General Rear Beam given up.

[Louie Bee]

My beloved MJ panda went for the tucked look on the way to work on Monday. Heard a rather loud bang when exiting a roundabout having not hit anything… then a massive trail of black smoke started following me…



Think I’ll be selling as spares or repairs as it’s not a job for me this time.

 

[Louie Bee]

Back home after a ride on a recovery truck...

 

[koalar]

Sad news indead

 

[portland_bill]

It only needs a new rear beam, and perhaps a tyre, not too difficult, although the rear hub mounting bolts can fight well.
If you are unable to do it yourself, or afford the cost at a garage, it will make a cheap project for someone. Perhaps advertise it on this forum, someone nearby might appreciate it.

 

[koalar]

It only needs a new rear beam, and perhaps a tyre, not too difficult, although the rear hub mounting bolts can fight well.
If you are unable to do it yourself, or afford the cost at a garage, it will make a cheap project for someone. Perhaps advertise it on this forum, someone nearby might appreciate it.

I did think that, it does depend on the rest of the car

I believe it's 2005 so likely the sills will need doing soon

 

[Louie Bee]

It only needs a new rear beam, and perhaps a tyre, not too difficult, although the rear hub mounting bolts can fight well.
If you are unable to do it yourself, or afford the cost at a garage, it will make a cheap project for someone. Perhaps advertise it on this forum, someone nearby might appreciate it.

Yes I think I will advatise it on FF... just like i did with my Panda Sporting.

Price of cars is mad at the moment!! not sure how much to ask for a project car. MOT'd until Auguts

Will need a rear beam, 1 tyre (other 3 are decent Avons) EGR needs freeing off as it chucks up an error code now ang again.

 

[09 johno]

New Fiat Panda axle Drum Version 03-11

Brand new fiat panda axle replacement.

www.imaxle.co.uk

 

[jrkitching]

These aftermarket beams have saved a lot of Pandas that would otherwise have been scrapped.

 

[DaveMcT]

It's unusual for a twist beam to break and only one wheel to be hanging off. It might be the actual wheel spindle e.g. bolts or the central retaining nut.

 

[Louie Bee]

Not the best pics but spring cup looks out of place. Think the rusted bit is forward of that. Will try and get better pics later.

I won't be fixing this panda. Already have a panda twinair which I'm trying to get used to but struggling with the comfort level. The seats are naff

 

[The Panda Nut]

Sorry about your problems. New axles are available for c. £150 so it might be worth repairing. Certainly worth something to someone with spanner.

Seats seem to vary car to car. Ride seems to get harder as the dampers age so that might be worth checking.

 

[koalar]

Sorry about your problems. New axles are available for c. £150 so it might be worth repairing. Certainly worth something to someone with spanner.

Correct

Seats seem to vary car to car. Ride seems to get harder as the dampers age so that might be worth checking.

Correct


Ride and handling have evolved over time

I prefer the original 155/80 and softer springs of the earlier cars


The original seats upto 2012 were rubbish

I haven't tried the later seats.

 

[Louie Bee]

Some snaps...

 

[DaveMcT]

It’s worth getting repaired because 169 Panda is still very popular. The new axle will make it an easier sale.

 

[Louie Bee]

Thanks @DaveMcT

I know I'll kick myself one day but got my hands full with the next orange panda - a Twinair.

Just don't have the time to get it done. Will list it on ff classifieds probably tomorrow after a quick hoover. Maybe tonight without interior pics.

It will be a good project for someone. It's been a really good car for me.

 

[jrkitching]

It’s worth getting repaired because 169 Panda is still very popular.

There's a big difference between whether the car is worth repairing, and whether repairing it is the right thing for the OP to do. The first depends on the condition of the rest of the car; the second is more about the OP's personal circumstances and their appetite for taking this sort of job on. Someone who enjoys this sort of thing might see it as a pleasure; others might see it as an exercise in self-inflicted torture.

With the caveat that I haven't inspected the rest of the car, I'd agree it looks like a straightforward repair; certainly much easier than the engine rebuild you've taken on. But for someone who wouldn't enjoy the work and can comfortably afford to replace it with something newer and better, I can understand that passing it on may be the best option.

Paying someone else to repair it and selling it on would be a considerable hassle and could easily leave you out of pocket. Passing it on cheaply to someone in different circumstances looks to me like a win for both parties.

All that said, when you've got your own project back on the road, your sense of accomplishment will be beyond price, and you will almost certainly have saved a car from being scrapped. And we're all enjoying reading about your progress in the other thread.

 

[koalar]

Well said @jrkitching

Down time, waiting for parts, EGR, exhaust has lost its outer skin

@Louie Bee has already said they don't have the spare time

Space, not everyone has a drive

Equipment, not everyone has. Blow torches, axle stands and so on

Health, not everyone can crawl under the car

Money already spent, or needs to be spent, such as chain, turbo rebuild

Such a lot of personal decisions go into these thing


I scraped two petrol Pandas purely on the road fund licence.

 

[DaveMcT]

I fully agree with every comment about everyone's personal likes and circumstances. However, the rear axle job, while it looks big, is actually not a hard one. Obviously you'll need tools (and time), making it impossible for someone who never does such things or simply cannot devote the time.

I hope the OP gets a fair price for the car and I hope the buyer gets a good car for minimal effort..

 

[Louie Bee]

Well said @jrkitching

Down time, waiting for parts, EGR, exhaust has lost its outer skin

I think the previous panda I had lost it's outer skin soon after I got it and was OK for another 120K miles

 

[DaveMcT]

The biggest headache fitting EGR was getting that nasty hinged clamp to fit the flared hot pipe. It’s like a tiny version of the horrors we used to have on British car exhausts. It’s really hard to keep the pipe ends aligned while doing up the bolt.

This was with the engine OUT OF THE CAR. I can’t imagine the struggle underneath the inlet manifold.

My solution would be to block the exhaust gas supply either at exhaust manifold or at the large diameter flange on side of EGR. That will throw up error codes. But there are solutions for that but you can buy kits purposely drilled for the job.