Abarth 500e REVEALED as Abarth’s ‘Hot’ take on the Fiat 500 Electric

The Abarth 500e arrives as Abarth starts its EV journey as a more powerful and dynamic Fiat 500 Electric with performance better than the Abarth 695.

Abarth has been rolling out endless iterations of its 595 and 695 hot versions of Fiat’s 500, but now it’s time to join the EV party with the arrival of the Abarth 500e.

The Abarth 500e comes with the same 42kWh battery as the Fiat 500, but, as this is Abarth, it delivers a chunk more power, with the electric motor good for 152bhp and enough for the 62mph dash in around 7.0 seconds.

Moving to underpinnings from the 500e sees the Abarth’s wheelbase grow by 24mm and its track by 60mm, delivering a better handling car which can best the Abarth 695 on most metrics. Apart from sound. But Abarth has that covered too with a synthetic engine noise generation system. Still, not really the same.

There are a trio of driving modes on offer – Turismo, Scorpion Street and Scorpion Track – and the Abarth comes with 85kW fast charging capability which, with the modest battery size, means swift charging.

The Abarth 500e launches with a special “Scorpionissima” Edition (no prices yet) which throws most of Abarth’s toys in, including 18″ alloys, 10.25″ infotainment and a 7.0″ driver display.

Olivier Francois, Abarth CEO, said:

You may ask ‘why electric?’. Well, basically, performance made us do it: in fact, every change made in the Abarth is about getting the best driving performance. That’s exactly how our founder, Carlo Abarth, always went at it. So, from that point of view, let’s say that nothing has changed: better acceleration, better handling, more fun.