General New Panda 4x4, off road

[panda4ted]

I'm thinking of buying a New Panda 4x4 to replace my Classic one and would like to see some _member's_ photos/videos of them being used 'off road'.
Are they as good as the old (classic) ones off road ? Your experiences/advice, please.

 

[Schwenck]

I'm thinking of buying a New Panda 4x4 to replace my Classic one and would like to see some _member's_ photos/videos of them being used 'off road'.
Are they as good as the old (classic) ones off road ? Your experiences/advice, please.

Quite a lot of videos on YouTube, although quite a few of them are Panda Crosses admittedly...

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Go onto youtube and search for the video of fifth gear vs the new Panda 4x4 against a bigger £55,000 4x4 in a quarry. Panda won hands down even though it had to do one thing twice.

Jon.

 

[charlied]

Go onto youtube and search for the video of fifth gear vs the new Panda 4x4 against a bigger £55,000 4x4 in a quarry. Panda won hands down even though it had to do one thing twice.

Jon.

Even though the whole thing was engineered in the Pandas favour.

If you venture off road in a modern Panda you will wreck it. They rattle to pieces on ordinary tarmac and with all the electrics dont even think of getting it wet.

 

[ScoobyChris]

Go onto youtube and search for the video of fifth gear vs the new Panda 4x4 against a bigger £55,000 4x4 in a quarry. Panda won hands down even though it had to do one thing twice.

Here's the video....



Almost as good as the Panda 100 vs the Ferrari 360

Chris

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Even though the whole thing was engineered in the Pandas favour.

If you venture off road in a modern Panda you will wreck it. They rattle to pieces on ordinary tarmac and with all the electrics dont even think of getting it wet.

Ye of little faith

 

[doctorchris]

Here's mine when I took it off road in 2005 just after I bought it.
Since then I've given it even more punishment, e.g. ditching it in Wales and having it lifted vertically by its front towing eye and various adventures in the snow.
It's a pretty unbreakable car but of course does not have the ground clearance of, say, a Landie so has its limitations.

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Here's mine when I took it off road in 2005 just after I bought it.
Since then I've given it even more punishment, e.g. ditching it in Wales and having it lifted vertically by its front towing eye and various adventures in the snow.
It's a pretty unbreakable car but of course does not have the ground clearance of, say, a Landie so has its limitations.

Cool pic's. What does the plate stand for?

 

[doctorchris]

Plate's a bit boring really, just my initials. Had it for 11 years and has been a Ford Maverick and Nissan Terrano 2 prior to the Panda.

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Plate's a bit boring really, just my initials. Had it for 11 years and has been a Ford Maverick and Nissan Terrano 2 prior to the Panda.

Lol. I thought the B18 was suppost to mean somthing aswell, I've got personalised plates on the mind because I'm thinking of getting one

 

[panda4ted]

Here's mine when I took it off road in 2005 just after I bought it.
Since then I've given it even more punishment, e.g. ditching it in Wales and having it lifted vertically by its front towing eye and various adventures in the snow.
It's a pretty unbreakable car but of course does not have the ground clearance of, say, a Landie so has its limitations.

Excellent - this is what I'm looking for, not the commercial stuff.
If only I could get my hands on one at a local dealer - they do not seem to be interested, saying that they are all down in Bristol docks, no bloody use to me as I want to, at least, sit in one before I decide to buy !!
What are they like for towing (our folding camper for instance) ? Also can one buy a cheaper tow bar for them than Fiat's own (at about 300 quid) ?

 

[panda4ted]

Even though the whole thing was engineered in the Pandas favour.

If you venture off road in a modern Panda you will wreck it. They rattle to pieces on ordinary tarmac and with all the electrics dont even think of getting it wet.

Now I'm confused, but more opinions like this will help me decide.
You mention the electrics, could that be why the towbar is so expensive to fit ?

 

[panda4ted]

Lol. I thought the B18 was suppost to mean somthing aswell, I've got personalised plates on the mind because I'm thinking of getting one

Anyone got a plate with 'TED' or 'TEG' in it going cheap ?

 

[Andy Monty]

Excellent - this is what I'm looking for, not the commercial stuff.
If only I could get my hands on one at a local dealer - they do not seem to be interested, saying that they are all down in Bristol docks, no bloody use to me as I want to, at least, sit in one before I decide to buy !!
What are they like for towing (our folding camper for instance) ? Also can one buy a cheaper tow bar for them than Fiat's own (at about 300 quid) ?

what size folding camper are you planning on towing if its a 1.2 4x4 your looking at it'll struggle towing a laden conway challenger (my 1.2 Grande Punto does)

you can get towbars form a few different suppliers and IMMSMC the panda has a plug in wiring harness search it it has been covered on here before i seem to remember..


as for the cost its more down to the price of the towbar units themselves now they have to be EEC citified and certificated the wiring should be the easy bit..


edit found the link to the panda wiring

https://www.fiatforum.com/panda-new/131360-panda-towbar-electrics.html

and a diagram to the kit in post 7

http://www.fittinginstructions.co.uk/plugin/FI-001-BE.pdf

 

[james_f]

Hi

I have recently purchased a Panda 4x4 and had a tow bar fitted by the local dealer.

