Abarth 124 Spider
 

saw one in town today; looked fairly nice for a modern car; I think the driver was a 50ish woman...

Are these things worth the upcharge over a Fiat?

or over a Miata?

I recall Richard Hammond driving one (can't remember if it was Top Gear of the GT) and he did like the way the car drove and I believe he gave it an edge for sportiness over the MX-5.

it's made in the mazda factory. I think they're cool. I had 150K trouble free miles on my 500 before I sold it to my buddy. original clutch still strong. I replaced the brakes before I sold it, but they were still good too. Nothing but oil changes.

Unfortunately, the reintroduction of Fiat, Alfa Romeo, and the "Abarth" versions of the Fiats has proven to be a bit of a disaster. Horrible, horrible reliability across the entire range. They appear to be no better - quite possibly much worse - than their last foray into North America. Kind of a shame, really, in this day and age. Everyone else seems to be able to make a reliable car, even the British. The Italians still haven't figured out how.

that's not true. The Alfas have had software issues, but the FIATs have been largely reliable. Multiple data sources back that up. Japanese reliability? No. I'd still buy a Fiat over anything made in the US.

The three guys I know who bought the new Fiats when they first came in several years ago all managed to get the dealer to take them back under Washington state's "lemon law".

From what I remember, first year sales were pretty strong on the little Fiat. By the third year, sales had dropped dramatically. I don't have the numbers offhand, but they fell to probably less than 20% of first year sales. Word had gotten out. Everybody knew someone who had bought one. Maybe it was in a large part perception, or some level of "aha! I knew it...", but the buying public very quickly came to see them in the same light as the last time Fiat sold cars here. "Fix it again, Tony", or "failed Italian attempt at transportation"... Such reputations die hard. The Fiats simply were not enough of an improvement to win people over, to entice them to take a chance. Just look at resale on them...