General Fiat Panda Easy 1.2
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General Fiat Panda Easy 1.2
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Fiat - Towing Capacity & Weight Limit Information
Quickly search for the correct model and year to find the braked and unbraked towing capacity for your vehicle.
www.towingcapacity.co.uk
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A motorhome towing the car would be a better option but deffo not low cost.
The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
I have not towed with any 1.2 Panda, but met a man who had a Fabia Estate which he was towing a similar weight van with. We got chatting as I had arrived with my Panda TA and 1200 kgs of van due to a flooding disaster. Anyway he told me he had towed all over europe with a 1.2 Panda and it coped. He did add that it was slow and 40 -50mph was all you could achieve. So I think its yes. The 319 Panda 4x4 TA coped easily with far more tha it should tow. Diesel Pandas have a better towing limit. The manufacturers limits are set by the cars ability to pull up and restart on specified gradients, or so I read somewhere. I have towed 700kgs with an 845cc Renault 5. Stability ets was fine but it failed to get uo a hill onto the downs in Wiltshire and unhooking on a hill is NOT a good idea as the hand brakes do not work well in reverse. Luckily mine was properly adjusted but it was a terrifying experience. Ths was a Gobur folding van. Because the car isnt fighting wind resistance it was OK on the flat and would manage 50mph OK but not much more. I wouldnt want to go far using a 1.2 but Im now 65 and more cautious.. 30 years ago, I would have been less bothered, - wrongly.. My parents went all over europe with a light van with a Fiesta 1.1 and Fiat uno 70HP, and a number of Renault Clios so its certainly not impossible. Fuel consumption will be bad though as a small engine working pretty hard will be very thirsty. I wouldnt expect much more than 25mpg and quite possibly less.
Towing experts recommend a maximum of 85% of cars weight on tow. You need considerable towing experience to exceed this ratio, and must NEVER exceed the cars weight. You wil need to ensure you keep nose weight correct to avoid instability and this is by far the most important factor limiting what can be towed safely. If new to towing look up guidance on the caravan club web site. Its comprehensive and clear.
I hope this helps.
Towing experts recommend a maximum of 85% of cars weight on tow. You need considerable towing experience to exceed this ratio, and must NEVER exceed the cars weight. You wil need to ensure you keep nose weight correct to avoid instability and this is by far the most important factor limiting what can be towed safely. If new to towing look up guidance on the caravan club web site. Its comprehensive and clear.
I hope this helps.
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Your V5C should show the maximum permitted mass for a trailer; regardless of your towing experience, exceeding this could lead you into nasty legal complications in the event of an incident.
Nose weight, suitability of towbar, lighting/numberplate requirements all need to be complied with, but the maximum towing weight shown on the V5C is the definitive limiting factor which you can't legally exceed. If stopped for a roadside check, I'd expect that data would be available to the police in real time from your car's registration number.
My 500 shows 400kg unbraked/800kg braked. but the important numbers are the ones that apply to your specific car - there have been numerous changes to these weights over the car's production run.
No problem towing one of the small eribas and, from much more experience, one of those ‘freedom’ caravans from Poland. When we got it I noted all the keys/locks were ‘old Fiat’, probably 126 sourced.
Some of the folding caravans are quite weighty but, again from experience, get one of the ones you can do one-handed and hard topped and sided
Some of the folding caravans are quite weighty but, again from experience, get one of the ones you can do one-handed and hard topped and sided
The max weight can also be calculated from Vin plate, under the carpet in the boot
This is what vosa should use if you get pulled into a weigh station
Don’t forget to take into account braked and non braked tow weights, for yours it’s 800/400 respectively…
For reference…this is an article of lightweights, the site has other articles and practical user advice on folding camper/caravans
foldingcamperworld.com
For reference…this is an article of lightweights, the site has other articles and practical user advice on folding camper/caravans
Freedom Caravan Weights (Updated For 2021) - Folding Camper World
It’s really important to know the weight of your caravan for numerous reasons. However, the information that you need is often hard to come by. That’s why I’ve written this
foldingcamperworld.com
Although I have a little more power ((100 hp and now 170 hp) towing has never been a problem with both Panda and Abarth. My boat + trailer is under 400Kg (just), but I have towed (braked) trailers around 800 Kg (and occasionally a little over) and as long as you avoid all sudden moves (braking, swirving etc) you should be just fine.
gr J
gr J
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Trailer nose weight is extremely important but this can really sink the back suspension on a small car. That alone affects stability. Air springs would be lovely but I very much doubt there is anything available for the Panda.
