2007 Abarth Grande Punto S2000

The legendary Abarth 'Scorpion' returns

After the official presentation in March this year, Abarth now makes its return at the Frankfurt Motor Show. One of the most prestigious brands in world motorsports. Abarth has always been synonymous with aggressive cars, competitiveness, passion and excitement, and it now returns with a new range that will appeal to all lovers of motor racing.
The stand will focus on two important concepts linked to the brand's revival, which represent the most characteristic aspects of its identity: on one hand, the racing world, and on the other, conversions and boosted performance achieved by the application of highly technological solutions in a simple, intuitive package.




The second concept is expressed on the stand in two different ways. First of all, there is a large photo-quality configurator, that allows visitors to appreciate and examine hands-on the elements that are important in the conversion world. But the real novelty at the show is the Grande Punto Abarth SS (Super Sport) prototype, exhibited on a large glass platform, under which are a number of 3D monitors. These sophisticated screens project the components of the conversion kit which have made the basic version of the Grande Punto Abarth even more powerful and aggressive, in the best tradition of the Scorpion.

The Grande Punto Abarth went on the market this month, equipped with the 1.4 petrol Turbo engine that delivers 150 bhp at 5500 rpm (boosted to 155 bhp if 98 RON petrol is used) combined with a mechanical 6-speed gearbox that takes it to a top speed of 208 km/h, accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in just 8.2 seconds. This is the Abarth's first interpretation of the Grande Punto, but the initiative will soon be extended to other models.



The Grande Punto Abarth and the Grande Punto Abarth with the 'SS' kit aim to revive the thrill of those cars, offering an opportunity, addressed to the young in particular, of entering the racing world in total safety and at an accessible price.

Grande Punto Abarth S2000
The public in Frankfurt will also be able to admire the extraordinary Grande Punto Abarth S2000. This is a racing car designed for racing stables, and under the management of Abarth Racing Operations, it is competing in the 2007 Italian Rally Championship, with Giandomenico Basso and his navigator Mitia Dotta, and the IRC (Intercontinental Rally Challenge) with drivers Anton Alen, Andrea Navarra and Úmberto Scandola.

Powered by a 2000 cc aspirated engine that delivers 270 bhp, with 4-wheel drive, the new Grande Punto Abarth S2000 is the heir to the version that won the 2006 European title and the Intercontinental Rally Challenge with Giandomenico Basso and Mitia Dotta, and took the 2006 Italian Rally Championship winning 7 races.

We must underline that the approximately 25 cars built so far have been ordered by several racing stables in Europe and elsewhere, to compete in domestic and international rallies. And now, thanks to this technological superiority, the new Grande Punto Abarth S2000 tackles these two championships as the title-holder, with the same determination.

The head of Racing Operations for Abarth & C. Spa is Claudio Berro, who can draw on a staff with a great deal of experience in the racing sector as well as a team of outstanding drivers.

Source - Fiat / Abarth

The legendary Abarth 'Scorpion' returns

A great project will be launched at the 77th Geneva International Motor Show: the rebirth of one of the most prestigious brands in world motorsports. Its symbol is a scorpion, and its name is Abarth.

Abarth has always been synonymous with assertive cars, competitiveness, passion and excitement, and it now returns with a new range that will appeal to all lovers of motorsports. Abarth's first interpretation of the Grande Punto will be on the 'catwalk' at the Geneva Show, the first step in an initiative which will later involve other models.

This new adventure starts in the familiar, uniquely emotional context and exclusive setting of the Geneva Motor Show. A striking stand has been prepared, in line with the philosophy of Abarth's rebirth, an innovative space with a fresh, contemporary, technological language and great attention to every detail. The new elements that will publicise the Abarth brand are displayed with all their strong, original personality: the revamped version of the famous Abarth racing stripe has been rendered with LED tiles, while the new logo, the scorpion and the wording are all large, three-dimensional elements in polished, satin-effect aluminium.

The Abarth values and tradition on the other hand are underlined discreetly and technologically: refined materials and precious finishing details in aluminium, carbon fibre, enamel and lacquer decorate the exhibition area, and draw attention to the true stars of the stand: the Grande Punto Abarth S2000, a car that has been type-approved for racing and is proving to be highly successful, and the Grande Punto Abarth Preview, a concept car making its world debut.

These are the two souls of the Abarth world: racing and standard production.