A single plug tow bar = £180, so no doubt it can be done a bit cheaper.

i also bought a set of the cheap (£50) roof bars (transverse). these will be good for longer loads, but take them off for day to day as a) they reduce mpg, and b) they are VERY NOISY!

One of my reasons for choosing a Panda 4x4 was that the lower ratio'd gearbox means you should be able to tow, up to 800kg, easily without having to burn the clutch out starting off. Not actually done it yet as I have yet to acquire the trailer, but I am confident of its abilities to tow up to the limit as stated. (Also it avoided me having to have an Astravan, which I wasn't keen on).

Also, I have tried it out off road, and agree with the positive comments above. I have driven Landies for years, and I have to say although not as capable as those off road, it is surprising how far one can go off road before becoming stuck! It is more than adequate for getting in / out of grassy camp-sites / fields.

The biggest improvement you will make will be to fit decent M&S tyres as the supplied one (mine are Bridgestone Dueller) aren't much cop. When I have worn mine out, I will be replacing with Vredestein Quatrac2's - hopefully by this winter!

Good luck in finding one - there are some out there nearly new, and why pay for a new one when one with c.7000 miles can be yours for not much dosh?!

 

[stephenbeetleman]

Hi All,
Good to see you lot are all enjoying your panda 4x4s off road aswell as on..love the pics. I'm patiently waiting till August September time to buy the 4X4 in the 1.3 multijet when its released in the uk. They are a great wee car from what ive seen so far in the petrol offerings so i could expect no less from the diesel version. Aswell the diesel is sure to have better economy and more torque for towing a trailer. It probably would still struggle though if given a big enough caravan to tow behind. Sure it doesnt have the off road capabilities that a Landie does but then again it doesnt have the running costs either.:slayer:... which is what owners love about the 4x4. Good luck with your decision and if the positive reaction on here to the new panda is anything to go by i'l be seeing your pics of your new purchase shortly!

 

[Jai]

some clubs thrive on off roading their pandas...old and new:

https://www.fiatforum.com/panda-new/122473-portuguese-panda-club-their-last-informal-meeting.html

 

[panda4ted]

Many thanx for your replies.
I've just compared mine side by side to an ordinary Panda and found that the new one does not have as much boot space as mine and appears generaly smaller. So I do not think it will be any good for taking us plus 3 dogs (JRT's) plus 2 weeks luggage and towing our loaded Commanche Montana folding camper !
So, now I have a dilemma - do I stick to my trusty old Classic Panda 4x4, which has never let me down, or what ?
My wife likes the Nissan Note, Ford Fusion and VW Polo, but as they are only 2 wheel drive, will I get stuck on wet grassy campsites ? - or could I have M&S tyres fitted ?
Your suggestions most welcome.

 

[Most Easterly Pandas]

Many thanx for your replies.
I've just compared mine side by side to an ordinary Panda and found that the new one does not have as much boot space as mine and appears generaly smaller. So I do not think it will be any good for taking us plus 3 dogs (JRT's) plus 2 weeks luggage and towing our loaded Commanche Montana folding camper !
So, now I have a dilemma - do I stick to my trusty old Classic Panda 4x4, which has never let me down, or what ?
My wife likes the Nissan Note, Ford Fusion and VW Polo, but as they are only 2 wheel drive, will I get stuck on wet grassy campsites ? - or could I have M&S tyres fitted ?
Your suggestions most welcome.

VW Polo = Nice, but costly to buy and maintain when goes wrong
Ford = Good prices new, but can be very problematic (so we've found with 5!)
Nissan Note = Not Jap crap, Nissan are very good but been hearing about engine noise from the Note when cold which Nissan keep denying and I don't think there's a fix for it yet, But be wrong about no fix though.

At the end of the day the choice is your, but if there is nothing wrong with your classic Panda I'd keep it.

Jon.

 

[an-drewm]

Go onto youtube and search for the video of fifth gear vs the new Panda 4x4 against a bigger £55,000 4x4 in a quarry. Panda won hands down even though it had to do one thing twice.

Jon.

Which Fifth Gear did you watch? The Range Rover won but then you would expect it to at 5 time the price.

We are trying to buy a house in the middle of a field and if we get it i'll be after a 4x4 as there is only a grass/mud track to get to it. Would love an MJ 4x4 but love my dualogic too.