Hi all, I'm new to the forum and to be honest pretty well new to forums in general so apologies if this ends up in totally the wrong place etc.

I'm planning a round trip next year from Manchester to Saint Petersburg next year (spring 2017) and my current choice of very sensible estate (far too easy) and motorbike (can't share the driving with my other half) has lead me to a very interesting search. I've been looking at a variety of cool retro cars which have the right balance of simplicity, quirkiness and reliability and I keep coming back to Fiat Panda's. I've had a bit of a hankering for one for years after working on a Seat Marbella many years back, which other than the massive amounts of rust was a brilliant little car. Clearly the simplicity, relative reliability and comfort and hopefully availability of parts in Europe should make it a winner? I've been doing as much research online as possible and kept finding myself on this forum so figured I'd be best joining up! I've a lot of questions unanswered, thought I'd find some expert brains to pick and then all going well will be able to contribute with a long thread re preparing the car and then hopefully reporting back after the trip (all going to plan).

I guess the first thing to tackle is finding a suitable car, I was hoping to have a viewing on a car in Derbyshire (advertised on here) today but I wanted to check I could get a reasonable insurance quote (more on that later) before wasting the sellers time and I've just heard back that it is already sold! There is a 750 FIRE engined Panda up in Glasgow but I am not sure if the 750 might leave us a little vulnerable on the inevitable autobahn sections of the trip early on? Any hints and tips on what to check for would be great, or even any tips on where a suitable panda might be found?

Who I Am So I'm a Welder/Blacksmith (as is my other half Jenny) based in Manchester. I've not done much in the way of automotive welding but am a Tig welder with a decent amount of experience, fabricating repair sections could present some new challenges but I'm not too intimidated by moderate rust. We've got enough space to store and work on the car at our workshop and a decent (and growing) collection of tools. I did drive a Vanden Plas Allegro across Europe in 2009 (as far as Italy where the clutch died and it was towed home!), I realise that the Panda is not the most conventional choice for cross continent travel but that is one of the reasons I'm after one! We are likely to be in convoy with friends in a more modern vehicle so in theory if we brake down in Russia a tow will be available (maybe not all the way back, though would save on fuel ).

What I'm Looking For So we've got a little over a year before the trip, ideally I'd like to get a Panda with MOT (so I can get it back to the workshop) which I can drive a few thousand miles in this year so I can work out what needs sorting etc. I'd love to hear your views on the different models and any advice on what I shoulf be looking out for, sort of a buyers guide. I was initially looking at the 750 for £300, the 1000 was £650ono, ideally I'd rather buy cheap and do the work myself, get to know the car and it'd be more of a challenge, though the 1000cc had clearly had more than the extra £350 spent on it (tyres elec. ignition etc.) so did seem like it was worth the extra stretch. Also it'd be seriously cool to drive the 5000ish mile round trip in a car bought for a couple of hundred!

Insurance I rang a couple of companies this weekend expecting a quote in the region of £100, given the car I was looking at was a 25 year old classic, incredibly light, not very fast and realistically of very low value. I rang two companies (who were open on the weekend) and was pretty shocked by the quotes I got £400 and £800 plus. Any tips on which companies give decent quotes for these, I think on the last trip I was with Adrian Flux and fully comp. the allegro was less than £200.

Preparation Mainly I'm looking for any common improvements in reliability and possibly comfort. What spares should we take, what service parts should I change etc. Also the Marbella had the Hammock seats, which I think were only fitted to pre 86 Pandas, I think really we'd be better off with a FIRE engine and I assume the early Panda's are also more pricey, can the Hammock seats be fitted to the later models or are there changes in the bodywork which would make them incompatible.

Experience Anyone on here driven their Panda long haul? Or anyone have experience of driving any car to Russia, with any route recommendations etc.

Cheers in advance for any help and advice, apologies for the rambling post (possibly the longest introductory post on record??)


