1978 WRC Champion Fiat Abarth 131 'Alitalia' Group 4 - One Take

This 1978 Fiat Abarth 131 Works, at the hands of Markku Alen, won the 1978 World Rally Championship. The competition version of the pedestrian Fiat 131 Sedan, the 131 won 20 WRC events between 1976 and 1981, and wore the distinct "Alitalia" livery for the 1978 and 1979 seasons. Fresh off a full restoration, this particular car is presented in "ready to race in period" condition, and has less than 50 miles on the odometer. This is what it would be like to drive a brand-spanking-new Fiat Abarth 131 Works in 1978.
Special thanks to the John J. Campion Collection, who provided travel, lodging, and opportunity for this video series.
Learn more about the incredible Campion collection here:
/ johnjcampion
/ johnjcampion
/ johnjcampioncjj

[@greenlightning6971]

Gota tell ya...i almost cryed... when i was a kid 6-7 years old my dad had 131's in garage , mirafiore and later supermirafiore. Omg that was the time of my life. Garage full of Italian cars. Ritmo Abarth, Alfa GTV , Alfa 75, Alfa 33, and later Alfa 164 QV6 oh god that was a car, Tipo sedici valvole ....Btw i still have a tail lights for mirafiore in my garage haha, and some other parts. I keep those as my dad left them in some spots. Sadly he pased away and this video has given back to me my earliest memories. Thank you .

[@Prime.Era.]

Green Lightning that’s a cool collection

[@michaelpegasiou4531]

I had a ritmo abarth 130tc but it was called a strata abarth as I live in the uk.Great car but had to sell it after a few years as it was hard to keep up with the rust repairs!

[@marconico]

Michael Pegasiou Strada.

[@michaelpegasiou4531]

marconico yeah I meant strada my iPad corrected it

[@djsjjd15]

Green Lightening Thanks for sharing that. Sounds like some good times . . .

[@pendulum1997]

It should be illegal to own these amazing cars in Florida, these roads are fucking awful unless you own a drag car

[@antonisp6629]

My dad when he came back to Greece, from studying in the U.S., he brought a FIAT 131 Superbrava 1800cc , the american Supermirafiori. It was cheaper for him to buy it there and ship it rather than buying it over here. Mind you it was the time that in Greece most of the cars were 1200 and 1300 and rarely above that displacement. Some years later I saw a video with the 131 Abarth rally car with the Alitalia livery and I was convinced that our own white 131 was a rally car in disguise. I learnt how to drive in that car. Rear wheel drive + a 13 year old+ an empty field = lots of fun. Good times :D

[@JK-tu1xx]

I love how he said "just put it in neutral and hit the brakes" and Matt was like oh hell nah and downshifted all the way to 1st 😂

[@djjackstonestonie2067]

literally lol

[@TheDude613]

I appreciated that too dude. Good call.

[@ChaosphereIX]

Gorgeous car, a true legend. Getting to drive a WRC champion. Wow.

[@tuononno92]

Everything about what the guy said seems to contradict Matt's statement that this is a WRC champion, though. The 131 Abarth was not originally committed by an American, it was a corporate effort by FIAT, and "racing all around North America" did not allow you to win WRC back in the day (and it doesn't now), as most events are situated in Europe. So now I'm confused.

[@sannedelahaye6500]

The world champion in 1978 was Marku Allen driving a works car. Mainly in Europe an the Safari rally on the African continent. I don’t understand the story about an American having this one built. It’s not the championship winning car then. The works cars had around 300bhp

[@dylanpaddison920]

This video absolutely made my day. During the latter half of 2016, I worked on this car's restoration in Savannah, GA. It was in our shop for several months, and I know the car quite well, as will happen when you remove the engine a couple times and spend 6 hours detailing the body. When I saw Road and Track's article, I recognized it straight away. Hearing that raspy 4-pot come to life for the first time was truly, truly magical. A couple weeks before my time at the shop ended, another of Mr. Campion's cars came in for restoration: an infinitely cool Group 5 Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo, raced in period by a couple guys named Riccardo Patrese and Walter Rohrl, as attested by the names on the doors. "R. Patrese" was engraved on the Personal steering wheel, which I may or may not have discovered when I hopped in the driver's seat while the boss was out. What blew my mind was that the driver sat crooked in the car, slightly angled towards the car's center, and the wheel wasn't quite square with the driver's middle. A most heartfelt tip of the hat to @TheSmokingTire for showcasing such historic cars and to Mr. Campion for preserving them.

