In 1996 Fiat returned on the market of affordable open-top roadsters with the Barchetta, a car built on top of a Fiat Punto platform but designed with passion.
To cut its production costs, Fiat built the bodywork at a subcontractor named Maggiora, who went bankrupt in 2002. But the Italian carmaker didn’t want to give up and found a new assembly line to build it in its Mirafiori plant in 2003. During this one-year pause, the carmaker introduced new features and refreshed the little roadster.

At the front, the carmaker replaced the front wrapped-around bumper with a redesigned one, which sported a taller center grille extended between the hood’s edge and the lower apron edge. It was flanked by a pair of scoops that hosted the fog lights. The headlights were new as well. At the back, Fiat introduced a new bumper extended downwards and without a diffuser as on its 1996 model.

The 2003 Barchetta featured a new instrument panel with individual clusters for its dials instead of a joint panel for all the dials. On the center stack, Fiat placed an aluminum-look trim. On the passenger side, the carmaker added an airbag, which replaced the glove compartment. Its two bucket seats provided a medium-size bolstering. To protect the occupants from wind, the carmaker offered a mesh behind the seats.

Under the hood, the carmaker installed a variable-valve timing engine with a 1.8-liter displacement that provided 130 hp and paired it to a five-speed manual.