fitting active Monza exhaust - dealer only? Cost?
Discussion
Hi all
I currently have a 2012 standard Abarth 500 135, but it came with the Monza exhaust.
I only bought it in October as an experiment to see what I thought of an Abarth, if you look at my car hidtory you'll see that I've never had a car anything like this before.
Well, I'm taken with it and my wife loves it, so it's time for a newer replacement. And for only the 3rd time in my life I am considering brand new. I really fancy the Adrenaline Green and that's going to be near impossible to find 2nd hand locally any time soon.
I fancy a Trofeo because the Monza is fitted as standard but I'm also considering the basic 145 bhp with a few options - strange as it may sound I'd prefer 16" wheels and I want the side stripes, neither of which is possible in the Trofeo.
Anyone know what a dealer would charge to supply & fit a Monza exhaust and is there any issue with the new 'active' Monza compared to the old one?
I currently have a 2012 standard Abarth 500 135, but it came with the Monza exhaust.
I only bought it in October as an experiment to see what I thought of an Abarth, if you look at my car hidtory you'll see that I've never had a car anything like this before.
Well, I'm taken with it and my wife loves it, so it's time for a newer replacement. And for only the 3rd time in my life I am considering brand new. I really fancy the Adrenaline Green and that's going to be near impossible to find 2nd hand locally any time soon.
I fancy a Trofeo because the Monza is fitted as standard but I'm also considering the basic 145 bhp with a few options - strange as it may sound I'd prefer 16" wheels and I want the side stripes, neither of which is possible in the Trofeo.
Anyone know what a dealer would charge to supply & fit a Monza exhaust and is there any issue with the new 'active' Monza compared to the old one?
I'm not sure how the new Monza integrates with the car for the Sport button activation - it is probably something relatively simple to do for an eager hobbyist but not sure on how a Dealer would approach it.
RE Stripes - I personally wouldn't consider this as a deal breaker - FWIW our last car had copies done by a local supplier near to our Dealer, who told us that they often use them for their cars/customers as the supply & fit is half the price of the Factory option and they also offer a huge variety of colours/finishes instead too (we now have a satin grey on our latest 595C as an example). Any professional outfit will do a job with these that would be hard to distinguish from the factory effort!
I would suggest that you test the Trofeo with the 17" wheels and try to get an extended test drive if you can - these models have the Koni FSD rear suspension, the same as the Turismo, which does offer a far, far better ride over the entry model (we noticed this almost immediately when going from an Entry 140 - Turismo 165) so you may find the ride fine on the slightly larger wheels.
The only thing I am unsure of is how the power delivery is in the Trofeo as it is essentially the 145 with a remap to 160hp, but it retains the smaller turbo compared to the Turismo/Comp - though if you are happy with the 145 offering though, I'm certain this won't be an issue!
RE Stripes - I personally wouldn't consider this as a deal breaker - FWIW our last car had copies done by a local supplier near to our Dealer, who told us that they often use them for their cars/customers as the supply & fit is half the price of the Factory option and they also offer a huge variety of colours/finishes instead too (we now have a satin grey on our latest 595C as an example). Any professional outfit will do a job with these that would be hard to distinguish from the factory effort!
I would suggest that you test the Trofeo with the 17" wheels and try to get an extended test drive if you can - these models have the Koni FSD rear suspension, the same as the Turismo, which does offer a far, far better ride over the entry model (we noticed this almost immediately when going from an Entry 140 - Turismo 165) so you may find the ride fine on the slightly larger wheels.
The only thing I am unsure of is how the power delivery is in the Trofeo as it is essentially the 145 with a remap to 160hp, but it retains the smaller turbo compared to the Turismo/Comp - though if you are happy with the 145 offering though, I'm certain this won't be an issue!
djgritt said:
I'm not sure how the new Monza integrates with the car for the Sport button activation - it is probably something relatively simple to do for an eager hobbyist but not sure on how a Dealer would approach it.
RE Stripes - I personally wouldn't consider this as a deal breaker - FWIW our last car had copies done by a local supplier near to our Dealer, who told us that they often use them for their cars/customers as the supply & fit is half the price of the Factory option and they also offer a huge variety of colours/finishes instead too (we now have a satin grey on our latest 595C as an example). Any professional outfit will do a job with these that would be hard to distinguish from the factory effort!
I would suggest that you test the Trofeo with the 17" wheels and try to get an extended test drive if you can - these models have the Koni FSD rear suspension, the same as the Turismo, which does offer a far, far better ride over the entry model (we noticed this almost immediately when going from an Entry 140 - Turismo 165) so you may find the ride fine on the slightly larger wheels.
The only thing I am unsure of is how the power delivery is in the Trofeo as it is essentially the 145 with a remap to 160hp, but it retains the smaller turbo compared to the Turismo/Comp - though if you are happy with the 145 offering though, I'm certain this won't be an issue!
Thanks for the reply djgritt, and to my other questionRE Stripes - I personally wouldn't consider this as a deal breaker - FWIW our last car had copies done by a local supplier near to our Dealer, who told us that they often use them for their cars/customers as the supply & fit is half the price of the Factory option and they also offer a huge variety of colours/finishes instead too (we now have a satin grey on our latest 595C as an example). Any professional outfit will do a job with these that would be hard to distinguish from the factory effort!
