2012 Fiat 500 Abarth - 1 Fl Owner - Same As New - 393 Miles on 2040-cars

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Fiat 500X takes the blue pill

The Fiat 500 keeps getting bigger. Ron Arad aptly pointed out that much with his special-edition hatchback, but even in its modern incarnation, it just keeps growing: from the three-door hatch to the five-seat 500L, the ruggedized 500L Trekking, the seven-seat 500L Living and now the long-awaited 500X. Sure, it may be smaller than most crossovers, but it's positively huge by Cinquecento standards - a good third larger than the original whose spirit it embodies.
So how did Fiat make it grow? We'll give you a hint, Morpheus: it didn't take the red pill. As if it doesn't itself know, Fiat puts forward this possible explanation that's worth a watch... if you can make it through the first borderline-NSFW scene without puking. All we'll say is that the sexual suggestiveness of the 500 Abarth ad with Catrinel Menghia was a bit more palatable.

Recharge Wrap-up: EV torque secrets, UC Davis maps future of biofuels

A UC Davis white paper maps out "Three Routes Forward for Biofuels," balancing investment risk with carbon benefits. The first option is "incremental," in which we tinker with the existing biofuel manufacturing infrastructure for small improvements over time. The "transitional" plan suggests integrating cellulosic production and other innovations with existing operations. The third route, called "leapfrogging," would mean building refineries based on new technology such as cellulosic and algae-based biofuels. The paper suggests ways the US could use these three routes together in different areas, and predicts the payoffs in terms of carbon emissions could be significant if the right people are willing to risk the capital. After all, financial advisers are always telling investors to diversify their portfolios to manage risk and rewards in the same way. Read more over at the UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies. The Formula E Long Beach ePrix will offer free admission. The seventh round of the inaugural all-electric race season, which was moved from Los Angeles to the streets of Long Beach, will offer fans free grandstand and general admission. The race, which takes place on April 5, 2015, will use a 1.6-mile portion of IndyCar's Grand Prix of Long Beach. Read more at LA Times. Polaris is now offering its 2015 GEM electric vehicles, including the new street-legal eM1400 LSV. The passenger and utility vehicles come in two- to six-passenger configurations, many of which are street legal on roads with posted speed limits of up to 35 miles per hour. The eM1400 LSV utility vehicle seats two, offers 1,250 pounds of payload, 1,250 pounds of towing capacity, a top speed of 25 mph and a range of up to 45 miles. Its on-board charger plugs into any standard 110-volt outlet. Read more at Hybrid Cars and check out all the different configurations yourself at the Polaris website. In EVs, more torque does not always equal faster. Green Car Reports found this out when driving the Fiat 500e (with 147 pound-feet) against the similarly weighted Chevrolet Spark EV (with 400 pound-feet). The secret is, at least in part, in the gearing. The Fiat has a 9.6:1 reduction gear, making it quicker at lower speeds despite having far less available torque, while the Chevy uses a 3:1 ratio. The trade-off though, is in top speed. Furthermore, Chevy electronically limits the torque delivery at low speeds, as 400 pound-feet is a lot of launch for the little Spark EV to handle.

2013 Fiat 500c Abarth takes its top off with a quickness

What a pleasant little piece of plug-and-play. Putting the Fiat 500c's retractable roof on the hot 500 Abarth was pretty much a no-brainer, and hey, we certainly aren't complaining. Folding the soft top back on the little hatchback will only allow us to better hear that awesome exhaust note while we're burying the throttle. And come on, who doesn't like a little wind-in-your-hair action?
Again, the 500c Abarth package is pretty much a copy/paste job, so dynamically, the car isn't all that different. Under the hood is the same 1.4-liter MultiAir turbocharged inline-four, good for 160 horsepower and up to 170 pound-feet of torque (assuming you pressed the Sport button on the dash - something you really, really ought to do). A five-speed manual transmission is the only 'box available. And don't you dare complain about that.
New enhancements for the 2013 500c Abarth include an available Beats Audio system, and buyers will be able to attend a no-cost Abarth Driving Experience, where professional racers will show customers how to make the best use of their cars under full-throttle track applications. Pricing hasn't been announced just yet, but we expect to have that closer to the car's on sale date early next year. Hit the jump for the full deets, and check out the scorpion-stung cabriolet in our attached galleries.