PolonezFan

The above film is very educational. Six-cylinder thanks for the question.What you saw in the video was FSO and Poland in 1983 in deep communism. In 1989 the soviet block collapsed but FSO despite being state-owned enterprise survived.Not only that, they were actually doing pretty well.In 1991 they did the major facelift for Polonez and the Caro was born.The old 1.5 and 1.6 engines were improved by an addition of a single point petrol injection. Long yearning for diesel was met in the purchase of the french 1.9 XUD engine known from Peugeot 405 or Citroen C15.I am the lucky owner of that one.In 1994 they added Rover's 1.4 16V multipoint injection engine(YES ROVER)-that Polonez got a nickname "the polish GTI" This engine had 103BHP as oppose to the most common 1.6 GLi 76BHP and my slugish diesel 1.9 70BHP. http://allegro.pl/show_item.php?item=6601336101#thumb/1 Free market economy began, borders opened and "car hungry"people started to import cheap bangers from Germany. The nineties were the Wild West of motoring in Poland.They were importing the worst shit from Germany.Wrecks not allowed in Germany to be put on the road again. Polish car body repairers and mechanics in barns and sheds were making one car from 2 or 3 "write offs" and so on. As you saw in the video in communism you had to wait 3 years for a brand new car despite having cash to buy it State-owned factories meant no competition, no push to improve cars and inability to keep up with demand. Suddenly Polonez, being already outdated, had to compete with western cars. But Polish economy being in transition from communism to free market was not to be trusted, so the polish currency was weak and even those German bangers were expensive. So you had an alternative to buy 10 years old Golf built from 3 write-offs or brand new Polonez. For that reason, around 1995 Polonez was the KING of polish roads peaking up to 20% of all passenger cars at the time.But then the economy had improved, people started choking with cheap import and demanded newer model. FSO did not have money and technology to put a newer model into production so they found Korean Daewoo and FSO began assembling their cars as well as improved Caro Plus 1997-2002. Then Daewoo bankrupted and pulled FSO to its grave. Although FSO is officially still alive they have not made any car since 2011. 2002-2011 were making Daewoo Lanos model branded as FSO Lanos and being sold mainly on the Ukrainian market. For some time they cooperated with Chevrolet making Aveo model. Nowadays Polish car market is civilised and does not differ that much from western Europe.The same rules apply, so you can get any car you want.There are various options of finacing and leasing.Obviously the cheapest manufacturers thrive, such as Skoda and Dacia, however more and more people drive really good cars(BMW,Audi and Mercedeses) You would see exactly the same cars as in the UK. Obviously old communist cars are still to be seen, but every year there is less and less of them.Even Polonez the KING of the nineties is a rare sight. However,polish car industry has one thing in common with British car industry and it is fact that is almost non existent.

Thanks Dave Q and RoadworkUK Here is very interesting Top Gear from 1983 showing you FSO and the Polish car market of that time. It gives you some idea of what it was like to live in the communist country and face harsh reality of it. A bizarre communist economy will surprise you the most. Do you want to know why a second hand car could cost more than the same model brand new? Please watch it:

Fair enough.It does not cost me anything to experiment with the UK market.I was just curious what sort of interest would I get with my Polonez and what kind of offers - if any.Obviously, I am more likely to find someone with a "romantic attachment to the brand" in Poland. I was hoping to find someone with a bit of eccentricity to get a car unknown, unpopular and unusual,here. I must admit my eBay advert has had almost 1000 views so I guess people are curious to see the car, perhaps, they have never seen before.19 people are watching the auction what indicates even more of their interest.I guess some of them think" I will watch the auction to the end and if that guy sells it for £2000 that means there is a market for something maybe not so great but different" The point is if you want a cheap 20 years old banger- there are better choices. So this car is not for those. If you do not mind money and look for 20 years old youngtimer- there are better choices, too.So this car is for those who perhaps are a bit rebellious and contrary to the mainstream or have driven everything and are bored with modern cars. I will keep my Polonez on eBay to the end of the auction and if does not sell I will treat the whole experience as the interesting sociological experiment. I have got another one(1.9 Caro GLD) so do not have a need to keep one of them.1.9 GLD is powered by the old school diesel so has fantastic reliability which modern diesel do not have anymore. Once I went with my grey Polonez to Germany and it created a lot of interest.People did not recognise the brand at all.(FSO has never sold any car on the german market) Maybe it is time to start the same sociological experiment in Germany . Anyway I am angry what happened with FSO.In the eighties, Polonez was relatively better car comparing to what other communist countries were producing.Skoda was producing( model 105 with rear engine),and it was even far better than what Dacia was making. Look at Skoda and even Dacia nowadays.They sell thousands of cars in the UK. Skoda is comparable to leading European brands. FSO could be great too, but they found the strategic partner in Daewoo which bankrupted a few years after starting cooperation.Daewoo put the last blow of fresh air into Polonez making Polonez Caro Plus 1997-2002. http://otomoto.pl/oferta/polonez-caro-salon-polska-zeran-ID6yCd7p.html#3516602ed7 Skoda chose to go with Volkswagen and Dacia with Renault. FSO had an offer from Ford but under the condition to make many of the FSO workers redundant.Daewoo promised to keep all the workers.Lack of vision and short-term interest plus workers unions slowly killed FSO. Sad but true.

