Hello to everyone!
I am new at this forum, but I decided to skip the introduction at the other forum section and start right over here.
I live in Southeastern Europe. I have been quite interested in acquiring an old Panda 4x4 since the end of the last autumn. While I am searching for a reasonably priced Panda 4x4 in a good condition, I am trying to get some useful information about those cars.
I got a lot of useful information about Pandas in local/regional forums, but my web searches have constantly ended at this web site. So I suppose that you people here are one of the most knowledgeable communities regarding old Fiats.
If I am informed properly, Fiat had a different policy for selling Pandas in UK market than in the rest of Europe. I mean, the car editions were slightly different (I haven't seen a Sisley anywhere outside UK), and they stopped selling them in UK in 1996, despite selling them elsewhere until 2000, somewhere even until 2003. Correct?
To get to the point:
I would appreciate to get some good advices on important things to pay attention to when buying a second-hand Panda 4x4, and how to diagnose/test for certain problems in these vehicles.
Also, I would appreciate to get advices on which factory edition of Panda 4x4 are the best to look for (mostly regarding the engine type - carb/SPI/MPI, model year, interior/exterior trim and features, etc.) - if the "rules" for UK Pandas can be applied to European ones.
My prime criteria is to get a reliable vehicle - I live in a mountainous region with some very rugged, scarcely populated areas, so I certainly would not want to have a car failure in the middle of a forsaken land. That is why I am generally after Pandas made between year 2000 and 2003 (and they will remain good sellers later on). I would possibly consider an older vehicle (up to year 1996) if its condition and factory edition are truly exceptionally good.
What do you think about all this?
I am new at this forum, but I decided to skip the introduction at the other forum section and start right over here.
I live in Southeastern Europe. I have been quite interested in acquiring an old Panda 4x4 since the end of the last autumn. While I am searching for a reasonably priced Panda 4x4 in a good condition, I am trying to get some useful information about those cars.
I got a lot of useful information about Pandas in local/regional forums, but my web searches have constantly ended at this web site. So I suppose that you people here are one of the most knowledgeable communities regarding old Fiats.
If I am informed properly, Fiat had a different policy for selling Pandas in UK market than in the rest of Europe. I mean, the car editions were slightly different (I haven't seen a Sisley anywhere outside UK), and they stopped selling them in UK in 1996, despite selling them elsewhere until 2000, somewhere even until 2003. Correct?
To get to the point:
I would appreciate to get some good advices on important things to pay attention to when buying a second-hand Panda 4x4, and how to diagnose/test for certain problems in these vehicles.
Also, I would appreciate to get advices on which factory edition of Panda 4x4 are the best to look for (mostly regarding the engine type - carb/SPI/MPI, model year, interior/exterior trim and features, etc.) - if the "rules" for UK Pandas can be applied to European ones.
My prime criteria is to get a reliable vehicle - I live in a mountainous region with some very rugged, scarcely populated areas, so I certainly would not want to have a car failure in the middle of a forsaken land. That is why I am generally after Pandas made between year 2000 and 2003 (and they will remain good sellers later on). I would possibly consider an older vehicle (up to year 1996) if its condition and factory edition are truly exceptionally good.
What do you think about all this?