Fiat opens doors at Abarth factory on Google Street View

Thu, 16 Oct 2014

Google Street View has emerged as a great tool for checking out locations along your driving route, and even scoping out places you don't have a chance to go yourself. And that includes some great automotive installations. The online tool has taken us inside museums, race tracks and factories around the world, but while it has not to date allowed us virtual access to a European automotive factory, Fiat is out to correct that wrong by letting the Street View team inside Officine Abarth.

The new Abarth Virtual Tour allows online visitors to see the complex in Turin where it makes its hot hatches, including the lifts where the mechanics go to work, the paint spray booth, and a variety of technical workshops, as well as a display of historic Abarth models, a 360-degree view inside and out of the extreme Abarth 695 Biposto and even inside a reproduction of founder Karl Abarth's office. Scope it out for a visit inside Italy's premiere hot hatch studio.

First automotive case in Europe: Officine Abarth in Turin on Google Street View

- A unique and exciting full-immersion virtual tour inside the Abarth HQ to discover the entire range.
- Accessible from the official Abarth.com website and from Google Maps.
- In addition to showcasing the cars and the place where they come to life, this innovative tool - which is an evolution of the current catalogue - also allows users to find out about Abarth kits, accessories and merchandising.
- The project was presented in a world preview at the recent Paris Motor Show using Oculus Rift, the revolutionary virtual reality head-mounted display.

It is the first time a European auto maker opens the doors to its factory using Google Street View technology The result is the "Abarth Virtual Tour", a unique and immersive experience to discover the Officine Abarth HQ in Turin, where passion and know-how give rise to unique cars with unprecedented performance levels and dimensions.

Created by the copy agency, xister, and accessible from the official website Abarth.com and from Google Maps, this charming tour allows users to visit every nook and cranny of the Abarth HQ. It starts off in the showroom - displaying historic models, Racing cars and the new Abarth range - and then travels along corridors, amongst the heritage and the history of the brand, ending up in a charming reproduction of Karl Abarth's office. The exploring continues to the heart of the factory, the workshop: here, users will see the ramps with cars on which mechanics are at work, the various technical departments where the cars are assembled, along with the spray booth.

This is an innovative tool to discover the entire Abarth range, with the possibility of "browsing" through all the cars with a 360° view inside the passenger compartment. One of the most appealing places to visit is without a doubt the space dedicated to the Abarth 695 Biposto, a genuine "virtual atelier" where it can be admired from all angles, both inside and out, and find out all its exclusive high-tech contents thanks to the technical drawings and videos.

The Abarth virtual tour therefore provides a unique exploration to discover the world and the values of the Abarth car brand. There are also multiple useful Hotspots, which can be found in every navigation overview, which correspond to a detailed focus where users can consult multimedia content of the utmost interest. In addition, a customised Abarth graphic interface along with intuitive navigation controls make the on-line experience on Street View of the tour even more exciting and appealing, thanks to the zoom, automatic 360°, help functions and many other tools.

At this stage it is obvious how the virtual tour of Officine Abarth in Turin is the ideal opportunity to discover the entire range directly where it comes to life, together with the kits, accessories and merchandising developed to accommodate the needs of Abarth enthusiasts. This innovative project is therefore the first step Abarth are taking towards the brand's "new era", showing once again its great attention and its ability to adapt to the ever-changing surrounding technological scene. Indeed, this tool is the evolution of the current catalogue, allowing easier consultation and faster and more immediate updating, to enjoy an all-round "Abarth experience".

The "Abarth Virtual Tour" project was presented in a world preview at the recent Paris Motor Show using Oculus Rift, a head-mounted display placed over the eyes and which covers the user's field of vision entirely, reproducing everyday environments in 3D, in this case the Officine Abarth HQ in Turin. In detail, the technology used in Oculus Rift makes it possible to shift the view of the virtual world simply by moving one's head, exactly as we do in reality.

Turin, 14 October 2014

By Noah Joseph