Abarth & C. S.p.A. () is an Italian racing and road car maker and performance division founded by Italo-Austrian

Carlo Abarth Carlo Abarth (15 November 1908 – 24 October 1979), born Karl Albert Abarth, was an Italian automobile designer. Abarth was born in Austria, but later was naturalized as an Italian citizen; and at this time his first name Karl Albert was chang ...

in 1949. Abarth & C. S.p.A. is owned by Stellantis through its Italian subsidiary. Its logo is a shield with a stylized

scorpion Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always en ...

on a yellow and red background.

History

1949: Abarth & C.

Carlo Abarth was

sporting director A sporting director, or director of sport, is an executive management position in a sports club. The role is well known as a manager role for European football clubs, which are sometime also "sports clubs", offering many types of sports. The sport ...

of the

Cisitalia Cisitalia was an Italian sports and racing car brand. The name "Cisitalia" derives from "Compagnia Industriale Sportiva Italia", a business conglomerate founded in Turin in 1946 and controlled by the wealthy industrialist and sportsman Piero Dusio ...

racing team starting in 1947. The following year, the manufacturer folded, and founder

Piero Dusio Piero Dusio (13 October 1899 – 7 November 1975) was an Italian footballer, businessman and racing driver.Donatella Biffignandi, Piero Dusio' from museoauto.it, an online museum for automotive issues, last accessed on 12 November 2016. Biograph ...

flew to Argentina. Abarth, funded by Armando Scagliarini, took over Cisitalia's assets and on 31 March 1949, Abarth & C. was founded in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...

. Carlo's astrological sign, Scorpio, was chosen as the company logo. From the Cisitalia liquidation, Abarth obtained five 204 sports cars (two complete Spiders and three unfinished), a D46

single-seater An open-wheel single-seater (often known as formula car) is a car with the wheels outside the car's main body, and usually having only one seat. Open-wheel cars contrast with street cars, sports cars, stock cars, and touring cars, which have the ...

, and various spares. The Cisitalia 204s were immediately rechristened

Abarth Cisitalia 204A The Abarth Cisitalia 204A was the first product of the recently founded Abarth & C.. As part of a deal in which Abarth took over the liquidated Cisitalia assets, the erstwhile Cisitalia 204 was marketed under both the Abarth and Cisitalia brands ...

. Abarth proceeded to build and race a series of sports cars developed from these last

cars. In addition to Guido Scagliarini, the "Squadra Abarth" racing team lined up celebrated drivers, including

Tazio Nuvolari Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari (; 16 November 1892 – 11 August 1953) was an Italian racing driver. He first raced motorcycles and then concentrated on sports cars and single-seaters. A resident of Mantua, he was known as 'Il Mantovano Volante' ( ...

Franco Cortese Franco Cortese (10 February 1903 in Oggebbio, Piedmont – 13 November 1986 in Milan) was an Italian racing driver. He entered 156 races between 1927 and 1958, of which one was a Formula 1 Grand Prix and three were Formula 2 Grands Prix. Corte ...

, and

Piero Taruffi Piero Taruffi (12 October 1906 – 12 January 1988) was a racing driver from Italy. Sports car career Taruffi began his motorsport career racing motorcycles. He won the 1932 500cc European Championship on a Norton and in 1937 set the motorcycle ...

. Notably, Tazio Nuvolari made his last appearance in racing at the wheel of an Abarth 204A, winning its class in the Palermo–Monte Pellegrino hillclimb on 10 April 1950. Alongside racing, the company's main activity was producing and selling accessories and performance parts for Fiat, Lancia, Cisitalia, and

Simca Simca (; Mechanical and Automotive Body Manufacturing Company) was a French automaker, founded in November 1934 by Fiat S.p.A. and directed from July 1935 to May 1963 by Italian Henri Pigozzi. Simca was affiliated with Fiat and, after Simca bough ...

cars, like inlet manifolds and silencers. On 9 April 1951, the company's headquarters were moved to

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The ...

; Abarth began his well-known association with Fiat in 1952, when it built the Abarth 1500 Biposto on Fiat mechanicals. In the 1960s, Abarth was successful in hillclimbing and sports-car racing, mainly in classes from 850 to 2000 cc, competing with

Porsche 904 The Porsche 904 is an automobile which was produced by Porsche in Germany in 1964 and 1965. It was officially called Porsche Carrera GTS due to the same naming rights problem that required renaming the Porsche 901 to Porsche 911. History After ...

and

Ferrari Dino Dino () was a marque best known for mid-engined, rear-drive sports cars produced by Ferrari from 1957 to 1976. The marque came into existence in late 1956 with a front-engined Formula Two racer powered by a brand new '' Dino'' V6 engine. The name ...

