2005 Fiat Abarth Punto Super 1600 Ex-works Rally Car

Super 1600, also known as S1600, is a rally car formula that is primarily used in the Junior World Rally Championship, as well as various national championships. It was devised by the FIA in 2000, with competitive racing commencing in 2001 and still runs today. Super 1600 is intended to provide a young driver's entry point into international rallying, and the World Rally Championship in particular. Like most FIA-approved rally cars, there is a process of homologation in which a suitable production road car design is modified within the limits of a formula's technical regulations. In the Super 1600 formula, 'suitable' is defined as a passenger car that has one driven axle (two-wheel drive) and a 4-cylinder engine that is of naturally aspirated configuration with a maximum volume of 1640cc. At the time of homologation, the car must currently or have previously been in serial production. The production car's standard gearbox is replaced by a sequential manual gearbox with a maximum of six forward ratios. The engine may be modified to produce a maximum power output of 230hp and the exhaust is subject to a noise restriction of 100dB at 4500rpm. Super 1600 requires a production-standard body shell that is made safe for competition with the addition of a roll cage. Certain other modifications can be made to increase the width of the bodywork and improve its aerodynamic efficiency. The weight of the competition car is reduced to a minimum of 980kg, with a lower minimum weight of 920kg if an engine with only two valves per cylinder is employed. In most cases, this is approximately 50 to 100kg less than the weight of the production car version. The car presented here was built and used by Fiat for six events, five in 2005 and one in 2006. and during that period was run by the Italian team N-Technology. In December 2007, our UK-based vendor bought the car from N-Technology, collecting it directly from the legendary Chivasso factory. He has since done a total of 18 or so events with some success, notably 2nd in Class A6 in the ANCRO/MSA Gravel Championship in 2008 and 1st in class A6 in the REIS/MSA Tarmac Championship in 2011. During our vendor's ownership, the car has been prepared by Lancia/Fiat specialists 'Walkers Garage Ltd.' of Yorkshire, who have maintained the car thoroughly and know it really well. The Punto remains in exactly the same 'Super 1600' specification as when it left Fiat, benefiting from a recent respray along with new front bumpers and skirts. (The majority of the photos seen here and used on any associated social media are credited to renowned publication 'Auto Italia' magazine - used with thanks)