[@nicomal8975]

My dad owned an orange fiat 131 super mirafiori in late 70's. Wow it was quick. He'd never had a sporty car before then. I loved it.

[@bwxmoto]

Such a cool car, almost looks modern in a strange way..

[@kirkyboy1793]

I owned two 131 Superbrava's with a 2.0 litre engine. I loved destroying my friends cars ( usually big 6 cylinders or small V8's ) in drags. No word of a lie. What a package Twin cam , big weber , stainless steel sports exhaust , 4 wheel discs and a 5 speed box all out out the factory. They would rev to 7000 all day. A bullet proof bottom end. Such fond memories.

[@RobertoAllen]

Driving and owning rally cars like this in Florida is like owning a 300ft mega yacht and putting it on a small lake in the middle of Montana where it can't even turn around and the hull scrapes the bottom.

[@liverush24]

I used to have a model of one of these in its Alitalia livery. I gave it away to a friend in '84. 😥

[@JDSFLA]

I had a red 1974 Fiat 124 Sport Coupe with dual webbers, pulleys, Ansa exhaust, Koni shocks, and BWA wheels. To this day still the most "involving" car I have owned, and that little 1756 cc engine sounded wonderful This 131 takes me back...thanks.

[@grantmarshall3026]

We’re Irish. In 1985 my dad bought a Fiat 131 1585ohv and drove it for 5 very reliable years. Within a year terrible rust set in. Jacking the car up , the jack went straight through the floor. The rust killed it, but the engine only broke down once. A fan belt broke! Quick easy fix and years more service. This car was a 1585cc ohv instead of the twin cam with the same displacement, and in my opinion it sounded much much better than the twin!

[@RamblinAround]

They were having him take it real easy on that new motor. I'm sure that 2.0 can rev to 8,000 or so. Awesome car, but that short gearing would have to go.

[@firstnamelastname9188]

Matt, I know it was a lot of hard work getting to where you are now... but you have one of the best jobs in THE WORLD!

[@imdevonur]

Firstname Lastname aaaand he's quitting

[@thewakz]

Gotta give this guy a ton of credit for sharing this FRESH build with you (us).

[@TexasScout]

Oh my, what a symphony for the ears! I have been driving for years since 1978, I still love them.

[@chrisb3437]

Im gonn miss the smoking tire when he stops it.. such a bummer, ive been watching them everyday for as long as i remember this channel. And i love the one wakes.

[@matthardy8821]

Matt you need to find someone else in the car industry that can take over the one takes for you. They have been part of my life for the last 2 years and im unsure what i will do without them.

[@ChoPi-Eww]

You said it would get better and better; you weren't kidding! Thanks, Matt!

[@MravacKid]

The 131 Mirafiori is one of my all-time favorite cars :)

[@gregmck28]

young one this is what you call "natural engine sound" no need to amplify the exhaust. Sounds like pure unfiltered excitement!! love it

[@chrisvieira6678]

I currently daily drive a 1977 fiat 132, this is one of my absolute dream cars 😍

[@MravacKid]

Is it OK if I hate you just a little bit right now? :p

[@sergh8605]

What an engine.

[@wboeren1]

Enjoyed this video. Nice to watch and hear the sound with headphones..

[@goncalogalhoz3833]

That's truly an iconic rally car

[@Br1anuk]

I owned three Fiat Mirafiori Sorts in the early 1990's, silver, orange and a dark metallic grey one, fantastic car but the steel was made from Autumn leaves. One time I pulled the handbrake out of the floor, the bolts ripped through the un-rusted floor. I sold my last one for £500 and it was in good condition with an MOT. You couldn't give them away!

[@mej6519]

stunning 131, my mate had a 131 supermirafiori sport back in the day, like most uk 131's it rusted as quick as it went.

