With Ferrari's merchandise-branding penchant more fervent than any other car maker's, it was only a matter of time before it started branding other cars. This is the Abarth 695 Tributo Ferrari, and we'd find it easier to be cynical if it didn't look so cool. Aston Martin take note: there's a new horse in the super-supermini segment - or whatever it's called.
Powered by a 1.4-litre turbo T-Jet engine with around 180bhp, the 695 is basically the ultimate 500 and should appeal to Ferrari owners who don't fancy having their 599s keyed in Aldi's car park. It was co-developed by Fiat and Ferrari techies, and even has a paddle shift gearbox to satisfy the habitual finger twitching of genuine Ferrari owners.
It also has a set of black 17-inch wheels, carbon fibre mirror caps, xenon headlamps, racing leather bucket seats and aluminium pedals. There's no word on pricing just yet, but factor in at least a couple of grand more than the current flagship Abarth essesse when it goes on sale.
Mark Nichol - 12 Sep 2009