Fiat Panda 100hp

[V12 Virgin]

Looking to buy one of these little gems in the immediate future, anything I should look out for?

If anyone is selling one in the Southeast let me know- very very few in and around Surrey.

Also, I will be looking to change the shocks as soon as I get it to Konis- has anyone got experience doing this/ costings of doing so?

[vtecyo]

A chap at my old work had one, on Konis and sticky tyres. Possibly the most fun car I've ever driven, it was hilarious. Don't think there is anything to really be wary of. They're quite mechanically simple and cost peanuts to repair. Main worry for me would be the electrics. Just press everything a few times and make sure it all works / doesn't catch fire.

[RTaylor2208]

I just sold mine on Sunday to make way for the Abarth 595 Competizione I picked up this morning.



Asking values seem to be all over the place. Mine was in very good condition on a 58 plate with 70K miles, new discs, pads, tyres and a wheel refurb in October 2016 (2K miles ago) but was due a minor service in August and had a short MOT.

I was offered £1500 for it trade in against the Abarth, in the end sold it to a friend of a friend for £1800.

I was lucky and mine had no serious issues over the last 3 years, it had some wear and tear like stone chips and small areas on wear on the interior but it was a rubust little car.

Great cars but buy the best you can find as some parts are expensive like anything in the interior, OEM exhaust is expensive and they tend to fail through rust from about 60K miles / 7 years old.

[cj2013]

V12 Virgin said:

Looking to buy one of these little gems in the immediate future, anything I should look out for?

If anyone is selling one in the Southeast let me know- very very few in and around Surrey.

Also, I will be looking to change the shocks as soon as I get it to Konis- has anyone got experience doing this/ costings of doing so?

Mine has been a dream, very little to speak of - it's not very attention seeking in terms of maintenance.

Reports of the rear spring cups rotting through and shearing - the 100hp rear axle is unique to the car, so it can be a PITA to replace (the 500 has a wider track, which is determined by the trailing arms, which are the parts which contain the cups) - so check this and consider removing to clean, protect and seal for futureproofing.

Don't jump on the idea of new shocks until you've driven and got used to one - mine had new OE shocks a couple of years ago, and I often reiterate how they are spot on as-is. I don't get the fuss about replacing them for aftermarket.

Due to the low coolant capacity, the FIRE engine warms up quickly (useful in winter), but cooling system neglect can be instant and terminal. Bit like the K-Series in that fact, except it's something that will happen due to neglect, rather than random luck.

Obviously has a timing belt, and you probably want to go Alfa on these and stick to the safe side of 3 years/36k rather than the 5years/72k quoted by FIAT. Not the most expensive job in the world, and you can probably get a full belt, pump and coolant change for around £300 at an indy.


Try to avoid ESP as an option - non ESP versions will have a blank button next to the hazard switch. Part of the fun of the 100hp is over-steering round corners to induce understeer and/or lift off oversteer - they grip very well in my experience, even on budget tyres, and you can easily take the car to its limit in a fun and safe way, much like an old XR2i or 205 GTi. Despite the high up seating position (you can sort of adjust height, but it's more seat base angle than height) and the 'feeling' of body roll, it stays well planted and likes to cock a leg under enthusiastic italian tuneups.

The tailgate has an electronic microswitch operated handle above the numberplate (under the grab handle). The microswitch is plastic welded to the handle, and is common to fail, meaning a whole handle swap (which, including painting, on a 100hp is a few hundred ££). You can still unlock by key, or via the remote, but factor it into costs if it's failed.

VIN Plate is under the carpet of the boot on the LHS, and the paint code is on the LHS of the tailgate shut, on the tailgate itself. Due to the cheap insurance, and appeal, it's not exactly the kind of car you shouldn't expect a 17 year old to have kissed a hedge in at some point!

Coolant should be nice and pink, should use any, but the engine is still old tech - because of this you'll still pay around £160ish p/a in RFL, and the engine is still a simple but dirty looking old Punto unit. I haven't had any oil consumption, but I'd expect a little to be normal.

Exhausts can rot on the outer skin, but that's common and not a huge issue.

Generally everything should work spot on, and you should get two keys (one remote folding, one non-remote). A simple car and parts can be very cheap, but despite them being rare, and low sellers from new, there are loads of examples out there to choose from.

[V12 Virgin]

RTaylor2208 said:

I just sold mine on Sunday to make way for the Abarth 595 Competizione I picked up this morning.



Asking values seem to be all over the place. Mine was in very good condition on a 58 plate with 70K miles, new discs, pads, tyres and a wheel refurb in October 2016 (2K miles ago) but was due a minor service in August and had a short MOT.

I was offered £1500 for it trade in against the Abarth, in the end sold it to a friend of a friend for £1800.

I was lucky and mine had no serious issues over the last 3 years, it had some wear and tear like stone chips and small areas on wear on the interior but it was a rubust little car.

Great cars but buy the best you can find as some parts are expensive like anything in the interior, OEM exhaust is expensive and they tend to fail through rust from about 60K miles / 7 years old.

I agree- anything between 1800 and 4400! Did you keep the suspension standard?