Phiz

Phiz said:

Hi all, I'm new to the forum and to be honest pretty well new to forums in general so apologies if this ends up in totally the wrong place etc.

I'm planning a round trip next year from Manchester to Saint Petersburg next year (spring 2017) and my current choice of very sensible estate (far too easy) and motorbike (can't share the driving with my other half) has lead me to a very interesting search. I've been looking at a variety of cool retro cars which have the right balance of simplicity, quirkiness and reliability and I keep coming back to Fiat Panda's. I've had a bit of a hankering for one for years after working on a Seat Marbella many years back, which other than the massive amounts of rust was a brilliant little car. Clearly the simplicity, relative reliability and comfort and hopefully availability of parts in Europe should make it a winner? I've been doing as much research online as possible and kept finding myself on this forum so figured I'd be best joining up! I've a lot of questions unanswered, thought I'd find some expert brains to pick and then all going well will be able to contribute with a long thread re preparing the car and then hopefully reporting back after the trip (all going to plan).

I guess the first thing to tackle is finding a suitable car, I was hoping to have a viewing on a car in Derbyshire (advertised on here) today but I wanted to check I could get a reasonable insurance quote (more on that later) before wasting the sellers time and I've just heard back that it is already sold! There is a 750 FIRE engined Panda up in Glasgow but I am not sure if the 750 might leave us a little vulnerable on the inevitable autobahn sections of the trip early on? Any hints and tips on what to check for would be great, or even any tips on where a suitable panda might be found?

Who I Am So I'm a Welder/Blacksmith (as is my other half Jenny) based in Manchester. I've not done much in the way of automotive welding but am a Tig welder with a decent amount of experience, fabricating repair sections could present some new challenges but I'm not too intimidated by moderate rust. We've got enough space to store and work on the car at our workshop and a decent (and growing) collection of tools. I did drive a Vanden Plas Allegro across Europe in 2009 (as far as Italy where the clutch died and it was towed home!), I realise that the Panda is not the most conventional choice for cross continent travel but that is one of the reasons I'm after one! We are likely to be in convoy with friends in a more modern vehicle so in theory if we brake down in Russia a tow will be available (maybe not all the way back, though would save on fuel ).

What I'm Looking For So we've got a little over a year before the trip, ideally I'd like to get a Panda with MOT (so I can get it back to the workshop) which I can drive a few thousand miles in this year so I can work out what needs sorting etc. I'd love to hear your views on the different models and any advice on what I shoulf be looking out for, sort of a buyers guide. I was initially looking at the 750 for £300, the 1000 was £650ono, ideally I'd rather buy cheap and do the work myself, get to know the car and it'd be more of a challenge, though the 1000cc had clearly had more than the extra £350 spent on it (tyres elec. ignition etc.) so did seem like it was worth the extra stretch. Also it'd be seriously cool to drive the 5000ish mile round trip in a car bought for a couple of hundred!

Insurance I rang a couple of companies this weekend expecting a quote in the region of £100, given the car I was looking at was a 25 year old classic, incredibly light, not very fast and realistically of very low value. I rang two companies (who were open on the weekend) and was pretty shocked by the quotes I got £400 and £800 plus. Any tips on which companies give decent quotes for these, I think on the last trip I was with Adrian Flux and fully comp. the allegro was less than £200.

Preparation Mainly I'm looking for any common improvements in reliability and possibly comfort. What spares should we take, what service parts should I change etc. Also the Marbella had the Hammock seats, which I think were only fitted to pre 86 Pandas, I think really we'd be better off with a FIRE engine and I assume the early Panda's are also more pricey, can the Hammock seats be fitted to the later models or are there changes in the bodywork which would make them incompatible.

Experience Anyone on here driven their Panda long haul? Or anyone have experience of driving any car to Russia, with any route recommendations etc.

Cheers in advance for any help and advice, apologies for the rambling post (possibly the longest introductory post on record??)


