarth dealer network from July 2008, but NO details of where these dealers will be located, and if and how the release will be staggered for different markets.

In terms of styling, the twin exhausts will be embossed with the famous Abarth scorpion logo as a nod to Abarth models of the 1960s. At the front, it’s all about aerodynamics and feeding the engine with cool air. The three part pattern formed by the front air intakes features a larger central intake than on the basic 500, and the slot above the number plate housing is also wider than standard. To the side of the bumper are what Abarth refer to as “nostrils”, which appropriately enough allow two corresponding intercoolers (which can be seen through the openings) to breath. Abarth also claim that the rear roof spoiler and “slide” attached to the base of the body is not only for show, but planned carefully to enhance the aerodynamic characteristics of the Fiat 500.

The Abarth logo also “floats” on a finned surface that acts as an additional air intake. Abarth badges are positioned on the sides, crossed by a three-coloured thunderbolt, exactly as on the Abarth 595 and 695 Abarth of the 1060s, to symbolise the brand’s racing vocation. The wheel rims, available in 16 and 17 inch sizes, come in different styles: from multispoked rims to rims bordered by holes (the reference to the forged wheel motifs of the 1970s is clear).

On the inside the 500 Abarth features specific instruments and an analogue pressure gauge used to measure the turbo pressure. The main gauge, with sporting graphics, is lipped on top to offer further protection against glare while the three-spoke steering wheel incorporates moulded grips for the thumbs and is levelled off at the base to ensure increased passenger room and space for adjustment. The aluminium pedals with rubber inserts also reflect Abarth’s racing heritage and flavour, as does the leather trimmed sports gear knob and unified seats with the head restraints incorporated in the backrest. This is all topped off by a roof trim and side inserts in black, intended to give the passenger compartment a hi-tech, sporty look, and hopefully not too claustrophobic!

Official photographs are still frustratingly thin on the ground for those of us yet to see this car in the metal, but there are some good detail shots of the items mentioned in this latest press release on Flickr, especially this set from the Geneva motorshow.

Technical specifications:
500 Abarth 1.4 16v Turbo T-Jet 135 bhp

1. Engine - 4 cylinders in line, 4 valves per cylinder, 1368 cm3.
2. Power output: 135 bhp ( 99 KW ) at 5500 rpm.
3. Peak torque: 206 Nm at 3000 rpm in SPORT BOOST mode.
4. Supercharging by means of a fixed geometry IHI RHF3-P turbocharger.
5. Transmission - 5-speed gearbox C510
6. Suspension - Front: MacPherson layout and anti-roll bar
7. Rear: inter-connected arms layout on torsion beam with anti-roll bar
8. Lowered sports suspension.
9. Steering - Dualdrive Electric power steering in SPORT mode.
10. Brakes - ZPH 4.1.2 floating front calliper, ø 54mm piston.
11. Self-ventilating front brake discs, ø 284 x 22 mm.
12. CII 34 floating rear calliper, ø 34 mm piston.
13. Rear brake discs, ø 240 mm x 11 mm.
14. Wheels - Standard: 6.5”x16” aluminium wheels
15. Tyres: 195/45 R16”
16. Option: 7”x17” aluminium wheels
17. Tyres: 205/40 R17”
18. Ecology level - Compliance with the Euro 5 CEE-F5 standard
19. CO2 emissions - 155 g/km
20. Fuel consumption - Urban consumption (lt./100km): 8.5 (33 imperial mpg)
21. Mixed consumption (lt./100km): 5.4 (52 imperial mpg)
22. Extra-urban consumption (lt./100km): 6.5 (43 imperial mpg)
23. Performance - Top speed: 205 Km/h (127 mph).
24. Acceleration (0 to 100 km/h (62mph)): 7.9 sec.