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Last summer, I decided I wanted an economical, practical commuter car, preferably without a roof... with a ripping motor... and great handling. Almost an impossible combination until I looked at the 500C Abarth. Found a "GQ" model at almost $12k off sticker a few states away and drove it home madly in love.
from the top of Old Spiral Highway by Jeff Conlin, on Flickr
"panorama sunroof" by Jeff Conlin, on Flickr
sunset on metallic "Granito Lucente" paint by Jeff Conlin, on Flickr
Excellent car... ticked all of those boxes and thensome. For $17k, I couldn't say a bad word about it (though if I had paid the full $29k sticker, I'd have been a bit disappointed). As it is ultimately a performance variant of a two-generation-old economy car, some little details were understandable, but increasingly annoying. Cheap plastics, fit/finish inconsistencies, squeaks and rattles... plus, even though it was a lot of fun to flog around, the FWD torque steer and tendency toward understeer just wasn't as fun as that engine could be.
So during my 30k service, I wandered over to the showroom to look at the 124 Abarths that had just arrived the day before. Took one for a test drive and was very impressed. Wasn't quite ready to walk away from the 500 yet (especially with the dealers still throwing in "market adjusted" pricing)... but the seed was planted.
Fast forward to this past weekend, in between two snowstorms, just out of the Christmas rush, definitely not prime convertible-buying season... so it could be the perfect opportunity to find a deal. Still figuring I want an Abarth, but decided to give the 124 Classica a spin first just to have a control.
All the push of the Abarth, all of the fit and finish upgrades over the 500, great control feel and a more compliant ride on bad roads, great audio and features (including headrest speakers) even out of the base radio without the giant ugly touchscreen and bad UI (personal preference, but I found using the infotainment hardware on the tech package to be maddening).
Drove the Abarth again and surprised myself... outside of the Abarth's awesome seats, I truly preferred the more simple Classica. Per the dealer, interest was very low in the base models without touchscreen, especially in the "bronzo magnetico" brown, which in person has a great subtle metallic shine to it. I was hooked.
Wasn't quite the $12k discount from the last one, but worked out a very good deal (after a case of mistaken identity resulting in almost being thrown out of the dealership by the general manager, but thankfully that was cleared up quickly). Between snow, heavy rain, and battling the flu, I haven't had a chance to really get out and play yet... but I'm already in love, even more so than the 500.
2017 Fiat 124 Classica - "bronzo magnetico" by Jeff Conlin, on Flickr
2017 Fiat 124 Classica - "bronzo magnetico" by Jeff Conlin, on Flickr
2017 Fiat 124 Classica - "bronzo magnetico" by Jeff Conlin, on Flickr



Excellent car... ticked all of those boxes and thensome. For $17k, I couldn't say a bad word about it (though if I had paid the full $29k sticker, I'd have been a bit disappointed). As it is ultimately a performance variant of a two-generation-old economy car, some little details were understandable, but increasingly annoying. Cheap plastics, fit/finish inconsistencies, squeaks and rattles... plus, even though it was a lot of fun to flog around, the FWD torque steer and tendency toward understeer just wasn't as fun as that engine could be.
So during my 30k service, I wandered over to the showroom to look at the 124 Abarths that had just arrived the day before. Took one for a test drive and was very impressed. Wasn't quite ready to walk away from the 500 yet (especially with the dealers still throwing in "market adjusted" pricing)... but the seed was planted.
Fast forward to this past weekend, in between two snowstorms, just out of the Christmas rush, definitely not prime convertible-buying season... so it could be the perfect opportunity to find a deal. Still figuring I want an Abarth, but decided to give the 124 Classica a spin first just to have a control.
All the push of the Abarth, all of the fit and finish upgrades over the 500, great control feel and a more compliant ride on bad roads, great audio and features (including headrest speakers) even out of the base radio without the giant ugly touchscreen and bad UI (personal preference, but I found using the infotainment hardware on the tech package to be maddening).
Drove the Abarth again and surprised myself... outside of the Abarth's awesome seats, I truly preferred the more simple Classica. Per the dealer, interest was very low in the base models without touchscreen, especially in the "bronzo magnetico" brown, which in person has a great subtle metallic shine to it. I was hooked.
Wasn't quite the $12k discount from the last one, but worked out a very good deal (after a case of mistaken identity resulting in almost being thrown out of the dealership by the general manager, but thankfully that was cleared up quickly). Between snow, heavy rain, and battling the flu, I haven't had a chance to really get out and play yet... but I'm already in love, even more so than the 500.