Phiz

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Hello & welcome :wave:

The 750 is a sweet engine, but I'd go for the 999cc for a bit of extra "zip" on the inclines. You're not going to get a decent one for under about £600, and it's probably a false economy to buy a wreck - find one that's had a bit of money spent on it.

The engines are pretty bullet proof, and if you find one with big miles but regular oil changes don't worry. Rust is the expensive bit, but if you're handy with the welder maybe you're not as concerned as I'd be about the cost of welding it back together.

There were lists of spares people took to Italy last year - find the thread on the Classic Panda section, and that probably answers everything for a long trip. People will be along later I'm sure, but I'm just going to point you to the thread as an easier (for me!) option.

You're not going to find a mk1 Panda easily, and certainly not running but cheap. Hammock seats were used in some later ones for special editions, etc, but usually with the old 903cc engine from memory. They are very clever, but take the newer 999cc FIRE engine & more comfortable seats! It's not a straight swap to put in hammock seats, plus you've got to find some - there will be someone to help if you decide to do that though.

Try Peter James insurance - you won't have, as they're not open at the weekend. I'd agree about the prices, you aren't far off for a single Panda (maybe £100-£120 it's less when you have several), but maybe you're not in a good area?

Good luck, and keep us updated.

Hi Palio,

Thanks for the info, I'd stretch to £600 if I had to, so long as I can keep the insurance down low, I'm partially justifying it in that over the 5k plus miles the costs will be partially covered by the better fuel economy than our 2.4l Volvo! In a way I'd rather buy one that needs a bit of work, in part as fixing it up would be part of the adventure, plus when we set off I'd really know the car.

I did think the 750 might be pushing it a little for the long run, would be great if we could take ages off work but we plan to do the whole trip in three weeks, with a good few days in Saint Petersburg so we will need to do motorway speeds through the more western half of the trip! I do relish the challenge but if it is too unpleasant or we don't make it to Saint Petersburg then I'll be held responsible, so the 999cc FIRE engine sounds like an essential Re the hammock seats, we will be camping where possible to keep costs down but the main reason I want them is that I just think they are such a great feature which adds to the character of the car. Comfort wise we're both pretty hardy (easy saying that now wait until we're back to know for sure). What is the difference in spec./reliability/efficiency/refinement between the FIRE engines and the older ones? Do the ltd. edition ones command a higher price? I'd look at other models of car but I think that I've got my heart set on a Panda and I can't think of anything else that would be viable that would not be a disappointment as it's not a panda!

I'll definitely try and track down the thread on the Italy trip, close to the distance I'd have thought, though very different weather (what are the heaters like/do they start well in the cold) and clearly given the purpose of the trip and the home country of the car, availability of parts on route would be covered!

Cheers for the tip re insurance, I'll give them a call tomorrow, my home postcode is a bit 'stabby' but I'd be storing the car in the workshop, which is brick built, alarmed, in a locked compound etc. I can't see a joyrider going to the trouble, though I would be interested to hear what security modifications people recommend, given at times on the trip we might not be so lucky on secure parking.

Thanks again

Phiz

Hey there, Welcome!

it sounds like a great project and a fun trip! i have had a Seat Marbella, and have 2x panda 4x4's as far as the 903 and 999cc engines go, i would say that both are very good engines and easy equal in terms of power they produce both in top end speed and hill climbing. my panda 4x4 with the 50hp 999cc engine could not keep up with the marbella with its 45hp 903cc engine! that may have been down to gearing though!

the best thing about the panda/marbella is that every job you can do at home. if you have a good tool kit.

take a look through my car threads.. they give a pretty good example of where they rust. thankfully the floor pan of the car does not change that much from 2wd to 4x4. well.. they both rust in the same places!

