David Gooley
Abarth
April 1, 2005
Evidence
that Italian sports cars come in all; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
shapes
and sizes,
Carlo
Abarth's
creations belie their
humble
origins and
diminutive size with high
performance
and
style. (Click image to enlarge)
As
monuments
go, this
one is rather
small.
Measuring just
over 11
feet long, and
light
enough
to be rocked about by a
strong breeze,
the
Fiat
Abarth
“double
bubble”
lacks
the
substance
of a granite
statue,
but
there does not exist a more
appropriate
memorial
to the
passions
and skills of
Carlo
Abarth.
Thousands of
cars have worn
Abarth’s
distinctive
scorpion
badge,
but
this
one—tiny, stark,
beautiful,
and
very
fast—better
represents
the
enduring image of the company
and
its
guiding
force than any
other.
; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
Introduced in 1955, the Abarth 207A
(right) had an aluminum
body by
Boano.
About 10 were
made. The 1950 Abarth
205A with
body by
Vignale (left) is a
singular
rarity.
(Click image to enlarge)Understanding this car—and all Abarth automobiles, for that matter—requires some insight into Carlo Abarth the man. A thumbnail biography reveals superficial similarities to Enzo Ferrari: Both raced in their youth and remained involved in the sport throughout their lives; both were mildly superstitious (the Abarth badge represented his astrological sign); and both saw building high-performance cars as their destinies.
advertisement