Visitors to the Geneva Show will also have an opportunity to discover a third field in which the brand operates; a multimedia configurator will illustrate the whole concept of the 'Abarth Kit', and the flexibility and wide range of combinations that the brand will offer customers in its conversion kits. Some of these solid wooden boxes, inlaid with satin-finished aluminium trims, are on display inside glass cubes, with the historic mechanical and stylistic components from the conversion kits.

And finally, by means of exclusive LED technology and plasma screens, the walls of the stand propose historical photographs and films, alternating them with a reproduction of the new Abarth racing stripe, underlining the fine link between the past and the future, as well as the energy and personality that are inherent in the Abarth brand.

The Grande Punto Abarth Preview
The absolute star of the stand is the Grande Punto Abarth Preview, a true jewel of assertiveness and elegance. The car will be marketed in September, to enhance the sporty, youthful positioning of the Grande Punto.

The car on show in Geneva is equipped with a 1.4 Turbo petrol engine that delivers 150 bhp at 5500 rpm, boosted to 155 bhp by the adoption of 98 RON petrol. What is more, thanks to a booster kit, a version with twice as much power as the basic version (180 bhp) will soon be available. This is a revival of a tradition from the past: for example, the Fiat 500 of 1958 delivered 13 bhp at 4000 rpm with a top speed of 85 km/h, while the Fiat 500 Abarth of the same year delivered 26 bhp at 5000 rpm and a top speed of 118 km/h.

The Grande Punto Abarth aims to revive the feats of these entertaining performance cars, offering young drivers in particular an opportunity to enter the racing world in complete safety and at an accessible price.

The Grande Punto Abarth S2000

The Abarth & C. Spa racing team will be managed by Claudio Berro.

Powered by a 2000 cc aspirated engine that delivers 270 bhp, with 4-wheel drive, the new Grande Punto Abarth S2000 is heir to the version that took the 2006 Italian Rally Championship title with Paolo Andreucci and Anna Andreussi, winning 7 of the 11 races on the programme. Nor must we forget the excellent season of their team-mates Andrea Navarra and Guido D'Amore who took third place. Giandomenico Basso and Mitia Dotta won the European title and the International Rally Challenge.

Since its debut last season, the racing version has proved unbeatable, whatever the type of route or terrain. And we must underline that the 15 cars built so far have been ordered by several racing stables in Europe and elsewhere, to compete in domestic and international rallies. And now, thanks to this technological and competitive superiority, the new Grande Punto Abarth S2000 is ready to compete in these two championships with the same determination and assertiveness.

And finally, as well as a successful car and an outstanding team of drivers, the new Abarth & C. company can also boast a staff with a great deal of experience in motorsports: a total of 113 experts, 26 in the engineering field, 43 on the manufacturing side and 9 dedicated to racing.

Source - Fiat / Abarth

Giandomenico Basso and Mitia Dotta European champions in the Abarth Grande Punto S2000

Victory in the 2009 European Championship by Giandomenico Basso and Mitia Dotta was the crowning moment of a season that saw the two official drivers and their Abarth Grande Punto S2000 triumph in the most difficult and demanding European rallies.

This success is all the more impressive because Giandomenico Basso and his navigator Mitia Dotta did not take part in all the events, because some of them clashed with the Intercontinental Rally Challenge races in which they were engaged in defending the official Abarth team colours.

Their European season began on 16 April, with the success gained by Basso-Dotta in the 1000 Miglia Rally, the prestigious and demanding Italian event that is raced over the winding roads around Lake Garda.

They then skipped the events in Turkey and Croatia, but took part in subsequent races during June, July and August, when they succeeded in gaining the maximum score, enabling them to stand on the top step of the winners' podium and increase their lead in the general ranking.

These successes began firstly with victory in the prestigious Ypres 24 Hour race (contended from 18 to 20 June over the roads of the Belgium plain, with their insidious forks and long straights) and continued with triumph in the Bulgarian Rally, a classic mid-July event in the European schedules.

During the first weekend of August, the Abarth driver tackled the Madeira Rally held on the Portuguese island in the Atlantic Ocean. This winding road race was made even more treacherous by the weather conditions, which change continuously due to the particular type of roads that alternate timed sections on the ocean shore with other legs along the island's mountain sides.

The next two races helped increase their points in their ranking. Firstly the Rally Barum, raced in the Czech Republic from 21 to 23 August, where the team Basso-Dotta obtained the highest score in the leg. Then, at the beginning of September, in the Spanish Principe del Asturias rally, where the Abarth team suffered a setback in the second leg due to coming off the road when they were in the lead.