I would suggest that you test the Trofeo with the 17" wheels and try to get an extended test drive if you can - these models have the Koni FSD rear suspension, the same as the Turismo, which does offer a far, far better ride over the entry model (we noticed this almost immediately when going from an Entry 140 - Turismo 165) so you may find the ride fine on the slightly larger wheels.
The only thing I am unsure of is how the power delivery is in the Trofeo as it is essentially the 145 with a remap to 160hp, but it retains the smaller turbo compared to the Turismo/Comp - though if you are happy with the 145 offering though, I'm certain this won't be an issue!
You are right of course about the stripes, but they also come with black mirrors so would be nice to have them factory/deaer fitted.
I've arranged to go over the the nearest Abarth delaer to me on Sat morning so if they have a Trofeo I'll see if I can drive it over some poor roads & speed humps. Nuances of handling won't be an issue for the amount and type of driving I'll be doing but if it's significantly better in eneral driving I might be drawn towards it. The difference Vs standard model is over £2k though.
And as for the Monza, I suppose an alternative option is a 2nd hand old-style Monza with the valve permanently open?
What I don't understand is how dealers have been able to quote me on a basic 145 model in Adrenaline Green - both the configurator and the latest price list show it only as an option on the Trofeo and Competizione models?
At my age and with the type and amount of driving I do, an Abarth is totally silly and pointless - even borderline embarassing - and I never though I would ever contemplate buying such a thing new or nearly new.
I'll probably never have a car like this again, so I'm determined that if I am going to do it then I have to do it right - and the Adrenaline Green, stripes and Monza are all part of that. I'll be very disappointed if it isn't possible (I might have to suck it up and go for the Trofeo after all).
The new Monza active exhaust operates on a vacuum solenoid connected to the sport button. The old one would deploy when the engine reached 3000rpm under load and the exhaust flap would open then from pressure in the exhaust. As a retrofit option the old style is probably your better bet. However the new one wouldn't too hard to adapt on a DIY mod.
OP you seem to want everything from a Comp without buying a Comp. Silly question; why not buy a Comp? I can thoroughly recommend it
OP you seem to want everything from a Comp without buying a Comp. Silly question; why not buy a Comp? I can thoroughly recommend it
geeks said:
The new Monza active exhaust operates on a vacuum solenoid connected to the sport button. The old one would deploy when the engine reached 3000rpm under load and the exhaust flap would open then from pressure in the exhaust. As a retrofit option the old style is probably your better bet. However the new one wouldn't too hard to adapt on a DIY mod.
OP you seem to want everything from a Comp without buying a Comp. Silly question; why not buy a Comp? I can thoroughly recommend it
Yes, I've seen a picture of a new active Monza and you can clearly see what looks like a nipple for a vacuum pipe on what must be a small cylinder & piston attached to the valve - the question is, do all of the cars come equipped with the appropriate pipework or does that have to added as part of the dealer/factory fit of the active Monza? If so, I can imagine it would be £££ at main dealer rates?OP you seem to want everything from a Comp without buying a Comp. Silly question; why not buy a Comp? I can thoroughly recommend it
To answer your question - I genuinely don't want a competizione.
I don't want a hard ride, I don't want 17" wheels, I'm not bothered about leather, I don't want auto climate control (I actively dislike it in my current car) I don't think I need the better Koni dampers (but I'll maybe try a Trofeo as per djgritt's suggestion) and I don't want to spend up to £4-£5k extra on the bits I don't need or want for a car that I might do 2,000-2,500 miles a year in.
A standard 145 hp with cloth seats would suit me fine. But I like the Monza on my current 135hp and I would like the silliest colour option possibe.
In fact, rather than spend an extra £4-5k on a Comp., I could just keep my existing 135 and the wife can have it as her own. (NO! That's a terrible idea!)
UPDATE:
Despite 6 separate dealers quoting me prices on standard 145 hp cars in Adrenaline Green, 1 has now responded to my email and confirmed this isn't possible. Definitely Trofeo or Competizione only.
That's a few days dreaming wasted!
So, spend another £2k on stuff I don't need in order to get the green in a Trofeo.
Or, revert to the basic car in yellow, anthracite wheels, black striped & mirrors?
Hmmm . . . . I know what the proper PH answer would be.
Despite 6 separate dealers quoting me prices on standard 145 hp cars in Adrenaline Green, 1 has now responded to my email and confirmed this isn't possible. Definitely Trofeo or Competizione only.
That's a few days dreaming wasted!
So, spend another £2k on stuff I don't need in order to get the green in a Trofeo.
Or, revert to the basic car in yellow, anthracite wheels, black striped & mirrors?
Hmmm . . . . I know what the proper PH answer would be.
The configurator and brochures all say Adrenaline Green is only available on those two models.
Yellow is a decent enough lairy colour though.
I'd not have a basic one again myself, not for the power side, but because the ride was the harshest/worst in that model IMO - we've gone Ser.3 140 Basic > Ser.4 165 Turismo > Ser.4 180 Competizione - even the Comp seems to be a better ride than our basic one was.
