The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
1.2 is bourgoise, decadent and overly large. OTT and far to big. Whats more the 0.9 ones are quicker, at least with the rotary economy device fitted.I was slating the Grandland for its 1.2 engine being tiny. 1.2 is optimal for a car the size of the Panda, even without a turbo
I considered the TA carefully and decided that if the 500 managed to last 50 years + in some cases in original condition a modern engine from the same maker with all that experience should be sound. The 1.6 diesel fiat engine I had in the Bravo was a masterpiece of engineering. I miss the Bravo and the combination of 70mpg at 70mph. Not a lot wrong with the Fiat engines and they make a good noise too.I’m quite pleased reading the posts of the TwinAir owners starting to rack up some serious mileage. It shows how well engineered Fiat’s engines are when they put their mind to it. In contrast to the rest of the industry, many of whom are racing lawsuits for how bad their small engines with big turbos. Ford is the most notable example with the EcoBoost and the fires
I have covered 350K at least in Fiats with not major breakdowns. My dads Fiats were also faultless.PSA in about 275K suffered 3 very costly failures. Dads 307 back in teh 70s lost a cam chain at about 50K and was wrecked by it. VW in 200K 1 breakdown but it was terminal, Renault was about 550K and to their credit no major breakdowns. Gear linkage fell off on my 12TS but at over 100K it was only a £3.50 part so not a deal breaker. Vauxhall 1 fail in 400K, Ford 1 in 200K, it didnt strand me though. Make of that what you will. The only maker that has left a foul smell and bad taste is VW and the failing turbos fitted to the 2.0TDI it was also riddled with rattles and squeaks and groans from everything. The only redeeming feature of the Golf GTD was it was a great car to drive and economical.... when it went properly. The Leon has been exellent except the engine is done now at just 135K and considering its had the best of servicing thats not great. I was begging my daughter to get shot of it asap at the weekend. But she thinks it will go a bit longer.......
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