Upgraded Abarth Grande Punto SuperSport Heads to Frankfurt

2010 Abarth Grande Punto SuperSport

Grande Punto SS comes with a 1.4 liter engine with 180 hp and 270 Nm of torque

By Alex Ricciuti
September 14, 2009 3:08 PM
Filed Under: European, Fiat, Frankfurt Motor Show

The new Abarth Grande Punto SuperSport (SS) has been launched by Fiat.

Abarth is Fiat's performance division and the Grande Punto SS comes with a 1.4 liter gasoline/petrol engine dialed up to a robustly impressive 180 hp and an even more impressive 270 Nm of torque at a substantially early 3,000 rpm. The SS does the 0 to 100 km/h sprint in 7.5 seconds and can achieve a top speed of 215 km/h.

To properly manage that additional power and provide for the sporty ride, the SS gets a stiffened suspension with new springs which also let the car sit 20 mm lower. 18-inch wheels are also part of the set, coming with 215/40 R18 tires. The brake system gets perforated discs all around and performance pads at the front.

Notable here is the telematics system developed with partner Magneti Marelli - the Abarth Blue&Me MAP satellite navigation system - which takes data from the car including engine speed, vehicle speed and the gear engaged to be monitored from the nav system. It also offers a function called Track, which can provide the driver with a position and lap time on race tracks that are in the system's memory.

The Abarth Grande Punto SS comes in the traditional color of Airfield Grey while inside are the "Abarth Corsa by Sabelt" leather seats.

The updated Abarth Grande Punto SS went on sale last weekend (September 12/13).

Source: Fiat via leblogauto.com

Press Release (Click to expand)

The Abarth Grande Punto "SuperSport"

Powered by a 180 HP 1.4, 16v engine that develops 270 Nm of torque at only 3,000 rpm, the Abarth Grande Punto "SuperSport" reaches a top speed of 215 km/h and accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 7.5 seconds. This superb performance confirms the car's true racing spirit.

Further contributions to performance come from the modified suspension (one of the features of the "SS" kit), which includes new, more rigid and lower springs, 215/40 R18 tyres and specially designed 7.5 J X 18 alloy wheels. Thanks to this new kit the car has gained a far sportier setup and a roll centre some 20 mm lower. On top of this, the braking system has been equipped with perforated discs front and rear and performance brake pads at the front.

Inside, the Abarth Grande Punto "SuperSport" boasts "Abarth Corsa by Sabelt" leather seats (homologated and lightened in keeping with the car's racing spirit) and an Abarth Blue&MeTM MAP satellite navigation unit with a telemetric function developed in conjunction with Magneti Marelli. In all there are four functions that make this innovative device stand out. The first function, called "monitoring", displays the main acquired in-car parameters (engine rpm, vehicle speed, gear engaged) that are transferred from the Blue&MeTM to the PND (Portable Navigation Device) via Bluetooth. The second function, "Track", accessible if the driver is on one of the circuits present in the device's SD memory, displays a set of additional information such as the car's position on the track (ascertained by GPS) and lap time. The third function, "configuration", makes it possible to store telemetric data for a track and associate it with a personalised session (identified by the driver's name, circuit, date). The information recorded may be retrieved easily and also analysed at a later stage using the fourth "analysis" function.

In addition to the characteristic Abarth colours, the Grande Punto "SuperSport" comes in the historical Airfield Grey (typical of Abarth racing models) and a livery inspired by motor sport.

The new model will go on sale starting from the weekend of the 12th and 13th September, when an open house event will be organised for Abarth's entire network.