The tuning firm covered the Ferrari-branded Abarth model's body in a flashy chrome vinyl wrap with racing stripes in the colors of the Italian flag.
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In fact, it's US$22,000 price tag (*not including destination and handling charges) is sure to raise some eyebrows.
And this not only because it costs $6,500 more than the standard 101-horsepower 500, but also because it brings it in the same price range as sports cars like the 210HP 2012 Hyundai Genesis Coupe ($22,250) and even the 305HP 2012 Ford Mustang V6 ($22,310)!
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The SCORP-ION is a conceptual proposal for an environment-friendly sports car designed by the students of the Master of Arts in Transportation Design at the Istituto Europeo di Design of Turin (IED) and constructed in cooperation with Abarth. The strictly two-seater study measures 4.01 meters long and is powered by four electric motors, one on each wheel. Check out the video from the Geneva Show presentation after the break.
The sports coupe is named Abarth Scorp-Ion and it was designed by seven IED students who worked under the supervision of designers Luca Borgogno from Pininfarina, and Luigi Giampaolo from Maserati.
The goal was to design a bespoke compact-sized sports car with lines that evoke the scorpion (the official symbol of Abarth) without any references to the Fiat brand, with which Abarth is often identified.
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Today, our pondering came to an end as the Marketing and Communications director of Autopolis Luxembourg dropped the first real life shots of the car in our mailbox. We believe Fiat should have released these photos instead of the 'chop from the beginning, but we'll give them props for keeping a close eye on the web-o-sphere and swiftly reacting to our post.
In this case, we didn't find a press announcement, but that doesn't necessarily mean the story is not true. However, the picture that has been floating around on several websites has definitely been doctored, and we say this not only because the colors are off, but mainly because we found the original image. Hoax or not, we must say that the 500 Abarth looks awesomely cool in those traditional racing colors.
*Update 1: Un point to the folks at Auto55 for sending in the official press release from Fiat Belgium (added after the jump) confirming the Gulf model - but not the photo, as we've already proved.
*Update 2: The guys from Autofan e-mailed the press photo in its original compression. Apparently, Fiat mastered the photoshoped image...
The starting point of the build is a Fiat 500 Convertible Abarth. As the car's name suggests, at the unnamed client's request, there is abundant use of gold. On the outside, the golden pearlescent white painting includes 24K gold particles while the precious material also adorns the body trim and wheels. The electric fabric roof top is finished in black.
Beginning with the engine bay, Hamann's engineers used forged pistons, enhanced connection rods, new camshafts and a modified turbocharger to increase the 1.4-liter petrol unit's peak output to an impressive 275 hp and 380 Nm (280 lb-ft) of torque. That's 196.4 hp/liter, more than double of what is considered to be an excellent ratio.
The semi-convertible Abarth 500C is motivated by a 140HP 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which provides a top speed of 127mph and a 0-62mph (100km/h) time of 8.1 seconds, while returning 43mpg UK on the combined cycle.
The car in question is the extremely rare Fiat 500 Abarth Ferrari Dealers Edition (there's also a non-Abarth model). Starting with the stock engine, Pogea Racing upgraded the 1.4-liter turbocharged unit with a larger turbocharger and intercoolers, new exhaust system, modified downpipe, new catalytic converter and recalibrated ECU.
The result? Output has been inflated from 165HP to 268HP, with torque climbing from 230Nm to 330Nm / 243.4 lb-ft.
Aside from the male population looking for a relatively affordable cabrio with some punch, Fiat claims that the new open-topped car was also made to appeal to women customers "who seek design and elegance but also appreciate the performance of a true sports car."
That's one of the reasons why the Abarth 500C is offered with a choice of two colors for the electrically operated rollover canvas top (black or titanium gray) ,and for the first time on the 500 series, optional two-tone paintworks for the body (racing black and white or two tones of gray).
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Romeo Ferraris, as in the Italian tuning firm and racing car builder, has announced that it will take part in the '6 Hours of Vallelunga' endurance race in Italy on November 22 with its specially developed Fiat 500 Abarth competition model. The carbon-fiber bodied Italian hatch with the humongous rear wing packs a heavily modified 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces a whopping 360 horsepower.The Team Romeo Ferraris Fiat 500 Abarth will be driven Aldo Cerruti, Michela Cerruti and Mario Ferraris.
We remind that according to Chrysler's business plan, the sporty Fiat 500 Abarth is scheduled to arrive on U.S. shores approximately two years after the standard version of the Italian mini, sometime in 2012.
