General Advice on buying a Panda TwinAir Cross

[Eltezz]

This one would be just peachy - if I had another £1K. Unfortunately I don’t. I haven’t quite got the cheek to ask if he would accept £7K for it but I somehow think not given the rarity of them. Thanks for looking!

 

[icheatatscrabble]

This one would be just peachy - if I had another £1K. Unfortunately I don’t. I haven’t quite got the cheek to ask if he would accept £7K for it but I somehow think not given the rarity of them. Thanks for looking!

@Eltezz I checked out the car on totalcarcheck earlier and the car was advertised for £7k 2 years ago. So I am sure he knocked at least a couple of hundred off of the price? He might be up for a deal??? What you got to lose?

 

[Eltezz]

Good point. In that case I will send him a message and put the question to him. If I know he is willing to come down to my available funds then it would be worth the 400 mile round trip.

Thanks for the tip, appreciated.

 

[icheatatscrabble]

Good point. In that case I will send him a message and put the question to him. If I know he is willing to come down to my available funds then it would be worth the 400 mile round trip.

Thanks for the tip, appreciated.

Good luck and i hope you can do a deal.

 

[Marcus Daly]

My tuppence worth: the fact is, all the engine choices for the Panda involve a compromise:

1.2 — later ones lashed up with all sorts of eco gubbins which add complexity and impair performance
TA — fragile and fussy; needs a rigorous service history, right down to the brand of oil used
Fake hybrid — absolutely dismal to drive any further afield than around town
Diseasel — it's a diseasel

With that in mind, I reckon you might as well just gamble on a TA. Suits the personality of the car better than any of the others and is the only one that's an absolute hoot to drive.

 

[jrkitching]

My tuppence worth: the fact is, all the engine choices for the Panda involve a compromise:

I'd agree.

Question is, what are the realistic options from other manufacturers if you've set your heart on a 4x4?

The last cheap to buy, cheap to run Fiat was probably the 1.2 169 Panda, and they're all getting long in the tooth now.

There's a huge gap in the new car market right now for a basic, economical petrol car.

What do you reckon is the closest new car you can get to replace an ageing 169? I'm going to have to bite the bullet and find something soon, possibly even this year. Probably best to start a new thread.

 

[Marcus Daly]

What do you reckon is the closest new car you can get to replace an ageing 169? I'm going to have to bite the bullet and find something soon, possibly even this year. Probably best to start a new thread.

MG3.

 

[Twotone2]

@Eltezz What about this one on eBay:

PANDA 4X4 CROSS-RARE (Euro 5 DIESEL) | eBay

Fiat Panda 4x4 Cross: Great Condition - Full Service History. The 4x4 system is fully automatic (It'll run in 2wd until it senses wheel slip and then it engages the rear drive at the diff. - Upgraded Night breaker headlight bulbs. ).

www.ebay.co.uk

Looks nice. A bit of journey for me if I was looking at it, but you're a bit closer.

Looks a great car OP bit pricey though considering the age of it, I'd buy it though if I was in the market for one.

We've a 23 TA 4X4 great car if a bit uneconomical re milage and a bit industrial re the engine noise which I love but a very versatile car, we love it.

 

[Eltezz]

A very big thank you to all who have guided me so far. I am now a fully fledged pPanda owner. To @icheatatscrabble the guy very politely told me "no", he would not sell for 7K.

I then went to see the white 4x4 on ebay and have purchased it. Very happy as it has FSH, bodywork is immaculate, just been serviced and had new discs and pads all round. The engine has to be the quietest diesel I have ever heard and super smooth as well. Runs a treat. The only issues are it has a split in the drivers seat and the gearchange is a bit woolly. I will need to research my options for the seat but will see if I can get the cover replaced with a genuine one - not sure how easy that will be to fit yet. The gear linkage I will have to look at and see if any parts need replacing/adjusting.

Cheers everybody!

 

[Bonefish Blues]

A very big thank you to all who have guided me so far. I am now a fully fledged pPanda owner. To @icheatatscrabble the guy very politely told me "no", he would not sell for 7K.

I then went to see the white 4x4 on ebay and have purchased it. Very happy as it has FSH, bodywork is immaculate, just been serviced and had new discs and pads all round. The engine has to be the quietest diesel I have ever heard and super smooth as well. Runs a treat. The only issues are it has a split in the drivers seat and the gearchange is a bit woolly. I will need to research my options for the seat but will see if I can get the cover replaced with a genuine one - not sure how easy that will be to fit yet. The gear linkage I will have to look at and see if any parts need replacing/adjusting.

Cheers everybody!

Cover is easy fix, as I linked. The gearchange is similarly easy - @Herts Hillhopper posted a 'how to' guide - needs stripping down as it's exposed to the elements and gets gunked up/corroded

 

[icheatatscrabble]

A very big thank you to all who have guided me so far. I am now a fully fledged pPanda owner. To @icheatatscrabble the guy very politely told me "no", he would not sell for 7K.

I then went to see the white 4x4 on ebay and have purchased it. Very happy as it has FSH, bodywork is immaculate, just been serviced and had new discs and pads all round. The engine has to be the quietest diesel I have ever heard and super smooth as well. Runs a treat. The only issues are it has a split in the drivers seat and the gearchange is a bit woolly. I will need to research my options for the seat but will see if I can get the cover replaced with a genuine one - not sure how easy that will be to fit yet. The gear linkage I will have to look at and see if any parts need replacing/adjusting.

Cheers everybody!

Obviously trying to claw back what he's spent on it (rear diff oil leak etc)? Do you have the link for the Panda you went for? Good to hear that you've found something.

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Obviously trying to claw back what he's spent on it (rear diff oil leak etc)? Do you have the link for the Panda you went for? Good to hear that you've found something.

OP linked on post 34

 

[Eltezz]

Here you go:

Panda 4x4

@Bonefish Blues I will contact this upholsterer fellow as I am up the road near Daventry so nice and local to me. Fancy a bit O'Leather meself...

 

[boozyjay]

Looks nice. Got the winter pack too.

 

[The Panda Nut]

Hello and a very warm welcome to you.

If I could award a prize for the most helpful first post anyone's made to the forum this year, I'd award it to you. Thanks for joining to contribute this - and please stick around.

When I first saw the ad, I thought it was an excellent example of the kind of car someone with limited funds looking for a cheap to run car should avoid.

Seems to me the previous owner of the car extracted most of the useful value from it, saw some big bills coming and traded it away.

You can. New feature added recently.