Abarth has always based its philosophy on the concepts of "empowerment", tuning and transforming something ordinary into something extraordinary. Ever since the "small but deadly" Abarth 500s came on the scene in 2008, Abarth road cars have always had that one extra drop of poison that makes them unique and top performers.
Whoever chooses an Abarth wants to stand out in the crowd. Aware of this, Abarth is increasingly focusing its attention on the concept of personalisation to give its customers, as much as possible, the chance to choose and build a car that perfectly adapts to the driver's personality and driving requirements. It achieves this goal by offering an ever-larger range of performance kits and accessories along with interior and exterior customisation options.
The range is represented at the Paris stand by two customisations, the Abarth 595 "turismo" and the "Abarth 595 "competizione", two authentic Abarths with tuning as standard. In the first version, the tuning concerns the engine, geometry and braking system, in addition to a high level of interior and exterior details for those customers who identify with values such as the more exclusive elegance, refinement, comfort and sportiness oriented toward the world of "Gran Turismo". In the Abarth 595 "competizione", the tuning also affects the exhaust system, with the "Record Monza" exhaust fitted as standard, and the "Abarth Corse by Sabelt" sports seats for those who see themselves as downright "race lovers", inspired by the full-blooded world of racing.
This commercial success was also possible thanks to the extraordinary network of dealers and official tuning shops, a phenomenon which is unique in its field and which, after branching out into new markets such as Finland and South Africa in 2011, forged further ahead into other new markets such as Morocco and Ukraine during the first half of 2012. Following the great success of its presentation at the LA Auto Show, the Abarth 500 was also launched on the US market in March.