[@JesusGarcia-ec7jo]

Rust is the curse of fiat before the 2000 :C

[@marktime9235]

Owned a 131 many many years ago, one of my favourites, superb handling for the time ))

[@quiksilvermanblue]

That sound though

[@Ferrari246GT]

I think the real redline for the Abarth 16v engine was 7800 rpm. 3 time WRC champion. Independent rear, all fiberglass body.. Abarth built a number of race cars and Bertone built 400 Stradale models, all sold in Europe. Phenomenal cars!!! Abarth cars are giant killers!!!

[@traxnada]

Love the car, great review as usual but... That road you're driving on is soooooo wrong. One of the great thing about one-takes for me is to see you hammer on certain cars I won't get to drive and see how they somewhat behave at speed on roads that are appropriate for each car (tight canyon roads for smaller nimble cars, wide open fast sweepers for tuner cars...etc etc). This series of video has A LOT of potential, but they are shot on what could very well be the absolute worst place to shoot them :)

[@tomhiggins4816]

traxnada just unfortunate that the roads around the warehouse are like that, wouldnt get to drive them otherwise

[@traxnada]

Only one choice... Relocate in Japan! Roads are appropriate here :D

[@MravacKid]

Yeah, these cars would be marvellous in the usual canyon roads, but I suppose it's still better to see them in these boring straight roads than not at all :)

[@therealboofighter]

I agree with the sentiment, but would you turn down the opportunity to drive any of these cars?

[@traxnada]

boofighter to be honest, I turned down the opportunity of driving JDM-expo's Lexus LFA (to write an article about it), because I wouldn't have been able to drive it the way I wanted to... Sooo yeah, I would :)

[@Zebpro]

Really nice car, when I was young my dad had a Fiat 131 and I "learn" to drvie with it at 7 or 8 back in the 80's (he was doing some rallying amateurly with his friend), me on my dad's knees steering and using the commands like turning signals, and him using the pedals and shifting. :)

[@metaomicron72]

Wow Matt taking all our our European rally ladies for a spin. At the end of this we pretty much drove the entire legends of rally. Well most of them.

[@andreapodeschi7931]

Bellissimi i cerchi Campagnolo!!!!😊🤗

[@SPAZit101]

*in Jeremy Clarksons voice* "The best job..... IN THE WUORLD!"

[@DennisBerkhout1]

`Lancia rallycars always look stunning. Sounds great too.

[@alphatrion100]

Dennis Berkhout this is a fiat

[@user-gj6so7gi9i]

I owned a couple Fiat 128s in the 80s, loved them!

[@firesyde424]

It sounds fantastic!

[@mishview]

As of this one, circa 30 ONE TAKES left.... Im so excited for you Matt, I'm also waiting for the new stuff... but damn, i will be missing those One Takes baaad :(:(:

[@ChaosphereIX]

037 Next! That would be the best of the best. Such a beast.

[@pendulum1997]

ChaosphereIX Matt said the clutch was broken when he visited :(

[@neuman356]

I hope you're finally done with the J. Campion collection, it actually hurts to watch that.

[@hugoscheepers4838]

It stays one of the most beautiful, brutal, ass kicking rally cars!!! Wonder what Carlo Abarth would have said about it!!

[@k842069]

Sick car!

[@mehkayla6685]

Wow!! This is too cool

[@bennyhannover9361]

For those that do not know the history besides Markku Alèn who won 1978 World Rally Championship on this type. It was Walter Roehrl who won his first Driver World Championship in 1981 on this car. Afterwards on Opel Ascona 400 in 1982 and then on Lancia Rally 037 in 1983 against an Armada of Audi Quattros.

[@JDsHouseofHobbies]

YES! I was hoping you'd drive the Fiat!

[@AsherSkylark]

One of the most stable RWD cars that i have driven on Dirt Rally 2

[@Shiny_Gliscor]

Holy crap, that gearbox whine makes me soooo nostalgic for riding in the back of my dad's e-type as a kid.

[@Shiny_Gliscor]

Well my dad's does sound exactly like that.

