Photos

This shot was taken at an old car rally on Skipton High street - it is a detail of a Fiat 500 Abarth rally conversion.

From the net.

'The Fiat 500 (the "cinquecento," from Italian for "500") was a micro-sized car produced by the Fiat company of Italy.

Launched in 1957 as the "nuova 500", it was marketed as a cheap and practical town car to combat the huge levels of congestion in Italian cities. Measuring less than 3 m (10 ft) long, and powered by a tiny 479 cc two-cylinder, aircooled engine, the 500 redefined the term "microcar".

To meet the post-war market which called for cars of very low cost, the Fiat 500 was rear-engined on the pattern of the Volkswagen Beetle. Several car makers followed this now nearly vanished pattern at the time and were quite successful. But only the Fiat 500 was used as the pattern for other car makers in Europe. The firms Neckar of Germany and Steyr-Puch in Austria each made cars that were legally based on the Fiat 500.

Despite its diminutive dimensions, the 500 proved to be an enormously practical and popular vehicle throughout Europe. It was also available as the "Giardiniera" or station wagon with the engine laid on its side, the wheelbase lengthened by 10 cm (4 in) which yielded a usable rear seat, a full-length sunroof, and larger brakes from the 600.

Production of the 500 ended in 1975, although its replacement, the Fiat 126, was launched two years earlier. The 126 was never as popular as its predecessor.

Carlo Abarth set up tuning cars in 1950.
As most of the parts were for Fiats Fiat bought the Abarth name when the original company folded in 1971'.