Fiat Cinquecento Sporting 1.1i

berun · Post time 29-7-2013 02:34 PM

The Fiat Cinquecento was a city car launched by Fiat in late 1991 to replace the Fiat 126. It was the first Fiat model to be solely manufactured in the FSM plant in Tychy, Poland, which was just sold to Fiat by the Polish state, and where the production of the 126 (in its Polish variant, the Polski Fiat 126p) was still running. The production of the Cinquecento ended in 1998, when it was replaced by the Seicento.

The Cinquecento was available in one body style only, a small, angular 3-door hatchback, with a favorable drag coefficient of only 0.33. It featured several advances compared to older Fiat city cars, including independent suspension both in the front and in the rear, front disc brakes, side impact bars along with crumple zones incorporated in the design and galvanized body panels to fend off corrosion. Steering was by rack and pinion, and although power steering was never offered, the car could be ordered with a number of extras, including central locking, power windows, sunroof (or full-length retractable canvas roof in the Soleil version) and even air conditioning.

Engines

Unlike the rear-wheel drive 126, the Cinquecento was a front-wheel drive car. It was initially available with two engine choices, with the 1.1 L FIRE joining the lineup later. Interestingly, while the 704 cc engine was mounted longitudinally, the bigger units were fitted transversely, making the little Fiat one of the few cars in the world available with both configurations at the same time.

704 cc

The smallest engine, intended for sale in Poland only, was a 704 cc ohv two-cylinder unit, delivering 30 bhp DIN (22 kW. Cinquecento inherited this unit from the 126p BIS, an evolution of the 126p which was cancelled when the Cinquecento production started. In order to be fitted in the front-wheel drive Cinquecento, it underwent a major refurbishment (although the engine still employed a carburxxtor), which resulted, among other changes, in the crankshaft revolving in the opposite direction than in the 126p BIS!

903/899 cc

The bigger engine was the 903 cc 40 bhp DIN (29 kW) version of the veteran ohv four-cylinder engine, which saw service in many small Fiat models, starting with Fiat 850. It was fitted with fuel injection and was the base engine in most markets. Due to fiscal limitations, the displacement of this unit was limited to 899 cc in 1993, with a slight reduction of output, now producing 39 PS ECE (29 kW).

1.1 FIRE (Sporting)

In 1995, Fiat introduced the Cinquecento Sporting, featuring the 1.1 L ohc FIRE 54 hp (40 kW) ECE engine and a 30mm drop in standard suspension, 13 inch alloy wheels as standard, colour coded bumpers and mirrors and a tachometer dial. It is the sporting model which gave birth to a rallying trophy and a Group A Kit-Car version.