Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Car Chat => Topic started by: Rangie on 01 June 2024, 07:45:16
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The new version of the Fiat 500 SWMBO fancies one to keep over in Spain once our villa is finished in July, I'm not really bothered as everything is within a reasonable walking distance for me, so just a little runabout, she had a Fiat Panda a few years back & it so any knowledge on here welcomed.
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basically its a ford KA and as such shares lots of components especially underneath/ mechanically so should be reliable enough for what it is . sister in law had one ( and a KA more recently and had no real issues other than a faulty throttle pedal) daughter has a KA at the moment and it seems to survive the abuse it gets !
it also basically the same as a panda too in lots of respects .
not the most refined of cars in terms of comfort or tyre noise but fun enough to drive .
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basically its a ford KA and as such shares lots of components especially underneath/ mechanically so should be reliable enough for what it is . sister in law had one ( and a KA more recently and had no real issues other than a faulty throttle pedal) daughter has a KA at the moment and it seems to survive the abuse it gets !
it also basically the same as a panda too in lots of respects .
not the most refined of cars in terms of comfort or tyre noise but fun enough to drive .
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Thanks for that , didn't realise the KA connection so that's a plus👍
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Hired one in Portugal back January. Obviously it was very fast and a hoot to drive. :y ;D
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Anyone remember the Mini Moke?
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Anyone remember the Mini Moke?
I had a toy one, and a Mini Marcus with removable wheels. :y They may even still be in my loft, along with the Batmobile and boat and trailer, the Saints Volvo and loads of others. :)
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A mate of mine spent a fortune building a Marcos race car years ago. At its first event he lost it on the first bend and hit a tree.
The front have futt futted a bit further up the road by itself while he sat in the rear half watching it.
Havent laughed so much since Auntie Mable caught her left tit in the mangle. ;D
Probably the ugliest car Ive ever seen.
Fiat 500. Personally I would buy one of the originals. Full of character and will always go up in value.
Also ok for just nipping down the shop etc. at a holiday home, but not a lot else in the modern world.
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Could possibly be tempted by the 595 Abarth version[why they called it a 595 I have no idea]bit of a pocket rocket those.
Yes Opti I remember the Mini Moke.Supposedly designed with sales to the British army in mind,but that idea failed and became most famous for its role in The Prisoner[an offshoot of Danger Man]with Patrick McGoohan.
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I thought it was based on a Panda?
Build quality is quite poor given the premium cost. Though I imagine your mileage will be low, so probably a non issue.
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You are correct, based on the Panda. Steer clear of the 2cly ones as gutless.
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You are correct, based on the Panda. Steer clear of the 2cly ones as gutless.
Are they the ones that wouldn't take off on an incline?
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Could possibly be tempted by the 595 Abarth version[why they called it a 595 I have no idea]bit of a pocket rocket those.
Yes Opti I remember the Mini Moke.Supposedly designed with sales to the British army in mind,but that idea failed and became most famous for its role in The Prisoner[an offshoot of Danger Man]with Patrick McGoohan.
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I've googled the Abarth & it looks like that's the one she wants now sounds like a fun little car ,thanks for the info. There's some nice stretches of road around El Campello so be able to stretch its legs 👍
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If it's kept and registered there, presumably it will be left hand drive :-\
Might be prudent to try before you buy and make sure she's happy with driving it.
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I have a friend who owns a property in Spain, and he has done all the maths, and said unless you are going out their for months or permanent, as a holiday let it's cheaper to rent a car.
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I have a friend who owns a property in Spain, and he has done all the maths, and said unless you are going out their for months or permanent, as a holiday let it's cheaper to rent a car.
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We intend spending as much time as possible out there, we've had dealings with car rentals over there, best avoided is my opinion.
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My Uncle has a house somewhere near Alicante and they used to take an old UK Mondeo down there in the spring and bring it back in the winter.
As far as I know, he now has a Spanish Zafira/Galaxy, something like that, which lives at a storage place near the airport and when they or anyone else goes there, the storage people collect them from the airport, take them to the storage place where the car is waiting all checked over, valeted and ready to go. :y
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My Uncle has a house somewhere near Alicante and they used to take an old UK Mondeo down there in the spring and bring it back in the winter.
As far as I know, he now has a Spanish Zafira/Galaxy, something like that, which lives at a storage place near the airport and when they or anyone else goes there, the storage people collect them from the airport, take them to the storage place where the car is waiting all checked over, valeted and ready to go. :y
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Exactly what our friends do 👍
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I have a friend who owns a property in Spain, and he has done all the maths, and said unless you are going out their for months or permanent, as a holiday let it's cheaper to rent a car.
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We intend spending as much time as possible out there, we've had dealings with car rentals over there, best avoided is my opinion.
You've obviously not found a decent one, I've used the same one for 10 years no issues. Also depends on the area of Spain...
Also be careful of the 180 day rule,as we're no longer in the 1000 year Reich
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Could possibly be tempted by the 595 Abarth version[why they called it a 595 I have no idea]bit of a pocket rocket those.
