Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

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vince30
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2018 8:21 am
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2013 Fiat 500 Abarth
Your Instagram (Optional): R3vlimited327

Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by vince30 » Thu Oct 18, 2018 9:27 am

Hi, my names Vince, I live about an hour and a half NW of Chicago. I've been a Fiat owner for about a year and an enthusiast for longer. It started when my wife, before she was my wife, had to buy a car right out of college working as a waitress, they don't hire a lot of teachers right after school gets out in the spring. So uncertain of the future, she went against my advice of a Fiesta (because you don't have to drive an hour to get to the dealer) and found herself in a new 2013 Fiat 500 pop. She was right, I was wrong, the Fiat has been a fantastic car, now with over 50k miles on it.

Fast forward to about a year ago, my beloved Miata started doing the dreaded crank pulley walk and I feared the end of the 1.6 was near, and I did not have the time or the motivation to swap it. So, inspired by enjoying driving my wifes car so much, I found a used 2013 Abarth at a local Ford dealer, and traded the Miata in on it.

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It was black with black cloth interior with 63k miles on it and had the sunroof and beats package. I absolutely loved driving it, and planned on driving it until I couldn't anymore. Unfortunately that day came sooner than I expected, when a Grand Cherokee made a left turn in front of me, totaling the car about 5 months after I bought it.

Dashcam footage: (Warning: Loud audio) https://youtu.be/xvYabLJ2D1k

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Afterwards, I looked around seeing if there was anything I thought I'd enjoy more than the Abarth in a similar price range, to which the answer was no, and although a good replacement Abarth didn't show itself right away, one did pop up a few weeks later. A 2013 white with red leather with 32k miles with every option. I've now had this one about 5 months, and I hope I get to keep it for much longer.

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I'm also a big fan of 2 wheels. A 1975 Honda CB750 and a 2016 Kawasaki KX250F

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texanbrit
Posts: 755
Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2018 11:01 pm
Location: Conroe, TX
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2013 500c Abarth
Your Instagram (Optional): paul_rogerson_tx
Contact:

Re: Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by texanbrit » Thu Oct 18, 2018 11:04 am

Great intro! Welcome to group. You seem to have been bitten pretty hard by the 500 bug.
2013 Abarth 500c (NGen Turbo'd) - Isabella
2012 500 Pop (broken, engine rebuild on hold) - Popabella
2014 500L (Daily workhorse) - The Hulk
2013 Abarth 500 (broken engine, current project) - Abby

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MadFiat
Site Admin
Posts: 593
Joined: Wed Sep 19, 2018 10:42 pm
Location: Beaumont, TX
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2015 Fiat 500 Abarth
Your Instagram (Optional): madfiat
Xbox ID (Optional): madfiat
Contact:

Re: Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by MadFiat » Thu Oct 18, 2018 1:05 pm

Welcome! I think I remember you posting pics before, but don't recall the video. ... Similar situation that got me last year, I was going a little slower but... those idiotic left turners.... LOOK before you turn.. geez.

Hopefully the white one will last you a long, long time.
2015 Rosso Abarth 5MT - MAD FIAT - EC Phase 2 + Supporting Mods
2015 Granito Lucente 500T 6AT - Projecto Estupido
2017 Fiat 124 Spider 6MT - Another one???

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operamatt
Posts: 289
Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2018 12:31 am
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2012/Fiat/Abarth

Re: Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by operamatt » Fri Oct 19, 2018 9:14 am

welcome
“if one day speed kills me.... i was probably driving a fiat”

vince30
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2018 8:21 am
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2013 Fiat 500 Abarth
Your Instagram (Optional): R3vlimited327

Re: Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by vince30 » Fri Oct 19, 2018 9:37 am

texanbrit wrote: Thu Oct 18, 2018 11:04 am Great intro! Welcome to group. You seem to have been bitten pretty hard by the 500 bug.
Thanks! Yeah, I really like these cars. Weight is a big factor I take into consideration when shopping, the lighter they are, the more lively they feel. Also, I'm am a big fan of exclusivity, feels like I'm driving an exotic around here.
MadFiat wrote: Thu Oct 18, 2018 1:05 pm Welcome! I think I remember you posting pics before, but don't recall the video. ... Similar situation that got me last year, I was going a little slower but... those idiotic left turners.... LOOK before you turn.. geez.

Hopefully the white one will last you a long, long time.
Thank you. I post on reddit a bit. Yeah, left turners suck, but shit happens, at least I'm okay.
operamatt wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 9:14 amwelcome
Thank you!

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TheAverageEngineer
Posts: 23
Joined: Thu Sep 20, 2018 10:32 am
Location: Davenport, IA
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2015 Fiat 500 Abarth

Re: Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by TheAverageEngineer » Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:47 pm

Welcome! I think you're not terribly far away from me (Quad Cities).

vince30
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Oct 18, 2018 8:21 am
Your Car's Year / Make / Model: 2013 Fiat 500 Abarth
Your Instagram (Optional): R3vlimited327

Re: Hello from Northern Illinois (long / pic heavy)

Post by vince30 » Sun Oct 21, 2018 11:09 am

TheAverageEngineer wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 6:47 pm Welcome! I think you're not terribly far away from me (Quad Cities).
Not terribly far. It's about a 2 and a half hour drive from me.

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