[@Shiny_Gliscor]

Well it could be half an octave lower in tone but it's also a track build from the clutch backwards because my dad bought it from a guy who wanted to build a historic racecar but chanded his mind halfway through the build so I dunno.

[@danbarrett3665]

All time favourite car growing up in the uk during the 80s. It was called the 131 mirafiori over here.

[@gnuttz1972]

Great video, my old man had two 131's, a 76 and an 80 - both wouldn't start in the rain, trunks filled with water and had to park on a downward hill to ensure bump starting....still like 'em however for some reason...so whats the 0 to 60 ? would the gearings change for different events?

[@malcolmbradley-sinotte1943]

The shifts sound so crisp!

[@akrokdesign]

that's one awesome car. i love it.

[@Nzl32Ac]

The 131 Abarth used by Alen in 1978 to win the WRC are the following cars: TO P14398, TO R35975 & TO R92451. Is this one of these cars?

[@JesusGarcia-ec7jo]

Nope, this was builted from an American driver that asked to fiatt to built it for racing in the 80's, and fiat doed the job

[@damer651]

Stunning Car.

[@markforza]

Thought these were a 2.0 litre 16V or was that a later development (like an Evolution model?)

[@Warkid1993]

Pls take these cars in some mythical Floridian twisty winding roads

[@omenahilloomenahillo-qy9iv]

i wishd id had some day 131 abarth

[@lanmastersassistant659]

this is my dream car.

[@Ayaki6166]

it's cool.

[@ANDREWSAMY562]

I have a 1983 Fiat 131 supermirafiori ! Never expected to see any 131 of some sort here TBH.

[@McLuvinJuice12]

It's so fucking beautiful oh my God

[@olderrol1968]

Thank God these cars are a classic. Because they get boring or very quick especially when the top speed is no more than 60 miles an hour. Thanks for the video. I grew up on these cars in Jamaica at Dover raceway

[@jakefabian]

old Errol Large up yuhself Bedrin! You just bring back ah hol bag of memories, haven’t been up the hill to Dover in years!

[@olderrol1968]

Jake Fabian ; Dover was the place to be in the 90s; me and my dad used to go every year. And cheer for David summerbell.

[@ArpusTTcansuckit]

Bucket list car. I grew up with in one.....the pedestrian version though :)

[@StewDogR]

Headphones RECOMMENDED for this one 😍

[@HerrmannThompson]

Need a vid on that 037.

[@dmclaren]

I'd love to see people building street 131s based on the Abarth style. Kind of like how people build 2002s with turbo flares. The 131 was prettier to my eyes.

[@bu_nasser]

I love this car

[@Plete]

Woah, that’s really nice piece of motorsport history. Btw, Lancia Delta S4 next? ;)

[@cliffordbradford8910]

At least this guy seems to know what he's talking about and not suffering from a hangover/coming down off a coke bender. EDIT: AFAICT he doesn't cause Wikipedia says this is a 2 litre. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markku_Al%C3%A9n#Fiat_(1974%E2%80%9381) and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_131#Fiat_Abarth_131_Rally

[@tranc3porter]

This car doesn't seem like its making 230whp either. A car that light with "somewhere around 235" hp on the dyno should be way faster.

[@madfiat8932]

Engine dyno rather than Chassis dyno most likely.

[@quinnjohn1]

Owen Creighton It's a fresh rebuild, the engine has zero miles on it, it's probably still being run in. Matt was told not to take it above 6k rpm, the engine probably has a redline somewhere around the 8~8.5k rpm range. I've seen what that Fiat 2.0L twin cam (it's definitely not a 1.8 as the guy said) can do, they are absolute screamers and 230 hp is actually not that difficult for that engine to make, it would make more if it wasn't built to rally regulations. My first summer job (garage monkey/tea boy) was in a garage that specialised in building fast Minis and Fiats in 1994, the owner had a Fiat Strada Abarth with that same engine. It had around 250 hp at the wheels and happily revved to 8.5k. From what I remember it was pretty lifeless below 5k rpm due to having a really wild cam shaft and crazy high compression! I remember on the shakedown run, we stopped at a set of lights, when we went to pull away, there was an awful sound of rattling then the car lost drive, we rolled off to the side of the road (it was downhill, luckily) and got out to see what had happened, before we got under to check, a policeman came walking over to us with the driveshaft in one hand and all the bolts for it in the other and asked us not to leave our litter on the street! Sorry for the novel lol

[@marcalampi5036]

I owned plenty of car's, my Brother and Dad and I all worked on car's and my father sometimes had 30 or 40 car's at a time that he personally owned and we'd fix them and sell them, so we had different hardware. I owned a Super Mirfiori Fiat 131, I beat 3 different Corvettes in drag races. haha, it certainly was quick. My father told me to buy it off of a guy who'd just bought a New Porsche. Everybody loved that car!

