Abarth to Unleash Punto SuperSport and two Special Editions of the 500 in Franfkurt

The Fiat Group’s Abarth division will display three “specialties” based on the firm's Punto supermini, the 500 and 500C softop models at September's Frankfurt Motor Show.

First up is the Abarth Punto SuperSport featuring a “Grigio Campovolo” two-tone color scheme with silver bodywork and a matte black bonnet and roof, along with “SuperSport” decals on the side, the tailgate and the mirrors, plus a set of 18-inch alloy wheels with red brake calipers.

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2012 Fiat Punto gets 85HP 0.9-liter TwinAir and 1.3 Multijet Engines

The Nuova Panda may be Fiat's star attraction at this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, but the Italians will also show a subtly revised version of the Punto supermini.

The most important change is the introduction of the two-cylinder MultiAir turbocharged gasoline engine. It’s the same unit used in Fiat's 500 and Panda, as well as the Alfa Romeo MiTo, producing 85HP and 145 Nm of torque at 2,000 rpm.

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New Punto 150° is Fiat’s Tribute to the 150th Anniversary of Italy's Unification

To mark the 150th anniversary of Italy's unification, Fiat has unveiled a special edition version of its Punto Evo supermini called the ‘Punto 150’. Set to go on sale this April, the commemorative edition is distinguished by a bespoke honeycomb grille, the two-tone unique lightweight alloy wheels, “Azzurro Italia” special metallic paintwork and the “Italia 150” round commemorative badges on the B-pillars.

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Geneva Preview: New Abarth Punto EVO Packs 165HP 1.4-liter Turbo Engine

A few months after the premiere of the (facelifted) Punto EVO, and Abarth has announced that it has prepared its own version of the three-door supermini packing a 1.4 liter turbocharged Multiair four-banger that will debut alongside the souped-up 500C that we told you about earlier today at next week's Geneva Motor Show.

Fiat's performance division has sourced a larger turbocharger from Garrett in order to lift output to 165-horsepower and 250Nm of torque (at 2,250 RPM). 100 km/h rolls by you in 7.9 seconds, meaning there's got to be more than just a power boost to make this worthy of the Abarth name. And there is.

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Abarth 500 Convertible and Abarth Punto EVO Rumored to Debut in Geneva

Rumors of the pending arrival of the Abarth branded Fiat 500C and Punto Evo have been circulating for months, but Italian car magazine Quattroruote is certain now that both models will have their official world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show in about two weeks time from today.

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Fiat's Grande Punto Production Reaches One-Million Mark

On Tuesday, 24 November, the one millionth Grande Punto rolled off the production lines of the Fiat's Italian factory in Melfi. The commemorative Grande Punto is a Passionate Red Sport version equipped with the Italian firm's 1.4 turbocharged petrol engine that puts out 120HP and it is intended for the British market. The first Grande Punto was launched in 2005 and was the heir of Fiat's two best-sellers, the first Punto from manufactured 1993 to 1999 of which 3.5 million were manufactured, while the second series that was launched in 1999 and is still currently on sale under the name Punto Classic, has exceeded 3 million. The Punto itself had replaced Fiat's iconic Uno supermini.

New Fiat Grande Punto Natural Power will Cost you as low as €3.8/100 km

Fiat is further enhancing its already large fleet of methane-powered cars with the introduction of the Grande Punto Natural Power. The new dual fuel (petrol/methane) version of the Maserati-faced Grande Punto is powered by a 1.4-liter 8v Fire engine. According to Fiat, in Italy 12 Euros ($16.5 US) will buy you a full tank of natural gas which is good enough to cover a distance of 310 km (195 miles). Another asset of the new model is its extremely high range of more than 1,000 km or 620 miles as it features two tanks -an 84 liter tank for methane and a 45 liter one for gasoline. -Continued

Fiat said that the promotional launch price for the new Grande Punto Natural Power will start from 12,300 Euros which is the equivalent of $16,800 US, complemented by 6 years of interest-free finance, an offer valid to 31 December 2009.

Europe’s Top 10 best selling cars in 2006: GM’s Opel Astra knocked the VW Golf off the top spot!

GM might be having serious issues here and there but in Europe, things are starting to look promising to say the least. GM’s subsidiary Opel, not only swerved pass Renault to take the second place overall in the European market for 2006 –despite a 2,3% drop in sales, but its Astra model also managed to knock VW’s Golf off the top spot and become Europe’s best seller for 2006.

While rival VW must be pleased not only for maintaining first place but also for broadening the difference with the competition, I’m sure that they are quite unhappy with the fact that the Golf slipped from 1st place to 4th. On the contrary, Renault must feel very proud for its new Clio hatch (+28,0%) but not for its overall performance as sales dropped by 12,6%.

Fiat on its behalf recorded the largest increase in sales from the top 10 group with an 18.7% rise in sales, mainly due to its well-received Grande Punto hatch, which saw its sales double in 2006.

Finally, even though Toyota managed to rank 9th overall, there’s not one Asian model in Europe’s Top 10 best sellers list. In my opinion that won’t happen neither in 2007, but don’t be surprised if Toyota surpasses Citroen or Fiat (though less probable due to the introduction of the Bravo) at the end of the year.Via: Jato Dynamics

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