RE: Fiat Barchetta: Spotted

RE: Fiat Barchetta: Spotted

Saturday 10th February 2018

Fiat Barchetta: Spotted

Don't left the southpaw steering wheel entirely put you off - the Barchetta was pretty, cheap and fairly cheerful



Being part of a crowd is all very well but it's far better to stick out from one. However much we admire the Mazda MX-5 - and we do, all God's children do - there's no denying there are rather a lot of them. This was for most people all the encouragement they needed to go out and buy a Fiat Barchetta instead, the tiny two-seat convertible that not only powered its front wheels rather than its rear but also had the temerity to appear in the UK only in left-hand drive form.

Worse, everyone knows it to be a Punto underneath, and it seems no greater sin can be committed against sports car purists than to base a car on a small family hatchback of uncertain dynamic manners and lowly fiscal worth.

In fact the Punto was rather good in its day, its very earliest days maybe, as those old enough to remember will testify. Not as good as the Uno was before it, but good nonetheless. It was attractively styled, its engines had the usual hint of bravura, and its suspension and road behaviour were at least as sophisticated as its contemporaries.


If it was cheap it was also fairly cheerful, and as a basis for a diminutive drop-top it represented a good place to start. The real pain in the bottom with the Barchetta is not its origins but its left-hookerdom. You might be able to park and step straight out onto the pavement, but driving a left-hand drive car over here can still be an occasional pain, as can finding the right gear with your wrong (that is, your right) hand.

If it lacked the chassis fluidity of the MX-5, the MR2 and others, the Barchetta made up for it in brio. To punt(o) down a winding road on a summer's day with the wind in your hair and the sun on the back of your neck is a rare pleasure. As well as that its alloy door handles are a work of art, and as for those rear lights...

This one, from our classifieds, has the virtue of 12 months' worth of MOT and a reasonable price tag of just £2,500, and looks like a clean and well-kept example. Its black wheels and black leather are equally attractive, and with spring soon peeking its welcome head around the gatepost at the end of the driveway, this might be a good time to invest in a little capriccio Italian.


SPECIFICATION - FIAT BARCHETTA

Engine: 1,747cc, 4-cylinder
Transmission: 5-speed manual, front-wheel drive
Power (hp): 130@6,300rpm
Torque (lb ft): 121@4,300rpm
MPG: 33.6
CO2: N/A
First registered: 2001
Recorded mileage: 168,000kms
Price new: N/A
Price now: £2,500

See the full ad here.

Mark Pearson

 

 

 

 

   
Author
Discussion

Revjunkie

Original Poster:

12 posts

227 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Always like them and if they had made them correct hand drive for this country I'm sure they would have sold boat loads of them. Not exactly sure why they didn't if they were based on the Punto as it should have been easy enough.

Buff Mchugelarge

3,316 posts

149 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Ivabarchetta in 3 2 1...

soad

32,829 posts

175 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Buff Mchugelarge said:
Ivabarchetta in 3 2 1...
Changed username. wink

Mighty Flex

900 posts

170 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Nice cars, though finding a good value solid one is not easy when compared to MR2s and MX5s. There seem to be mainly high priced cars that have been for sale for ages.
Compared to my similar vintage NA MX5, my father's 95 Barchetta is a more modern, more sophisticated car with a much better engine. I'm not sure which i would choose presented one of each in similar condition though...
This one looks like its been well looked after but has lived outside and is beginning to need a little TLC as a 17 year old car.

Barchettaman

6,282 posts

131 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Mine was an early one, drove beautifully and was the most reliable car we've ever owned.

Only the arrival of babies forced its sale. I enjoyed my time in it and wouldn't mind another one, although if we as a family were seriously in the market for a cabrio it would have to be a 4-seater....

Anyway, I digress. The Barchetta is a hand-built Italian roadster with a cracking little VVT engine, for absolute peanuts. They sold boat loads of them here in Germany (pun intended) and there are still loads about.




