The New Fiat Coupé!

Autocar are reporting that a fixed-head variant of the 124 Spider is being prepared, for launch next year!
http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/fiat-124-spider-get-fixed-roof-coup%C3%A9-variant


What do we think? A RWD Fiat Coupé at long last? Hopefully a nice powerful turbo model follows!

I like it!

Yes it looks really nice. Good job Fiat

Looks sweet , might find some extra interest in the fiat brand with possible knock on effects to our coupe prices at last?

OMG cool

I'll wait until the prices come down to our Coupe prices,

About 3 years

haha yep

Looks very nice.

That’s just Autocar inventing things in Photoshop again. I wouldn’t get excited until Fiat release images of the actual design.

Having seen the 124 in the metal at the AGM, to be honest I don't like it as much as I felt I would... it would (for me) be *vastly* improved if it were the size of the original MX5 and not as it is, bigger than a coupe...

Been there!

Indeed - I'll be amazed if it looks - and sits like that for real..

I love it. I'll take a red one please. Apparently there is going to be a hardtop version too.

Fiat 124 promo

If they do make a coupé then I'll be saving up for one. But it will have to have at least the 170bhp engine to tempt me.

The soft tops can get away with less power due to the extra fun factor of having the roof down. IMO a coupé would need a bit more oomph, particularly as cars get bigger and heavier all the time. And the trend is for smaller engines. It's a fine balance.

I think one of the unique selling points of 'our' Coupes' is the bespoke engine in the 20VT (not wanting to offend 16V owners!) It'll be a long time until Fiat do that again.....

Well I can't comment having only an NA

Heh. Interested parties are invited to consider Honest John's review of the coupe: http://classics.honestjohn.co.uk/reviews/fiat/coupe/

I have heard that or a similar comment previously and having never had a turbo model I wonder in what respect the NA makes the better model

I did own a red 96 Coupe 16V (as well as my two present year 2000 20VT's) and this car was the Cinderella of the coupe line up. Obviously not as fast as the Turbo's it just had a rawer feel to the turbo's. I preferred its exhaust note rasp rather than the heavier growl from the turbo's and it did steer better.
Also the black instrument dials looked so much classier than the Turbo's white background.

But not many 16v's were cared for very well like the Turbo's so very few good ones still survive today. Always say I should have kept that one and spent the money it needed to get it perfect.

Most 20vt's have black instruments. Only the plus and late 20vt6 cars have the white dials. I agree, though - black looks better

In the case of the 124 coupé, there won't be an NA version. A 1.4 NA would be ridiculously underpowered anyway. So my point is that they should choose the more powerful of the turbo engines to give the car more pep.

Looks like an old Triumph GT6

Quite like the haunches.

Needs more power though.

Hey Cooperman-

The distinction between turbo and N/A is in delivery of power and balance.

The N/A has more linear, less 'point and squirt' manner to it. You can go right through the torque before the bhp (top end) has an effect- it doesn't change its mind mid corner, when the power comes in.

I've owned both varieties before. The VT made for a terrific, very exciting drive, but the N/A is more rewarding and somehow more 'honest'.

To my tastes anyway.

But in the MultiAir Turbo, the boost comes on at such a low rpm that it's hard to tell you have a turbo, apart from the lag when changing gear too early. And it's not huge power either at 140 bhp, quite a different thing from driving a Coupe 20vt.

They're not white, they're light silver

Certainly a visually better coupe conversion outcome than say the Z4?