Where is the 6th Gear? No Automatic Either

Where is the 6th Gear? No Automatic Either

Despite the Abarth mostly meeting expectations for power and interior quality, many are balking at the 5-speed manual transmission being the only option. Unfortunately, with “just” 14 months (short in manufacturing time) to convert the car to U.S. safety and market standards, they were forced to rely on a single solution that worked. My initial guess was the lack of space prevented an automatic or even a 6th gear and I was mostly right. Automobile Magazine has the full details:

To help the 500 meet American crash-test regulations, Fiat had to add lots of additional bracing in the chassis. With that bracing in place, there was no room for Fiat to fit a six-speed gearbox.

If the Abarth is successful, I have no doubt they’ll spend the time to adapt at least a six-speed, if not an automatic as well. Unfortunately, for those looking for the more advanced transmissions, there may be a long time to wait.

Related Posts:

  • Fowave

    Typical reaction from the US press. Oh I want my lollipop. Advanced transmission? What should it make pizza too? Please get a life, drive the car and have fun. I live in Germany. Im from the US and I have a euro-spec 2010 Abarth 500. The car is just fine without the auto or 6speeds. Remember I cruise at 100+mph on the Autobahn. 6th would be nice sometimes but at 65mph this gearbox is perfect for the American market. My god grow up!

    • KJMRLL

      I don’t really feel that the tone of this article was at all the way you’ve perceived it, I saw it as much more informative as to what the US Abarth WILL offer as opposed to whining about what it WON’T. But you also have to take into account that we’ve been waiting for this car for a while now, some more than others. You have a 2010 which means you’ve had the car for what, almost two years now? Let’s take your lollipop example and run with it.
      Imagine you’re a kid in a classroom in which all the other kids have been getting lollipops every day for weeks. At the beginning of each morning the teacher pulls out a box with 20 different flavors of lollipop for all the kids except for you. Finally after weeks of watching all the kids enjoy their lollipops while having none yourself your moment comes, the teacher comes to you with a box full of lollipops…but there’s only one flavor, and it’s not the one you want.You’d probably whine a little bit about wanting a lollipop too.

    • Anonymous

      I live in LA and I have a daily commute in heavy LA traffic which turns a 15 minute drive into a 1 hour stop & go ordeal. I have absolutely no desire for manual transmission on my daily driver. 

      I want an Abarth but I’d need to wait for something more practical. 

      Maybe you’re the one who needs to grow up, or simply try to be a little less of a tremendous db for absolutely no reason.

      • Fowave

        Im from LA area and dont miss it.. The comment was geared toward the press. As stated in the first sentence. Not geared at you. I dont need to grow up at all. You could use a bit of help in reading comprehension.

         If a manual gear box is too much for you for 15 + minutes you need to hit the gym. Now put down the phone and drive!

      • Enzonc66

        then get a toyota abarth is about driving a race car!! and they don’t come automatic!!

      • OTG

        Even my wife drives a 6-speed manual in traffic. Sheesh.

        • Anonymous

          Clearly your wife is more of a man than I am? Bravo.

    • Enzo

      I totally agree with you I live in US 

  • http://www.facebook.com/dj4money Anthony Thomas

     I agree with the other post, this car is meant to be driven not ridden around in, get the J-Lo inspired standard 500 or Drop Top. That is the car to be ridden around and “seen” in, not this pint sized rocket ship. I expect a bit of a horsepower war to break out among these B spec cars. Chevy can easily tweak the 1.4L Turbo in its Sonic to push out 160hp+ and I fully expect Ford to produce the Fiesta ST which is likely to gun after its European direct market rivals and aim for a power level north of Abarth’s numbers, rumors say 180hp.

     This is the car I’ve been waiting for in the 500 line up, well this and the racing version (not the B spec, but the One Mark Series racers like in Europe)

    • OTG

      I disagree. FIAT should offer a 500c Abarth. I’d be first in line.

