Abarth, Fiat's performance division, will premiere a few special edition models at this year's IAA Frankfurt auto show. Amongst those there will be the Abarth 500 Cabrio Italia, based on the Fiat 500C, which is also now available in the USA. Abarth's 500 Cabrio Italia features Blu Abu Dhabi livery, which represents a tribute to Italian design, and it will accompany the 2011 Automotive Giro d'Italia. Fiat will build only 150 units of the 500 Cabrio Italia. Its price has not been announced yet.
The 500 Cabrio Italia is powered by Abarth's standard engine - the 1,368 cm3 4 cylinder 16 valve turbo, with a fixed-geometry IHI turbocharger, which develops 160 hp. The top speed of the 500 Cabrio Italia is 211 km/h and
the small Abarth can make the 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) journey in 7.4 seconds. Equipped with a 5-speed manual gearbox, and a TTC (Torque Transfer Control) device, the Abarth 500 Cabrio Italia offers a 6.5 l/100 km fuel consumption on the combined cycle.
In terms of styling, apart from all the badges you can usually find on this sort of limited edition models, the Abarth 500 Cabrio Italia also features leather seats with a carbon fiber backrest, pedal and gear lever knob made from Alutex aluminum glass fiber, and various other interior accents.
