I've been looking for a clean Cinquecento for the last few weeks. I've looked at Sporting, S and SX models of various ages. All of them have been abused and cars that were advertised as "tidy" and "clean" were anything but. So I spotted an ad tonight for another "clean" Cinq and went to see it. It wasn't a Sporting so I wasn't going to bother but I'm glad I did.

It's a 1994 SX with 1 owner from new and 45,000 genuine miles on it. It is MOTed to next January and very very clean. I'm well pleased with it. It has central locking, electric windows, a sunroof, and no bloody immobiliser. I'd rather a good 94 SX than a tatty 97 Sporting any day. If I spot a good Sporting at some stage I'll buy it but they seem to be few and far between. Here he is, isn't he cute.

nice!! though theres one thing i would do to it, fit a centre console!!

I don't need a centre console.

Steven said:

I don't need a centre console.

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i knew your'd say that, but its screaming for one! lol

Does look really clean...

I remeber when i was looking for a car a couple of years ago, i phoned up about a cinq that had been described as in excellent condition. On the phone, i asked him to ellaborate, and he was like 'yeah, its in really good condition, except for the 3 fist prints in the roof, and 2 foot sized dents in the bonnet'!

I didnt go and look at it...

Steven said:

It's a 1994 SX with 1 little old lady owner from new and 45,000 genuine miles on it. It is MOTed to next January and very very clean. so i told her i think the clutch and head gasket has gone and gave her £50 for it. I'm well pleased with it.

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beau said:

i knew your'd say that, but its screaming for one! lol

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it gets in the way of dogging

Dave you git. I paid a fair price for this one.

Steven said:

It's a 1994 SX with 1 little old lady owner from new and 45,000 genuine miles on it. It is MOTed to next January and very very clean. so i told her i think the clutch and head gasket has gone and gave her £50 for it. I'm well pleased with it.

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pmsl

looks very clean, obviosuly what you wanted!

I spent a couple of hours cleaning and polishing it this morning. It cleans up like new! There are no photos of the passengers side as it's missing a wheel trim.

That looks dapper my friend. How does it compare to 999cc Pandas? Noise wise, performance wise, handling wise... I looked at a few Sportings but they were all abused and nowhere near as nice to drive as my Panda.

FuzzyPanda said:

That looks dapper my friend. How does it compare to 999cc Pandas? Noise wise, performance wise, handling wise... I looked at a few Sportings but they were all abused and nowhere near as nice to drive as my Panda.

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It's been a while since I've had a 999cc Panda, but the 899cc Cinq compares well to them and outshines the 750 by quite a margin. I find that Cinqs really show up the age of the Panda is terms of design, ergonomics, etc. They are more refined and offer a better proposition as daily transport. The performance is good, the lacks 100cc over the 999cc Panda but you would be pushed to tell. The OHV engine is tappety but they all are. Handling it is a world apart. More direct, turns in better deals with backroads, bumps and so on better. I don't think the Cinq has as much character as a Panda but SX models have more comfort with eletrics windows, central locking, a sunroof, etc. I just got sick and tired of the 750 struggling up hills, struggling on the motorway and the hammock seats... Argh! The Panda is going, I might buy a 999cc Panda at some stage if I find a good one and Jim doesn't beat me to it.

I looked at Sportings but they were all terrible. Finding a clean one with history and low mileage is almost impossible.

What's this one like structurally? It's the same age as mine... Any welding done, or needed? Where do they usually go? Thanks for the info Steve.

well, cinqs are galvanized, so they only rust in a couple of spots on the bodyshell; (some bits like bumper mountings go tho, but you just replace them

anyway, cinqs go at the bottom of the windscreen by the drain holes, and inside the rear arches, as its a mud trap

This one is sound, no rust in the rear arches or anywhere else.

must admit neither of mine had much in the way of rust.non turbo was starting on one wing however it looked like a replacement wing

thats a sweet little cinq you found there, just the kinda thing i need for my next little project.. How much it set yu back if you don't mind me asking??
Gotta admit that most of the really good nick cinqs i see are 899's usually driven by old ladies for the weekly shop or something. Only a couple of sportings around me and they are generally quitre rough, just like mine really lol. You rarely see a cinq thats rusty though..

blu73 said:

thats a sweet little cinq you found there, just the kinda thing i need for my next little project.. How much it set yu back if you don't mind me asking??
Gotta admit that most of the really good nick cinqs i see are 899's usually driven by old ladies for the weekly shop or something. Only a couple of sportings around me and they are generally quitre rough, just like mine really lol. You rarely see a cinq thats rusty though..

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Cheers. I paid £350 for this one. I was just so glad to find a good one that I didn't even haggle!

Seems to be the going price for a really straight example, i was looking at this but i just don't have the finances atm reserve was £350

Very nice find steven, knew it was only a matter of time before you got another one, looks very clean

OZ