    • Good for the Goose

       Clearly you’re not in marketing. It has nothing to do with a car being “ridden” around in or being “seen” in. It comes down to options. Whether or not a MT is a “Man’s” car or not, there are some people who do not want MT. I live in NYC and this car would be perfect for in and out of the city with AT. Sure MT is fine if you live in a suburban area. However, when you live in a city like mine a MT does not make sense. Correct, I could get the 500 currently available in AT but it would not be because I want to be “seen” in it. It makes sense to have AT in a city like NY. Unfortunately for Fiat not having AT will deter many potential buyers. They need to look at where this car, whether it is the abarth or the fiat 500 currently available will sell best. Fiat 500′s are perfect for NYC and other cities with congestion, traffic lights at every corner and parallel parking that would make your head spin. I do want the abarth but with AT and not because I am a bumbling lazy american as some ignorant poster replied but because it makes sense to have options in order to sell as many of these as they can. I just hope Fiat doesnt think the abarth is a flop in the US if they fall short of their projected sales. I do hope they release it with an AT or at the very least a semi auto.

      In conclusion, people who want to be “seen” also want speed and there should be options. Let’s just hope this is Fiat’s genius marketing ploy to get so many people hyped up over the abarth they will wait for an AT if they do not want the MT. However, it really seems that they needed to release the abarth in the US quick and compromised options in the meantime. They need to go back and work on a design to include AT while complying with US safety standards. Does it matter if people want AT or MT?? Everyone has a choice and has a right to buy what they want. That is the great thing about this country. We are free to spend our money as we see fit….. as long as we pay taxes haha. 

  • http://pulse.yahoo.com/_5ZT24BZWGTLUQUOPY5G2DN64FQ Kenny

    the ratio is lower that the std 500 — the 6th gear would essentially be an overdrive for getting better mileage.  The nice thing is you cold retain the 5 lower gears for performance, and the the engine could be putzing at 75-80 in 6th, which is what many places are actually seeing (despite the 65 mph posting).  The real problem from what I’m reading is that there was an extra brace added to meet US crash standards and with that in place the 6-sp no longer fits.  They would actually have to do a bit of FE work to bring it around, but engineering time is cheap (relatively).  Beef it up, remove the beam, install the 6 sp, bump the HP to 200, put the wheel/tire package on it and call it the Essesse!  It’d be worth an extra $5K to me.

  • Pingback: Abarth 500: Al Salone di Los Angeles la versione USA

  • Bsohn

    Here is the issue with this car and not having the Automatic or the 6-speed.. there have been cars prior to this that have had more for the same (SVT Focus) with the same fun factor.. Cars coming up will be directly inline with this will more than likely have more for the same, ie the Fiesta ST will will probably come in around $22K and have a dual clutch paddle shift Automated Manual with 180 or so HP. I suspect the Abarth will be starting price around $21K based on their current price structure. 

    The problem Fiat is going to have is that because this car does not have the Automated Manual as in Europe or the 6-speed it will lose sales by the boatload. and due to this loss of sales the accountants will deem the car a flop in the US and NOT upgrade it to have the Automatic or the 6-speed which is where it should have been when it was first released. Basically I think they have missed the boat and Fiat numbers will suffer..

    And to all that say an automatic is not real driving. it purely depends upon the automatic.. That which would be put in the fiat would be the paddle shift auto which appears to be the ONLY transmission available on the Abarth in Europe.. Basically the fun of driving comes in to the transmission NOT second guessing your intentions.. If you have control of the auto than technically it is manually controlled and is just as fun and just as much of a drivers car..

    I personally have an SVT Focus and was looking into possibly getting one of these to replace it however I was looking at wanting the Semi-Auto.. I have driven My girlfriends Jetta GLI with the DSG and it is actually more fun to drive on a day to day basis as I still have my Pre-Corner Downshifts with a blip of throttle (though I don’t control the blip) I still can leave it in a gear higher or lower than normal.. I have control (for the most part) over what it does which is what I want in a “drivers car”. Granted I probably would not want a Semi Auto in my SVT for other reasons but when in trafic the Semi Auto gives the best of BOTH worlds.. And what can you say every racing seires other than Nascar and Grassroots have adopted the Semi Auto as it is just less intrusive to the experience of driving fast.

