Fiat 124 Spider Abarth Exhaust Sound Is as Mean as Expected

However, while the Italian engineers considered the 160 hp and 184 lb-ft sufficient for the Abarth badge, we can't say the same about the soundtrack of the sportscar. The spiced-up 124 has been gifted with a Record Monza exhaust that knows how to put on an aural show.

The video below allows us to check out the voice of the Euro-spec Abarth 124 Spider, from the start-up and revving moments to scenes that show us the car being driven around, although at parking lot speeds. Spoiler alert - things get pleasingly loud. In fact, it's safe to say there's quite a decibel distance between the sportscar we have here and the non-Abarth 124 Spider, so the difference compared to the Miata that started everything is obvious.

Before we move on, we feel the need to explain the Abarth range, at least in terms of power. Over in Europe, the 500 has a 140 hp 1.4-liter turbo, with stronger versions getting the 160-pony version of the engine, which comes as standard for the US 500 Abarth.

And while the European Abarth 124 Spider inherits the 160 hp turbocharged 1.4-liter unit with the Record Monza exhaust, we still don't know what the Italians are cooking for the US incarnation of the machine in terms of exhaust. Heck, even the name will be different, as American aficionados are set to receive the 2017 Fiat 124 Spider Elaborazione Abarth.

As for the intro above, we can't be entirely OK with the Abarth-ization process only targeting the handling and the stopping part of the equation. Not when Abarth also introduced a 124 rally car at the Geneva Motor Show that saw the street car making its debut. Motivated by a turbocharged 1.8-liter engine, this delivers 296 hp. Then again, we expect the tuning market to solve the problem for us.