So I got the 100hp mainly because it was fun while cheap on insurance (coming from Canada the insurance rates in the UK are ridonkulous).

With one toddler and another one on the way, the Panda is sort of lacking in the trunk department. Going on vacation soon , I decided to get the roof bars (original Fiat items, £65 on flea-bay). I was than thinking of adding a roof basket for more flexibility over a box but the prices are rather steep for a decent Thule item. And it rains all the time here.
All.
The.
Time.

So I started browsing for a cheap roof box and the Exodus 470 in Black GLoss from Halfords seemed to fit the bill. Perpetuity on sale for £200 (whoever bought that thing full price, £500, is wacko).
I got nervous that it would be waaaaaay too big for the Panda when I got home and started measuring (after ordering of course).

And when I saw the cardboard box...

But it turns out its the perfect size!
Sorry for teh crappy iPhone pics (finger included).
It required drilling the box since the bars are too far apart on the Panda (rather surprising considering the size). It's a bit of a pain to fit it by oneself in the rain in the dark but well worth it in the end.

Neat solution and looks OK. Did you look into the longitudinal bars with cross pieces?

babbo_umbro said:

Neat solution and looks OK. Did you look into the longitudinal bars with cross pieces?

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Yeah and I couldn't be bothered. It would have been a lot more money and the cross bars are still annoying to put on and result in a bulkier set up. I had them on my Suzuki SX4 and it was meh.

I like the gloss black finish matching the rear windows. I'm vain like that...

Nice think its what we'll be doing in the journey for extra boot space on our 100hp too..

Just need to find some longitude bars on eBay

1.8Stilo said:

Nice think its what we'll be doing in the journey for extra boot space on our 100hp too..

Just need to find some longitude bars on eBay

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I thought of getting the longitudinal rails but could only find them at £160 or so. And then to add more ££ for a Thule Crossroads set up or similar, + the box, for the same payload, I went straight with the roofbars.

They're really really light compared to Thule items, I wonder if they're plastic only to be honest... Thankfully the box distributes the load nicely across the whole bar and close to the feet so it shouldnt be a problem.

Looks good. Black box sits well on the white car with the black trim / windows........

Hope it's easy to take off / put back on as and when you need it as will kill mpg.

I paid something like £60 for a secondhand Halfords roofbox, it looked massive when I picked it up but it fitted on the Panda fine.

First trip I borrowed a set of roof rails off a forum user on here and bought some Ebay cheap cross bars, it didn't seem secure enough to me so now I have the bars that go across the roof, I needed to re-dril the mounting holes in the box, added metal plates around the mounting holes for strength, but it feels rock solid now

The roofbox has come in handy for a few family trips

I got another sollution, Thule EasyBase 949 on the hook.
There I can put luggage in almost any shape and size.
Pro and contra, use less gas and the car is more stabile and easy to mount / against is the price and no access to the boot.

I have a Thule Ranger folding roofbox. All the handiness of a roofbox, with the convenience that it stores really easy. Means that when you arrive at your destination, you can remove it, store it in the hotel room corner and drive about without it...

From the main forum it says "100hp now with 150% more..."

I was expecting "power", but this is cool too.

Aston Martin said:

From the main forum it says "100hp now with 150% more..."

I was expecting "power", but this is cool too.

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Yeah... sorry to get your hopes up!

Back from a week in France, the set up performed flawlessly.
Was able to keep a steady 80mph on the highways, which returned ±31 mpg on the one tank that was entirely burned at that speed. I'm rather impressed considering the speed, weight and drag involved.

I got 40mpg with the roofbox empty on slower B roads. But that was going through a mountain pass as well...

Those are calculated gas mileage as well, not from the trip computer.

I had concerns with overfilling the roofbox as the bottom started to sag a bit. The plastic is very flexible, coupled with the bars far apart, it was to be expected. Got back to original shape right away once emptied.

In the end: worked brilliantly, better than expected.

That mpg figure of 31 is a bit of a bummer - though it suggests that the 100HP is not quite such an aerodynamic brick as it's sometimes claimed to be. At a steady 80mph, with the warmer temperatures en France, I'd expect something around 40 or even slightly over, so the consumption's gone up by almost a quarter. On the other hand, if the alternative is a bigger car for the rest of they year so that you have enough capacity for one or two major trips, you're still saving overall.

babbo_umbro said:

That mpg figure of 31 is a bit of a bummer - though it suggests that the 100HP is not quite such an aerodynamic brick as it's sometimes claimed to be. At a steady 80mph, with the warmer temperatures en France, I'd expect something around 40 or even slightly over, so the consumption's gone up by almost a quarter. On the other hand, if the alternative is a bigger car for the rest of they year so that you have enough capacity for one or two major trips, you're still saving overall.

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My experience with roofboxes on other cars was that mileage dropped more significantly than it did with the Panda, at slower speeds as well.

Strapontin said:

My experience with roofboxes on other cars was that mileage dropped more significantly than it did with the Panda, at slower speeds as well.

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Interesting - I've never resorted one but you'd have to be pretty convinced you need one, and take it off at every opportunity.

babbo_umbro said:

Interesting - I've never resorted one but you'd have to be pretty convinced you need one, and take it off at every opportunity.

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Oh yeah, they need to come off when not in use.
Mine was off the next day. It's a 20 min job. If that (the box is quick release so that helps).

Strapontin said:

Was able to keep a steady 80mph on the highways...

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I think the roof bar instructions are in metric? - 90kmh - 55.8mph max speed no?

Louie Bee said:

I think the roof bar instructions are in metric? - 90kmh - 55.8mph max speed no?

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70mph is the max recommended speed for the roof box.
I didn't see any recommendations regarding speed for the roof bars.