A new turbocharged version of the Fiat 500 is officially joining the range for those who may find the Abarth version a bit too fancy. Powered by a beefed up 135 horsepower 1.4-liter MultiAir engine and equipped with a manual gearbox, sport exhaust, and Beats by Dr. Dre audio system, this $19,500 Cinquecento is one helluva car for the money.
The 1.4 engine in the 500 Turbo is boosted with a single turbocharger, twin intercoolers and sport-tuned exhaust. At 135 hp and 150 lb-ft of torque, it is 34 percent mroe powerful and responsive than the naturally aspirated unit.
It also gets the track-proven C510 five-speed manual transmission with a 3.35 final-drive gear ratio for quick acceleration and faster top speed. Despite the performance-minded setup, Fiat 500 Turbo still manages 34 mpg.
Visually, the car is distinguished over the normal models with a pronounced front fascia and new air intakes to support the cooling system, new Gloss Black headlamps and parking lamp bezels, sport side skirts, roof spoiler, a rear diffuser, new tailpipes, and 16-inch aluminum wheels with Nero (black) painted pockets.
Behind those wheels you find a high-performance brake system with semi-metallic brake linings at all four corners, larger 11.1-inch ventilated front rotors, and red calipers. Above them you get sport-tuned spring rates, shock tuning and steering calibration.
Inside, the new Fiat 500 Turbo features sport-styled seating, sport-designed leather-wrapped shift knob and steering wheel accented with Argento (silver) stitching, and a Grigio/Nero (gray/black) seating and interior environment. For an even more upscale look, heated leather seating in Nero/Nero (black/black) or vivid Rosso/Nero (red/black) is available.
The highlight of the interior is of course the Beats by Dr. Dre audio system, used for the first time in a car of this segment. The system includes six premium speakers, an 8-inch dual-voice coil (DVC) subwoofer with trunk-mounted enclosure and eight-channel 368-watt amplifier with Beats Audio digital sound processing (DSP) algorithm.