The last three races were strategically perfect. Beginning with the ultra-tough ELPA Rally, raced over an off-road route in Greece from 25 to 27 September, when the team of Basso-Dotta scored maximum points. The penultimate race of the championship took place in France, over asphalted roads in the Cote D'Azur hinterland in the Antibes Rally – the same roads used during many of the special trials in the Monte Carlo Rally – where the Abarth achieved another indisputable success, despite difficulties imposed by a sudden night-time snowfall on the Col de Turini. The European Championship finished at the end of October in Switzerland, with the Rally du Valais, raced over typically Alpine roads; Basso-Dotta again scored full points, enabling them to celebrate victory in their second European title with their team and fans.

2009 European Rally Championship Ranking
1. Giandomenico Basso ITA (Abarth) 122 points;

2. Michal Solowow POL (Peugeot) 100;

3. Corrado Fontana ITA (Peugeot and Mitsubishi) 78;

4. Krum Donkev BG (Subaru) 43;

5. Luca Betti ITA (Peugeot) 34.

Giandomenico Basso


Later, he raced with the Fiat Punto Abarth S1600, showcasing his talent both at home and abroad by taking part in the Junior World Championship.

In 2006, he took part as an official driver at the wheel of the Fiat Grande Punto S2000, winning European titles and the International Rally Challenge. In 2007, he won the Italian Championship with the Abarth Grande Punto S2000, while in 2008, he was placed third overall in the Intercontinental Rally Challenge. In 2009, he won his second European Championship with Mitia Dotta, with whom he has raced since 2003.

Italian victories in the European Rally Championship


During the thirty-seven editions of the European Rally Championship, no fewer than 16 Italian drivers have succeeded in entering their names on the roll of honour. Prestigious names, who have made history in the specialist field of rallies, from Raffaele 'Lele' Pinto, first in 1972 with the Fiat 124 Sport Spider, followed next year by Sandro Munari (Lancia Fulvia HF), then Maurizio Verini (Fiat 124 Abarth Rally), Tony Carello (Lancia Stratos), Adartico Vudafieri (Fiat 131 Abarth), Miki Biasion (Lancia Rally 037), Carlo Capone (Lancia Rally 037), Dario Carrato (Lancia Rally and Lancia Delta 4WD), Fabrizio Tabaton (Lancia Delta S4 and Lancia Delta 4WD/Integrale), Piero Liatti (Lancia Delta 16V) until we reach Basso (Abarth Grande Punto S2000).

Some great foreign drivers have also driven Italian cars to victory and triumph. Drivers such as the Frenchman Bernard Darniche who won the continental series twice in a Lancia Stratos, the Corsican Yves Loubet (Lancia Delta Integrale), the Belgian Harry Droogmans (Lancia Delta 16V) and the Frenchman Pierre-Cesar Baroni (Lancia Delta HF). Only five drivers have succeeded in taking the title twice in the history of the championship: Bernard Darniche, Dario Cerrato, Fabrizio Tabaton, Renato Travaglia and of course Giandomenico Basso, who repeated their triumph in the prestigious title in another Abarth Grande Punto S2000 in 2006.

Abarth Grande Punto S2000


The Fiat Grande Punto S2000, which became the Abarth Grande Punto S2000 in 2008, was the first car type-approved for the Super 2000. The rules of this category require that cars should have a 2000 cc aspirated engine, four wheel drive without electronic controls and the option of changing ride without altering the configuration. They must also be fitted with a sequential gearbox with aerodynamic add-ons.

The engine delivers a power output of approximately 270 HP and the car offers great road-holding that enhances its competitiveness over all types of surface, with a particular bent for winding asphalt roads, where the Abarth Grande Punto S2000 has often proved unbeatable.

In 2006, the car made its debut by winning the European Championship and the Intercontinental Championship with Basso and the Italian Championship with Paolo Andreucci. In 2007, it won the Italian Championship with Basso.

Its most prestigious achievements included successes in the Sanremo Rally by Andreucci and Basso, Basso's repeated successes in the Madeira Rally and success by the youngster Anton Alen in the 2007 Russia Rally.

This year, the Abarth Grande Punto S2000 notched up another European title with Giandomenico Basso and Mitia Dotta, confirming the tradition of victorious Italian drivers and cars.

Source - Fiat