[@pugmanick]

Oh my - now that is a nice collection! 131, 037, S4, Integrali, and is that a Montecarlo as well?

[@jamest5149]

Didn't the Mirafiori have the passenger seat (Co-Pilot seat) located in the back for weight distribution?

[@Exekutioncro]

this is why Im subscribed

[@kevinnorwood7355]

Just drooled all over my key board hearing this car.

[@rover213]

i think its possible for a longer gear ratio, but it depends if its used for rallye or not

[@NishantDash]

Matt... Why are the One-Takes ending... please keep em going, lesser videos is fine, but please man xD

[@tommygooding2308]

Nishant Dash what!!! When did matt say that!!! I love the one -takes?!

[@MrMalicious5]

He's still doing them I think, just not with random people's cars anymore.

[@tommygooding2308]

MrMalicious5 oh I see, would you know why?? You had me worried for a moment

[@carsaregood911]

Pretty sure he said he's done filming one takes but he still has many to upload, watch his recent update video.

[@tommygooding2308]

Imad S ah, i see... Fairs...

[@vinanoir]

why is the gearing set up to max out at 60-65mph??

[@AngelFloyd27]

That car is a 2.0 liter 16v

[@austin_love89]

The dude in the passenger seat was nervous AF, lol.

[@bennyhannover9361]

These cars were geared for 185km/h top speed and about 6 secs for Zero to 62 miles on gravel roads

[@juniopavesi4141]

You have to figure that this car was designed to race on very narrow and challenging roads.. Immagine how it was to drive this little monster at 160 km/h on ice or gravel.. I miss that side of Italy.

[@Cobrakyle88]

I live in Jacksonville. Where the hell are these cars at? Where is that garage?

[@nelsonsubaru]

XxxLYON PAWxxX John Campion collection

[@liverush24]

It's TOP SECRET, you have to enter it via fireman's pole.

[@UnknownRider-eg1nl]

Wouldn't you like to know

[@alexander1485]

looks like Ferdinand or around amelia island.... judging by the landscape.

[@TheSmokingTire]

It's just some random building you'd never notice on some random street you could drive by a thousand times. However, I will say you can see their race hauler clearly from the street when it's parked. If you want to see Mr. Campion's cars up close, he brings all of them to the Amelia Island Concours every year.

[@pereldh5741]

You can gear these which way you like, so why are all these cars geared like they’d go rallycross? You know they DID do the finnish rally too... (120mph++..)

[@eezeegeezaa]

Damn this car is as old as me

[@LRtwins2]

Please tell me you are going to drive the Delta.

[@TheDuckumz]

I could have a heart attack immediately after i get out and life would have been complete. Wish i could ever get the chance, shit i would be happy with seeing one hammer down in person...

[@mrc7966]

Campions rally cars: A Lancia Fulvia and Stratos, geared way shorter than they ever were in competition spec, which are not allowed on gravel car parks to turn around. A Lotus Cortina with the wrong engine. An Abarth 131 with the wrong engine. An Alfa Romeo GT1600 dressed up as an Alfa GTA. A Lancia S4 prototype sporting slick tyres which he drives at low speed on gravel. A stable of "engineers" who spout nonsense power figures around and seemingly share a distinct lack of knowledge about the cars they are maintaining. This collection seems to be all show and no go. The shot of John Campion lying down in his suit to work on his Lotus Cortina in the Petrolicious video seems even more ridiculous than it did when I first saw it now that we've gained some insight into his basket case collection, although the suited show off probably has more of a clue how to fix his fake Lotus Cortina than his so called "engineers". Of course I could be way off, but with each insight into his collection it's looked more and more like a bunch of race liveried garage queens which get touted about the various youtube channels to increase their, and their owners, notoriety, rather than a collection of regularly driven well maintained genuine classics owned by a true driver/enthusiast.