Yes Opti I remember the Mini Moke.Supposedly designed with sales to the British army in mind,but that idea failed and became most famous for its role in The Prisoner[an offshoot of Danger Man]with Patrick McGoohan.
Don't forget the Lotus Super Seven. :)
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You are correct, based on the Panda. Steer clear of the 2cly ones as gutless.
Are they the ones that wouldn't take off on an incline?
I think maybe we are getting our 2 cylinder engines confused? The original 500 had an air cooled twin which found its way into the later 126, which was then given a water cooled 2 cylinder engine. This engine then found its way into some Italian domestic market Fiats such as the Cinquecento. All of these are painfully slow and underpowered.
However the new 500/Panda (and various other Fiat group superminis) were offered with the Twinair 2 cylinder engine. Although a naturally aspirated version of this exists most are turbocharged and produce 85bhp. Far superior to the 1.2 4 cylinder engine that most standard 500s and Pandas tend to come with.
In my current fleet I have a 2012 Chrysler (Lancia) Ypsilon Twinair. It's brilliant - when in town you can put it in "eco" mode and it'll do about 50mpg, when you need a bit more power you turn off Eco and it'll give you the full 85bhp, and still do about 45mpg. I saw it described as going "like a stabbed rat" when you put your foot down and that sums it up nicely. The best bit is due to the design you get a lot of low down torque, and a weird "putt-putt" sort of sound but when you rev it you get a fantastic thrum.
Not sure if I've made my point clearly, but my recommendation is if you want to get any small Fiat, get a Twinair! Brilliant bit of engineering! :y
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Having had a lhd Panda for the day, the driving position is utter shite. My right knee has spent the day wedged between the centre console and dash because of the typical Fiat pedal offset.
Utterly gutless on a proper hill.
It's served its purpose for the day, but I wouldn't spend my own money buying one.
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Having had a lhd Panda for the day, the driving position is utter shite. My right knee has spent the day wedged between the centre console and dash because of the typical Fiat pedal offset.
Utterly gutless on a proper hill.
It's served its purpose for the day, but I wouldn't spend my own money buying one.
Interestingly, the guy I bought my Omega from picked me up from the station went I went to collect it - in a Panda 100HP. That was quite fun, but probably still suffers from the same issues of dodgy pedal position in LHD form.
Rangie: The Abarth 500 is a fantastic choice, but will also have the Panda issue of having the gearstick sprouting out of the dashboard, so well worth both of you test driving to make sure you're happy with the driving position. Another option for a small, fun, sporty Italian motor is the Alfa MiTo - you can get the Twinair engine in those or if you want something nippier they do a 1.4 turbo with 170bhp :y
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Having had a lhd Panda for the day, the driving position is utter shite. My right knee has spent the day wedged between the centre console and dash because of the typical Fiat pedal offset.
Utterly gutless on a proper hill.
It's served its purpose for the day, but I wouldn't spend my own money buying one.
Interestingly, the guy I bought my Omega from picked me up from the station went I went to collect it - in a Panda 100HP. That was quite fun, but probably still suffers from the same issues of dodgy pedal position in LHD form.
Rangie: The Abarth 500 is a fantastic choice, but will also have the Panda issue of having the gearstick sprouting out of the dashboard, so well worth both of you test driving to make sure you're happy with the driving position. Another option for a small, fun, sporty Italian motor is the Alfa MiTo - you can get the Twinair engine in those or if you want something nippier they do a 1.4 turbo with 170bhp :y
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Collected the Abarth yesterday , I'm impressed with it & she loves it got a really great deal as well ,we went for the auto 1.4 T so no issues.👍
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Having had a lhd Panda for the day, the driving position is utter shite. My right knee has spent the day wedged between the centre console and dash because of the typical Fiat pedal offset.
Utterly gutless on a proper hill.
It's served its purpose for the day, but I wouldn't spend my own money buying one.
Interestingly, the guy I bought my Omega from picked me up from the station went I went to collect it - in a Panda 100HP. That was quite fun, but probably still suffers from the same issues of dodgy pedal position in LHD form.
Rangie: The Abarth 500 is a fantastic choice, but will also have the Panda issue of having the gearstick sprouting out of the dashboard, so well worth both of you test driving to make sure you're happy with the driving position. Another option for a small, fun, sporty Italian motor is the Alfa MiTo - you can get the Twinair engine in those or if you want something nippier they do a 1.4 turbo with 170bhp :y
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Collected the Abarth yesterday , I'm impressed with it & she loves it got a really great deal as well ,we went for the auto 1.4 T so no issues.👍
Happy days, glad you like it :y I've always been a fan of small Fiats, they always put a smile on my face (apart from when they break of course ::) )
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
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Drove it for the first time yesterday it really is superb handles like its on rails & for a small car it's surprisingly comfortable can't compare it to the Panda she had a few years ago I hated that car with a vengeance, she had a new MX5 last year and couldn't get on with it but this little car she absolutely loves so money well spent..👍
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I recall such a time and it's quite possibly the last time I enjoyed going there.
