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Fiat 127 Sport - The eternal youth

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Created on February 2, 2022

Text:

Paul Krüger

Photos:

Bruno von Rotz

39

Fiat Press

2

Archiv

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Bruno von Rotz

39

Fiat Press

2

Archiv

12

From 1978, the Sport was the hottest thing in the Fiat 127 range: first with 70 hp, then from 1982 with 75 hp

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Black nose, even if it's not a Seat: the 1982 facelift brought plenty of plastic cladding

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Our photo car was embellished with Abarth stickers and Cromodora alloy wheels,

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The 127 Sport was only available in three colors: black with orange trim, silver with black stripes or orange with black stripes.

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Two spoilers at the rear provide the necessary downforce

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The lower half of the rear is almost completely covered in black plastic.

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The interior is very restrained in terms of color. The steering wheel is unusually flat and quite high.

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The rocker switch under the instrument panel operates the light. The lever to the right does not unlock the hood, but is for the choke.

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Narrow pedals not quite in line with the seats and steering wheel - as befits an Italian sports car.

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This Abarth steering wheel has been retrofitted. The original was also from the house tuner, but only had two spokes.

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You should be able to recognize them from the instrument cluster: The Sport has a rev counter on the right, the Super has a timer and the Special has an oversized gearshift diagram.

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Clear view to the rear with rear window heating and washer system. Below the heating controls and the "smoker's package"

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On 127 Sport and Special, the gearshift diagram is located on the edge of the gearshift gate.

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The seat center panels made of coarse fabric are less slippery and sweaty than artificial leather.

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Lightweight construction is the key: the headrests are just a frame with a stretched mesh

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The radiator is slightly offset in front of the transversely mounted four-cylinder engine

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You can hardly see anything of the engine itself in the crammed engine compartment.

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Tuning is a popular sport in Italy: air filters from Abarth

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Colorful: the yellow cover of the timing belt drive is original, the red ignition cables are not.

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1200 kg gross vehicle weight rating with 775 kg empty is quite something. The 127 Sport can carry more than half its own weight.

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The Fiat does not draw combustion air through the hood scoop, but fresh air for the interior

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Five gears were standard for Sport and Super, which the rear proudly proclaims

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Until 1977, the lettering was still above the bend, then below it. In 1982, the bumper grew around it.

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The rear lights also grew with each model upgrade. From 1982, there was another red chamber on the inside.

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If the road is as smooth as it is here, the Fiat handles very well.

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On undulating surfaces, the board-hard 127 Sport tends to shift.

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Only half of the radiator grille covers the actual radiator. Behind the other half is bare sheet metal.

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Quality defects as a guarantee of original condition: no restorer would accept such a wavy door.

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5 gears, 75 hp: the rear not only explains that, but also why the little Fiat is about to pull away from the car behind.

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Curve? Which bend? The sportily tuned 127 has virtually no lateral inclination.

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Too straight and too wide: the lively Fiat only reveals its full potential on winding side roads.

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On a straight stretch of road, it reaches 100 km/h in 12.3 seconds and a maximum of 165 km/h.

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The successor Fiat Uno could only keep up with the 127 Sport from 1985 as the 75 hp 75 i.e..

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The Abarth exhaust makes a phenomenal sound from about half open throttle.

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Blessed are those who accelerate in narrow rocky gorges rather than on bridges.

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From the front, the 127 Sport can be recognized by the spoiler in the apron.

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The editor laughs: the Fiat 127 Sport is an enormously entertaining mixture of barrel organ, go-kart and trombone choir

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The editor laughs: the Fiat 127 Sport is an enormously entertaining mixture of barrel organ, go-kart and trombone choir

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An early Fiat 127 from 1971: unadorned, but likeable.

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The curve of the rear side window disappeared with the model update for the 1978 model year.

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Fiat 127 (1971) - Transparency drawing

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Initially, the Fiat 127 was only available with a small trunk lid. The roof-mounted tailgate did not follow until a year later.

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The large tailgate significantly increased the utility value. Here is the Fiat 127 at the 1973 Geneva Motor Show.

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The second series, recognizable by the lower mounted rear lights and the plastic bumpers, was also available with four doors and a large tailgate.

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Before Fiat offered its own estate from 1980 with the 127 Panorama, Corisasco converted the 127 into a hatchback. Here is the 127 Familiare at the 1973 Geneva Motor Show.

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Early press photo from 1971: the Fiat is a car for young people.

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Fiat 127 (1972) - two doors and hatchback

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Seat also offered the 127 with four doors from 1974. Fiat added the Spanish design to its range a year later.

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Geneva Motor Show 1972: in Switzerland, the Fiat 127 was available from 7400 francs.

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Fiat 127 (1977) - also popular in Germany

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Fiat 127 Sport (1978) - 70 hp

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Fiat 127 (1982) - sporty three-door model

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Summary

When the Fiat 127 Sport 75 HP appeared in the fall of 1982, it was already an eleven-year-old discontinued model. But the Fiat 127 had never been better: faster, wilder and more entertaining than ever before, the 75 hp compact was able to skilfully disguise its age. After a ride on the little cannonball, it's not the Fiat, but the driver who has it in the back. This driving report presents the hottest of all 127s and shows it in many photos.

This article contains the following chapters

Six years number one
People's sport
Modern plastic
More displacement and power
Gearbox that took some getting used to
Hard rear end
New? Logo. Uno - But better?

Estimated reading time: 7min

Preview (beginning of the article)

The saying that the best is always saved for last has become so hackneyed that you should be careful not to start a text with it. And yet it fits the Fiat 127 Sport 75 HP better than ever before. Because when the 75 hp top model appeared in 1982, the Fiat 127 was already an eleven-year-old discontinued model. In March 1971, the "big Gerneklein" made its debut at the Geneva Motor Show and sold extremely well right from the start. Pio Manzù's clear, no-frills yet attractive design was very much in tune with contemporary tastes. When Fiat added a version with a large tailgate a year later, it was also right on trend conceptually. In 1972, it became the European "Car of the Year"; from 1973 to 1978, the Fiat 127 was the best-selling car in Europe, before progress slowly began to overtake it.

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