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2015 Fiat 500C Abarth Automatic

"I would not, could not in a tree. Not in a car, you let me be. I do not like them in a box. I do not like them with a fox. I do not like them in a house. I do not like them with a mouse. I do not like them here or there. I do not like them anywhere. I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them Sam-I-Am." Why am I quoting Dr. Seuss' classic children's tale in the review of a small Fiat? Well, much like oddly colored eggs and ham, for the 500C Abarth, Fiat has taken something formerly palatable and added a rather bizarre quality – a six-speed automatic transmission. "I do not like an auto trans," I said. "I'd only drive it in a van." What would happen to the 500 Abarth's hilariously charming and flawed character? Isn't an automatic gearbox diametrically opposed to the cheap and cheerful driving pleasure inherent in the scorpion-badged Cinquecento? After a week behind the wheel, I was shocked to find that the auto Abarth is nearly as entertaining as its clutch-equipped counterpart. Driving Notes The Aisin six-speed automatic is beefed up for the higher torque of the hot 500 Abarth, and the final drive ratio is shorter. Despite the Abarth's spicier character, the shifter retains the same PRNDL pattern and piano-black surround as the standard 500. While I laud Fiat for offering a correct shifter layout to the manual-shifting scheme – pull to upshift and push to downshift – that smart move is overshadowed by the lack of wheel-mounted paddle shifters. There's not much else to complain about with the new automatic, because on the road it delivers similar performance to the five-speed manual. Upshifts are smooth and quick in the standard setting, and only get sharper if you push the Sport button on the dash. On top of that, wide-open-throttle upshifts show off the sonorous voice of the Abarth-tuned exhaust. It pops and cracks and belches in a horribly, hilariously anti-social way. I love it. The twin pipes are just as vocal on the rev-matched downshifts. The gearbox isn't as quick to drop ratios as some of its two-pedal competitors, like the dual-clutch-equipped Volkswagen GTI or even the traditional automatic offered in the Mini Cooper S (coincidentally also an Aisin unit). That said, the difference isn't significant enough to count as a major demerit. One minor change with the transmission is the power output. While the manual model has 160 horsepower, the auto drops to 157. Torque, though, is up from 170 pound-feet to 183 lb-ft.

2018 Fiat 500 minicar gets more expensive with the extra ponies

Fiat Chrysler is giving a big price increase to the 2018 Fiat 500 minicar, with its newly enhanced powertrain and other upgrades adding up to as much as a $1,500 premium over the outgoing versions. Taken together with a $250 boost to destination fees for most cars, SUVs and trucks in the FCA family, and it's going to cost quite a bit more to drive the Italian subcompact. CarsDirect reports that FCA bumped the starting price for the 2018 Fiat 500 Pop by $1,500 to $17,490 for the 5-speed manual and $18,485 for the six-speed automatic. The Fiat 500 Lounge will start at $20,990, which is also $1,500 more than last year, while the top-of-the-line 500 Abarth starts at $21,740, up $750. Those figures include the $250 higher destination fee, which FCA reportedly announced to dealers in March for most 2018 cars and trucks — for example, the destination fee on a Jeep Wrangler is now an eye-popping $1,445. The destination fee is what automakers charge to ship vehicles from the factory to dealers and isn't normally included in a vehicle's advertised price. The Fiat 500 destination fee is now $1,245, CarsDirect reports ( Autoblog sought confirmation and comment from FCA but hasn't received a response). Fiat, of course, is adding oomph to the 2018 version of the 500 via a turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that pushes horsepower up 33 percent to 135 ponies and 150 pound-feet of torque. It's also adding sportier suspension, brakes and exterior design, a sport-tuned exhaust and rearview camera, plus 16-inch aluminum wheels, fog lamps and a "Turbo" badge on the rear fascia. "It's important to note that we've added even more standard content in order to further enhance the fun-to-drive factor that our customers expect," spokesman Bryan Zvibleman tells Autoblog. The new price makes it more expensive than the 2019 Honda Fit, which starts at $17.085 including the $895 destination charge for a six-speed manual. It also follows a $2,000 cut in the base price of the 500 Pop for 2017. It will be interesting to see whether Fiat can hold steady on the new higher pricing without having to resort to discounts for the slow-selling minicar. FCA says overall U.S. sales of the Fiat brand fell 45 percent in April to 1,404 vehicles. According to CarSalesBase.com, the company has sold only 1,644 Fiat 500 coupes year to date, compared to 5,221 for the first four months of 2017, though the figures reflect the outdated 2017 model and don't include the five-door 500L.

All 2018 Fiat 500s will get turbocharged engines

For 2018, every basic Fiat 500 is getting a healthy horsepower increase thanks to a standard turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder making 135 horsepower and 150 pound-feet of torque. That's a big increase over the current model's naturally aspirated 1.4-liter engine that makes just 101 horsepower and 97 pound-feet of torque. The newly available turbo engine can also be fitted to either a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic. Fiat 500 fans may also find the new turbo engine's specifications familiar, and that's because they're identical to the old Fiat 500 Turbo that was introduced a few years ago. That car was introduced as a sort of happy medium between the standard 500 and the Abarth. The Turbo disappeared for a little while, but will be resurrected as 2018's entry model. Fiat also says the new turbocharged 500 Pop and Lounge (the basic models) get sportier suspension and brakes than the old one, again similar to the discontinued 500 Turbo. The exterior also becomes more aggressive on both trim levels looking a bit like a toned-down Abarth. And if you've picked up on the theme here, the exterior looks much like the old 500 Turbo's. Mind you, we're not complaining about Fiat bringing back the Turbo as the entry-level 500. It brings the car closer in parity to the base Mini Cooper, effectively matching it for power, and coming up just 10 pound-feet of torque short in the twist department. And while we didn't find the old 500 Turbo to be nearly as fun as the Abarth, the extra power did make for a better basic Fiat – and so should the 2018s. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2018 Fiat 500: Chicago 2018 View 12 Photos Related Gallery 2018 Fiat 500 View 14 Photos Image Credit: Live photos copyright 2018 Drew Phillips / Autoblog.com Chicago Auto Show Fiat Convertible Hatchback Economy Cars Performance turbo 2018 Chicago Auto Show fiat 500 turbo