First Italian (car that is)

[Bulldog9]

Back in 2012-2013, I saw this commercial, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65D6r3F9Ejc  and liked it for obvious reasons, and I've always been intrigued by the Abarth Fiat 500.  But, I never really had a reason to own one until the last year. Just picked up this sweet little fun car as an around town beater, and Toad behind the RV (primary reason).  The Tundra can be a real pain to park, etc.

Pretty clean overall, regularly serviced one owner, only 60K miles.  Total hoot to drive, and far more comfortable and planted than I expected.

So welcome the little Scorpion to the Bulldog Autorimessa.

[SIR REAL ED]

Don't forget to add the self-evident bumper sticker:

NO FAT CHICKS!

[Madtownguzzi]

F Fix
I It
A Again
T Tony

[Deno]

Love the grey. We had a black one and now have a white one. They are so much fun.
Not even close to being my first Italian car. That happened back in 1986.
Enjoy.

[blu guzz]

We traded a 2002 Miata for a 2013 500c with 5  speed and low miles.  Only 100 HP, but with the stick, it was such a blast on any twisty road.  You had to keep the revs between 5000 and 7000 to really move, just like our Guzzis.  Liked it so much, got a 500X the next year and drove that to about 140,000 miles and really went down the rabbit hole with my current 2024 Alfa Tonale. Add in the Italian bike and you know that I must be insane.
Congrats, you will have a ball tossing that around,.

[SIR REAL ED]

Bulldog9,

That does look like a lot of fun!  1368cc engine!  I was pretty sure it was not going to be a 500cc engine.

Does it use the same kind of Italian engine oil as a Moto Guzzi, or do you need to buy something special?

Enquiring minds want to know!

[Dr. Enzo Toma]

Congrats on the Fitito!

When Fiat first announced they were brining the 500 back to the USA I put a reservation on one and hoped for the 2 cylinder because I was very into hypermiling at the time and was living in the flat midwest. I ended up with a 1.4L MultiAir Prima Edizione with the manual and put just over 100k miles on it. It had one electrical grounding gremlin with the car intermittently not starting, fixed by a recall of the starter bolts, and the driver's seat arm rest broke many times but required replacing the whole seat shell to address so I glued and screwed it back. City of Chicago reimbursed me for TWO wheels and tires destroyed by potholes as the low profile tires weren't a match for some horrendous roads in the spring. Easiest car I've ever owned for parallel parking though! All other issues were caused by and covered by the dealership that serviced it, where it received a new transmission at around 80k miles. It got great fuel economy and was excellent in the snow. Two things I didn't like about it that eventually convinced me to sell were poor service at the Dodge/Chrysler/Jeep/Mopar/Fiat dealerships (possibly a regional problem), and though it was easily a 100 mph car in the flatlands of Illinois, the naturally aspirated engine struggled keeping up with 80-85mph traffic in the 75mph speed limit roads here in the mountains of Colorado. The turbo could have solved for that. Lifetime average fuel economy was 31.8 mpg.

By now it's my understanding they're pretty sorted out, though the turbo models do get more wear and tear. Very happy you got the manual, that turns it into a slow car that is fun to drive fast. The automatic I got as a loaner once was underwhelming. Should be a great ride! Along with the Fix It Again Tony jokes I frequently heard that the rear window was heated to keep your hands comfortable while pushing it, never had to experience that though lol

Here's an old photo of my Prima Edizione and two of my friends happy to get out of it  and stretch their legs on its first long distance road trip, Chicago to Dallas straight through in a day to get us to QuakeCon 2011.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

F Fix
I It
A Again
T Tony

The biggest problem with older Fiats was the nut holding the steering wheel. I bought an X1/9 new in '85 and daily drove it 100 miles a day for the next two years (even in the snow), it had 86k miles on it when I sold it. It never failed me, the only "issues" were from hitting groundhogs - I went through several front grills and spoilers.