RE: Abarth 124 Spider: PH Fleet

[Pooh]

The black bonnet is an option so people should not let that put them off the car.
I have had two Multiair engined cars, it is a very good engine but takes a lot of miles to loosen up and runs much better if it has a diet of Vpower.
When they are new they are a bit rough and reluctant to rev but by 50k miles the 170 Multiair in my Giulietta was a smooth, free revving and very enjoyable engine.

[Matt Bird]

Wolands Advocate said:

How's the driving position?

I tried a standard 124 Spider because my wife likes the idea of one, but I found that (a) despite only being 5"10, I simply couldn't get the seat to go back as far as I wanted, and (b) despite not being having a particularly broad upper back, the seat back was too narrow between the bolsters, meaning that after about 10 minutes behind the wheel, I was feeling really quite uncomfortable and decidedly keen to get out. Would be a deal-breaker for me.

The seats in the MX-5 I tried did not suffer to the same extent, oddly enough, perhaps because they are slimmer.

It's not ideal! Wheel could do with coming out, certainly. So legs are quite cramped and arms outstretched. Awkward rather than really uncomfortable at the moment, though I'll report back!

[kambites]

Pooh said:

When they are new they are a bit rough and reluctant to rev but by 50k miles the 170 Multiair in my Giulietta was a smooth, free revving and very enjoyable engine.

So for the average car, probably just about loosened up in time for the second or third owner.

[Pooh]

kambites said:

Pooh said:

When they are new they are a bit rough and reluctant to rev but by 50k miles the 170 Multiair in my Giulietta was a smooth, free revving and very enjoyable engine.

So for the average car, probably just about loosened up in time for the second or third owner.

Very true

[Dynamic Turtle]

Pooh said:

The black bonnet is an option so people should not let that put them off the car.
I have had two Multiair engined cars, it is a very good engine but takes a lot of miles to loosen up and runs much better if it has a diet of Vpower.
When they are new they are a bit rough and reluctant to rev but by 50k miles the 170 Multiair in my Giulietta was a smooth, free revving and very enjoyable engine.

That's a lot of Vpower.

Why does such a microscopic block take so long to "run in"?

[Pooh]

Dynamic Turtle said:

Pooh said:

The black bonnet is an option so people should not let that put them off the car.
I have had two Multiair engined cars, it is a very good engine but takes a lot of miles to loosen up and runs much better if it has a diet of Vpower.
When they are new they are a bit rough and reluctant to rev but by 50k miles the 170 Multiair in my Giulietta was a smooth, free revving and very enjoyable engine.

That's a lot of Vpower.

Why does such a microscopic block take so long to "run in"?

I have no idea, it did not take the full 50k to run in but it did seem to just get better and better as the miles increased. It also seemed to need a regular thrashing to keep running at its best, maybe it learns how you drive and adjusts itself accordingly or it might just be a case of blowing the crap out of the cats but if you pootled for too long it did become a bit less enthusiastic.

[BVB]

Seeing one of these on the road always turns my head, they look great. A future classic.