General What did you do with your Panda today?

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

I checked my 2016 1.2 Panda over ahead of it's MOT and found the exhaust was blowing where the cat joins the middle section. The gasket had failed so I got another one off eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/392988420431

The old nuts were blobs of rust so I hammered some of the loose stuff off then hit them with a blowtorch and some Plus Gas before hammering on a twist socket (https://amzn.to/3ClEuwi) and they came off easily.

The lower stud was too far gone to reuse so I had to cut it off, drill a hole and use a new bolt. I used plenty of exhaust assembly paste on both sides of the gasket, tightened it all up and it's not blowing now.

Very similar story with my boy's 2012 Punto 1.4 Easy. The nuts were so severely corroded they had to be destroyed to remove. I'd actually rather they just used a nut and bolt here. Then you could use a grinder to grind the head off which would leave you with a hole to put the new bolt through on reassembly.

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Oh how your post makes us yearn for the Italian Lakes ferraricheals! Some of the most beautiful places we've been in this world of ours.

 

[ferraricheals]

Very interesting to hear your experience of the Avons. I follow minority motor sporting events with Speed Hillclimbs being a major interest. Avon racing tyres are a popular choice with many of the "serious" competitors and I've been meaning to try a set of their road tyres for some time now. So, the other day, when I had a puncture on a well worn tyre on my Ibiza, I decided to try the ZT7. When I contacted the chap I use for tyres he said he'd be pleased to supply but he wouldn't particularly recommend them as he'd noticed a few which he'd changed recently had problems with cracking at the base of the tread grooves. In fact this cracking problem is present on all 4 of the 5+ year old (original equipment) Bridgestones at present on the car and is exactly why I'm thinking of renewing them all (They have about 3.5mm still on them after doing nearly 25,000 miles and the rubber is now "hard" and doesn't grip so well in the wet).

I tend not to buy "premium" branded tyres but do go for a good "mid range" product. So, after a lot of reading of reviews - car running around on it's full size spare - and asking friends at local independent tyre suppliers, I decided to go with Falkens. Sincera SN 110 to be exact. https://www.falkentyre.com/en/tyres/car-tyres/product-detail/169291 Their publicity stuff seems to particularly claim good wet grip and this seems to be supported by several independent comparison review videos I've watched on you tube which also praised their overall performance. I'm impressed also that they supply tyres to the "drifting" community and "drifting", not a sport which particularly interests me, "punishes" tyres something rotten! If they survive that I think they'll survive anything I might do to them. I suppose that if they are slanted towards providing good wet grip it might imply that their tread rubber is somewhat on the soft side so expecting them to last for ultra high mileages may not be realistic? However that'll suit me fine as I no longer do high annual mileage so tyres "dying" due to old age and rubber degradation is much more likely than that I'll ever actually wear them out. It'll be interesting to see how they do.

I had two sets of Falkens on the pre-Cross vehicle, a 2010 Musa Series 2. Ziex ZE914 Ecorun summers & Eurowinter HS449 winters, put the summers on when we bought it in 2015 @ 63,000 km and added the winters in 2017 for a November trip to Modena. Very impressed with both sets, recommend Falken (also had a set on a company Vectra back in the mid-1990's, also a great run).

Having said that, we fitted Conti All Season Contacts to the Cross at 35km, these are also an extremely valid option.

 

[ferraricheals]

Oh how your post makes us yearn for the Italian Lakes ferraricheals! Some of the most beautiful places we've been in this world of ours.

Very true, and this one is only 1.5 hr drive (with added attraction of the extensive Italian Airforce Museum)!

Makes a great setting as backdrop for the Cross, doesn't it?

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Our last Lakes visit was a fortnight in Sirmione on Lake Garda about 3 years ago. a very beautiful place. We always travel about on the local buses where ever we are - and of course, the boats on the lakes - and one of the trips we went was to Brescia where I'd heard there was a motor museum. Turned out to be dedicated to the Mille Miglia and stuffed full of some very interesting elderly race cars. Mrs J finally lured me away mid afternoon to go into Brescia town with the promise of a very large ice cream. The town was almost tourist free and a delight to wander around.

I've been going to Italy since I used to travel there on business for Firestone back in the late 60's and early 70's. I don't know what it is but there's something very special about Italy.

 

[Marcus Daly]

I spent my 40th with friends on Lake Como. Went to the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este classic car show. And took the boat across to Bellagio, where I had the best ice-cream I have ever tasted. It’s surely one of the most beautiful places on earth.

