Australia's coolest EV? Abarth going electric as hi-po answer to Fiat 500 EV

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Australia's coolest EV? Abarth goes electric as hi-po answer to Fiat 500 Electric
Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
14 Mar 2022
2 min read

Australia could welcome its coolest EV to date next year, with news Abarth will launch its first electric vehicle next year - a battery-powered and hi-po version of the Fiat 500.

Italy's answer to the retro-cool Honda e will reportedly swap range for power, out-punching the Fiat 500 Electric's circa 85kW and 220Nm, but delivering less than its more mild-mannered sibling's 320km/h driving range.

That's because the Abarth version will likely share the 500's 42kWh battery pack, but will use more of its capacity generating performance, with reports suggesting the brand will target a sub-seven-second sprint to 100km/h, and a top speed in excess of 160km/h.

All the other important bits will be changed, too, including brakes, and the "exhaust" note, which will give an option of silence or an artificial soundtrack.

According to the brand's top execs, testing is already well underway, ahead of an official launch next year.

“The bad news is that it’s more complicated to deliver than I thought. If you want to do a real Abarth, it’s not the same electric powertrain. Once it has the power and torque you want, it’s no longer the same drivetrain, nor the same transmission or brakes," Abarth chief Olivier François told UK outlet Auto Car.

Andrew Chesterton
Contributing Journalist
Andrew Chesterton should probably hate cars. From his hail-damaged Camira that looked like it had spent a hard life parked at the end of Tiger Woods' personal driving range, to the Nissan Pulsar Reebok that shook like it was possessed by a particularly mean-spirited demon every time he dared push past 40km/h, his personal car history isn't exactly littered with gold. But that seemingly endless procession of rust-savaged hate machines taught him something even more important; that cars are more than a collection of nuts, bolts and petrol. They're your ticket to freedom, a way to unlock incredible experiences, rolling invitations to incredible adventures. They have soul. And so, somehow, the car bug still bit. And it bit hard. When "Chesto" started his journalism career with News Ltd's Sunday and Daily Telegraph newspapers, he covered just about everything, from business to real estate, courts to crime, before settling into state political reporting at NSW Parliament House. But the automotive world's siren song soon sounded again, and he begged anyone who would listen for the opportunity to write about cars. Eventually they listened, and his career since has seen him filing car news, reviews and features for TopGear, Wheels, Motor and, of course, CarsGuide, as well as many, many others. More than a decade later, and the car bug is yet to relinquish its toothy grip. And if you ask Chesto, he thinks it never will.
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