    I guess for me is I want an advancement from my current car and I thought this was going to be but unfortunately it is not..

    Brion

    • Fowave

      I have a Euro model as Im in Europe in my original post. It comes in a 5speed manual for the coupe and the Abarth cabrio has the paddle shift.

      • Bsohn

        OK I was thinking of the 695… 

    • OTG

      All you have to do to understand the difference between a manual and an auto box is recognize that BMW and Aston Martin both still offer fully manual gearboxes. No matter how you slice it, a fully manual gearbox is the only choice for a true driver’s car. Anything else is a compromise.

    • Anonymous

      Exactly.

      I tried to give a practical example but these guys couldn’t see passed the opportunity to compare my balls to their wives balls.

      The fact is, in the US market a car… any car without an automatic option will not sell very well. The fear is that, since this version is almost guaranteed to fail in the US market… they won’t realize their mistake and chalk it up to lack of general interest.

  • Swal

    Its been 24 months (2years) we in the USA have been waiting  on this car and you telling me that FIATS engineers could not fix the bracked problem to put the 6sp or the DCT transmission in the car!!!  sounds like a bunch of bullshit excuses to me!!!!

    Sure hope their single solution dont hurt sales cause im sure if it does the U.S. will be blamed for not liking small cars!!  (which is a total lie!) we like small cars with options not with single solutions that my or may not work!!!

  • CityGuy

    A automatic in 2012 seems automatic, the only people who like manuals these days are wanna be race drivers. In congested cities the majority of people would rather not use both feet & both hands!

    • Charles Flaherty

      Please turn in your man card.  If you want an automatic get a Camry.  If you want to driver’s car, man-up and learn to drive a MT.  I drove 20 years in DC traffic with a series of MT cars, it’s not that bad.

      • Drive it like its stolen!

        AGREED!  AT is for lazy, bumbling American drivers… except some people who have an actual reason for wanting AT like knee or hip problems.

        • chiwailao

          I am a MT driver, but doesn’t mean I’ll never need a AT. I am in the market of getting a second car that I can share with my wife, who can only drive AT. An AT Abarth would be the perfect choice as we both love the design and nuiances of the 500, but we need the extra umph from the Abarth model (base model is just too slow), while the $22k price point is just about right. There aren’t any cars currently that attracts us both to the same degree, while being practical enough and meet our price point. If Abarth offers AT as an option, Fiat will have my money. Simple as that. But with MT only…you will lose my sale. And I am just one of the many disappointed potential buyers of the car out there.

  • Tianyou67

    Is this gonna be FWD or RWD?

    • http://www.fiat500abarth.us abarth.us

      Front Wheel Drive

  • Freefreddy2000

    This comment is in regards to the automatic transmission debate going on here. I agree that a manual is more of a drivers car, however if you live in a major city and commute through traffic a 5 speed is not your first choice. This lowers their customer base as it will more so be bought by people using it as a second (toy) car for weekend use only. Also it is hard to talk on the phone, smike a cigarette, drink your coffee and change gears on the way to work in the morning. I live in the northern US and feel that this car would not be able to handle snow, so people here wont want it as a daily driver. Dont get me wrong I LOVE this car and have ever since I saw it on top gear UK a couple years ago I think it is absoutely gorgeous. However I may hold out untill an auto version is available, I currently drive an audi A4 auto and love it, also wish the fiat was AWD, but eh may just end up getting another german car.

  • Sublime_1255

    6 gears might be nice, but for the amount of HP isn’t absolutely needed. As for automatic, well I personally frown upon the idea, but I guess it would be in fiats best interest, just as long as the don’t replace the stick shift for one of those lame flappy paddle gear boxes.

  • Deschep

    A DSG gearbox like VW’s is what is needed.  VW’s will shift faster than you can and deliver better performance than a maunal, no matter whether it is 5 or 6 speeds.