2003 Fiat Barchetta facelift review from UK and Ireland

Airbag warning light came on, required drivers seat removal to fix faulty connection! Covered by warranty.

Door lock broken still to be fixed!

Factory alarm eats a fob battery in 6 weeks!

The car looks wonderful in pastel broom yellow, the same paint used by Ferrari and Maserati!

Classic roadster styling has not aged in 10 years, 2003 facelift is more agressive with deep mesh grille. Great detailing inside and out with a fruity sporty flavour! Lovely dash and centre mounted rev counter.

Great sounding twin cam bark from the alfa engine, just enough power for embarassing a few hot hatches, very rigid body with flat cornering and FWD hangs on to the road where an mx5 would be in the hedge! Not quite as well honed a sports car as the mx5 though, but makes up for this by being exciting and exclusive to own.

Gets more double takes than any other car I have owned. I would really like an orange one, but sadly not made anymore!

LHD takes a while to get used to and you learn to make observations earlier at junctions and roundabouts. you need at least 5 years NCD to get this insured as its group 16-19 depending on the company. The LHD is extra risk and the body panels are hand made and very expensive to replace!

Production finished this year and classic status is assured. you can forget your rusty old MGB and TR6 throwbacks this has the character to beat either and won't rust as its the only cheap roadster to be fully galvanised.

Lots of fun, but you really need a banger to run about town as a second car as the LHD and plastic back window make it a bit tricky to drive in winter months.