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

The "Ice Cream King" in Sirmione - I was told he owned every ice cream shop, except one, in the town - had a gold plated Rolls Royce which he parked right outside the entrance to the town. It was always surrounded by admirers. It's difficult to beat Italian ice cream, every shop seems to have their own speciality and just as you think you've found the best you come across another even better! Difficult too to beat a simple fresh Pizza Margherita.

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

The "Ice Cream King" in Sirmione - I was told he owned every ice cream shop, except one, in the town - had a gold plated Rolls Royce which he parked right outside the entrance to the town.

What d'ya know? I just found a couple of pictures of that Rolls:

 

[ferraricheals]

In fact, you only need to drive from one village to the next to realize you are surrounded by 2000 plus years of history. Twenty minutes from here is the city of Tarquinia where you can visit a vast area of 6000 Etruscan tombs dating from the 7th century BC, all in excellent condition complete with wonderful frescos, just as an example.

So much to see, so little time to do it!

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

In fact, you only need to drive from one village to the next to realize you are surrounded by 2000 plus years of history. Twenty minutes from here is the city of Tarquinia where you can visit a vast area of 6000 Etruscan tombs dating from the 7th century BC, all in excellent condition complete with wonderful frescos, just as an example.

So much to see, so little time to do it!

Absolutely. One of our favourite TV series is Montalbano and also the Young Montalbano apart from them being very entertaining programs I just love the contrast between the buildings some of which are absolutely magnificent and some distinctly, well, "rural".

As you say, so much to see but I'm afraid we'll never see it all. Great fun trying though?

 

[FiatMatt94]

Very interesting to hear your experience of the Avons. I follow minority motor sporting events with Speed Hillclimbs being a major interest. Avon racing tyres are a popular choice with many of the "serious" competitors and I've been meaning to try a set of their road tyres for some time now. So, the other day, when I had a puncture on a well worn tyre on my Ibiza, I decided to try the ZT7. When I contacted the chap I use for tyres he said he'd be pleased to supply but he wouldn't particularly recommend them as he'd noticed a few which he'd changed recently had problems with cracking at the base of the tread grooves. In fact this cracking problem is present on all 4 of the 5+ year old (original equipment) Bridgestones at present on the car and is exactly why I'm thinking of renewing them all (They have about 3.5mm still on them after doing nearly 25,000 miles and the rubber is now "hard" and doesn't grip so well in the wet).

I tend not to buy "premium" branded tyres but do go for a good "mid range" product. So, after a lot of reading of reviews - car running around on it's full size spare - and asking friends at local independent tyre suppliers, I decided to go with Falkens. Sincera SN 110 to be exact. https://www.falkentyre.com/en/tyres/car-tyres/product-detail/169291 Their publicity stuff seems to particularly claim good wet grip and this seems to be supported by several independent comparison review videos I've watched on you tube which also praised their overall performance. I'm impressed also that they supply tyres to the "drifting" community and "drifting", not a sport which particularly interests me, "punishes" tyres something rotten! If they survive that I think they'll survive anything I might do to them. I suppose that if they are slanted towards providing good wet grip it might imply that their tread rubber is somewhat on the soft side so expecting them to last for ultra high mileages may not be realistic? However that'll suit me fine as I no longer do high annual mileage so tyres "dying" due to old age and rubber degradation is much more likely than that I'll ever actually wear them out. It'll be interesting to see how they do.

I have had experience with Falken tyres on my old Bravo 1.2 16v & Mini's, I had a set of Falken FK07E's 165/70/R10 on my Mini, the grip in the dry was exceptional whilst in the wet you had to be extremely careful as they didn't grip so well. On the Mini I used to go through 2 sets of these tyre per year as they did wear quite quick, the cheapest I could get a set for the Mini was about £250 but they wasn't really a lot of choice with that size tyre there was either hardly anyone doing that size or they were stupidly expensive. The Bravo on the other hand I remember the Falkens sometimes being cheap & cheerful as at the time I was 18-19 & was only earning about £70 a week. I went with the ZT7 as Avon tyres used to be really good & were on a great deal but I'm not that impressed with these ones as they have worn quite quick compared to the original Goodyear's & also the Goodyear's were fine if you want to chuck it around the country lanes where as with the Avons I chucked it into a bend & you could feel the tyre fold quite badly. Am going to get the wear out of these & buy better ones next time.