Definitely try a Trofeo out - if it's any good you at least then get the upgraded suspension and desired active Monza (& the green option!) as standard and as much as you don't seem to want the 17" wheels, you could then get a set of the 16s quite cheaply to put onto it instead...
Yellow is a decent enough lairy colour though.
I'd not have a basic one again myself, not for the power side, but because the ride was the harshest/worst in that model IMO - we've gone Ser.3 140 Basic > Ser.4 165 Turismo > Ser.4 180 Competizione - even the Comp seems to be a better ride than our basic one was.
Definitely try a Trofeo out - if it's any good you at least then get the upgraded suspension and desired active Monza (& the green option!) as standard and as much as you don't seem to want the 17" wheels, you could then get a set of the 16s quite cheaply to put onto it instead...
Edited by djgritt on Thursday 7th February 13:34
I recently sold my 500C Abarth which I'd modified over time
I fitted a PowerMotiv quad exhaust 3 years ago and this slipped on easily. The flap control was on the vacuum brake and then was wireless remote control for quiet (about the same as monza) or loud (about the same as concorde complete with pops and bangs). It took about an hour to fit on a ramp and cost me £20 to the Kwikfit guy who enjoyed doing this for me in a quiet period
Mine was a standard 2014 from new and I added the following
AHM Remap to 190/200 - £500
EBC Disks and Pads - about £400
Koni Suspension from Abarth - £500
PowerMotiv Exhaust - £1200
You could therefore keep your existing car and just update it ?
My 10p
I fitted a PowerMotiv quad exhaust 3 years ago and this slipped on easily. The flap control was on the vacuum brake and then was wireless remote control for quiet (about the same as monza) or loud (about the same as concorde complete with pops and bangs). It took about an hour to fit on a ramp and cost me £20 to the Kwikfit guy who enjoyed doing this for me in a quiet period
Mine was a standard 2014 from new and I added the following
AHM Remap to 190/200 - £500
EBC Disks and Pads - about £400
Koni Suspension from Abarth - £500
PowerMotiv Exhaust - £1200
You could therefore keep your existing car and just update it ?
My 10p
arfur said:
Mine was a standard 2014 from new and I added the following
AHM Remap to 190/200 - £500
EBC Disks and Pads - about £400
Koni Suspension from Abarth - £500
PowerMotiv Exhaust - £1200
You could therefore keep your existing car and just update it ?
My 10p
arfurAHM Remap to 190/200 - £500
EBC Disks and Pads - about £400
Koni Suspension from Abarth - £500
PowerMotiv Exhaust - £1200
You could therefore keep your existing car and just update it ?
My 10p
I have a 595c standard model from late 2015. I love it to bits!
I find the ride not too bad - my understanding is that the C version has slightly softer springs. Did fitting the Koni FSD dampers make much difference to the ride quality? Before I bought the car I thought I would probably fit these dampers but others have said the improvement is marginal at best so would be interested in your experience.
My car is now out of warranty so I'm also considering the AHM remap although I am not sure that upping the power would make the car more fun. I could be persuaded though...
harry miller said:
arfur
I have a 595c standard model from late 2015. I love it to bits!
I find the ride not too bad - my understanding is that the C version has slightly softer springs. Did fitting the Koni FSD dampers make much difference to the ride quality? Before I bought the car I thought I would probably fit these dampers but others have said the improvement is marginal at best so would be interested in your experience.
My car is now out of warranty so I'm also considering the AHM remap although I am not sure that upping the power would make the car more fun. I could be persuaded though...
The Koni lowered the car and made it much better in twisty stuff (in the Pyrenees etc). I found the car perfectly comfortable for 800mile dashes from south of france to oxfordshire, just stopping for fuel. I also changed the tyres (on the diamond 17 inches) to 215/40/17 which made a better stance and also improved on limit noticeably.I have a 595c standard model from late 2015. I love it to bits!
I find the ride not too bad - my understanding is that the C version has slightly softer springs. Did fitting the Koni FSD dampers make much difference to the ride quality? Before I bought the car I thought I would probably fit these dampers but others have said the improvement is marginal at best so would be interested in your experience.
My car is now out of warranty so I'm also considering the AHM remap although I am not sure that upping the power would make the car more fun. I could be persuaded though...
Thank again for all the suggestions everyone.
Went to local dealer this morning. Wasted journey as the salesman I had an appointment with wasn’t there and no-one could see me for at least an hour!
Anyway, 2 things
1 They had a comp in the showroom in Adrenaline Green, and that has got me thinking about the Trofeo again, but
2 They told me that Abarth aren’t even taking orders for at least another 2 months! So that’s me back to the drawing board.
Went to local dealer this morning. Wasted journey as the salesman I had an appointment with wasn’t there and no-one could see me for at least an hour!
Anyway, 2 things
1 They had a comp in the showroom in Adrenaline Green, and that has got me thinking about the Trofeo again, but
2 They told me that Abarth aren’t even taking orders for at least another 2 months! So that’s me back to the drawing board.
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