You Can Import The Mazda Miata's Italian Rival, But There's A Problem

When searching for a cheap and easy-to-maintain two-seater sports car, most gearheads tend to turn their attention to Japanese challengers like the Mazda MX-5 Miata and Toyota MR2. They are light enough to be agile through the bends, and feature small-but-peppy four-cylinder engines that are cheap to run and reliable in equal measure, while also providing enough power to have fun.

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Fiat

Fiat can trace its history back to 1899 when it produced its first car - the Fiat 4 HP - and over the course of the last century, established itself as the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy. In 2007, Fiat S.p.A reorganized, forming Fiat Automobiles, which went on to become part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2012. In 2021, it became a subsidiary of Stellantis.

Founded  1899

Founder  Giovanni Agnelli

Headquarters  Turin, Italy

Owned By  Stellantis

Current CEO  John Elkann (Acting)

In the mid-1990s, Italian auto giant Fiat decided to get in on the action. Its own contender differed significantly from most other two-seater sports cars on the market, though it offered a fun drive in its own right.

The Barchetta Arrived On The Scene As The Successor To The Legendary X1/9

1995 Fiat Barchetta Orange Front Angled View Driving

The story of Fiat's 1990s sports car, named the Barchetta, begins in the early phases of the decade. The brand's long-standing sports-car offering, the underrated X1/9, had been discontinued in 1989 after a nearly two-decade production run, and Fiat wasted no time in kicking off the process of finding a successor. Unlike many marques, which tend to carry out the development process of their new model before the old one is discontinued, Fiat only started working on the Barchetta in 1990.

fiat coupe headlight close up

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It tasked two separate teams within the Fiat fold to table ideas for a future open-top two-seater sports car. One team, led by future BMW designer Chris Bangle, suggested a convertible version of the Fiat Coupe, a vehicle he had himself penned. The other suggested the Barchetta, which was ultimately accepted as Fiat wanted to differentiate the model from the Coupe. Development took four years, with the car eventually being released to the public in 1995. A facelifted version of the car was released in 2003, before production concluded in 2005.

It was crafted upon Fiat's new Type B chassis, which would later be used for the popular Punto city car.

Its Design Harked Back To The Early Days Of Motoring

Chief designer Andreas Zapatinas revealed that many of the design touches of the sleek Barchetta were inspired by Italian cars from the 1940s. Its flush door handles were seen on the Cisitalia Pininfarina that debuted in 1947, while the rib line that ran down the side of the car was inspired by the Ferrari 166 from a similar period. It was eye-catching on the inside too, with colored panels being dotted around the cabin, while the dashboard was curvy and more modern than many of the time.

2000-2002 Audi TT Coupe Black Front Angle Track Driving

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What's the most overrated sports car ever made?

Everybody loves a good debate, and no matter what anyone says about a car (or just about anything else), there's somebody who vehemently believes in the polar opposite side of the opinion. With that in mind, what car makes your skin crawl when you hear somebody profess their love for it? For me, it's the 8N Audi TT. If it wasn't for the styling - and I love the styling - would it be remembered for anything else? As far as I'm concerned, it's a two-door version of the most luxury-focused Golf until that point, it's heavy, and it's slow. It's not very well-balanced, drinks fuel whether fitted with the GTI's turbocharged four-cylinder or the R32's narrow-angle V6, and sends most of its power to the front wheels most of the time. The TT had its little niche, but it's not nearly as special as its fanatics suggest, and that's why it doesn't even exist anymore. I'm convinced of my opinion; what's yours?

The Barchetta Was Unusual For A Sports Car

2003 Fiat Barchetta Top Down Red Front Angled View Driving

While its classic Italian design set it apart from its two-seater rivals, its driving experience arguably made even more of a difference. This breed of car tends to be rear-wheel drive, which helps to provide better-balanced handling. The X1/9 followed this pattern, and was even mid-engined. For the Barchetta though, Fiat elected to make it front-wheel-drive, while slotting the engine in the front like most of its rivals.

