Abarth 500, a faster Fiat 500

The Abarth 500 is a performance-tuned version of the Fiat 500 subcompact.

LOS ANGELES (CNNMoney) -- Fiat unveiled the American version its Abarth 500 compact car at the Los Angeles Auto Show Wednesday. This is the performance-tuned version of the Fiat 500 minicar.

This Abarth 500 has a turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that produces a maximum 160 horsepower compared to the 101 horsepower one available for the Fiat 500. It will also be equipped with a heavy-duty five-speed transmission.

While the Abarth 500 will not be a star at the drag strip it has been tuned to be a nimble little car.

Its zero-to-60 acceleration time is estimated to be about 7.5 seconds, only a little quicker than average. The non-turbocharged Fiat 500 takes about 10 seconds to get up to highway speeds.

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The Abarth 500's steering and suspension are tuned for sharp responses and stable cornering, Chrysler spokesman Jiyan Cadiz said.

Abarth is a seperate division of Italy's Fiat Group, which also includes Maserati, Ferrari and Lancia. Abarth produces high-performance versions of Fiat cars. For now, at least, the 500 is the only Fiat model sold in the United States.

Fiat will also begin selling a plug-in battery-powered 500 in late 2012.

In the U.S. Fiat cars are sold by Chrysler dealers. Fiat and Chrysler have been partnered since Chrysler's 2009 emergence from bankruptcy.