Very little has changed since its launch in 2013, so has this stirring Italian retro hot hatch improved with age – or lost relevance?
The Abarth 595 Competizione is a hot hatch based on the Fiat 500 and will soon notch up 10 years since its launch in Australia. Obviously, this spiced-up Italian micro car does not represent the latest development in hot hatchery. But what the Abarth does represent is perhaps the last stand for an energetic, extroverted, fast and fun retro combustion-engined car. We may as well enjoy it while it lasts, as we probably won’t see the likes of the Abarth 595 Competizione again.
Dollar details
Since its update in September last year, the 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione hatch and convertible have become the only models remaining in the Abarth 595 line up – and with the demise of the 124 Spider, they are also now the only Abarth models for sale in Australia.
The front-drive 595 Competizione continues with the 132kW/250Nm 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine and five-speed manual as standard, with an optional ($2000) five-speed Dualogic auto.
There are 10 exterior colour options, of which Gara White is free while the rest will set you back between $650 and $1600 extra.
A $1600 gloss black roof option is also available for hatchback models with yellow, red, white or green body colours. A $2450 ‘Competizione’ body kit is on the options list too, but can only be had with either Scorpione Black or Rally Blue colour options.
The standard equipment list includes a bunch of brand-name go-fast gear, such as front Brembo brake callipers, Monza bi-modal sports exhaust and adaptive suspension with KONI Frequency Selective Damping.
The 595 also has leather sports seats, leather and carbon-fibre steering wheel, 7.0-inch touch-screen with digital radio, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, a 7.0-inch instrument cluster and sports pedals.
The most recent update also introduced dusk and rain sensors, a fresh splash screen and a redesigned sport button, now designated by Abarth’s scorpion motif.
For hatch models, a Premium Pack brings Xenon headlights, a sunroof and aluminium antenna roof cap, while a Sport Pack adds 17-inch matte black wheels, Sabelt GT black leather seats and an Alcantara dash.
While the 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione hatch starts at $34,250 plus on-road costs, the test car was fully tricked-up with the matte Rally Blue paint ($1600), body kit ($2450), Premium Pack ($2500), Sport Pack ($2500) and yellow-painted brake callipers ($350), bringing the as-tested price to $43,650 plus ORCs.
You won’t find cruise control in any 595, and as we’ll see, there’s not much in the way of advanced driver assist safety features either.
It’s hard to pick cars with which the 595 directly competes, especially when ticked with all the options like our test car.
The nearest are in the light car category, such as the Ford Fiesta ST, Hyundai i20 N and Volkswagen Polo GTI. Despite being a bit bigger, these three all compete with the 595 in overall mission statement and starting price – just under $33K (plus on-roads) for each of them.
Despite these three pumping out more power, standard features and safety equipment than the 595, they’re very plainly wrapped against the very showy and (literally) loud, retro-styled 595.
The closest in retro-but-hot theme is the MINI Cooper S JCW, but it opens at a much higher $53,200 plus ORCs.
Bang and bounce
The safety basics of the 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione are covered off with seven airbags, ABS and electronic stability and traction control.
There are also rear parking sensors, LED daytime running lights and a tyre pressure monitoring system.
If you’re after the likes of autonomous emergency braking (AEB), blind spot monitoring or lane departure warning though, forget it.
The 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione does not have an ANCAP rating, but the car upon which it’s based – the Fiat 500 – does. The latest, most relevant crash test was the 2017 Euro NCAP test of the Fiat 500, which handed it a poor three-star rating.
Make of that what you will, but you can be sure that given the lack of important safety tech such as AEB, the Abarth simply does not have the makings of an ANCAP five-star safety winner in 2022.
Guts and glory
The 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione has a very eager powertrain that manages to be tame or a terror whenever you need it to be.
There is some turbo lag, but only when you provoke it. This is a car that begs you to drive it, not lug it around at low revs.
Keep it in the mid-range – which is easy to do – and the 595 just punches along swiftly; it offers a flexible slab of torque and it’s eager, raucous and rev-happy when you boot it. And with a 0-100km/h time of 6.7sec, it’s fairly quick…
Even though it seems old-school with only five forward gears, the 595 manual transmission has a nicely-spaced gear set and slick shift.
Fuel consumption on test, with mostly around-town driving and lots of enjoying the engine’s upper rev reaches, averaged 9.7L/100km. The claimed combined figure of 6.0L/100km seems quite achievable, if you’re willing to contain the horses.
Grace and space
Getting into the 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione for the first time in ages, I was reminded of how spacious it feels for such a small car.
The front seats are very firm but offer plenty of support. Tall occupants will likely find the lack of seat height adjustment and headroom an issue, particularly with the sunroof-equipped model.
The rear seats in this four-seater hatch are suitable for adults, but really only for a short trip for coffee and cannoli, not a long highway drive. Legroom is tight back there for the grownups.
The boot is small, although its 185-litre capacity will carry the essentials for a weekend away. There is no spare wheel, just an inflation kit.
The infotainment system works without lagging or any confounding menus, although there’s no wireless charging pad to be found.
The dashtop-mounted boost gauge might’ve looked trick 10 years ago, but now it just looks tacky.
The steering wheel looks the part with its Alcantara and carbon-fibre treatment, but in this little car such a large-diameter tiller feels out of place. So does the large-diameter turning circle. It’s supposedly 11.45m, but feels even wider than that, with plenty of three-or-more-point turns on narrower streets.
Whether it’s the big steering wheel or the steering rack ratio – or both – the steering doesn’t feel all that quick at first blush. Up the speed though, and point the 595 at some corners, and all is forgiven.
This little thing comes alive and is hugely entertaining, and the grip from the Michelin Pilot Sport 3 tyres is very good, in the wet or dry.
But the 595 isn’t the car in which to stray off onto dirt roads, or even on patchy tarmac, for that matter.
While pressing the scorpion button for Standard mode makes it more absorbent than Sport mode (which firms up the dampers to rock-hard, firms steering, improves throttle response and opens up the bi-modal exhaust), the 595 is not happy over big bumps.
Over a short wave of undulations, with its tied-down suspension and short wheelbase, it ends up bobbing up and down as it faithfully follows every rise and depression in the road. Even speed humps have to be taken carefully – not because the front spoiler is too low, but just that the 595 tends to crash over them with next to no compliance.
Perhaps all of that will become irrelevant out on a track day, but as a hot hatch for typical Aussie roads… well, the 595 is a lot less supple than it could be.
The wash-up
There is no doubt that the 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione is sorely lacking features that you should rightly expect in any new car, and it’s in a hot hatch market where presumably part of the appeal is having the latest, fashionable machine on the block.
On paper, the 595 no longer makes a lot of sense against much newer, more powerful and safer hot hatches.
The 595 Competizione lacks a broader appeal then, but for those who love it, they will accept its failings and revel in the little pocket of exuberance and enthusiasm that it is.
How much does the 2022 Abarth 595 Competizione cost?Price: $34,250 (plus on-road costs)Engine: 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrolOutput: 132kW/250NmTransmission: Five-speed manualFuel: 6.0L/100km (ADR Combined)CO2: 139g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Not tested
Keyword: Abarth 595 Competizione 2022 Review