How lowering the roof on the Abarth 695C is a threat to my driving license

The sun came out, albeit briefly. Just long enough to finally roll the Abarth’s roof back for the last 20 minutes of backroads to get home. Sunny spring days in the English countryside are picture postcard stuff. Driving slowly through villages with the roof down you get the sounds and smells to go with the scenery. Birdsong, petrol lawnmowers, freshly cut grass. You know the drill.

Such bucolic interludes are intrinsic to open-top driving, but once you get up to speed much of that gets swept away. Some convertibles, like the MX-5 or – weirdly – the Caterham Seven seem to cosset and connect you without too much in the way of buffeting or noise, but get the Abarth above urban speeds and you lose the feeling of a convertible car and instead get a similar sensation to driving a regular car with all the windows down. Or with a sunroof open.

> Abarth 695 (2012-2024) review – why we’ll miss Italy’s Mini Cooper S rival

You can roll the Abarth’s roof back as little or as far as you like, but you either get less noise but more buffeting or more noise and less buffeting. It’s a nice idea, and doubtless works a treat if you spend a lot of time scuttling around town, but I remain to be convinced the novelty of that full-length canvas top is worth the jittery structural compromise.

More positively, the Abarth continues to be a source of constant amusement. Especially now the roads are dry. The low-geared steering isn’t as pointy as it should be, but with more grip and traction to lean on, the 695 can be slung around with abandon. To be honest I’m trying to calm my pace a little, as without a conscious effort to do so the Abarth seems to settle at a speed that’s not wholly conducive to keeping a clean licence.

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Somewhat unexpectedly it is also proving to be a conversation point. Partly because friends and acquaintances expect me to be rolling in something bigger and more impressive, but also because the Abarth seems to generate curiosity and affection. I think it helps that despite the fruity exhaust and boisterous temperament the 695 is a non-threatening performance car. Cheeky rather than aggressive, it tends to make people smile rather than think you’re trying to impress them or are in the grip of mid-life insecurities.

Quick, small cars tend to have that effect, whether you go right back to the original 1960s Mini Cooper S or something more recent like an Up GTI. It’s nice to know that thanks to its lack of machismo, its abundance of energy and its mischievous character, the sparky little Abarth is part of that friendly club.

This story first featured in evo issue 322.

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