Technical Panda 4 x 4

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Technical Panda 4 x 4

elfenbein

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Doing a test drive this week and if I decide to buy the 85 HP 0.9 Twin Air petrol suits my current motoring requirements best. However have been concerned that many folk have slagged off this engine. Would like to know why and if it is deserved, any folk out there got personal experience of this engine?

Also read about Stop/Start facility, what the heck is that please.

Have to say she who must be obeyed is urging me to part with my 22 year old Peugeot 309 diesel (still a lovely motor, well the engine is, bodywork seen better days) to get something she can drive in the snow etc, so I am not too used to all these fancy new gizmos.

Many thanks for any input to help me along the stressful path of new car purchase.

Regards, Frank.
 
Not heard too much slagging off of the twin air?
There are a very few people who can't get used to the way it drives, but mostly everyone who drives one loves it.

Personally I think it's the best thing about the cars.
I've just part ex'd my 500 twin air for a twin air panda 4x4.
The motors have been very reliable with the only problems being adressed with recalls.

The only bad press they get are the mpg figures. Fiat publish amazing figures which are attainable by driving impossibly carefully.
Most people don't so only get 2/3 of published figures.

The multijet is a good option, and will be more economical but is not a lot of fun imo compared to twin air.


Stop/start is a system to reduce emissions by switching off the engine when you stop the car at traffic lights for instance. It instantly restarts as soon as you press the clutch to move away.

Check out the other 4x4 thread for loads of info, and another good place to look is the 500 section where the twin air has been available since 2011.
 
Doing a test drive this week and if I decide to buy the 85 HP 0.9 Twin Air petrol suits my current motoring requirements best.
Regards, Frank.

Hi Frank,

... what are you motoring requirements?

As an aside, my wife gets a company fuel card for her diesel audi, and if I chose to run diesel, I could have used that for some free fuel in the panda. I did not choose the multijet. The twinair has so much more character, the thrum of the engine puts a smile on your face when you drive it (if you are sad like me and think cars are like people with character..).
 
Having read blogs and discussed with folks owning the 500 twinair, this engine's consumption is on the high side compared to its size hence didnt even bother looking at it when I purchased my 4x4. Diesel ofcourse. Current consupmtion figures are at 5,4litres per 100Km which is even less comparing the one litre cost of diesel and one litre cost of petrol (at least here in greece the difference is about 0,3 cents of euros). Torquewise again, 19,4kgm is like having a 2 litre petrol engine under your bonet. Very smooth and torquey! The only drawback is the low transmission since you can only drive on highways with 130-140km/h.
 
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I had a decent test run in a TA 4x4 recently - see separate thread - and thought the engine was great - decently torquey, pleasing character, not great at the top end. I guess you'd save just under two pence per mile on fuel with a diesel, somewhat eroded by higher front tyre wear , so you'd get the 1000 quid premium back in, say, 60,000 miles. I have to say the TA felt fine on dual carriageways and I'd cheerfully set out a ross Europe in one but I'm not so sure about the MJ.
 
Well here in Greece the difference in price is about euros 1200 between the diesel and the TA. Having done the maths (the TA must have at least 7-7,5litres per 100km consumption against 5-5,5 for the diesel). Cost per 1000km for the TA is about 127 euros and 77 euros for the diesel (cost per litre in Greece is 1,7 for petrol and 1,4 for diesel). In this respect, in 24000km, the difference in price is covered in full (ie average in 1,5 year). Assume the difference in litre cost is minimum in the UK hence you need 60.000 miles to cover the extra cost. In Greece it makes much more sense.
 
Well here in Greece the difference in price is about euros 1200 between the diesel and the TA. Having done the maths (the TA must have at least 7-7,5litres per 100km consumption against 5-5,5 for the diesel). Cost per 1000km for the TA is about 127 euros and 77 euros for the diesel (cost per litre in Greece is 1,7 for petrol and 1,4 for diesel). In this respect, in 24000km, the difference in price is covered in full (ie average in 1,5 year). Assume the difference in litre cost is minimum in the UK hence you need 60.000 miles to cover the extra cost. In Greece it makes much more sense.

Yes - petrol is 134 pence per litre and diesel is 143 pence here in Devon, so the diesel's advantage is eroded; then the difference in (list) price is 1000 pounds, so the arithmetic is pretty different.

Also the 4x4 MJ has a rather short sixth gear for a diesel, making main road/motorway running a bit of a chore/bore, whereas the TA 4x4 has exactly the same sixth gear mph/1000 revs as the 100HP, and the engine's a lot less busy-sounding than the 1.4, so the TA 4x4 felt quite relaxed at 80 mph.
 
Actually the Diesel one has 5mt gearbox and not 6 as the TA. Seems Fiat wants to give the TA an extra push hence giving it the advantage of the extra gear! If diesel and petrol price per litre was not so grave in greece, maybe I should have gone for the TA as well.
 
I was forgetting that the "crawler" first gear - which is actually a little high-geared for that purpose - is only in the TA.
 
If diesel were cheaper in the UK the same as in mainland Europe, I would have chosen it. As mentioned already, higher front tyre wear and more expensive road tax erode the savings in fuel consumption.
I'm unsure if the multi-jet costs more in maintenance too?

Some reviews I've read say the multijet is the one for off roading as its low down torque is better in slow going.
How many of us are going to put a brand new car through those kind of trials though?
 
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