[@Vamppas]

I have to say I agree 100%! Next vid is probably Delta S4 geared to 50mph. These Smoking tire one take vids are my first contact to this collection and my god... Dunno should I laugh or cry...

[@AdamMidghall]

The S4 is the best car he has and the only one with a proper history. The 131, 037, Stratos and Fulvia are all frauds and they haven’t won WRC events and do other events that he says they have done. His S4 is the real deal (Chassis 208) and was used as a test car and used by the Jolly Club team for the earlier parts of the Italian Championship

[@lukew2194]

Excellent post. This whole collection is a personification of more money than brains.

[@horsterer77]

Amen, brother ... I don't think this 131 has the wrong engine though, just the specs in the video were wrong - shocking, right ? ;) It's almost as if the more information is available due to the internet, the less people can be bothered to look for it ... Here is one spec list : tech-racingcars.wikidot.com/fiat-131-abarth

[@djsjjd15]

I know his estimate was high, but in general, I don't understand the appeal of collecting old race cars (unless you had unlimited track access) and I'm always surprised when I hear how much they go for at auction - no matter the type. If I inherited one (I won't), I'd probably take out the engine and any other parts that are up to today's standards and put it in a street car.

[@SkarryTerry]

"Hello Fiat? This is Brad. I need a Rally car with the cam gears exposed... No, you're paying for it." Herrrooooo Fiat 131 Group 4. This thing is so BADASS. Needs to be in the canyons, not the straights.

[@helosixx]

Road and Track cover car in May of 1980, also featured in Car and driver may of 1980 different sticker config. 223.5HP and 152.4 trq @7700 rpm. Read from the dyno sheet for this car. That's what's up

[@businessman2085]

would someone please explain how they got so much power out of a NA 4 cylinder? What did they do that they can't do now?

[@Duskconqueror]

High compression, low resistance intake system, low resistance exhaust with just the right amount of backpressure, great cooling system. You can do all that nowadays ofc., but fuel economy and emissions will suffer a lot. Furthermore I doubt that this thing produces 235HP @ 6000RPM. That would mean that it produces 200+ lb/ft @ 6000RPM. That's a freaking lot for an NA 1.8. If all this is true, it has a specific output of 130HP/litre with a 6K redline. That is a higher output than an S2000, and the F20C engine has a redline of 9000RPM. So yeah...

[@Vamppas]

It is actually 2.0 and revlimiter should be around 8500rpm. Also that car should have top speed around 110mph IF it were A REAL factory spec rally car... This car seems to be far from it...

[@bogdan135]

high compression, big (long duration and lift) camshafts, high flow head and accessories (intake manifold and header), and high RPM (8500+, actual rally car, not the "restored" one). Honda s2000 did it in 1999 while passing all emission laws and noise regulations.

[@Duskconqueror]

They passed because of VTEC. It's all about low RPM emissions, that's where most people drive their cars.

[@jjsorenavki7005]

Please Have Lancia 037 footage!!

[@anotherrenan]

Yo, are you getting to drive the Lancia Delta S4?

[@cm-oo1td]

Renan Marinho thats what I want to know too

[@nickamarit]

How do they squeeze so much power out of a tiny NA motor?

[@johnathonbuchanan2382]

Seems like the project manager knows more about these cars than Campion's "engineer"

[@doctorzaius4084]

I had the Matchbox version of this and it was, by far, my favorite Matchbox car!! EDIT: Anyone know what the gearing was like in competition on these? I always figured they were geared very quick, but this seems nutty... Matt says he "ran out of gears" at 60MPH and I'm sure he's exaggerating a little, but probably not much!!

[@pachote293]

What wheels are those ???

[@lusilk7954]

top marks

[@pereldh5741]

Hey! It’s a 2-litre 16 valve. 1995cc.

[@nabatron21]

The owner watching matt like a hawk lol