Classic Italian cars on display at the Bangkok Motor Show 2010

Description

The Bangkok Motor Show sees a lot of niche interest cars represented and on the evening when the "Euro Classic" cars rolled into the sprawling car parks of BITEC Bagna, the display was dominated by five stunning Italian cars. Just a handful, but each one oozed undeniable quality, two Fiats and three Alfa Romeos, each drawn from the same core model base. The two Fiats that were displayed at the 31st edition of the show were both the high performance "Abarth Volumetrico" version of the 131 Racing, an incredibly rare - and almost forgotten - car, and it is with some surprise that I see one in Bangkok, never mind two immaculate examples. The story of these unusual cars started in 1981 when just after the launch of the third series of 131, the Mirafiori, and after several years of supercharging development spearheaded by then Abarth boss Aurelio Lampredi, the 131 Supermirafiori Volumetrico hit the showrooms followed soon afterwards by a similar version based on the 131 Racing. The supercharging system was the same as was adopted by Lancia for its road-going Beta Coupé and HPE "Volumex" and its fearsome Group B rally car, the 037 Rally, although the 131s were known to have been fitted with much bigger superchargers than the Lancias. There is little record of how many of the 131 Racing Abarth Volumetrico cars were actually built, maybe around a hundred in the end, and with the 131 Racing being canned around this time, most of the supercharged versions were later converted by <b>...</b>

Keywords

bangkok, motor, show, alfa, romeo, fiat, 131, abarth, volumetrico, bertone, 105, coupe, 2000, gtv, 1300, junior, gt, 2010, racing, lancia, hpe, volumex, supercharger, giulia

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