Wanting to offer a car that was more approachable in foot-flat driving, and making it more usable in colder months and climates, FWD was seen as the best way to achieve this. Its fully independent suspension setup was tweaked to ensure it gave a sporty feel, while the chassis and body worked together to create one of the stiffest platforms of any sports car of the time. According to the brand, its 50,000 kgm/rad figure was superior to anything it compared against, which helped ensure it was more agile and responsive when being pushed.

The Barchetta Featured Similar Grunt To Its Competition

The Barchetta was graced with a naturally aspirated 1.8-liter inline-four powerplant from Fiat's Pratola Serra engine family, which offered up 131 hp. This was nearly identical to the 1.8-liter MX-5 of the time, though a little shy of the 138 hp possible from the MR-2. It was a little heavier than the Mazda at 2,328 pounds, though a good few hundred pounds lighter than the MR-2. Despite the low weight, the lack of grunt meant the Barchetta took 8.9 seconds to clear the 60 mph barrier.

This put it a few tenths-of-a-second adrift of the MX-5, which could manage the same sprint in 8.6 seconds.

The Barchetta Never Made It To The US, But That Doesn't Mean You Can't Have One

1995 Fiat Barchetta Orange Front View Close-Up

Sadly for US audiences, the Barchetta was reserved for the European market. Thanks to the 25-year import rule though, which allows vehicles older than this age to be brought into the US and used to their owner's content, earlier Barchettas can be shipped across the Atlantic. As per the 25-year rule, examples manufactured before the year 2000 can be purchased and brought over.

Barchetta's Aren't Worth A Fortune

Given the Barchetta's front-wheel-drive layout, and questionable reliability, it never fared as well as its rivals on the sales charts. Only 57,000 examples were built during its ten-year tenure, though there are a fair few on the used market waiting to be snapped up. Fortunately, they are impressively affordable in 2025. According to Classic.com, which collates auction listings from around the world, the average sale price of a Barchetta is currently just $7,637.

2024 FIAT 500e RED Edition Front Angle Driving

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Many of these cars have been used frequently though, meaning mileages can be pretty high. An interesting example we saw is an orange 1998 car that had been imported to the US, and was sold through Cars and Bids in June 2024. The bright orange number had covered just 29,300 miles at the time of sale, and ended up selling for just $9,000. It had a few cosmetic issues, though these are to be expected on a nearly 30-year-old vehicle.

Therefore, either waiting for someone else to bring them to the US or doing it yourself is a realistic option. If buying from overseas, make sure to still carry out the checks you would if you saw the car in person by asking the seller to send over a video of the areas you want to examine.

The Barchetta Wasn't The Only 1990s FWD Two-Seater Sports Car

1995 Lotus Elan Red Roof Down Front Angled View

While the Barchetta's FWD layout was pretty unusual for a sports car of the time, that doesn't mean it was the only one using this layout. Lotus decided to ditch its heritage and head down the FWD route for the latest M100 version of its Elan, a car also sold by Kia, which first broke cover in 1989. Like Fiat, Lotus felt that the more approachable handling balance offered by FWD would prove popular with younger gearheads, who had fallen head over heels for FWD hot hatches during the 1980s.

Unfortunately, this approach failed to pay off. Despite weighing less than a tonne, and coming with a 130-hp 1.6-liter inline-four under the hood, Lotus struggled to shift them. By the time the Elan S1 was axed in 1992, just 3,800 examples had been sold. A turbocharged version was also offered, while a special edition S2 variant that brought handling refinements was built between 1994 and 1995, though only 800 found owners.

2000-2005 Opel Speedster Exterior

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As a result of the Elan's failure, Lotus went back to a RWD layout for its successor, the Elise. This decision proved genius, as the new model proved a hit from the moment it emerged. Few FWD sports cars have proved to be a sales success, with the likes of the Audi TT being few and far between. Most, like the MX-5, the BMW Z4, and the Porsche Boxster, continue to prove that RWD is the way to go with this breed of performance car.