Hans Herrmann Hans Herrmann (born 23 February 1928) is a retired Formula One and sports car racing driver from Stuttgart, Germany. In F1, he participated in 19 World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 2 August 1953. He achieved 1 podium, and scored a ...

was a factory driver from 1962 until 1965, winning the 500 km Nürburgring in 1963 with

Teddy Pilette Theodore "Teddy" Pilette (born 26 July 1942, in Brussels) is a former racing driver from Belgium. He participated in 4 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, the first on 12 May 1974 with Bernie Ecclestone's Brabham team. Son of André ...

. Abarth promised

Johann Abt Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name ''Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

that he could race a factory car free if he won all the races he entered. Abt almost succeeded: of the 30 races he entered, Abt won 29 and finished second once. Abt later founded Abt Sportsline. Fiat Abarth 595 - Automotoretrò 2012 (6864198535)

Fiat Abarth 595 - Automotoretrò 2012 (6864198535)

Abarth produced high-performance exhaust pipes, diversifying into tuning kits for road vehicles, mainly for Fiat. A racing exhaust was produced for the 1950s

Lambretta Lambretta () is the brand name of mainly motor scooters, initially manufactured in Milan, Italy, by Innocenti. The name is derived from the word Lambrate, the suburb of Milan named after the river Lambro which flows through the area, and whe ...

models "D" and "LD". Original Abarth LD exhausts are now valuable collectors' items. Reproductions are available, which carry the Abarth name; how Fiat feels about this is not known. Lambretta even held several 125 cc motorcycle land speed records during the 1950s due partly to the exhaust that Abarth developed for them. Abarth also helped build sports or racing cars with Porsche and Simca.

1971: Fiat takeover

Carlo sold Abarth to Fiat on 31 July 1971. The acquisition was not made public until 15 October. As Fiat was not interested in the Reparto Corse racing operations, these were taken over by

Enzo Osella Vincenzo "Enzo" Osella (born 26 August 1939) is the founder and chairman of Italian auto manufacturer Osella as well as former principal of the Osella Formula One team. Life Enzo Osella was born in Volpiano, near Turin, to Luigi and Maria Osel ...

. Osella obtained cars, spares, technicians, and drivers (amongst them

Arturo Merzario Arturo Francesco "Art" Merzario (born 11 March 1943 in Civenna, Como) (erroneously registered as Arturio on his birth certificate) is a racing driver from Italy. He participated in 85 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting at the ...

), and continued the racing activity, founding the

Osella Osella is an Italian racing car manufacturer and former Formula One team. They participated in 132 Grands Prix between 1980 and 1990. They achieved two points finishes and scored five championship points. Early days Named after its founder V ...

racing team. Thus ended for Abarth the days of sport prototype and hillclimb racing. Under Fiat ownership, Abarth became the Fiat Group's racing department, managed by engine designer

Aurelio Lampredi Aurelio Lampredi (16 June 1917 – 1 June 1989) was an Italian automobile and aircraft engine designer. Born in Livorno, he began his career before World War II at Piaggio, moved to Isotta Fraschini, and then joined Reggiane. This time he des ...

. Abarth prepared Fiat's rally cars, including the Fiat 124 Abarth Rally and 131 Abarth. In December 1977, in advance of the 1978 racing season, the beforehand competing Abarth and Squadra Corse Lancia factory racing operations were merged by Fiat into a single entity named EASA (''Ente per l'Attività Sportiva Automobilistica'', Organization for Car Sports Racing Activities). Cesare Fiorio (previously in charge of the Lancia rally team) was appointed director, while Daniele Audetto was

; the EASA headquarters were set up in Abarth's Corso Marche (Turin) offices. The combined racing department developed the Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo

Group 5 Group 5 may refer to: *Group 5 element, chemical element classification *Group 5 (racing) Group 5 was an FIA motor racing classification which was applied to four distinct categories during the years 1966 to 1982. Initially Group 5 regulations def ...

racing car which won the

1980 World Championship for Makes The 1980 World Sportscar Championship season was the 28th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1980 World Championship for Makes which was contested as a series running under both Fédération Internationale d ...

and the

1981 World Endurance Championship of Makes The 1981 World Sportscar Championship season was the 29th season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured the 1981 FIA World Endurance Championship which was contested over a fifteen race series which ran from 31 January to 27 ...

. It also created the

Lancia Rally 037 The Lancia Rally (''Tipo 151'', also known as the Lancia Rally 037, Lancia 037 or Lancia-Abarth #037 from its Abarth project code ''SE037'') was a mid-engine sports car and rally car built by Lancia in the early 1980s to compete in the FIA Group ...

Group B Group B was a set of regulations for grand touring (GT) vehicles used in sports car racing and rallying introduced in 1982 by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). Although permitted to enter a GT class of the World Sportscar ...

rally car, which won for Lancia the

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...