 

[FiatMatt94]

I was home alone today with nothing else to do so I decided to give the Panda a wash, polish & a wax. Used Turtle Wax Zip Wash car shampoo, then Autoglym Magma to remove contamination off the paintwork & went over the car with Meguiars Swirl Remover, Autoglym Radiant Wax Polish & finished off with Bilt Hamber Double Speed Wax.




So shiny

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

I was home alone today with nothing else to do so I decided to give the Panda a wash, polish & a wax. Used Turtle Wax Zip Wash car shampoo, then Autoglym Magma to remove contamination off the paintwork & went over the car with Meguiars Swirl Remover, Autoglym Radiant Wax Polish & finished off with Bilt Hamber Double Speed Wax.
View attachment 220493 View attachment 220494

View attachment 220495 View attachment 220496

So shiny

In the words of Rab C Nesbit's wife, Mary Doll, That looks "Pure Dead Brilliant"!

Thanks also for the info on products used.

 

[chr1s]

Some while ago I tried to remove the rear brake drums to check wear and general wellbeing, but I was unable to shift them. Thinking that (after 38k miles and nearly 9 years) they must have worn big lips, stopping the drums pulling off, I decided to wait for a day with good weather when I could devote myself to sorting this out.
I finally got around to it today, after equipping myself with new drums and brake shoes.

My smile: I managed to pry the drums off with a little help from my lump hammer, to find that there is no lip and very little wear. The drums must have just been sticking to the hubs, and are now reassembled with copper grease on the mating surface between drum and hub.

My grump: I bought a set of drums and brake shoes which may never be needed, based on the wear seen so far.

All looks in pretty good shape, with negligible wear to brake shoes. Probably good feedback on my braking technique

 

[varesecrazy]

Do the drums not have 2 threaded holes?

You can wind a bolt in to jack the drum away from the hub

 

[The Panda Nut]

As an ex company car driver with c 1.5 million miles of driving behind me. I've tried quite a few brands of tyres. Having done such a huge mileage I have had the opportunity to compare brands in quick succession and observe wear rates.There are extreme differences between them. If you need to stop hard on a dark night on a blind bend in the cold and wet poor tyres are a very poor investment. As I age and slow down I am considering whether I need the highest grade, but with the lower speeds driven, goes slower reaction times and more easy confusion sometimes leading to sharper braking, so on balance I still think extra cost may be justified even if the better wear rate is no longer a positive. Top tyres and ABS have certainly saved at least 1 life in my driving time when a workman stepped out in front of me in roadworks, an experience I still vividly remember.

Auto Express do tyre tests, and I find their assessments to be wholly accurate, so am swayed by them.

My only experience of Avons goes a lot of years back and the ones I had were pretty soft and did not wear well at all, wet grip was good and dry grip fine but not spectacular.

Our Pandas are currently running on Continentals, and Goodyears. The 169, on Efficient Grip was OK until we put Continentals on the front which exposed how bad they actually are (I believe is a Dunlop Tyre by another name) ar.
The 312 Lounge is on Goodyear Dura Grip which seem much Superior. As they are 185 x14 rather than 165 x13 it could just be the size difference One of these Tyre is an original from new, made in 2013 and it is clearly passed its prime as its gone hard and has poor grip especially in the wet although after 35K is only about 30% worn. For the bin in the next month

Noop is on Continental Premium and these seem very good all round.

I have tried Kleber tyres (Michelin sub brand) and these are decent all rounders, Kuhmo are another sub brand (Goodyear?)and seem superior to Goodyears. OEM supplier to Smart they are also a very decent product all round including in snow surprisingly.

Michelin are the only brand I have ever thrown away after a days use, but that was 45 years ago when ZX and XZX legendary for high mileage wear was worse than lethal on damp roads. Firestone tyres went in the bin after a week - constant creaking noises. I bought Michelin Pilot on a Golf 2.0TDI in recent memory and these were top quality all round, but of course not cheap. I wouldn't hesitate to buy Mich again. If you don't do a lot of miles value is questionable though.

Bridgestones on a Vectra driven with fury lasted 53K on the front and 85K on the rear and have been my tyre of choice for a huge mileage. They can't stop changing the tread making a matched set almost impossible so I stopped chasing them a few years back. It was notable on the Bravo that Bridgestone's were markedly less good grip than continentals but a clear 10% better on fuel. Our Seat has run on Bridgestones since the poor Dunlops it arrived on wore out and after 125000 miles there have been no tyre grip related issues. It seems to do about 25K a set.

