The Abarth 595 hot hatchback has been given a refresh following the reveal of the new Abarth 124 Spider roadster. It will go on sale in June.
The revised pocket rocket’s engine has been subject to a slight boost in power. The 1.4 T-Jet turbo petrol now has 143bhp in the entry-level 595 and 162bhp in the 595 Turismo. The hottest 595 Competizione keeps the same amount of power as before, at 178bhp, but can now be specified with a limited-slip differential.
Along with the power increase, it’s clear to see that the new Abarth 595 has taken some styling cues from the refreshed Fiat 500 city car that launched in summer 2015. The 500’s halo-like daytime running lights and ring-shaped rear light clusters are blended into the Abarth’s more aggressive bodywork, which includes a new front bumper with massive air intakes and a deeper rear diffuser.
The 17-inch Granturismo wheels are said to be lighter than the prevous-generation’s and provide more ventilation for the Brembo brakes. Turismo and Competizione models feature Koni FSD shock absorbers as standad and the latter is also fitted with a high-performance Recaro Monza exhaust with two modes.
Inside, all 595 models are equipped with Fiat’s five-inch Uconnect infotainment system as standard, but you can specify the larger seven-inch system. The Uconnect 7” comes with sat-nav and DAB radio, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto becoming “available on request.” Plus, if you want to drown out the Abarth’s popcorn maker exhaust, a new BeatsAudio system will be available, too.
Other, more minor, tweaks to the interior include a new flat-bottomed steering wheel, and dashboard trim that’s matched to each version. You can also specify the carbon dashboard trim from the 695 Biposto track car at an extra cost.
The new Abarth 595 range will go on sale in Europe in June 2016. Prices are yet to be announced, but we shouldn’t expect them to start at much more than £15,000.
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