as comfort mods go. i super highly.. massively.. recommend "over doing" the sound proofing (you'll thank me when you have spent over 5 hours on the motorway) and adding wider tyres (to the standard rims). i am running 165 tyres on my current panda (the crazy one) and it makes a nice upgrade from the 145 tyres when it comes to braking and cornering.
other mods you "can" do are install better seats from punto's and i think someone (cough VmanC cough) even installed some Alfa seats into a panda once with fantastic results!

the choice on what panda to go for is up to you really. the panda came with as you know the 999cc engine. however this engine over the yeas got more and more electronics bolted to it.

if you get a panda with a points ignition system (2wd pre 1991) i would recommend updating it to the later electronic "pointless" ignition system (found on some 2wd's and on all mk2 4x4 pandas). the electronic ignition system is good but it does seems to have a habit of burning out ignition modules. some people seem to get it more than others.

if you went for a panda that was >1992 you would get one with the Magneti Marelli ECU that controls spark and fuel. its quite a nice system but sometimes it does have sensors that act up.. pretty rare though and the plus is that EVERY punto <1999 or cinquecento with the 1.1 engine will use ALL the same electronics.

as for security, i just pulled a Toad AI606 alarm from a car in the scrap yard and installed it on my panda (ive done this a few times for friends too!) it works out cheaper than buying an alarm i find and the wiring factor is great fun if you like that kinda thing. you can then use the same alarm to give your panda central locking which is so taken for granted these days. (the alarm also supports a load of other things too which can be handy if wired in) i have only had experience with this and the Toad 101 / 51 alarm though.

other things i can recommend is installing a good radio and maybe extra speakers, installing an extra cigarette lighter socket somewhere and maybe adding some driving lamps (you'll thank me on unlit roads).

have a look around the members motors section for all the classic panda threads. you will find no end of ideas to help in the comfort factor.

as far as insurance goes i am still a relatively young driver (4 years). so my insurance is still in the "boy racer" category (haha race.. panda.. 4x4 mao LoL).
the.. thing that i made (Project Fallout) with all mods declared cost around £350 with Aflux. i could have got my other panda 4x4, Talon insured for much less.

ill look forward to seeing you around the forums!

just wondering though, the 750 you were looking at around Derbyshire.. was it a blue one from Belper way?

If you get some time have a browse through this chaps threads. Jim used to do massive and varied trips for charity in his panda, could get a few ideas there. He's not on quite so much these days but still pops up from time to time, you might get in touch.
https://www.fiatforum.com/panda-classic/226307-2010-charity-panda-adventure.html
(this was very much one of the shorter ones but have a look back through his other journeys!)

Hi, welcome to the forum!

Just my tuppence worth - the early cars had a fairly primitive rear suspension, which gave quite a bouncy ride. They did redesign this later on but because the 4x4 would have needed more work they kept the old design on there.

In other words, if you want more comfort and don't need the 4x4 (even a 2WD Panda is decent enough on a bit of rough ground) then you probably want to look at a later 2WD car if possible. It's called the Omega axle if you want to look into it more, think it came in in 1986.

Welcome to the forum

A bunch of us did a trip last year to Italy in the Panda's. The 750 was supprisingly good but did struggle on the uphill sections. We got our 999 to 88mph (143km/h) on the Autobahn but that was a rather straight downhill section.

The trip was around 2500miles in total spanned across 7 days of driving (3 days on the way there and 4 on the way back).

The only issues we seemed to encounter was the increased heat seemed to take its toll on the exhausts, one backbox fell off coming off the ferry (was the 5th thing to hit fench soil ) and another failed on the return journey back in blighty.

Another key issue some of us had were to do with the timing or fuel mixtures. We had to replace our accelerator membrane as this failed and started to spew fuel out of the back of the carb. One of the others had a big issue with drinking fuel but we werent able to fix this until back in blighty. With this ensure the carb (if you choose a carb Panda) is properly setup and timed correctly.

With regards to parts I'd highly reccomend a full carb overhall kit to either overhall before you go or to have as spares, ensure everything is timed and set correctly as said and make sure you either replace the cam belt/aux belt or take spares!