World Manufacturers' Championship The World Manufacturers' Championship, also known as Automobile World Championship, was a competition organised by the AIACR between 1925 and 1930. Scoring system Unlike the modern Formula One points system, the championship awarded fewer points ...

). On 1 October 1981, Abarth & C. ceased to exist, and was replaced by Fiat Auto Gestione Sportiva, a division of the parent company specialised in the management of racing programmes that would remain in operation through to the end of 1999, when it changed to Fiat Auto Corse S.p.A. Some commercial models built by Fiat or its subsidiaries Lancia and

Autobianchi Autobianchi () was an Italian automobile manufacturer, created jointly by Bianchi, Pirelli and Fiat in 1955. Autobianchi produced only a handful of models during its lifetime, which were almost exclusively small cars, with the biggest being the sh ...

were co-branded Abarth, including the

Autobianchi A112 Abarth The Autobianchi A112 is a supermini produced by the Italian automaker Autobianchi. It was developed using a shrunken version of the contemporary Fiat 128's platform. The mechanicals of the A112 subsequently underpinned the Fiat 127. It was intro ...

, a lightweight and inexpensive "

boy racer Boy racer is a term given to a young person who drives in a fast and aggressive manner; it has become a broader term (often pejorative) for participants in modern custom car culture who tune and modify cars with street racing-style afterma ...

". The A112 Abarth was introduced with a 58 hp engine, soon followed by a 7 hp one, and a specific "A112 Abarth trophy" was run from 1977 to 1984. In the 1980s, Abarth name was mainly used to mark performance cars, such as the

Fiat Ritmo The Fiat Ritmo is a small, front-engine, front-wheel drive family car manufactured and marketed by Fiat, launched in April 1978 at the Turin Motor show and offered in 3- and 5-door hatchback and cabriolet body styles – from 1978 to 1988 with t ...

Abarth 125/130 TC. In 2000s, Fiat used the Abarth brand to designate a trim/model level, as in the

Fiat Stilo The Fiat Stilo (Type 192) is a small family car available as a three- and a five-door hatchback, as well as an estate (Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon), produced by Italian automaker Fiat. The Stilo hatchbacks were presented in March 2001, at the Bologna ...

Abarth.

2007: Rebirth of Abarth & C. S.p.A.

On 1 February 2007 Abarth was re-established as an independent unit with the launch of the current company, Abarth & C. S.p.A., controlled 100% by Fiat Group Automobiles S.p.A., the subsidiary of Fiat S.p.A. dealing with the production and selling of

passenger cars A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as ...

and

light commercial vehicles A light commercial vehicle (LCV) in the European Union, Australia and New Zealand is a commercial carrier vehicle with a gross vehicle weight of no more than 3.5 metric tons (tonnes). The LCV designation is also occasionally used in both Cana ...

. The first models launched were the Abarth Grande Punto and the Abarth Grande Punto S2000. The brand is based in the Officine 83, part of the old Mirafiori engineering plant. The CEO as of 2022 is

Olivier François Olivier François (October 4, 1961) is a French business executive and the current CEO of Fiat and Abarth. He also serves as global chief marketing officer for Stellantis, as well as a member of the company's Group Executive Council, a position ...

. In 2015, Abarth's parent company was renamed FCA Italy S.p.A., reflecting the incorporation of Fiat S.p.A. into Fiat Chrysler Automobiles that took place in the previous months.

Yamaha XSR900 Abarth

In 2017, Abarth collaborated with

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

to produce a limited-edition motorcycle, the "Sport Heritage café racer special", named the XSR900 Abarth. It is based on the Yamaha XSR900 847 cc inline-triple neo-retro

standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object th ...

Production

Current models

Cars produced by Abarth

* Fiat-Abarth 500 *

Fiat-Abarth 750 The Fiat-Abarth 750 is a compact sporting series of automobiles manufactured by the Italian manufacturing firm Abarth & C. of Turin, Italy in the 1950s and 1960s. The cars used the floorpan and often the bodywork of the Fiat 600 but were fitted wit ...

* Fiat-Abarth 1000 TC (Fiat 600 based) * Fiat-Abarth 850 TC *

Abarth 1100 Scorpione Spider (Boano) Abarth & C. S.p.A. () is an Italian racing and road car maker and performance division founded by Italo-Austrian Carlo Abarth in 1949. Abarth & C. S.p.A. is owned by Stellantis through its Italian subsidiary. Its logo is a shield with a styliz ...

* Abarth 1500 Biposto *

Abarth Simca 2000 The Abarth Simca 2000 was an Italian high-performance automobile produced in the 1960s as a collaborative project of the Simca and Abarth companies in Turin, Italy. Product description The A-S 2000 was a coupé powered by a four-cylinder Abarth ...

