That's not the point. The Panda is the pick of the city cars by quite a large margin at the moment - and there's a hot version on it's way at the tail end of this year.
As for the Multipla, even after the facelift, it's still innovative and way quicker on twisty roads than it has any right to be.
Well they make you feel very lucky if you make it to the end of your trip without something falling off.
"top of the range" and "Ka" in the same sentence? Something is not right there.
I suppose so, yes.
But I'm out of my teens now, my perspective changed when I didn't have to buy shoebox sized shit made out of tinfoil anymore :)
Actually the Panda is quite a decent drive.
Stilo... LOL.
WTF is going on with the, ahem, 'styling' of that, especially the 1970s throwback 5 door?
That aside, even though I wouldn't mind a Panda Diesel myself, the reliability surveys say it all about Fiats - they're shit, not least compared to the likes of Ford in this respect.
Is that special as in 'don't forget to top up the oil', special?
It's a car... a poxy car that does nothing particularly better than their oil conserving contemporaries.
I'll admit the dash looks quite nice, but overall, what price reliability not impeded in these days of decent mass produced engineering, .
Answer this: Why is it the engines on those, as in a 16v inline four burn oil like they do, compared to nearly everything else on the market comparable, that doesn't?
They're not even any quicker than most of their direct competitors, and it's a bloody poor showing for something the product of the late 20th century design.
-- JackH
The 5 door is dull as ditchwater to look at, but the kitted 3 door Abarth is both very quick and very nicely styled.
Apart from the super-quick steering, revvy engine, nicely poised handling (best handling FWD car on the market).
They *are* reliable, that's the thing.
The only known failures are those that don't do the 48k mile cambelt or check the oil.
It's just the design spec and piss-thin oil spec.
It's not all about outright speed, you know. The 156 is *still* ahead of the game for a mid-sized sports saloon - it excells with it's handling and both interior / exterior styling, and is average at worst for ride quality and reliability.
Let's face it - you can get a 156 or a MkII Mondeo...... similar money, similar performance. Which one is going to make you smile every time you look at it and drive it?
It won't be the Mondeo.
You've checked the gearing of the Cinquecento and Siecento Sporting, then?
Speak of your own experiences in small cars, then.
It doesn't, unless "niggling faults" means character.
Erm, boxy styling? Have you looked at modern Fiats recently? The mainstream stuff looks, well, like just about anything else out there.
The Punto looked great until they gave it the silly big front light treatment. Now it looks like a Hyundai.
Tosh.
Absolute bollucks. The handling isn't the best in the class. The interior is waaaaay too small. The exterior isn't all that glamourous any more either. The ride is poor on the bigger engined variants, heh so too is the understeer.
In your case it wasn't the Alfa either, it was a Primera then the Passat.
It has proper car specification in Luxury and above trim.
Dervy, you missed out the bit where you insult his missus.
Douglas
Unlike you, I have a broader range of tastes than shopping trolleys with pushrod engines.
I like a bit of variety. But I keep going back to my Alfas.
Nah, I've never met the lady. I'm still puzzled as to how Steve knows Charlie! :)
You assume that I only buy what I like?!
Ahhh, that's the mistake I'm making.
You actually buy cars you don't like.
Explains a lot.
Who gives a shit what other think? People need to stop going that, getting too emotional about things.
For me, the whole package makes financial sense over any other factor.
Peak torque is at 2,900rpm something. What's wrong with that?
But the Focus is *so* boring to drive.
It really is.
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