If you have a later injection Panda I highly reccomend taking a cam sensor. I had one of these go on my Cinq and led me on a wild goose chase looking at injectors etc

Freebo said:

Welcome to the forum

A bunch of us did a trip last year to Italy in the Panda's. The 750 was supprisingly good but did struggle on the uphill sections. We got our 999 to 88mph (143km/h) on the Autobahn but that was a rather straight downhill section.

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Was that GPS/accurate speed or what the speedometer indicated? Because on a long but not particularly steep downhill I had my 750 up to an indicted 95, which was probably around 80-85mph on an accurate speedo

Didge3 said:

Was that GPS/accurate speed or what the speedometer indicated? Because on a long but not particularly steep downhill I had my 750 up to an indicted 95, which was probably around 80-85mph on an accurate speedo

Click to expand...

Was 143 just before I took the screenshot and it dropped :\

Thanks again for the help folks.


Engines, interesting re the 903cc engine being up there with the fire engine in terms of performance, is there much in it in terms of fuel efficiency and reliability? It was a Marbella which set me on the path towards a Panda/Marbella, it had leaf sprung rear suspension, might not be refined but sturdy and simple which I like, if I get a car which needs work I can hopefully get to know my way around it fairly well before we set off.


I have spent a bit of time looking through the forums, was initially looking for the Italy trip write up but got distracted by a Lancia Turbo powered Marbella and a few other interesting bits and pieces! Looks like there is some fairly comprehensive write ups on various tasks which I'm sure I'm going to need along the way. Good to see such a variety of projects and so many Panda's


I was reading an article on soundproofing mats for VW's the other day, will definitely get on to that, seems like a very worthwhile upgrade, is it pricey stuff? Wider tyres sounds like a good move, how does that affect efficiency/general performance, not that it sounds like performance will be too much of an issue from what I've read, if it can reach and hold 70 on relatively flat roads I'll certainly not be asking any more of it.


Alarm wise I'd say electronics is my weakness when it comes to cars and bikes, I had a recent gremlin on my motorbike which was a bit of a learning curve but I still avoid wiring where possible. Was thinking better lock barrels, maybe even a hidden immobiliser switch etc.? Not too fussed on central locking, I've owned more cars without it than with and at least on a Panda it's only three doors Ideally I'd not like to loose any of the characters with more mod cons, though electronic ignition sounds like a must, can't be done with points and on a trip of this length could be an issue.


Fuel Injection v's carb, I guess the fuel injection would be more reliable and efficient, that being said I have a good understanding of the workings of carbs, fuel injection is a bit beyond me! In a way, even though fuel injection would be unlikely to cause me any problems, I'd still have more confidence with a carb as at least I'd know what was going on under there!


All there with driving lamps and extra cigarette lighter socket, might well take a camera so could be very handy, have avoided the use of a satnav thus far but at times a GPS locator might be handy in case we get well lost (used one on a trip to Vietnam for when we got lost and it saved us accidently crossing into Cambodia at one point!).


Insurance Will check out Adrian Flux, have used them before and can strongly recommend Flux Rescue, they towed my car back from Nice and sorted a hire car and a flight from Geneva to get us back, not bad for £38 a year at the time! I did call Peter James today and didn't get as far as a quote, there classic policy only covers up to 3k miles per year, the trip will be 4-5k miles so need a policy to cover me for quite a bit more unfortunately. Are there any Panda's that you can't get a classic policy on from your experiences, is it age or does model come in as a factor, ie if I did get a later fuel injection model would I be able to get classic insurance?


Dragon Man The 750 was up in Glasgow but the 1000cc was in Belper, both the same blue colour, the Belper one was advertised on here and on a couple of classic car classified websites along with auto trader. Was hoping to get a viewing but got an email last night confirming it was no longer available.


