Fiat are saying that the 124 Spider is, “the best value roadster in America…and the most powerful four-cylinder in its class”.
Car and driver names it the Fiata after its sister car the Mazda Miata. They are both built in the same plant in Hiroshima Japan, however, the Fiat is slightly longer, and weighs about 100 pounds more. How is this an advantage?
Well, the Fiat has a larger trunk so if you were considering a Miata but can’t fit it in that extra pair of pants, the Fiat is for you! The Fiat has a different engine to the Miata, despite being made in the same factory. The Fiat has a four-cylinder 1.4 turbo engine which is assembled in Italy, then shipped to Japan. The Miata has a 2.0 naturally aspirated engine (non-turbo).
The original 1960s Fiat 124 Spider was designed by legendary Italien designers Pininforina. Pininforina were hired by car manufacturers to design vehicles for them. They were responsible for designing vehicles such as Ferrari’s, Alfa Romeo’s, even some Cadillacs. Some of the original Pininfarina design features in the 1960 Fiat 124 Spider are present in today’s version.
Overview
160hp 184 lb-ft Torque
Up to 36mpg
6 Speed manual transmission with Short-Throw shifter available/6 Speed Aisin Auto Transmission
Paddle mounted shifters available on the Abarth with Auto trans
Bilstein suspension with front strut tower brace and rear stabilizer bar
Nearly 50/50 weight distribution
Adaptive headlamps with automatic levelling
LED headlamps (with headlamp washers available)
SiriusXM® radio/ Bose® sound system/GPS available
The Drive
Although the Arbarth version comes with Bilstein suspension for a stiffer ride, the standard suspension is still pretty good with very little body roll. You’d have to be cornering particularly hard to notice any. Of course with the car having a short body and riding fairly low to the ground, this also helps with the handling.
The handling is superb. As far as straight-line speed goes, the turbo gives enough power to charge through the corners, although you may run out of revs if you were straight-line drag racing but that’s not what the car is designed for anyway.
2018 Fiat 124 Spider. Photo: Fiat.
Space is pretty limited in the cabin, this car is definitely little people friendly. It took a second or so to find the volume control for the stereo. It is a round knob located on the center console between the driver and passenger seats, which makes it a little cozy if you want your passenger to be the DJ.
With the 124 Spider being such a small car, the idea of a backup camera seemed rather ridiculous, however, it was needed to see beyond the blind spots created by the convertible hood.
Overall, this roadster is very impressive and a super fun car, esecially for the price.
What are adaptive headlamps with automatic leveling?
Based on steering and speed calculations, the headlamps adapt to the road ahead by pointing in the direction of travel so you’ll always be able to see the road ahead. The headlamps are always adjusting to point downwards no matter what position the car is in and this is the automatic leveling. This feature is available in the Premium and Luxury Collections.
Arriving in dealerships soon (first quarter of 2017) will be the world’s first AWD muscle car coupe. Now a muscle car can be for all year round and not just for the few months of summer we get here in the West. Our first one at the Casper store just arrived yesterday!
All-new Ford Fusion V6 Sport helps protect your car and your wallet from damaging potholes with new computer-controlled shock absorbers
Pothole damage costs U.S. drivers approximately $3 billion a year
At the touch of a button, Fusion V6 Sport drivers can change the car’s suspension setting from normal to sport mode – for the perfect combination of control and finesse
DEARBORN, Mich., Feb. 18, 2016 – Potholes may be unavoidable, but Ford has figured out a way to make them less jarring.
While it’s impossible to miss all potholes, Ford engineers have developed an advanced computer-controlled shock absorber system for the all-new Fusion V6 Sport, a 2017 model year vehicle, which significantly reduces that unpleasant feeling one gets when driving down a pothole-riddled road.
According to AAA, pothole damage cost U.S. drivers approximately $3 billion a year and drivers report paying $300 to repair pothole-related vehicle damage. The Fusion V6 Sport is the first Ford car equipped with a computer-controlled shock absorber system – or continuously controlled damping – as a standard feature. This advanced technology helps to protect your car and your wallet.
“The new Fusion V6 Sport substantially reduces the harsh impact potholes often deliver,” says Jason Michener, Ford continuously controlled damping engineering expert. “Our new pothole mitigation technology works by actually detecting potholes and ‘catching’ the car’s wheel before it has a chance to drop all the way into the pothole.”
Fusion V6 Sport is the first midsize sedan in its class to feature this technology – neither Honda Accord nor Toyota Camry offers such an advanced suspension system.
Along with a 2.7-liter twin-turbocharged V6 EcoBoost® engine projected to deliver 325 horsepower, Fusion V6 Sport’s smart new suspension system provides better handling while helping protect your car and your wallet from damaging potholes.
Onboard computers analyze multiple signals collected from 12 high-resolution sensors – adjusting the dampers every two milliseconds for the best vehicle response in every situation. When the edge of a pothole is detected, the car’s computer adjusts the dampers faster than the blink of an eye to their stiffest settings so the wheel doesn’t fall as far into the pothole. Because the tire and wheel don’t drop as far, they don’t strike the opposite side of the pothole as harshly. The rear suspension can respond even faster, with a signal from the front wheel providing a pre-warning to the rear wheel well before it reaches the pothole.
“We tested and tuned this system by driving over countless potholes – subjecting Fusion V6 Sport to the brutal, square-edged potholes of our Romeo Proving Grounds to finesse the software,” said Michener. “It was long hours of not very pleasant work, but the results are well worth it.”
What this means for drivers of the all-new Ford Fusion V6 Sport is a sedan that’s exciting in the corners while still offering a smooth ride. Suspension tuning can be changed at the push of a button – normal mode balances comfort and handling for daily driving, while sport mode’s increased overall damping rates allow the car to respond quicker to driver input and to corner flatter for more spirited driving.
The all-new Fusion V6 Sport with continuously controlled damping and pothole mitigation technology arrives at Ford dealerships this summer.
While it’s impossible to miss all potholes, Ford engineers have developed an
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