I have a set of Winter Michelin Alpins for Noop which are decent on wet roads, but notably noisy compared with the Continentals on the last Panda. I have not tried them in Snow but the aggressive tread looks like it will do OK.

Looking back on Mich Cross Climate, I wouldn't buy these again as just not quite good enough to shine in any conditions. A perfectly OK tyre all round providing you dont really press on when the limitations are exposed.

I only now buy top brands in order of preference 1. Continental 2=. Bridgestone / Michelin 4. Goodyear

Tyres to AVOID at ALL costs Stomil which should be made illegal, Malaysian made Goodyears on the Perodua were B dangerous on wet roads too. Look for country of manufacture as this is a major thing. Buy from near or north of here for best match to our climate. Much like buying trees really! Itsprobably why German made Contis are top of the tree... excuse the pun.

 

[Jiffycom]

My grump: I bought a set of drums and brake shoes which may never be needed, based on the wear seen so far.

Lol, I did the same. I had to replace my front brakes due to rust and my rear drums look like something dragged up from the bottom of the ocean so I bought new drums and shoes. Like you, I was surprised that they were actually in very good condition inside. My drums came off very easily apart from the studs holding one side on being over tightened.

I'll probably keep my Panda for a long time so I'm sure I'll fit the new parts eventually.

 

[Jiffycom]

My Panda passed it's MOT! I had replaced the front brakes and fixed an exhaust leak beforehand so it was ready. Despite this loving care, the Panda threw a hissy fit when I took my Saab on holiday instead of it and welcomed me back with the warm glow of an engine management light! It was a P0016 for camshaft/crankshaft position error. I cleared the code and it was a bit rough when it started at first but it's been fine since with no EML since. I've put it down to it sitting for a week in wet weather but will take further action if it reoccurs. I think the EML would have been a MOT failure so was glad it cleared fine.

This was actually my fourth MOT booking! Halfords ran an offer which was a free MOT with any purchase. So, after buying a £1 bucket, I booked my free MOT. On the morning of the booking, they phoned up to say their ramp had broken and could they rebook me. The second time, their brake tester failed. Third time, the MOT tester himself fell ill but fortunately, the fourth booking (3 days before my MOT ran out) went without hitch.

It passed with advisories for slight corrosion on rear springs and brake pipes all round. The guy at the desk didn't overplay the corrosion and said it was something to keep an eye on and it may well pass it's MOT next year without these being addressed. Nevertheless, they were kind enough to provide a quote for the work, should I wish to get it done:

Recommended future work: Condition Quoted

Renew both rear coil springs Amber £265.50
Slightly corroded

Renew OSR Brake Pipe (Standard) Amber £190.20
Slightly corroded

Renew NSR Brake Pipe (Standard) Amber £190.20
Slightly corroded

Renew Front To Rear Brake Pipe (Complex) Amber £282.93
Slightly corroded

Renew Front To Rear Brake Pipe (Minor) Amber £48.73
Slightly corroded

Brake Fluid Change Amber £39.99
Halfords recommended add-on

That totals a cool £1017.55!!! No wonder they can afford to give out free MOTs! Fortunately, I can do these jobs myself. Parts needed are 2 rear springs, brake unions and reel of brake pipe and a litre (or less?) of brake fluid. I make that under £60! I'd probably go for the Lesjofor springs and also change the flexi hoses at the same time but that'd still be under £100.

At the moment, I'll just keep an eye on it but I'll probably change the rear suspension next year regardless as it doesn't cope well with rough bits of road when cornering. There's a road near me that's a good test of the rear suspension. It's at the exit of a roundabout and has a bunch of little rumble strips. If you take it with a little eagerness, something like 25mph, then you can feel the back of the car shifting right as it's failing to keep contact with the road surface. I felt a big improvement in my Mondeo on this bend when I fitted new springs and replaced the leaking rear shock absorbers.

 

[FiatMatt94]

The Panda had it's regular maintenance wash on monday after fitting my Heko winter grille cover however it decided to rain here yesterday evening so when I came home from work at lunchtime today the panda was still clean as it hasn't been out anywhere but was covered in small water spots, a quick going over with the hose & a mixture of Sonax BSD with spray wax & a damp microfibre cloth had the little fella looking back to its best.

 

[gar074]

The Wee Yellow Beastie is booked in for her 4th MOT tomorrow

Should have been done 6 months ago, based on her original registration date, but we benefitted from the 6-month Covid extension.

Surprised to see that I've only done 2k miles in her since last October, for which I blame (in no particular order) lockdown, retirement, and my new(ish) French toy