Do Panda's come up for sale often? It's all very well me picking what model I might like if I'm not going to get a choice anyway. I've had a PM on here with a lead to a possible car, a Fizz (convenient name!) fuel injection car, will give them a call at a more sociable hour, get some more info on what, where etc.


Firstcar-Y10 I've opened up in a new tab, will have a good read before I finally get some kip!


Northernchap Cheers for the heads up, though in a way primitive is all good in my book How do the 2 different setups compare in terms of reliability? I'd not expect to need any real off road ability on this trip, though we are going through a couple of countries not known for the quality of their roads it's generally in the more populated parts where I would expect Pothole dodging to be the toughest going. That being said I did Beach a hire car on a rock in Romania last year on what looked on the map to be a reasonably large A road. Don't think I need and certainly can't afford a 4x4 unfortunately. One day maybe, just waiting on the Lottery win!


Freebo Great to hear about the distance covered in 1 week, with three weeks to do around double that (with a few days break in the middle) sounds about right, though I'd guess the roads may get a little slower where we're heading. How many Panda's went? Sounds like a great trip, also reassuring that a 750 made it, the one up in Glasgow is still available for £300 as far as I'm aware... Think for us it'll be the cold rather than heat that might get to our Panda, we've no entirely set a route yet but Sweden and Finland will almost certainly get a visit and ferry prices dependent might even head through Norway! What are Panda's like for cold starts? Do the heaters do much or will it be jumpers and scarves where required?


Didge 3 It sounds like you can get a Panda faster than speeds at which you would want to drive a Panda, great news, does seem like a Panda is the perfect balance of Retro cool/quirky but still in theory capable of the trip in the time available.


Thanks again for all your help, hopefully I'll have a Panda soon and will be able to go from planning to fixing to driving

Hi Phiz,


I'm sure you will find decent one.

Regards the traveling speeds:
Russia - as you will be driving in the most western part the main roads (express roads) are in really decent condition i.e nice smooth tarmac but to stay away from any face to face confrontation with traffic officers which might be 'problematic' and costly at the same time it is highly advised to stay below speed limits which normally will be 60 Km/h in town, 90 Km/h outside zones, and 100 Km/h on highways. Yes most of the video footage on you tube shows that everybody else is speeding, but they will pick on you cause you got cash $$$$. Depend on the route - mostly 55mph (90km/h) applies. In case of any involvement in any sort of accident or collision - Go straight to car which was following you and buy $$$ the sd card from their dash cam ( 99.9% cars have them fitted).
If you will have to leave the car overnight use 'warden parkings' ( автостоянка) for your piece of mind, wild camping not prohibited - but much safer to camp over night in farmer's garden after getting his permission first.

Get your visa sorted as well, have some $$$$ with you.

Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania - same rules, stay under limits, don't do silly things.

Poland - if choosing the motorways East and North, have some PLN (or Visa card) for toll roads, if using A or B roads just keep to right side.

Europe - just carry on, sorry small update: allow some time for border checks.

Ah here you go, looong thread but here's Jims Arctic trip
https://www.fiatforum.com/panda-classic/121579-anouncing-2009-fiat-forum-panda-adventure.html

Phiz said:

Didge 3 It sounds like you can get a Panda faster than speeds at which you would want to drive a Panda, great news, does seem like a Panda is the perfect balance of Retro cool/quirky but still in theory capable of the trip in the time available.

Click to expand...

You definitely can reach those speeds whether you'd want to is a different thing for sure. At an indicted 95 the steering wheel was shaking quite a lot and in the 5 speed 750 it was turning close to 6000rpm, in a 4 speed you'd probably run out of revs.
People often are weary of the older 2wd cars that don't have servo'd brakes, honestly it's something that frightened me when I first drove a Panda but got used to very quickly, I never felt that the standard brakes are incapable of stopping the car as quickly as you'd need, I was once on the motorway doing 70mph and a brand new VW Passat slammed on its brakes in front of me, I stomped the brake pedal so hard it felt like the car was going to do an endo but it stopped remarkably quickly.