– coupé * Abarth 204A Berlinetta * Abarth 205A Berlinetta * Alfa Romeo Abarth 2000 Coupe *

Abarth 207A Spyder Corsa Boano Abarth & C. S.p.A. () is an Italian racing and road car maker and performance division founded by Italo-Austrian Carlo Abarth in 1949. Abarth & C. S.p.A. is owned by Stellantis through its Italian subsidiary. Its logo is a shield with a styliz ...

* Abarth 208A Spyder Boano * Abarth 209A Coupé Boano''Abarth 209A Boano Coupe'', www.ultimatecarpage.com
Retrieved on 15 July 2014 * Abarth 210A Spyder Boano * Porsche 356 B Carrera GTL Abarth *

Abarth Simca 1300 GT The Abarth-Simca 1300 GT is a sports racing car built by Abarth from 1962 to 1965. Description The Abarth-Simca 1300 was the first product born from the collaboration between Carlo Abarth and Simca. The negotiations between the two companies wer ...

* Fiat-Abarth OT1000 * Fiat-Abarth 1000 OTR Berlinetta Bertone * Fiat-Abarth OT1600 *

Fiat-Abarth OT 2000 Competition Coupé The Fiat 850 (''Tipo 100G'') is a small rear-engine, rear-wheel-drive car manufactured and marketed by Italian car manufacturer Fiat from 1964 to 1973. History Overview Its technical design was an evolution of the successful Fiat 600. The inter ...

The Observer's Book of Automobiles, Thirteenth Edition, 1967, page 27 * Fiat-Abarth 750 Zagato * Fiat-Abarth 2200 * Fiat-Abarth 750 Spider Allemano * Fiat-Abarth 2400 * Fiat Abarth 1000 TCR Berlina * Abarth 215A Coupé Bertone * Abarth 216A Spyder Bertone *

* Fiat-Abarth 595 SS * Fiat-Abarth 695 SS * Abarth OT 1300 * Abarth Monomille * Abarth Grand Prix/Scorpione * Abarth 3000 Prototipo * Fiat Ritmo 125/130 TC Abarth * Fiat Abarth 124 Rally * Fiat 131 Abarth Rally *

Cars not produced by Abarth but with Abarth badges

* Fiat Bravo GT/HGT (Abarth) * Fiat Stilo 2.4 Abarth * Fiat Punto HGT (Abarth) * Fiat Cinquecento Sporting (Abarth) * Fiat Seicento Sporting (Abarth)

Cars produced under Abarth & C. S.p.A. (2007–)

* Abarth 500 / Fiat 500 Abarth (NA) * Abarth 595 * Abarth 695 * Abarth Grande Punto * Abarth Punto Evo *

Abarth 124 Spider The Abarth 124 Spider is a performance version of the Fiat 124 Spider (2016) manufactured by Mazda for FCA under the Abarth marque. It was introduced at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show, along with the racing car Abarth 124 Spider Rally. Final asse ...

/ Fiat 124 Spider Abarth (NA) * Fiat Abarth Punto

Cars produced with Abarth tuning

* Fiat 500 TwinAir byAbarth * Fiat 500S by Abarth * Fiat Avventura Powered by Abarth * Fiat Urban Cross Powered by Abarth * Fiat 124 Spider Elaborazione Abarth (cancelled)

Cars produced by other manufacturers with involvement from Abarth

Lancia Delta S4 The Lancia Delta S4 is a Group B rally car manufactured by the Italian car company Lancia. The Delta S4 competed in the World Rally Championship in 1985 and 1986, until Group B class was disbanded and the cars were eventually banned from competi ...

for

– Helped to engineer the engine which utilised a supercharger and turbocharger.

Cars produced under Fiat Corse – N Technology named Abarth

* Fiat Punto Abarth (rally version only) * Fiat Cinquecento 900 Trofeo kitcar (teams had to build up their own rallycar from Fiat N Technology derived Abarth racingparts) * Fiat Cinquecento Sporting 1.1 Rally car * Fiat Seicento Sporting 1.1 Rally car

Motorsport

Rally

FIA R-GT Cup

2017 FIA R-GT Cup The 2017 FIA R-GT Cup was the third edition of the FIA rally cup for GT cars in Group R-GT. The cup was contested over 5 tarmac rounds from the WRC, the ERC and the Rallye International du Valais. Thanks to the new Fiat 124 R-GT more drivers ...

(Runner-up) *

2018 FIA R-GT Cup The 2018 FIA R-GT Cup was the fourth edition of the FIA Rallying, rally cup for Grand tourer, GT cars in Group RGT, Group R-GT. The cup was contested over 5 tarmac rounds from the 2018 World Rally Championship, WRC, the 2018 European Rally Champion ...

(Champion) *

2019 FIA R-GT Cup The 2019 FIA R-GT Cup is the fifth edition of the FIA rally cup for GT cars in Group R-GT In international rallying, Group R-GT (or sometimes Group RGT), is a formula of rally car defined by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile, FI ...