The all-steel body was designed by Felice Mario Boano and built in his workshop. Only an open-bodied, streamlined two-seater with a fin behind the driver's headrest was available. The design was asymmetric; disregarding from the fin the entire body was taller on the driver's (left) side. While the chassis was designed by Abarth, there was still some Cisitalia DNA in the design,[3] as implied by Abarth continuing the Cisitalia numbering scheme.
The chassis was a boxed platform design and used most of the Fiat 1100/103's suspension elements, replacing the Porsche torsion bar front suspension and the earlier Fiat 1100 E's rear suspension that had been installed on the preceding 204A/205A. One modification was that the 1100/103's leaf sprung live rear axle was coil sprung instead, and was modified to accept longer shock absorbers.[4] The engine was tuned by the addition of twin Weber 36 DCO4 carburettors and new exhaust manifolds, delivering 66 hp (49 kW) at 6,000 rpm.[1] The stainless steel exhaust pipes protruded from the right side of the car. For the small headlights, flanking a single, central chrome bar, Abarth used two of the Fiat 1100 TV's central driving lights.[4]
In all, twelve examples of the 207A, 208A, and 209A were built. Most sources agree that ten were 207A (competition cars), while the two-tone, American-inspired 208A and 209A found no takers and remained one-offs. All of the 207As appear to have been delivered to the United States, where they competed sporadically.[5] The ten 207As were all sold via Tony Pompeo in New York.[1]
Rear view
The Fiat 1100/103 engine in a 207A Spyder
The Boano-bodied 209A Coupé
The Coupé's distinct glasshouse
The 208A and 209A were painted two-tone and equipped with panoramic windshields, creating a rather American look overall. Since the 207A was only fitted with two small driving lights mounted very low, the 208A and 209A were fitted with pop-up headlamps, a very early instance of this design.[1] The exposed, double stainless steel exhaust on the passenger side remained. The 209A Coupé has a glasshouse reminiscent of Franco Scaglione's BAT cars.