All truths told though I wouldn't recommend a 750 for such a long journey, I had mine for 3 years and did primarily use it for motorway work you're shifting from 4th to 5th a lot and having to concentrate on the traffic ahead to avoid losing the momentum you already have, hills of any real incline will see your speed falling with your foot jammed to the floor, the 750 is very fun and characterful but not for a journey that long, I'd say you're better off with a 2wd 999cc

Hi Kolza, thanks for the info, we'll stick out like a sore thumb so no doubt we'll get some attention, though I doubt we'll look like the wealthiest of travellers. Should be good for Poland as a Polish friend will be in the other car we're going with so probably take the rear for that stretch! Might well get a dash cam myself, when in Rome, plus might get some interesting footage on the way round
Firstcar-y10, cheers for the link, is there anywhere that guys Panda hasn't been??! Could get some great ideas for future trips from here too, I see he was planning on taking the now no longer running ferry from Newcastle too, did look like the way to go until we discovered it was cancelled!
Didge3, think we'll steer clear of the 750, though open to 903cc's and thou's. A couple more panda's have appeared online these past couple of days too so looks like once I've worked out my best option I've a fair chance of finding a car, don't see that many of them about these days though and Marbella's even less. I've had a couple of cars in the past without servo assisted brakes and it doesn't bother me, will definitely want to check over/overhaul the brakes before setting off but in a 700kg car, even with a couple of passengers should be able to pull up no probs. I'm alright pootling along at a more leisurely pace generally, only concerns being time restraint on the trip (though the distance covered in the time for the Italy trip makes me more confident on that front) and being a little vulnerable on the autobahn but again it sounds like most Panda's should be more than capable.
I'll keep searching and keep you guys posted, hopefully I'll work out what Panda/Marbella I need and perhaps more importantly find one which closely resembles this!

Cheers


Phiz

One key thing I would reccomend that we did was to fit four new matching tyres (get a 5th on the spare). We went for 155's from the 135's and the ride was soo smooth, even at high (for a panda) speeds on the Autobahns, these also greatly reduced the road noise making life a bit more comfortable.

Freebo said:

One key thing I would reccomend that we did was to fit four new matching tyres (get a 5th on the spare). We went for 155's from the 135's and the ride was soo smooth, even at high (for a panda) speeds on the Autobahns, these also greatly reduced the road noise making life a bit more comfortable.

Click to expand...

Not to mention legal requirement of same tyre thread pattern on axle in Germany, Poland and probably few other countries out there.

i would recomend RH Classics for insurance : https://www.rhspecialistinsurance.co.uk/classic-car-insurance

i am 33 years old and i pay £120 for the year, including business use (5k miles per year) european insurance included, and if they write off your car they GIVE it you back free after paying out!

Thanks again for all the info, Freebo/Kolza, matching tyre tread is not even something I had considered, looks like pretty well all of my previous euro trips may have been slightly outside of the law , wider tyres definitely sounds like the way to go and given I'm looking for a car in need of work there is a fair chance the tyres will be old anyhow so certainly due an upgrade!
Andy React, cheers for the tip on insurance, sounds more like it, we're a similar age and the mileage sounds about right for the trip, plus I'll not be declaring it for business usage (thought might have to take it the show off on a trip to the electro-plater, I'd imagine his reaction would be well worth the trip!).

So now I need to get to work with researching into the cars and finding one that suits asap. Ideally I'd like to have a full year with the car before the trip to work through faults and also so we're on to a fresh years insurance before setting off. Issue being we run our own business, we get busier as we head into summer so really this time next year would be the ideal time to disappear for the weeks! I've contacted a couple of sellers but does seem to be a tough task, sounds like the demand for these little cars is fairly high

Hopefully some car related news soon!

Send a car request to panda panda, few of his fleet were for sale to good home.

It is also a legal requirement in Italy.