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I recall such a time and it's quite possibly the last time I enjoyed going there.
Many a late night trip to the Brick Lane Bagel shop, which always included a quick zip through The City, through the West End, round Trafalgar Square and down the Mall to say Hi to Her Maj, before heading saaff of the river to head home. Happy days! :y
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Spent a happy week during the '96 Euros driving between Morden and Kensington for the Proms with a bunch of mates. Halcyon days.@
Oh too young, stupid and carefree again... Still one out of three ain't all bad ;D
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I had a Fiat Uno Turbo for a while - it was one of the most fun cars to drive I've ever had, not least because it didn't look like anything special from the outside. It could do 0-60mph in 7 seconds.
Sold it in the end for about £700 as it was getting a bit rusty, if I could have garaged it it would probably be worth about £10k now
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I had a Fiat Uno Turbo for a while - it was one of the most fun cars to drive I've ever had, not least because it didn't look like anything special from the outside. It could do 0-60mph in 7 seconds.
Sold it in the end for about £700 as it was getting a bit rusty, if I could have garaged it it would probably be worth about £10k now
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Just been chatting to a guy in the local bar , who is adamant that I need to drive the Fiat to Madrid ( about 300 miles away) to Abarth mad performance," just nothing will be able to overtake you" were his words..🚗🚗🚗
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I had a Fiat Uno Turbo for a while - it was one of the most fun cars to drive I've ever had, not least because it didn't look like anything special from the outside. It could do 0-60mph in 7 seconds.
Sold it in the end for about £700 as it was getting a bit rusty, if I could have garaged it it would probably be worth about £10k now
That's a bit steep for a pile of Italian rust. ;)
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I had a Fiat Uno Turbo for a while - it was one of the most fun cars to drive I've ever had, not least because it didn't look like anything special from the outside. It could do 0-60mph in 7 seconds.
Sold it in the end for about £700 as it was getting a bit rusty, if I could have garaged it it would probably be worth about £10k now
That's a bit steep for a pile of Italian rust. ;)
Here's one slightly less rusty going for £12k:
https://www.carandclassic.com/l/C1688557
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My eldest had a Uno while he still lived at home. That was a bit of fun to drive too.
I had a Uno SX 1300cc many moons ago when I lived in Londinium and you could actually drive around the city without having to pay charges and have your every movement monitored by Big Brother cameras. It was very nippy and a great city car! :y
I had a Fiat Uno Turbo for a while - it was one of the most fun cars to drive I've ever had, not least because it didn't look like anything special from the outside. It could do 0-60mph in 7 seconds.
Sold it in the end for about £700 as it was getting a bit rusty, if I could have garaged it it would probably be worth about £10k now
That's a bit steep for a pile of Italian rust. ;)
Here's one slightly less rusty going for £12k:
https://www.carandclassic.com/l/C1688557
179bhp in an Italian biscuit tin. Yeehaaa! 8) :y ;D
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basically its a ford KA and as such shares lots of components especially underneath/ mechanically so should be reliable enough for what it is . sister in law had one ( and a KA more recently and had no real issues other than a faulty throttle pedal) daughter has a KA at the moment and it seems to survive the abuse it gets !
it also basically the same as a panda too in lots of respects .
not the most refined of cars in terms of comfort or tyre noise but fun enough to drive .
Hi Cam in Head, Can you tell us more about that problem ?
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the accelerator pedal issue was like as if a cable operated throttle had dropped off ! idled perfect but nothing happened when you pressed the pedal.turning the engine off and back on again cleared the fault and the car could go another few MONTHS without doing it again !.no elm so no codes present.
having worked on daughter in laws ka and sister in laws 500 they are otherwise generally straightforward cars to work on . a few quirks thou.you have to remove the front bumper and part of the subframe to change a wishbone ,the rear shocks eat top bushes and the auto brake shoe adjusters are a weird fiddly design !
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the accelerator pedal issue was like as if a cable operated throttle had dropped off ! idled perfect but nothing happened when you pressed the pedal.turning the engine off and back on again cleared the fault and the car could go another few MONTHS without doing it again !.no elm so no codes present.
having worked on daughter in laws ka and sister in laws 500 they are otherwise generally straightforward cars to work on . a few quirks thou.you have to remove the front bumper and part of the subframe to change a wishbone ,the rear shocks eat top bushes and the auto brake shoe adjusters are a weird fiddly design !
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Thankfully I'll never be doing any work on it, past that age now to be "tinkering " with cars.
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the accelerator pedal issue was like as if a cable operated throttle had dropped off ! idled perfect but nothing happened when you pressed the pedal.turning the engine off and back on again cleared the fault and the car could go another few MONTHS without doing it again !.no elm so no codes present.
having worked on daughter in laws ka and sister in laws 500 they are otherwise generally straightforward cars to work on . a few quirks thou.you have to remove the front bumper and part of the subframe to change a wishbone ,the rear shocks eat top bushes and the auto brake shoe adjusters are a weird fiddly design !
That fault has happened twice on my Astra in six years of ownership