FIAT’s entry into the supermini hatchback market was quite different from any other entrant in what had become one of the most competitive market segments in the industry, in Europe, at least. Badged “Ritmo” in Europe, but “Strada” in the UK, US and Canada, it was distinctive in numerous ways, not least in the way it was introduced to the buying public.
Having missed out on winning the 1978 European Car of the Year Award by just a dozen votes, coming second behind the anonymous Simca/Chrysler Horizon, it was announced to car buyers with an almost literal fanfare via one of the most famous commercials – not just for cars – ever made, the wonderful “Handbuilt by Robots” advert, which you can see below. This two minute film, made at a cost rumoured to be £300,000 (about £1.3m today) was long for a commercial, and premiered in the UK on ITV’s popular News At Ten slot, taking up the entire ad break. Set to Figaro’s Aria from Rossini’s The Barber of Seville with added electronic or “robotic” sounds courtesy of recently deceased Greek musician Vangelis, it showed a factory devoid of humans as Strada bodyshells progressed along the production line without the aid of human intervention, before being driven onto a moving transporter – definitely with human intervention. It remains one of the most memorable adverts on TV, rather more so than the car itself. A couple of years later it was spoofed by the Not The Nine O’Clock News comedy team with an “advert” for the Austin Ambassador that proclaimed it to be “Built by Roberts”.
The Strada (we’ll stick to that name since I’m writing in the UK) was designed to take on the likes of the VW Golf, Lancia Delta, Opel Kadett/Vauxhall Astra, Ford Escort, and Honda Civic, among others, in an intensely competitive market sector. Where its rivals were largely composed of combinations of straight lines, the Strada was intended to look futuristic, with chunky impact-absorbing plastic bumpers that came half-way up the car at the front, circular door handles and wheels with non-radial hubcaps, but underneath these design quirks lay a fairly conventional car.
A very competitive sector
Initially made available with three different petrol engines a 1.1 litre producing 59bhp, a 1.3 putting out 64bhp, and a 1.5 that generated 74bhp, all handed down from the FIAT 128; a diesel option was added in 1980. Body styles were 3 and 5-door hatchback, with two trim levels, L and CL. The first facelift came in 1979 with the addition of the so-called Targa Oro range which was meant to address criticisms of the standard car’s rather basic trim specification, and two years later, this was itself replaced by the Superstrada range, offering improved trim levels as well as more power, lower profile tyres and five-speed gearbox as standard on the 1.3 and 1.5-litre versions.
The first high performance model came in 1981 with the launch of the 105TC, equipped with a 1.6-litre engine putting out 104bhp (105PS – hence the nomenclature). A few months later, an even more powerful, Abarth-badged version was released, the 125TC with a 1995cc, 123bhp engine that endowed the car with a top speed of 118mph/190kmh and a 0-100kmh sprint time of just 8.7 seconds, taking the fight to the GTi’s and GTE’s.
Unfortunately, it transpired that being” Built by Robots” was not a guarantee of good quality, as the Strada was afflicted with poor reliability as well as a propensity to rust, and the innovative looks began to look less than modern in the face of the competition. As a result, the first complete revision of the range took place in 1982, but much of the original car’s individuality was lost without a compensatory improvement in build quality, and sales continued to suffer. Even the introduction of a third series in 1985 failed to reverse the trend, and the Strada ceased production in 1988 after almost 1.8 million had been built.
In between this seeming tale of woe however were some bright spots, courtesy of the Abarth hot hatch versions. After the 125TC came the 130TC in 1983, with even more power – 128bhp – and performance – 0-60mph in just 7.7 seconds – compared to the Astra GTE’s 115bhp and the Golf GTi’s 112bhp, and it’s one of these later hot Strada’s that is our Prime Find this week.
Motor magazine tested a 130TC in June 1984, and were impressed by the performance, particularly with the 121mph top speed they achieved around the Millbrook bowl, faster than either the Golf or the Astra, although this came with a significantly greater thirst than its rivals.
As if to emphasise its high-speed abilities, the 130TC was also fitted with Recaro sports seats although these disappointed the testers, as did the harsh ride, especially over less-than-smooth surfaces. The testers had a few other niggles too, such as the relatively low level of equipment and the handling in the wet, but in terms of out-and-out performance, the 130TC was the one to beat.
This one goes under the hammer with CCA Auctions on June 18th at the Warwickshire Event Centre, and if you like the Strada, you’ll definitely like this. It might look more conventional than the original car, but there things that make up for it, not least it’s condition. This Abarth was subjected to a full body restoration in 2006, and while that’s now 16 years ago, it’s been little used since and been kept in an air-conditioned garage for the last decade.
Indeed, it’s been lightly used overall, with an odometer reading of 58, 826 miles, or a little under 95,000 kilometres, believed to be genuine. The white and black interior is claimed to be in good condition and based on the few photographs we’ve been able to borrow from the auctioneers’ website, that does indeed seem to be the case.
The red respray also looks good – as it should with so little use since it was done – and overall the car presents well. There is a catch though – the price. CCA have put an estimate range of £15 – 18,000 on this Abarth, and while it’s obviously a rare car – just five on the road in the UK, compared to thousands of Golf and 205GTi’s, for example – and the mileage is low, it’s still a Strada and the restoration is 16 years old; it seems a little optimistic to me, especially when a good Golf or Peugeot GTi can be bought for similar money. Of course, if you want to stand out from the hot-hatch crowd, then this Scorpion makes a lot more sense. You pays your money, takes your choice, as they apparently say.
The car comes with photographs of the restoration, handbook and service books, and will be sold with a new MOT. You can see the full lot entry, such as it is, here, and as always, if this Italian speed merchant tickles your fancy, we recommend you arrange prior inspection if possible.
With our Saturday instalment of Prime Find of the Week, we’re offering our services to the classic car community, by passing on our favourite classic car for sale from the week that passed. This top-tip might help a first-time-buyer to own his first classic, or it could even be the perfect motivation for a multiple-classic-car-owner to expand his garage with something different. We’ll let us be inspired by anything from a cheap project to a stunning concours exotic, and hope that you will do the same.
Just remember – Any Classic is Better than No Classic! We obviously invite our readers to help prospective buyers with your views and maybe even experiences of any given model we feature. Further to that, if you stumble across a classic which you feel we ought to feature as Prime Find of the Week, then please send us a link to primefindoftheweek@viaretro.co.uk