Edited by Barchettaman on Saturday 10th February 13:18

Mac Sinclair

39 posts

90 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
I had one, what a fantastic car, huge fun to drive, amazing noise from a willing engine. Cruised flat out through Germany flat out at 125mph for and hour at one point... really wonderful + the handling was actually really good. More fun than a 3.4 Boxster S that I eventually worked up to. LHD isn’t perfect, but you get used too it and the car is narrow in any case. Oh yes, 100% reliable, no faults what so ever... it was designed to be driven by lunatic Italians. I always thought that if they had brought out a RHD version, sales of MX5s and MGFs would have been decimated.

idiotgap

2,112 posts

132 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
I have a soft spot for these, I nearly bought one once, had a test drive at DTR Sports in Mortlake, but went for a golf instead for some unfathomable reason, a dreary decision I regret.

DTR did convert some to RHD.
Edited to add, they converted 8 in total apparently. http://www.dtrsports.com/aboutus.asp

Edited by idiotgap on Saturday 10th February 13:41

unsprung

5,467 posts

123 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Who isn't charmed by the lines of this car? Sort of a twin pontoon look from the front, there. A nice break from the partially-melted Cadbury egg that seems to inform many cars of today.

About the "LHD only" thing....

Do contraptions similar to this mirror system or this camera system provide some relief?

I'm not hoping for a review of the preceding two products; I mention them simply as examples of what's possible (apart from driver skill, alone).













Edited by unsprung on Saturday 10th February 17:18

FourRingedDonuts

107 posts

123 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
My head gets turned every time I see one.

Are those wheels not Anthracite ?

Pericoloso

44,044 posts

162 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
soad said:
Buff Mchugelarge said:
Ivabarchetta in 3 2 1...
Changed username. wink
bowtiethank you gentlemen for the intro....bowtie

I'll just repeat what I keep saying.

Best car I've owned and I've had a few.......

Sellers ad little misleading ,these aren't a "limited run model" .FIAT churned out about 58000 of them going by VIN numbers.

I was out in mine when this thread started.....biggrinbiggrinbiggrinbiggrinbiggrinbiggrin

Oh and 2500 for this car looks like a bargain ,if it has no issues ,snap it up someone.


Edited by Pericoloso on Saturday 10th February 15:46

85Carrera

3,503 posts

236 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Mac Sinclair said:
Cruised flat out through Germany flat out at 125mph for and hour at one point... .
What utter bks ...

MikeyC

836 posts

226 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
always liked the look of these, but I suspect it's not best suited to tall drivers

Approx 30 were scrapped in the 2014 scrappage scheme... cry

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
I used to have a neighbour with one. Sounded surprisingly good for a bog standard four-pot and seemed pretty reliable. They look far less dumpy on the road than in pictures.

Even if they were available in RHD I'd struggle to pick one over a mk3 MR2 or an MX5 at that price.

Loyly

17,990 posts

158 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
85Carrera said:
What utter bks ...
Whilst I find that tale rather unlikely, I do really like these. I quite agree with the sentiment that if they had been available in RHD, they would have been very popular here.

df76

3,615 posts

277 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Have had a Barchetta for the last couple of years. Love it. Just about to under go some major surgery with a clutch change. The release bearing has become an embarassment...

ambuletz

10,690 posts

180 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
as a teen i loved the look of these when they came out, was just such a shame it was only LHD.

df76

3,615 posts

277 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
ambuletz said:
as a teen i loved the look of these when they came out, was just such a shame it was only LHD.
It really isn't an issue. Takes about 20 minutes to get used to it.

StairDominator

148 posts

74 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
Always liked these.

shakotan

10,679 posts

195 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
MikeyC said:
always liked the look of these, but I suspect it's not best suited to tall drivers

Approx 30 were scrapped in the 2014 scrappage scheme... cry
My boss is 6'4 and wouldn't sell his for love nor money.

soad

32,829 posts

175 months

Saturday 10th February 2018
quotequote all
StairDominator said:
Always liked these.
Buy this one! You know it makes perfect sense. hehe