Unique, 840-mile Fiat Coupe prototype for sale
Most pre-prod protos end up at the scrapper - not this one
For all the convoluted, eye-strainingly ugly car designs we see these days, we can always trust Pininfarina to show the big OEMs how it should be done. The Italian design house has recently released some shadowy teaser images of a Honda NSX restomod. And a faithful one at that by the looks of it, with pop-up headlights, side intakes behind the doors and a rear wing that seamlessly integrates with the body. We’ll have to wait for the full reveal, but from what we’ve seen so far, it’s going to be a real looker.
Not that we’d expect anything less from Pininfarina. Sure, it’s had a few misses in the past, like the Hyundai Matrix and Daewoo Tacuma, but it’s otherwise been hit after consummate hit. This is the firm that was in charge of Ferrari design for decades, after all, resulting in such stunners as the 250 LM, Testarossa and Enzo. There are some real stunners at the more conventional end of the spectrum, too, like the Peugeot 406 Coupe, Alfa Romeo Spider and the delightful Fiat Coupe, much like the example you see here.
In fact, this particular car holds a special place in the Fiat/Pininfarina story. It’s a pre-production prototype (chassis No. ZFA175000P0014756 if you’re interested), and the seller understands that it once sat proudly at the 'Pininfarina Experience Centre’ for the public to admire. From there, it was apparently sold off to an employee, where it spent a little over a decade as part of a private collection. Yet, despite its role as a prototype, it’s barely moved over the last 31 years. The dash reads just 840 miles, which must surely make it the least-used Fiat Coupe on the planet.
So what exactly makes it a prototype, then? Well, it doesn’t look any different to the normal car, which is probably a good thing, nor is there any special hardware lurking beneath. But according to the seller, there are a few bits here and there that never made it to the production car, such as the blocky gear knob, the lower section of the dashboard and various other bits you (probably) can’t see. Being a pre-prod prototype means there are a few rough edges, too; you’ll notice cables hanging from the bottom of the dash and an empty hole where you’d normally find the stereo.
Otherwise, it’s a standard Fiat Coupe 16V. Obviously, the 20V five-pot is the more desirable of the Coupes, but the 16V has a lot going for it. The engine was essentially the twin-cam unit from the Lancia Delta Integrale, with this turbocharged example putting out a respectable 190hp. That was a decent amount of grunt back in 1994, and certainly too much for the front axle to handle, so Fiat fitted the turbo’d 16V with a limited-slip differential to keep a lid on it.
Above all, it’s a proper time warp, with the paintwork, interior and engine bay all looking in immaculate condition. That should come as no surprise given the mileage, and the fact that it’s never been registered in the countries it has lived in. Quite how tricky it’d be to get it roadworthy in the UK is beyond me. But being sat in a barn as part of a larger collection is a much nicer fate than what most prototypes are afforded, and it’ll be a fun little conversation starter. All you have to do is give the seller a bell and find out how much they want for it…
It was an in-house design attributed to a certain Chris Bangle.
Pininfarina were responsible for the interior design hence why you find the badge on the inside
The car itself as pointed out was designed by Bangle before he went to BMW. As a design I’m not sure it’s really aged that well, the 20v version with the 5 pot was the more desirable version, the earlier 16v 4 pot was always in its shadow.
Still a very cool thing, I always thought it was a Bangle design as opposed to pininfarina, maybe he worked for them and not fiat?
A quick look on Wikipedia implies that it was designed by Chris Bangle, as another poster said the interior was designed by Pininfarina and it was built in the Pininfarina factory.
Pretty sure this has an incorrect grille fitted. The original 16v grilles were more recessed and of an ‘egg-crate’ design. The grille on this car is from a later 20v model.
Still - nice to see such a well preserved example. I once owned a 1995 pre-launch Fiat demo 16v Coupe in the same colour.
Yes, the 16v are slower than the later 5-pot versions (only 138bhp from the non-turbo), but the handling is a bit sweeter with less weight over the front wheels
Pretty sure this has an incorrect grille fitted. The original 16v grilles were more recessed and of an egg-crate design. The grille on this car is from a later 20v model.
Drove a pretty much identical one like this that a mates mum had stored for years, he recommissioned it and I had a go and to be honest it just felt old and slow with the 16 valve engine.
Quite like the yellow, very much a signature colour for the Coupe.
was going to be followed by... it all started here.
Hideous when new and the passing of time has done nothing to diminish its ugliness. I wouldn't want one even if it was free.
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