W H A T   D O   T H E   J O U R N A L I S T S   T H I N K ?

Will this car be appriciated by the American automotive press?
Lets first take a look at AutoWeek magazine. I was browsing through some back-issues when I stumbled upon the following article in a 1993 issue:


OH, WHAT A WEB. Fiat's
Miata-like Spider will appear in mid-
1995. Fiat promises a safe, useful
front-drive roadster, with adequate
boot space, seatbelt pretensioners, side
door impact beams and airbags.
   The shape was penned by Fiat's
internal styling center under the
direction of a Greek designer,
Zapatinas. Paolo Cantarella, Fiat Auto
president, also had input, characterized
by the side relief typical of Touring
Superleggera sports cars of the '50s
and '60s. The new car is based on the
Fiat Punto, and my be called Touring
Superleggera.
   The steel-bodied Spider retains the
Punto's engine compartiment and the
front MacPherson suspension. Initially,
the transverse-mounted engine will be
a 16-valve 1.8-liter "Superfire" four
pumping out 132 hp. Fiat is also
working on a sportier five-valve
engine good for 150 hp. With the
Spider weighing just under 2200
pounds, expect better performance
than that of the 1.6 liter, 115 hp Miata.
The Miata accelerates to 60 mph in
nearly nine seconds.

Well, that's a nice little preview. Let's check out the reviews now:
No less than 5 reviews (because Americans just love this car!)

(Don't forget to read some visitors comments aswell!)


Back