Buy a Brand new Ferrari for$80k

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Australian Ferrari dealerships will sell a special new city car in 2011.

Ferrari will sell a new model in Australia later this year - powered by an engine that's a third the size of the Italian marque's famous V12s.

The Abarth 695 Tributo Ferrari is a joint venture between Fiat's performance division and its supercar subsidiary, and the four-cylinder hot-hatch will become Australia's most expensive city car when it arrives in Ferrari dealerships with an anticipated price tag of $80,000.

Even the cheapest Ferrari costs hundreds of thousands of dollars, though the 695 Tributo is essentially a special edition of the Abarth 500 Esseesse that launched into the local market this week.

Australia's Ferrari and Fiat importer, Ateco Automotive, says the Tributo Ferrari will cost signicantly more than the new Aston Martin Cygnet city car expected to cost about $55,000 when it arrives in late 2012.

"It's got a Ferrari badge on it, which means it so it will be sold through Ferrari dealerships on a pre-order basis. We will gain access to limited production run," says Fiat Australia's general manager, Andrei Zaitzev.

"It won't be $100,000, but it will be wickedly expensive. It's not just cosmetics; it's performance enhancements - it's gearbox [upgrades], it's engine [upgrades]. It has a range of fittings [inside and out] that take it a step above the Abarth Esseesse."

The Tributo Ferrari's 1.4-litre turbocharged engine produces 132kW of power and 250Nm of torque.

The hot-hatch, which is available in the Ferrari colours of Scuderia Red or Modena Yellow, can accelerate from standstill to 100km/h in seven seconds and reach a top speed of 225km/h.

An electromechanical automated manual gearbox includes Formula One-style paddleshift levers mounted to the steering wheel.

There's also a sportier suspension underneath, 17-inch alloy wheels wrapped in grippy rubber and brakes from Brembo, the same company responsible for the stoppers on Ferrari's F1 racing cars.

Other standard features include xenon headlights, carbonfibre side mirrors, black leather steering wheel and leather, body-hugging sports seats.

The idea for the car surfaced after European Ferrari dealers in 2009 sold a number of limited edition Abarth 500s that were only meant to be used as courtesy cars for customers who were having their Ferrari serviced.

Ferrari's Formula One drivers, Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa, were each presented with a 695 Tributo Ferrari last year after dominating the 2010 Italian grand prix.