Small cars are the big thing at Geneva and we're really rather taken with the likes of the new Renault Twingo. Clever technology, lightweight construction, a return to good and honest back to basics minimalism - hurrah.
Considerably more hardcore than you'd expect
The one that's most grabbed our attention, however, is a ridiculous Fiat 500 with all the titanium and carbon fibre baubles Abarth can throw at it. In fairness this is about more than a(nother) limited edition special laden with scorpion logos inside and out and topped off with a vaguely exotic sounding Italian suffix. Although it does get that for good measure.
Indeed, Abarth goes to some pains to point out that the 695 Biposto is NOT a limited edition. It is, though, for "special drivers", specifically "those who can show that they know how to drive it."
And with an H-pattern dog 'box at its heart you will indeed need a degree of expertise to get the most from it. Operated by a beautifully machined aluminium selector and capable of clutchless shifts, Abarth admits to a "drop of madness" in including this in the final spec. This rather special gearbox puts the power down from the 190hp 1.4-litre turbocharged engine and through a mechanical limited-slip differential. The transmission comes from race gearbox specialist Bacci Romano and is just one of several designer label hop-up parts included in the package. Others include a Poggipolini titanium rear anti-roll bar (no, nor us) and an Akrapovic titanium tipped exhaust system. A front-mounted intercooler and BMC induction kit are also included.
190hp thanks to FMIC and other mods
Sabelt carbon-backed race seats, OZ Racing wheels, Extreme Shox dampers and an optional MXL datalogging system complete a spec that sounds like the result of ram-raiding the Demon Tweeks warehouse, or at least an Italian equivalent thereof. Oh, and it's got no rear seats and plastic side windows too.
Weight is just below a tonne at 997kg and that 190hp power output up 10hp from the standard 695 Competizione (and related Ferrari and Maserati special editions). Torque remains the same at 184lb ft but 0-62mph would appear to be down significantly from the rather vague 'less than seven seconds' published for the Competizione.
Whatever the numbers, it just looks like a right laugh. And the most PH-worthy expression of Geneva's craze for compact city runabouts we've yet seen. We'll update with pricing and availability in the UK as and when we can.