One Sunday morning, I headed to Royu Driveway and finally met a follower I’d often chatted with on Twitter. They own a manual Abarth and, to my surprise, offered: “Would you like to take it for a drive? It’s a manual, but it’s easy and fun to drive.”
Now, now… I was grateful for the offer, but I didn’t want to risk damaging someone else’s car—and it was a manual, too. I turned them down at first, but then they said:
You drive a manual BMW 320i every day, so I’m sure you’ll be just fine!
So I took them up on their kind offer and got behind the wheel.
The Abarth I drove was a 2018 Abarth 595 (manual, left-hand drive). It was finished in Grigio Campovolo (hard to believe this gorgeous color is a standard option), and had the base trim along with a Clarion navigation system and lowering springs.
I asked the owner why they chose the Abarth 595:
I was looking for a new car with left-hand drive, a manual transmission, and everyday usability. At the time, there weren’t many options—pretty much the Abarth or a Peugeot Sport model. I considered the Peugeot, too, but in the end I decided to buy from a dealer I’d known for a while, so I went with the Abarth.
I wanted a left-hand-drive manual because I hope to own a Cayman GT4 someday, and I wanted to get used to that setup.
…Though I’ve ended up falling for my little Abarth! (laughs)
They explained.
When I was considering buying a manual car back in April, one of my blog readers recommended the Abarth, saying, “It’s a great car!” I also see them around my neighborhood now and then, so I’d been curious about the model for a while.
The Abarth’s trademark is the scorpion, inspired by the zodiac sign of its founder, Carlo Abarth.
The Abarth 595 I drove looked beautiful in its Porsche Crayon-like paint. And above all, its compact size made it incredibly cute. I thought it had just the size and styling that many women would love.
The Abarth 595 measures 3,660 mm long, 1,625 mm wide, and 1,505 mm tall. It looked like it would be easy to drive around town.
I was surprised when I first opened the driver’s door. It felt much more solidly made than I’d expected. It’s a compact car, and it’s Italian, so I’d assumed—without any real basis—that it might look good on the outside but be a bit slapdash underneath. (I’m really, really sorry…)
The interior was stylish, too—just what you’d expect from an Italian car. The seats felt just right—not too firm, not too soft—and were solidly made. And despite its compact dimensions, it can comfortably seat four. What a great package!
This Abarth was a left-hand-drive manual. In most manual cars, the gear lever is usually near the handbrake (like this):
In the Abarth 595, however, the gear lever sits high on the center console. The owner told me that this position makes shifting easier: as soon as you take your hand off the steering wheel, you can reach the lever in a quick, natural motion.
That made sense. I practiced reaching for the lever a few times, and it was right where my hand naturally fell after only a small movement—easy to use. The car also has a five-speed gearbox, so reverse is where you’d normally find sixth gear.
After the owner had shown me the basics, I adjusted the seat and got ready to go. This was my first time driving a manual car that belonged to someone outside my family, so I nervously started the engine.
Wow—it sounded pretty sporty!
Next page → Driving the Abarth in second gear: how the shifts felt and what the engine sounded like
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