Since Panda's and 500's are very short behind the rearaxle, the influence is not as big as Dave thinks. Approximately 50 Kg's works perfect. At least for me...
gr J
gr J
The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
Yes I absolutely agree. You will get fined VERY heavily if you are caught overloaded. 30 years ago my father stupidly put 1 ton on the back of his work 1 ton pickup. Then, it cost him £300 and his firn £1200 in fines.
I believe the Panda is as the 500, 400 unbraked and 800 braked apart from the diesel which is 900 braked. Interestingly I believe the Panda 100 is NOT approved for towing and with the limited sring travel in standard trim I am not in the least surprised. Its the reason I never had a towbar on my 100HP. Its the nose weight limits that are the big restriction and when loading its ESSENTIAL you pay heed. This is Pandas Achilles heel as far as towing goes as the limit is low c 45KG which is a very small amoiunt with a caraven and may well require the gas bottles to be removed from any A frame storage when towing. The question then it where on earth do you put them.
Having said there are at least two suitable caravans on the market and a few second hand ones around too. I might consider towing with the TA as its power and torque are similar to the 1600 cc cars I used to tow with years ago so certainly possible from that point of view, The limiting factor is nose weoight however as if you over load you WILL damage the car, both suspension and ppossible the body as well and getting this wrong would make the car very dangerous and liable to snake and jack knife. My experience on and off road is that the TA will pull its maximum allowable weight with the greatest of ease but the 1.2 has a lot less power and torque so would need patience and sympathetic driving. On the continent you may be OK but UK drivers would be pretty intolerant of being massivekly held up so route selection would be important to keep away from conflict.
I used the caravan clubs central London locations on several occasions. Even with a very powerful turbo diesel engine getting through heavily trafficed areas was a nightmare. The worst bit is idiots belting passed and jamming on their brakes after they have barged into your braking area. WIth a light weight car and heavy van combination this requires the right approach and there is no substitute for experience to keep things as safe as possible.
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The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
I have found that exactly as you say you can mananage with this limit and the Panda is immensley stable when towing. The diesels hae pretty well the same chassis and are rated higher at 900kgs which is plenty for a small caravan.
PANDA 1.3 diesel won its category in the 2015 towcar of the year annual awards which speaks for its self. Judges were complimetary about the stability, handling and braking.
The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
A small freedom caravan can definitely be towed by a Panda. I am on the lookout for a good one. The new prices are well more than I think its worth though. The man I spoke to back in 2019 was in a freedom van, and he rated that as good too. Big issue was low levels of insulation and resulting condensation. This is not insurmountable however.
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My Panda 100 definetely had 400/800 kg on it's registration. Difficulty was mounting a towbar as invisible as possible.
Bit the vertical detachable Westfalia worked (and still works since I am still iin contact with the new owner) like a charm.
gr J
Bit the vertical detachable Westfalia worked (and still works since I am still iin contact with the new owner) like a charm.
gr J
Yes, we have one and, after time, the foam insulation deteriorates…it’s double sided and sticks to the glassfibre body and also holds up the fabric trim.
Easy to remedy with decent, fire retardant, foam that you can get most places, but I’ve found that the sound deadening foam, which is silvered on one side, and used for underbonnets and firewalls is extremely good and not expensive, if you buy full rolls, buying small runs of pre cut slabs is expensive.
As for towing, as I’ve said before, I’ve pulled a triple axle ifor Williams trailer stacked three high with hay bales off a very wet n boggy field with the Mk2 cross diesel. It’s a very capable car but limits, on the road, are there for a reason! But the freedom caravan isn’t noticed until you get to very steep hills, and that only means dropping down a cog (that’s with our 1.2 4x4 climbing, the diesel cross never flinched, not tried it with the TA cross, yet as it’s being used as a lambing camper for their missus)
The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
Theres definitely a knack to towing with small cars and accepting the limits is the big one that you need to get over. Once you do this and feel the outfit, working with it rather than fighting it, it all becomes easier. Its good to see Porta confirming the Freedom van tows OK with a Panda.
I believe the small Eribas are also easily towed…I helped drive one off a really muddy festival site about 15/16 years ago, (a bright yellow 1.2 Irish Panda) the owner was laughing her head off as I weaved between the stuck vans and even a few big 4x4s (with stupidly wide low profile tyres). I then did the same with my pink camo iveco daily, it’s secret weapon was a limited slip diff