Thanks folks for such a great feedback.Good or wrong tells me something about people's attitude to underdogs. Generally speaking, most of the people look at Polonez as another banger you can get at the cost of 10 large pizzas. In Poland they are seen slightly different because there is some nostalgia about them.Obviously, you can get rotten one in such a condition you would not touch it.Here is example: http://otomoto.pl/oferta/polonez-caro-w-pelni-sprawny-1-6-benzyna-bemowo-1996r-ID6yCcc5.html#73876a2abb The cost of this one is 1400zl= £285 for 1996y.o.b Up to this 2 finest examples: http://otomoto.pl/oferta/polonez-caro-stan-kolekcjonerski-bez-oznak-korozji-ID6yDPnx.html#73876a2abb The cost of this one is 15000zl= £3065 for 1995y.o.b http://allegro.pl/show_item.php?item=6588238853#thumb/8 The cost of this one is 9900zl= £2020 for 1996y.o.b The older versions from the eighties are even more expensive as they are hard to find in good condition: http://otomoto.pl/oferta/polonez-1-5-super-borewicz-ID6yDPDz.html#73876a2abb The cost of this one is 15000zl= £3040 for 1986 y.o.b http://otomoto.pl/oferta/polonez-1-5-ID6yyteW.html#73876a2abb The cost of this one is 14000zl= £2850 for 1983 y.o.b And at the end the most expensive Polonez you can get in superb like new condition. This one is the classic Polonez of your wildest dreams http://otomoto.pl/oferta/polonez-1-5-1500-le-ID6yreTX.html#87c88bcc91 The cost of this one is 28000zl= £5714 for 1987 y.o.b The same car can be bought as a cheap banger as well as almost prestigious car.

Hi.I am glad discussion about Polonez heats up . .but it was built like a tank. She went up the backside of a Sierra which was nearly written off. The FSO needed a new bumper and the wing hammering back a bit. It wasn't this model though. here are the links to prove how good Polonez crash test was. I wish all the modern cars had that kind of level of safety.Obviously it was 1993 and it did not have an airbag but if it did you could hit a wall at 30 mph,open the door ,swear that you destroyed your beautiful car and walk home saying to yourself "I am glad I was in Polonez" Your feedback is :some say it is horrible some say ok,some say I am asking for too much money. Well yes and no considering it is not eaten by rust and will be delivered in good working order.Sure you can buy one for £1000 or even less but this would be so rotten that you would not want to even look at it. The point is I am not trying to prove to anybody it is the best car in the world or even the best value for money.It is just different and if you are bored of modern cars and have a bit of courage and sense of humour you could get something that virtually no one has it. People buy some oldtimers that cost £200000 and are virtually undriveable with handling of a wheelbarrow but they do because they like having something unique. I guess RHD Polonezes are virtually extinct so if you want one you have to stick to LHD, In terms of reliability they are not great but would not say horrible.Any car of that age requires more attention.I own Caro 1.9 GLD diesel powered and must say it is very reliable. Perhaps the most reliable engine Polonez has ever had.I own also Mercedes CLS V6 that has 3 times more powerful engine and much better comfort for driver and passengers but still like Polonez for its unique flavour. I am so eager to jump on it after week or two of driving Mercedes. It is so much different experience I love it.

Here is the link for my Polonez http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/252622993499?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649 Have you noticed feedback of the other seller 75% out of 94?That is really bad by ebay standards. Perhaps he realized how much interest my advert gotand he wanted to follow it.Would you trust someone with such a bad feedback? It amazes me how much interest i have got since I listed it.Almost 500 views and 15 watchers. Some say price is high for 20 years old Polish car. Obviously you will buy something cheaper but I am willing to sell the car with all its issues sorted out so the next owner will be able to enjoy it straight away.Obviously I can not give guarantees because at the end of it all it is 20 years Polonez not brand new Porsche.But I do my best within reason. Some people would prefer it original without LPG installation.This can be done and for a small fee of £100 I can remove LPG.LPG tank takes spare wheels space so you have less of a boot space. Please ask me some questions. I am want to find out what you find interesting about Polonezes so perhaps I will know better how to prepare my Polonez for sale. Some people say that it is interesting to get to know such exotic motors.We all used to german,japanese,korean,french,italian even american cars but polish sound far more exotic. Unfortunately Polonez is the last of truly Polish cars. Bad management,financial problems and lack of vision made FSO degrading after they ceased Polonez production.In 1990 Polonez was the most popular car in Poland costing 1/3 of brand new german or french similar sized car. They say that at its peak in mid 1996 20% of all passenger cars in Poland were Polonezes.Nowadays they are rare and people wave back to me when they see me in my Polonez on the road.Some people have nostalgia about them because for many that was their first car 20 or so years ago. Surprisingly Polonez was very safe car.Watch crash test on youtube and you will be surprised.After hitting a wall at 30mph you could just open a driver door without a problem. Some say its technology is rather outdated but in communist time any one could fix it and it construction was robust to deal with bad quality of roads. It has had many versions including truch that could even carry a ton of load.There were ambulances, extended versions,three door coupes,race versions with powerful 2.0 engines.They even made 4x4. it is certainly unusual and interesting car with a lot of history It is certainly interesting car

I have this lovely FSO Polonez for sale. Looks great drives well.It just needs a bit more attention and Love Stay tuned, there is more to come