Classic Fiat rally cars don’t seem to get the appreciation enjoyed by stablemate Lancia. Look at the 1:64 rally diecast releases of recent years and you’ll find plenty of Stratos, Delta and Rally 037 models. Fiats? Not so much. Fortunately, Hot Wheels – and in particular, retired designer Mark Jones – has your back. We’ll hear from Mark later.
(find Hot Wheels Fiat 131 Abarth on eBay)
The Fiat 131 Abarth has a strong claim to once being the best rally car in the world. It secured WRC Manufacturers’ titles for Fiat in 1977, ’78 and ’80, when it also brought Walter Röhrl the first of his two Drivers’ championships (Markku Alén had won the ’78 FIA Cup for Drivers, before there was an official Drivers’ World Championship).
Chronologically at least, the 131 Abarth was the missing link between two more exotic Lancia rally greats – another Group 4 car, the Ferrari-powered Stratos, and the Group B Rally 037.
With Lancia and, since 1971, Abarth both under Fiat control, Fiat management had an embarrassment of rally talent at its disposal. The Abarth 124 Rallye was already very successful and to create the 131, its 250-bhp, 2-liter, 16-valve engine was adopted into the shell of Fiat’s new sedan, which offered greater suspension travel than the sporty 124.
There were many other changes from stock, of course, including independent rear suspension and a ZF transmission. The resulting 131 Abarth, homologated in 1976, was produced in different versions to handle the demands of different rallies. If you look closely at period photos, you’ll notice that tarmac cars had even wider arches than the loose-surface version. Across five seasons, the 131 won just about everywhere except on the Safari Rally. You can find out more about in this article on the FCA Heritage website.
There is something inherently cool about turning family transport into a rally car. When that involves slapping wheel-arch extensions onto an already attractive, angular sedan, then it’s a winning recipe. For me, it’s hard not to like the look of the 131 Abarth.
I still have my first 131 Abarth, the Matchbox release (MB074) from 1982-3. Here it is in its original, playworn glory.
I later found another generic deco, the Dinky Toys-packaged version that was issued in 1988 to protect Matchbox’s ownership of the trademark, and finally picked up the 1984-85 Alitalia release as an adult. As a rally fan I’ve always loved the 131 Abarth and a few years ago was fortunate to obtain a print of the original Matchbox design drawings for the Fiat.
I also have this awesome gold-chrome version, one of the many decos the casting received after the tooling went to Bulgaria.
A few years ago, I started collecting the CMs true-1:64 rally cars so along came another Fiat. This is Markku Alén’s Alitalia-sponsored Rally Portugal winner from 1978. It’s a cracker.
(find CMs Fiat 131 Abarth on eBay)
There’s also a Kyosho model. The blue-striped machine represents another rally winner, this time Walter Röhrl’s car on the 1980 Monte Carlo. Personally, I think the casting is a little too narrow, but that livery is fabulous.
(find Kyosho Fiat 131 Abarth on eBay)
There are other versions of the Fiat in 1:64, too. The F11 Tomica is a gaping hole in my collection, for example. But now we have a new, widely available model from Hot Wheels. Once again, you slightly pinch yourself that the traditional home of muscle-car diecast would produce a classic Fiat rally car, but here we are. Awesome.
It’s no surprise that the brains behind the model, which first appeared in the 2023 Car Culture Modern Classics mix, is Mark Jones. But the inspiration came from an unlikely source.
“As I recall, there was originally a slot for a different rally car, but the licensing deal never came about,” he says. “We had good licensing relationships with FCA/Stellantis so it seemed doable. My motivation to do this car came from a discussion with my grandson – the one who is less into cars. He knew what a Fiat 131 Abarth was because he follows the hip-hop artist Tyler, the Creator, who has an all-pink version! My thinking was if we did a version like that, it might attract a wider audience.”
That’s what 131 Abarth ownership does for you. Caution: contains strong language!
A quick Google search reveals that Tyler, the Creator has an awesome car collection. Nice!
Mark’s own preference would have been for the extreme, fender-blistered 031 Abarth that won the saloon category of the 1975 Giro d’Italia Automobilistico. This car predates the definitive rally version.
Credit: Autosprint/Wikimedia Commons
Crikey! What a machine. But personally, I’m glad Hot Wheels went for the definitive 131 Abarth instead.
Which brings us to the model. Here’s the Modern Classics version in plain red, mimicking one of the 400 street cars that were built for homologation purposes.
There is a lot to like about this casting, including the small wheels (albeit with slightly overwide track), the filler cap in the trunk/boot lid, the twin spots, and especially, the size – unlike the cartoonish Matchbox classic, it’s only slightly larger than true 1:64.
You’ll have noticed that the model comprises a metal body with a plastic layer beneath that forms the fender flares and front air dam, sandwiched by a metal base. The fender layer makes for a natural colour break on the largely authentic, blue-and-yellow second release – the Olio Fiat (Fiat Oil) version in a 2024 Team Transport set. Mark adds that the separate part was the suggestion of Mattel’s offshore plants and development group. “The idea was to give us more deco options, yet still remain within our cost targets,” he explains.
(find Hot Wheels Fiat 131 Abarth on eBay)
Mark also designed the second component of the Team Transport set, the Second Story Lorry. Not being a fan of random Gulf-branded models, I like this second, Olio Fiat version of the truck much more than the first. Speaking of which, I won’t be rushing out to buy the new Italian Rally Car Culture 2-Pack, in which the Gulfified Fiat is paired with an equally spurious Lancia Rally 037. Enough with the Gulf already!
Loaded up!
Plastic parts aside, the questionably named Second Story Lorry reminds me a little of vintage transporters by Matchbox, Corgi and Dinky. Says Mark, “I wanted it to look like the transporters that might have hauled the Lancia rally team around in the day and not look out of place with a couple of Birdcage Maseratis, were we ever to do such a thing. I just wish I could have made the transporter larger!”
Pity that the lumps in the ramp for the hinge mechanism mean there’s insufficient clearance to ‘drive’ the 131 onto the transporter. Would probably work for a lower car but if Hot Wheels was aiming for playability, it’s an oversight.
That’s it. Please comment below if you have thoughts on the 131 Abarth. Which liveries do we want to see next? Pink would be great, but I don’t really mind. If it’s based on a historical colour scheme, like the Olio Fiat one, I hope that the graphic designers consider those of us who might want to customize/detail it with additional decals. Those ‘131’ door numbers are way too far forward to be easily overwritten!
Happy collecting!
(find Hot Wheels Fiat 131 Abarth on eBay)
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