The Bangkok Motor Show sees a lot of niche interest cars represented and on the evening when the "Euro Classic" cars rolled into the sprawling car parks of BITEC Bagna, the display was dominated by five stunning Italian cars. Just a handful, but each one oozed undeniable quality, two Fiats and three Alfa Romeos, each drawn from the same core model base.
The two Fiats that were displayed at the 31st edition of the show were both the high performance "Abarth Volumetrico" version of the 131 Racing, an incredibly rare - and almost forgotten - car, and it is with some surprise that I see one in Bangkok, never mind two immaculate examples. The story of these unusual cars started in 1981 when just after the launch of the third series of 131, the Mirafiori, and after several years of supercharging development spearheaded by then Abarth boss Aurelio Lampredi, the 131 Supermirafiori Volumetrico hit the showrooms followed soon afterwards by a similar version based on the 131 Racing. The supercharging system was the same as was adopted by Lancia for its road-going Beta Coupé and HPE "Volumex" and its fearsome Group B rally car, the 037 Rally, although the 131s were known to have been fitted with much bigger superchargers than the Lancias. There is little record of how many of the 131 Racing Abarth Volumetrico cars were actually built, maybe around a hundred in the end, and with the 131 Racing being canned around this time, most of the supercharged versions were later converted by Abarth. It is also of note that at the time Fiat and Lancia were the only car major manufacturers to choose supercharging as a power-boosting solution.
The two cars looked stunning sitting side-by-side at BITEC, with their 1980s-era styling additions, front and rear spoilers, plastic wheel arch covers, almost-flush roof spoiler with tips that wrapped round and down to be somewhat reminiscent of the legendary Lancia Stratos, and bold badging, with "Volumetrico" and "Torino" prominent adhered on the rear, while the famous red/yellow "Scorpion" shield on these cars is proudly displayed on the front grille, front wings just behind the road wheel and high up on the C-pillar. One was in factory silver while the other in orange was sporting an even rarer colour as this option was reportedly almost sold out before Abarth received the batch of 131 Racings for conversion.
Complementing the two Fiat 131s, with their square-cut styling, were three examples of Alfa Romeo's much-loved 105-series coupé, a slippery shape created at the beginning of the 1960s by Italian design house Bertone, a form that is widely regarded as one of the best works to have flowed from the lavishly brushed strokes of Nuccio Bertone's pen. The pretty 105 coupé arrived on the market in 1963, a stylish two-door to complement the Giulia sedan on which it was based, and three years later it spawned the GT 1300 Junior version, one of which was presented at BITEC as part of the "Euro Classic" line-up. From the factory this model was fitted a 1290cc engine with 89 bhp and mated to a 5-speed gearbox, and the gleaming red example on show had an immaculate, original black vinyl interior. The other two 105 coupes were both the 2000 GTV, which was introduced in 1971 (the third step, as the 1750 GTV had arrived in 1968) and it continued in production until the model was phased out in 1976. One red and one white, both were in perfect condition.
Loading...
0:49
FIAT 131 volumetrico ABARTHby ot2000ot8,872 views
Link to this comment:
All Comments (0)