Styled by Sergio Sartorelli[5] at Fiat's Centro Stile in Turin, export versions for the UK, US and Canada were marketed as the Strada.

The exterior has plastic bumper fascias integrated into the styling which combined strong round shapes with overall sharp lines, achieving a drag coefficient of Cd=0.38.

[10] Suspension was independent all-round, the braking system comprised front discs and rear drums and the wheels measured 13-inch in diameter.

The latter was based on the Ritmo 65 (or 75 for export markets) and was distinguished by mink or black paint with gold striping and accents in the alloy wheels, foglights, dark bumper bars and velour trim interiors.

At the 1980 Geneva Motor Show, a five-door only diesel version – marketed as the Ritmo D and available in both L and CL trim – was introduced with a 1,714 cc engine (55 PS or 40 kW or 54 bhp).

In October 1982, the Ritmo was reengineered and restyled to improve its competitiveness against rivals, which included the MK3 Ford Escort and the first front-wheel drive Opel Kadett (Vauxhall Astra in the UK).

Suspension mounts were altered and the spare tyre was moved from the engine bay to the boot, along with a relocation of the fuel tank to ahead of the rear axle.

The bonnet no longer had an air scoop and the roof was now completely flat (with the upward sweep of the first series found to cause vortices and contribute to dust and water over the rear window).

[21] The 105 TC was relaunched with revised interior trim, a dashboard similar to that of the earlier Ritmo Super and an upper hatchback spoiler in place of the lower one.

The North American version was unchanged but was finally discontinued at the end of the 1982 model year (at which time the Fiat range included only the X1/9 and the 124 Spider).

This was achieved by replacing the single Weber carb used in the 125 TC with twin Solex/Weber carburettors on a side-draught manifold, and via improved cam profiles.

[19] It was fitted with Recaro bucket seats in Britain and Ireland (optional in Europe) and it remained the only 1980s European hot hatch to continue to utilise carburettors instead of fuel injection.

The powerful twin-cam was mated to a close ratio five-speed ZF manual gearbox and had superior performance to its contemporary rivals, which included the Volkswagen Golf GTI, Ford Escort XR3i, Vauxhall Astra GTE and the MG Maestro.

In 1986, a new diesel version was launched with a 1,929 cc intercooled turbodiesel (80 PS (59 kW; 79 bhp)), and was badged as the Ritmo Turbo DS (as a five-door only).

The latter included the 75 i.e. and 90 i.e., which had lower outputs due to their catalytic converters fitted to meet tougher export markets' emission regulations.

In its place, as the new contender in the European C-segment, Fiat launched the similarly avantgarde, Tipo, which took inspiration from the smaller Uno with its design and style.

The Fiat Ritmo cabrio was originally displayed as a concept at the 1979 Frankfurt Motor Show[18] but went on sale in mainland Europe only in 1981.

A station wagon version—badged the Regata Weekend—was launched in 1984 and a unique design feature was represented by its folding rear bumper section, which created a level loading bay.

The Regata received a minor facelift in 1986 (bumpers, doors and interior) as well as fuel injection fitted for some engines – most notably the 1,585 cc "100S i.e." The Ritmo was sold on the British market as the Strada from the autumn of 1978[23] until it was replaced by the Tipo in July 1988.

Despite decent early sales, surprising given its unconventional styling, it was soon overshadowed by a host of new British-built and imported competitors, and by the 1980s was selling very slowly, although Fiat's overall market share in the UK increased sharply throughout the 1980s due to the huge success of the smaller Uno.

[25][26] Available with either three or five doors, it used the same 1.5-litre SOHC engine as the X1/9 coupé, generating 69 hp (51 kW), and featured a standard five-speed manual gearbox or a three-speed automatic from Volkswagen as optional equipment.

[28] In spite of excellent fuel economy, a roomy interior, and comfortable ride, the Strada failed to convince enough buyers to forget reliability issues from previous Fiat models and was withdrawn from North America in 1982.

As part of this dispute, SEAT showed a black Ronda with all the in-house developed components painted in bright yellow, in order to highlight key differences between the two products.

All ties with Fiat underpinnings were finally severed when Volkswagen took majority ownership of SEAT in 1986 and began producing cars in Spain based on German-developed platforms.