| Product: |
Fiat Panda |
| Date: |
05.01.01 (289 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: cheap fun
Disadvantages: rattley, bouncey, slow
I grew up surrounded by Fiats. When I was 5 (1982) we got a Fiat 126. It was small, cute, and I thought because of the bucket seats, it must be fast. I didn't realise the seats had simply collapsed, and at 65 mph (its top speed) we could still be overtaken by the neighbours Rotweiler!
So when we bought a Fiat Panda, it was a definate move up market ...at least thats how it seemed. Designed by Guirgio Guirgiaro - he used to design Lamborghinis! - it was meant to be an economical, manouverable city car, which was cheap to run and repair. And this it did very well. But if you were to try and venture on the motorway, things would start to feel just a little agricultural. It only does about 90mph, so people fly buy you with ease. Having said that, 90mph feels like 130 what with all the rattles and bouncing around. But you can cruise at 80 fine, and the engine is extremely reliable. We did 150,000 miles in the first Panda.
Lets get one thing straight, if you are one of these people whose into new fangled gadgets like ABS brakes, air conditioning, Air bags and Seat height adjusters DONT buy this car. This is motoring as it should be, pure, noisey and fun. It is a perfect learners car, because the clutch is snappy, the gears are gnarly and it doesn't take much to stall it on a hill. But with the pain comes pleasure. On the day of my driving test i jumped into a Vauxhall Corsa and it felt like a Limosene. I passed first time!!
Second hand Pandas are fairly easy to find. You can get a decent 3 year old one for about £900, but check for rust along the tailgate and on the bottom of the doors. They are suprisingly resilient to rust having said that, especially '93 onwards Pandas, as these should be galvinised.
The Panda isn't as bad a car as most people make out. Just don't take it out the city.
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