Words: Nathan Chadwick | Photos: Stellantis Heritage
Abarth Classiche chose the recent Milano AutoClassica to unveil the latest part of the Stellantis Heritage programme, under the guise of the Reloaded by Creators heritage project.
The car is a one-off creation – the Abarth Classiche 500 Record Monza ’58 – built to celebrate the centenary of the Autodromo di Monza, the scene of many Abarth motor sport victories, most notably in 1958. That year Carlo Abarth first turned his tuning nous to the Fiat 500, and then set six speed and endurance records during one week at Monza in February 1958. Abarth’s tuning tweaks took power to 26hp and a 118km/h top speed, and it racked up 168 hours of continuous running. This very car was on the stand alongside the new creation.
The Reloaded by Creators is described as project where “A limited amount of classic cars with certified authenticity are returned to their original beauty thanks to the expertise and know-how of the Heritage team of technicians at the Officine Classiche.”
For this project, a 1970 Fiat 500 was treated to aesthetic and mechanical changes to pay tribute to the original car that set the speed records in 1958; it wears the same shade of green, while the interior fabric and stitching hark back to the original Fiat 500 models of 1957. This car features just the one seat, just like the original car. It also boasts Jaeger instruments and a wooden steering wheel; Jaeger has also produced a timepiece that lasts for eight days on a single charge, in recognition of that busy week of record breaking at Monza.
The engine has been treated to the Abarth Classiche 595 Tuning Kit that brings displacement to 595cc; the kit is a faithful reproduction of the original Abarth kit launched in 1963, but improved with modern know-how. The car is for sale – enquiries should be made to heritage@stellantis.com.
Abarth Classiche also took the opportunity to show off the 2022 Abarth Classiche 1000SP, a contemporary reinterpretation of the 1966 1000 Sport Prototipo based on Alfa Romeo 4C mechanicals. Just five are due to be built.
More details can be found here.
