1983 FIAT Argenta 2.0L 5MT RWD (122 HP)

Vehicle Overview

Based on the modified platform used by the Fiat 132, the Argenta was the last mass-produced four-door sedan built by the Italian carmaker.

The Italian carmaker was losing ground, and the Germans started to rise back again with Opel and Volkswagen for the mass-market vehicles. The French carmakers were also powerful with Citroen CX, Renault 20, and Peugeot 505. Fiat took an older, appreciated platform and built a new bodywork. It wasn’t wholly new since some of the parts were still the same.

The Argenta (silver) featured thicker, rubber bumpers both front and rear and stayed in the mid-size segment. A keen for detail eye would recognize the Fiat’s 132 doors, though, with their flush door handles. The fenders and the rear quarter-panels were new. In 1983, Fiat installed the new corporate grille at the front with the four oblique chromed lines instead of the small and round red logo.

Inside, the carmaker installed a new instrument dashboard with a revised instrument panel that sported two large dials for the speedometer and tachometer and two gauges for fuel-level and coolant-temperature. In addition to them, there were a few warning lights. A center stack with air-vents, radio, and ashtray took separated the driver from its side passenger.

Under the hood, Fiat installed a choice of five diesel or gasoline engines. For selected markets, the Italian carmaker offered only the 2.0-liter twin-cam unit that provided 122 hp. Just two years after the facelift, the Argenta was axed and replaced with the front-wheel-drive Croma.