1986 Fiat Uno Turbo i.e – Classified of the Week

The ’80s were a wild time for the hot hatch world. Volkswagen, Ford and Vauxhall were the kings, but that didn’t stop other manufacturers from wanting a slice of the action. If a car company in the ’80s had a hatchback on its roster, you can bet there would be a hot version. Fiat, for example, wanted some of the youth market, and so it decided to strap a turbo to the little four-cylinder engine of the Uno. Now all but absent from our roads, the Uno Turbo might not have had the curb appeal of its rivals, but that didn’t stop it from being a proper little scamp. And, its rarity today makes it a far more exciting proposition than the usual suspects.

The Fiat Uno, in normal guise, was a car. That’s about it. It wasn’t brilliant, but it wasn’t terrible. It was just… a car. A hot version seemed to be a bit of a wild departure, but Fiat went and did it anyway. The resulting Fiat Uno Turbo i.e was born, and it was a riot. And if you’ve ever wondered what the ‘i. e’ means, it’s Injectzione Electronica. Or, electronic ignition to you and me. A Bosch multi-point system, as it happens. Add in Megneti Marelli ignition and an IHI water-cooled turbocharger with intercooler and it made for a a hair over 100bhp. Not a lot in today’s money, but the Uno Turbo did come in at under 900kg.

The recipe worked. The Uno Turbo wasn’t a revolution in the hot hatch world, but it didn’t need to be. What it needed to be, was fun. A five-speed manual, stiffer, lower suspension, those sexy Cromodora wheels, decals, bucket seats and as per this model, a digital dash, all made sure it was. It was peppy, it was responsive, it connected with the driver and like all good hot hatches, it could be used every day. It was also something a bit different, with its unapologetic boxiness.

Sadly though, the Uno Turbo, good though it was, was something of a delicacy for tinworm. That could be said of all ’80s cars, of course, but if every other ’80s hot hatch was steak, the Uno Turbo was Wagyu, and no scrap was left behind. As such, numbers of existing examples are small, and of those, most have been under the sparkly knife more than once. This one, however, hasn’t. A 1986 Fiat  Uno Turbo i.e, this car was ordered in the UK as a left-hand drive and, under diplomatic export, was sent to Greece, where it lived for thirty years. It’s only had two owners, with the second bringing it back to the UK in 2016.

Thanks to three decades in the dry Greek climate, this Uno Turbo has never been rusty, nor welded. It has had a visual restoration, to bring some shine back to the Bianco White paintwork. It’s been maintained to the book, it’s standard throughout, it’s been kept in a climate controlled garage and it presents today as one of the best left. There is some work to do inside, with the seats having some broken stitching, but that’s to be expected given its dry life. Better that than rust, that’s for sure.

If you want a cool, exceptionally rare, cared for, low mileage (59k), exciting little hot hatch that’s ready to go, this has to be it. It’s a celebration of the period, but it’s also a cracking little car in its own right. Sure, you could buy an XR3i or a GTE, but where’s the passion? Where’s that Italian flair and fun? Exactly.