General Is this a good deal???

[boots432]

Looking at getting a fiat panda twin air 4x4, but the one I'm looking at is £2750 2013, 126000miles.

1 key, 0 service histor, good mot history.

Took it for a test drive love the sound of the twin air!
Only things to note is the clutch peddle.
About an inch of slop at the top, and is extremely soft/light. With my cold feet I couldn't feel the peddle. Bite was ok tho.
Don't know if that's normal for these cars or could be adjusted?

 

[vexorg]

I'm not sure there are any genuine good deals out there right now.
What spec is it, I'd grudge that money on a basic trim level.

 

[boots432]

I'm not sure there are any genuine good deals out there right now.
What spec is it, I'd grudge that money on a basic trim level.

Not sure, had Bluetooth, ac, not sure of heated seats

 

[jrkitching]

I'm not sure there are any genuine good deals out there right now.

There are a few, but this isn't one of them. It looks to me like an overpriced piece of worn out junk.

This thread puts it into perspective.

 

[boots432]

There are a few, but this isn't one of them. It looks to me like an overpriced piece of worn out junk.

This thread puts it into perspective.

So too much you say?

 

[jrkitching]

So too much you say?

About £1750 too much!

And the one that Paul sold was a one owner 4x4 TA; it looked to me like a much better proposition than the one you're considering here.

 

[boots432]

There are a few, but this isn't one of them. It looks to me like an overpriced piece of worn out junk.

This thread puts it into perspective.

Yeah i was soo sad that it had sold, i joined yesterday. I would of jumped in my car and drove the 4 hours to get it.

 

[boots432]

About £1750 too much!

And the one that Paul sold was a one owner 4x4 TA; it looked to me like a much better proposition than the one you're considering here.

also heres the ebay link, Its listed on local facebook too

fiat panda 4x4 2013 twinair 0.9 petrol 6 speed manual | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for fiat panda 4x4 2013 twinair 0.9 petrol 6 speed manual at the best online prices at eBay! Free delivery for many products.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[boots432]

About £1750 too much!

And the one that Paul sold was a one owner 4x4 TA; it looked to me like a much better proposition than the one you're considering here.

The owner reached out to me, and is offering £2550.

Also is the clutch peddle ment to be verry soft? On the twin airs?

 

[jrkitching]

The owner reached out to me, and is offering £2550.

Personally I don't think it's worth anywhere near that.

And seemingly the rest of the world doesn't think so, either. It was on ebay for over a week at £2500, and didn't attract a single bid.

 

[Panda IIs]

Looking at getting a fiat panda twin air 4x4, but the one I'm looking at is £2750 2013, 126000miles.

1 key, 0 service histor, good mot history.

Took it for a test drive love the sound of the twin air!
Only things to note is the clutch peddle.
About an inch of slop at the top, and is extremely soft/light. With my cold feet I couldn't feel the peddle. Bite was ok tho.
Don't know if that's normal for these cars or could be adjusted?

Others have passed judgement on this without seeing the car. I'll just offer my own experience. I've a 2013 TA 4x4 on 85k miles. The key thing has the potential to be expensive if you want another remote version, I believe that originally they were sold with one remote fob and a regular key-in-the door type (non-remote) others can correct me here. Anyways having done my research FIAT wanted £250 upwards to provide new fob, cut key and programme body control module (BCM), I found an auto electrician with all the necessary gear about 150 miles away, I found that your regular guy operating out the back of the van couldn't do the programming bit so this was and still maybe a bit specialist. They were significantly cheaper than FIAT however and I learned a lot!

My TA had 50k on the clock when I brought it - without any history. The clutch bite was quite near the floor and I guess it may have had some "slop" at the top. It was irrelevant however since the dual mass flywheel (DMF) failed - vibration through the gear stick in 2nd and 3rd seemed to be a symptom, and therefore the clutch got done. I don't believe there is any scope for adjustment. The lack of history is more concerning since experience suggests that the UniAir module is vulnerable to oil grade and state. Again mine failed soon after I bought the car (it was 4 years old then) and required replacement (FIAT did give a miserly discount as I complained that it was a premature failure). Once all that was sorted the car has been as good as gold.

