If stealth is your plan, that's the color for you.   

Hate it! Sorry...

I don't know how to say "babyshit yellow" in Italian. And since when was it a 130 Argenta?

Well it's less than the LHD 131 on ebay and the reserve on that isn't even met.

Also it's fuel injected and also low mileage (less than the 131 if the shown km is genuine).

I don't know if it is as rust free as the 131 currently on ebay but if it is I don't see how anyone can say it's overpriced (unless the 131 is too).

I guess people will say a 131 is a much better car than an Argenta but I don't believe that

Dave - I test drove a low mileage Fiat 132 2000 last year and an hour later drove a high mileage 131 Super 2000.

It had been the first time I'd driven a 132 for any distance (probably since my very first driving experience which was a 132 2000 at aged 15). Despite liking 132s for (nostalgic reasons more than anything) the contrast between the 132 and the 131 was striking. The main difference was the steering & handling - 132s have a steering system called reciprocating ball while 131s have the more commonly used rack and pinion. Not being a mechanic or an engineer I wouldn't begin to extoll the the benefits of one over the other but from a driver's point of view, the 131 felt alive and connected the driver to the road..while the 132 felt floaty, slow to respond to steering inputs and did not inspire confidence. I drove another 132 2000 at 3MA12 and with new quality tyres, 4 new shocks and a fresh engine, it went around corners quite spiritedly but this was down more to the grip and crisp power delivery than the handling/steering.

So is the 132/Argenta a better car than the 131? A subjective and very interesting question but on the basis of first driving impressions, the 132 left me cold while the 131 reminded me why I love these cars. The 132/Argenta would probably be better cars to eat up Motorway miles but I think that's it. I still like the look of the Argenta from most angles but the gold colour is not the best looking. My preference is the metallic blue. Here's a nice condition gold car in Italy....which we may have seen here before. It does look much better value than this car or the gold Super.  

http://www.subito.it/auto/fiat-argenta-2000i-asi-in-perfette-condizioni-alessandria-42198018.htm

Thanks very much for the offer Rob...but I have that article.

Yes it was a R 18 GTX 2.0 I recall - I can't remember which version of the Accord was used. And yes a rolly poly handling experience was what you got if you pressed on in an Argenta. The last time I drove my Dad's Argenta was at around age 18/19. It was without his permission, insurance or much driving experience. My mate and I decided to test the performance on a local dual carriage way (very irresponsibly) and arrived at a curve at 100mph to be frightened silly by the lurch the car gave when turning in...a manoeuvre a 131 would have handled smoothly.  

I think What Car had a soft spot for Fiats at that time. I remember them publishing quite ambitious 0-60 mph times for the Sport - 9.4 secs compared with 10/10.5 for most other magazines.

Now that we're on the subject, What Car never filled me with much confidence where their knowledge of cars was concerned. Their target audience is not car enthusiasts ...rather car buyers who buy the magazine one or two months prior to a purchase and not again until it comes time to change the car. The writers don't have petrol in their veins and you get the impression that they could easily adapt to an organisational restructure that meant they were working on What Washing Machine next week!  

Kev

Whilst What Car? is for the mass market and probably as you say bought by people for a few months around car change time only, I always enjoyed reading it in the 80's and still have all of 87,88 and 89 originals plus other selected ones through the 80's and some into the 90's.

Now, I can never find a car magazine that I like. The articles and road test reports all seem to be too brief. I've been looking for a detailed article on the 3.0 Diesel XF Jaguar without success.

Argenta antics sound a bit wild. And then you got a job in Insurance