Any male Abarth 595 owners here?

[helli2020]

[mattwilko]

Seeked this out. Saw one in the classifieds yesterday and been wandering about this. It's getting very tempting. Has everyone found them pretty reliable?

[EJH]

mattwilko said:

Seeked this out. Saw one in the classifieds yesterday and been wandering about this. It's getting very tempting. Has everyone found them pretty reliable?

I have had a 500 since October 2009. It might have only done 23,600 miles in that time but it has done a few trips to Cornwall, many to Manchester / Yorkshire and a trip to Turin (over the alps) and the South of France.

It had warranty work in its first year.....although all it needed was 2 new washer jets fitting (bits fell out so they didn't spray). Otherwise, utterly faultless.

Compared to a MINI i bought in 2002, it has been vastly more reliable; that £8,000 (plus VAT) of warranty work in about the first 2 1/2 years.

It's not perfect, irritations including:

Road noise on motorway
Hifi being loud but having little by way of fidelity
Backache on v v long runs
Dealers...

Road noise does appear to have improved on ContiSportContact 5s; seem much more to my taste than P Zero Neros were.

I didn't much enjoy an Abarth dealer I used initially but the local Fiat dealer (Ancaster Catford)has been superb; great service and reasonable prices.

But for the overall duties it serves (around town, some runs out of town and a few longer runs) it has been a very good car. Massively flawed, in many ways but it has character and is a rabid little so-and-so on boost.

[horsemeatscandal]

I've been umming and arring about what mini hot hatch to get later this year. I thought I was set on a 208 GTi but that's out the window and an Abarth is on the cards. Either a 500 SS or a 595 Turismo, a 160 anyway. Given the price of them brand new I might even explore that option. From what I've read, they're cheap to run and repair and there appears to be a very extensive, well-priced aftermarket. No brainer for me at the minute.