cbike I like slightly quirky, weird, nimble etc.

daffy I had 2 mk2.5 MX5. I loved the jokes 🙂

If you want cheap quirky and practical get a Kangoo Trekka.

4WD and seems most have a quite basic 1.9d so not a lot of speed but good pulling power and not a lot to go wrong.

Z4 3.0 convertible. I got all the hairdresser jokes too. I have a substantially thicker skin thanks to it.

The Clubman has been a genuine revelation. Cheap, solid, comfortable, surprisingly spacious, frugal, and pleasantly quick.

I went to a pre arranged appointment at Fiat main dealers yesterday. I think from now on I’ll stick to buying private. Car was a nail and the service appalling.

You got the full Fiat experience then, nice.

End of month targets done? 20mins in their with salesmen avoiding eye contact. In Citroen- the opposite.

They’re really good for city driving/parking:

Daffy pity that you are over in Leeds. I’d love to have a spin in one first before driving 100m+ to commit to a decent one for sale.

I’ve always loved the looks of the 100hp, something just so right about it. Couldn’t convince my mrs to go for one during a test drive, but now we are divorcing I may treat myself next year!

Also a big fan of the 4×4 version. Lots of car/fun for the money

Which dealer Hora?

Just so I know who to avoid.

Definitely worth replacing the rear shock absorbers on a Panda 100HP periodically. OEM units can be bought on-line for around £35 each. A new set absolutely transformed the rear of mine (35,000 miles / 5yrs). It’s an easy DIY job to swap them out.

The quality of the stock units isn’t great so they seem to wear quickly, and cause the (widely known) suspension rattle as the top bushes wear. Although some people use more expensive units the performance of the standard ones is OK, just they wear quicker than perhaps they should.

The Panda is a great little car, and the 100HP an absolute riot. Construction is a bit flimsy in places but parts are cheap. Fiat dealers are, however, rubbish. Lots of useful advice on FiatForum.

Which aftermarket shocks did you use?

This was my old one… great fun, I’d have happily done long journeys in it… regular passengers may have had other ideas. I think it helps to have a steering wheel to hang onto 8)

Had a 100hp for 5 years and 55,000 miles.
Great car and very reliable. It was only when I sold it that I realised how much suspension and tyres I had bought. Noisy and bumpy but absolutely brilliant. Most cars are so efficient and dull. Would have kept it but children driving now means we have a new slow panda for parking, insuring and learning and something more interesting for me.
Do it, you can’t lose

I had an 05 Panda for a few years. You could fit a tumble dryer in the back with the seats down which I thought was quite entertaining at the time.

Which aftermarket shocks did you use?

Sorry, I may not have been clear. I just replaced with new OEM units. Made a massive difference just having a ‘fresh’ set 🙂

Lots of discussion on FF about ‘better’ units, but I’m not sure how much difference it would actually make. It’s arguable that the bouncy back end is also part of the character!

Panda 100hp Is a great car little car. They are pretty harshly sprung mind you – even more so than my abarth which shares the same basic platform. Things to look out for:

3rd gear synchro / selector rings on the 6-speed box. I have two of these sitting in my garage and have swapped them between the floor of the garage and my track day cinquecento regularly over the past 5 years. You won’t notice it unless you drive it like it’s meant to be driven. Usually manifests itself as graunching noises doing rapid downshifts from 4th to 3rd. One of my boxes is starting to do it from 5-4 as awell. Eventually it gets so bad that the selector dogs give up and you lose drive through 3rd all together. Rebuild is about 350 + 50 for the new synchro assembly. When they work properly the shift should be light, incredibly quick and positive.

Cam belt. Easy to change, just often neglected at 60k by so many people nowadays. Do the water pump and tensioner as well. Once you’ve learned that the redline is 7200rpm you’ll want to use it every day on every drive.

Rear wheel bearings. If they’re the same as on the abarth they’ll be seemingly made by the same monkeys that supply raceface.

Rear ride. The problem with the rear ride is that the thing is so low it sits on its bump stops. You can easily fix this by replacing the stops with those for a fiat coupe. They’ll need bonding in place but it’s a dead simple task and transforms small bump sensitivity and ride in general.

Spoiler. The teeny tailgate spoiler is bonded to the boot lid. Sadly this means fitting a boot rack is pretty much impossible without breaking the spoiler.

Red key. It won’t have one so don’t panic if it doesn’t. It will have a <<2 sign on the key which means that it’s the second generation of the infamous fiat immobiliser system. They’d done away with the red key by then.

Dealers. As you’ve already seen, fiat dealers are shocking (I can say this with some authority having had fiats in the family for 40 years and about 20 different models. My future brother in law even works in one). They run on minimal staff training and are more interested in getting you to swap up to a new model than fix anything properly. Don’t be put off then by a service history devoid of main dealer stamps. Probably means it’s been well looked after.

If my 500 abarth didn’t exist I’d definitely have one. A proper fun annoying (to others) little fiat. 😈