The (apparent) bargain cited above was on the face of it just that and gives me some confidence that the TA engine is good for high miles with the correct care and maintenance. I paid below the typical forecourt value for mine on the basis of all the unknowns (from a main dealer). Despite the initial failures I am more than happy with it and it will follow the route of all my cars - run them until they really are no-longer financially viable. The one you have identified seems so-so in terms of cost, again I think the one that was cited above was an outlier and the owner just wanted to move it on to a fellow FIAT fan. Sadly £2750 doesn't seem outrageous in todays market for a 2013 car (I'm researching early 2000's LHD cars for another project and they aren't far off this!) To dismiss this one as junk sight unseen seems, well, I just don't think we have enough information to do that.

You do mention a good MOT history and studying whether advisories keep recurring will give some insight as to how much love the car has seen. Good luck in your quest!

 

[jackwhoo]

I read the ebay advert ....... states private sale but lots of their feedback is for cars sold? They are dealers avoiding any responsibility by masquerading as private sellers.

It is clear from the ad that they don't want to spend a penny more on the car other than to get it sold.

One key only, that says a lot about previous owners/dealers not caring about this car.


It is not a good deal.

It is potentially a very bad deal.

 

[jrkitching]

Others have passed judgement on this without seeing the car.

Sometimes you just need to read between the lines. There are too many red flags here.

Although you can miss out on a potentially good car by being over cautious, I'd say that's better than ending up saddled with all the problems and hassle of a bad one.

It is not a good deal.

It is potentially a very bad deal.

I'd agree. Personally I wouldn't buy this one even if it were £1000.

They are dealers avoiding any responsibility by masquerading as private sellers.

That's clear from the seller's ebay history.

And if you're looking to buy a lower priced car because you need or want cheap motoring, a 4x4 TA Panda isn't a good choice.

 

[Panda IIs]

Sometimes you just need to read between the lines. There are too many red flags here.

Although you can miss out on a potentially good car by being over cautious, I'd say that's better than ending up saddled with all the problems and hassle of a bad one.

I'd agree. Personally I wouldn't buy this one even if it were £1000.

That's clear from the seller's ebay history.

And if you're looking to buy a lower priced car because you need or want cheap motoring, a 4x4 TA Panda isn't a good choice.

Maybe some apologies due here; I spent sometime reprising my own experiences during which the OP shared the ebay link so I posted my comments without that additional detail.

Did anyone click on "see my other items"? You'll find a red 2013 4x4 TA there for breaking... There are also various Kia bits there (feedback talks of Kia) so maybe this Panda is just being flipped with some parts from the red one?

Still not reading anything into this but I'd be interested to know if the replacement exhaust was new... I believe 4x4 models are hard to find (I haven't had to go there yet).

 

[jrkitching]

My TA had 50k on the clock when I brought it - without any history. The clutch bite was quite near the floor and I guess it may have had some "slop" at the top. It was irrelevant however since the dual mass flywheel (DMF) failed - vibration through the gear stick in 2nd and 3rd seemed to be a symptom, and therefore the clutch got done. I don't believe there is any scope for adjustment. The lack of history is more concerning since experience suggests that the UniAir module is vulnerable to oil grade and state. Again mine failed soon after I bought the car (it was 4 years old then) and required replacement (FIAT did give a miserly discount as I complained that it was a premature failure). Once all that was sorted the car has been as good as gold.

Unless you can do all the work yourself, replacing the clutch, DMF & uniair module could easily cost you north of £3000 today.

It worked for you because the car was only 4 yrs old when you did this; you have another 10+ yrs to get back the value of what you spent on these repairs.

If you buy one that's already 10+ yrs old, that's not going to happen.

 

[The Panda Nut]

The owner reached out to me, and is offering £2550.

Also is the clutch peddle ment to be verry soft? On the twin airs?

My TA is 2019 with 18K miles. The top inch of pedal is as you describe then it firms up.