[RTaylor2208]

I tried the suspension on Koni's, Blistein's and OEM and sold both the Koni's and Blisteins within days of use as to me felt like there was no significant improvement on the ride at all.

In the end I stuck with the OEM spec shocks and while a little bouncy was fine for the 20K miles I did in it.

As mentioned they are great cars, I just fancied a change as I have two other 5 door cars in the Focus ST and 9-5 Aero wagon we have, hence why I bought the Abarth which while a bit harsh rides a hell of a lot better than the Panda.

The shared platform parts like discs, pads, suspension, service parts etc are as mentioned cheap enough to replace, just watch for the 100HP specific bits like seats, steering wheel, gear knob \ gaiter, exhaust, wheels, and body kit all of which are horrifically expensive to replace with new genuine fiat parts.

[V12 Virgin]

cj2013 said:

V12 Virgin said:

Looking to buy one of these little gems in the immediate future, anything I should look out for?

If anyone is selling one in the Southeast let me know- very very few in and around Surrey.

Also, I will be looking to change the shocks as soon as I get it to Konis- has anyone got experience doing this/ costings of doing so?

Mine has been a dream, very little to speak of - it's not very attention seeking in terms of maintenance.

Reports of the rear spring cups rotting through and shearing - the 100hp rear axle is unique to the car, so it can be a PITA to replace (the 500 has a wider track, which is determined by the trailing arms, which are the parts which contain the cups) - so check this and consider removing to clean, protect and seal for futureproofing.

Don't jump on the idea of new shocks until you've driven and got used to one - mine had new OE shocks a couple of years ago, and I often reiterate how they are spot on as-is. I don't get the fuss about replacing them for aftermarket.

Due to the low coolant capacity, the FIRE engine warms up quickly (useful in winter), but cooling system neglect can be instant and terminal. Bit like the K-Series in that fact, except it's something that will happen due to neglect, rather than random luck.

Obviously has a timing belt, and you probably want to go Alfa on these and stick to the safe side of 3 years/36k rather than the 5years/72k quoted by FIAT. Not the most expensive job in the world, and you can probably get a full belt, pump and coolant change for around £300 at an indy.


Try to avoid ESP as an option - non ESP versions will have a blank button next to the hazard switch. Part of the fun of the 100hp is over-steering round corners to induce understeer and/or lift off oversteer - they grip very well in my experience, even on budget tyres, and you can easily take the car to its limit in a fun and safe way, much like an old XR2i or 205 GTi. Despite the high up seating position (you can sort of adjust height, but it's more seat base angle than height) and the 'feeling' of body roll, it stays well planted and likes to cock a leg under enthusiastic italian tuneups.

The tailgate has an electronic microswitch operated handle above the numberplate (under the grab handle). The microswitch is plastic welded to the handle, and is common to fail, meaning a whole handle swap (which, including painting, on a 100hp is a few hundred ££). You can still unlock by key, or via the remote, but factor it into costs if it's failed.

VIN Plate is under the carpet of the boot on the LHS, and the paint code is on the LHS of the tailgate shut, on the tailgate itself. Due to the cheap insurance, and appeal, it's not exactly the kind of car you shouldn't expect a 17 year old to have kissed a hedge in at some point!

Coolant should be nice and pink, should use any, but the engine is still old tech - because of this you'll still pay around £160ish p/a in RFL, and the engine is still a simple but dirty looking old Punto unit. I haven't had any oil consumption, but I'd expect a little to be normal.

Exhausts can rot on the outer skin, but that's common and not a huge issue.

Generally everything should work spot on, and you should get two keys (one remote folding, one non-remote). A simple car and parts can be very cheap, but despite them being rare, and low sellers from new, there are loads of examples out there to choose from.

That's tremendous thank you! If you're thinking of selling yours please do let me know, I'd like to buy from a fellow PH'er if possible.

[cj2013]

V12 Virgin said:

That's tremendous thank you! If you're thinking of selling yours please do let me know, I'd like to buy from a fellow PH'er if possible.

There's a guy on fiatforum selling a new orleans blue one for around £1800 on low miles, but it does have a VTS 16v badge on the back and a little TLC :lol:

Pop over and look on there

[V12 Virgin]

cj2013 said:

V12 Virgin said:

That's tremendous thank you! If you're thinking of selling yours please do let me know, I'd like to buy from a fellow PH'er if possible.

There's a guy on fiatforum selling a new orleans blue one for around £1800 on low miles, but it does have a VTS 16v badge on the back and a little TLC :lol:

Pop over and look on there

It's a turd of a car- far too much needs doing

[cj2013]

V12 Virgin said:

It's a turd of a car- far too much needs removing with a heat gun

Fixed that for you

I set up searches on Gumtree, Motors.co.uk, eBay and Autotrader with mine, and had to wait a considerable amount of time to find mine

[V12 Virgin]

Car has come up for sale near Peterborough- has a PH sticker on it- is it anyone's on here? KS59HHO

[lord trumpton]

We've had ours since about 2009 and passed it on to our daughter as her first car.

We've always had it serviced every year despite mileage and it's been super reliable (aside from a host of electrical gremlins caused by a faults battery earth strap - £5.00 for a new one)

Great fun cars and they drive like an old school hot hatch hero too.