The ongoing journey of Spartacus’ 1988 Fiat Panda

[Matty]

47 minutes ago, Tommyboy12 said:

I've got it running nicely. Tweaked the carb and cleaned up the dizzy. Fitted new exhaust rubbers as the exhaust was hanging low and banging on speed bumps. Now its too high and bangs on the body instead...

I need to tickle it with the sparkle stick and finish off the brake lines as I'm currently still running a singular braided hose 😅

"You on top of it Tom?"

Never in doubt tbf. Daft question 😁

[inconsistant]

Getting nice warm feels from the last page of updates, high fives to all involved and respect to @wesacosa for top Panda stewardship!

[Tommyboy12]

Panda photo spam. I've been picking these up from the FotU group on FB.

[loserone]

It looks proper low at the back, is it lowered?

[wesacosa]

56 minutes ago, loserone said:

It looks proper low at the back, is it lowered?

yes , @spartacusfitted lowering springs

[Tommyboy12]

2 hours ago, loserone said:

It looks proper low at the back, is it lowered?

Squatting from all that horsepower being unleashed

[Mally]

4 hours ago, Tommyboy12 said:

Panda photo spam. I've been picking these up from the FotU group on FB.

@Mrs Spart hasn't been around for a while, but she would love the photos.

[wesacosa]

just watching some Fotu vids on FB

Not only is the Panda looking amazing but the new owner has a QR code to this thread and still refers to it as Spartacus's Panda ❤️

 

[High Jetter]

Get them on here!

[Tommyboy12]

11 hours ago, High Jetter said:

Get them on here!

I can confirm they are lurking. It's still within the car club I run. It was at our last meet too along with another familiar sight!

[ChrisS]

So finally I managed to get on here so I can update the story of Sparticus Panda as the current new owner...

Photos and details of work done to follow but to bring the story up to date...

When Tom bought the Panda to our local car club earlier in the year, I said I'd love a drive in one. As a student I really fancied a grey 1000S with sunroof (I had a 2CV at the time which 34 years later I still own) but it never quite happened and I never got to drive one.

Before we could arrange that it was sold to Craig of Practical Classics fame, also in our local car club. And then it broke - with the gear linkage putting it out of action and it residing in Craig's infamous Chatteris car park for a few months.

Earlier in the summer I heard that Craig was selling it to another friend in the club. He didn't want it as he had too many projects, so I jumped on it and bought it myself. I could not let it get away again.

We do not need nor want any more cars but it was the only way for me to get to drive the thing - but it needed fixing first.

I have no mechanical ability - other than polishing - but was out for the day with Andy (who is good at electrics) and Matt (good with mechanics and has space) so a deal was done for me to buy the car.

The three of us we have spent the summer working on and sharing this special little car. More on what we have done to follow. As you can see from the photo above, it looks good.  It is not perfect but drives really nicely and is very usable.

It will be up for sale again soon as summer is over, the work is done, the fun has been had and there is talk of another project. 

We do want it to go to someone who will love, car and cherish it as much as we have. Contact me if you are interested - thanks Chris

 

[tooSavvy]

@ChrisS.. Welcome.

Wheeled a white 750L some years ago, fitted leccy dizzy from the Selecta = straight fit!

🚙💨

[wesacosa]

2 hours ago, ChrisS said:

So finally I managed to get on here so I can update the story of Sparticus Panda as the current new owner...

Photos and details of work done to follow but to bring the story up to date...

When Tom bought the Panda to our local car club earlier in the year, I said I'd love a drive in one. As a student I really fancied a grey 1000S with sunroof (I had a 2CV at the time which 34 years later I still own) but it never quite happened and I never got to drive one.

Before we could arrange that it was sold to Craig of Practical Classics fame, also in our local car club. And then it broke - with the gear linkage putting it out of action and it residing in Craig's infamous Chatteris car park for a few months.

Earlier in the summer I heard that Craig was selling it to another friend in the club. He didn't want it as he had too many projects, so I jumped on it and bought it myself. I could not let it get away again.

We do not need nor want any more cars but it was the only way for me to get to drive the thing - but it needed fixing first.

I have no mechanical ability - other than polishing - but was out for the day with Andy (who is good at electrics) and Matt (good with mechanics and has space) so a deal was done for me to buy the car.

The three of us we have spent the summer working on and sharing this special little car. More on what we have done to follow. As you can see from the photo above, it looks good.  It is not perfect but drives really nicely and is very usable.

It will be up for sale again soon as summer is over, the work is done, the fun has been had and there is talk of another project. 

We do want it to go to someone who will love, car and cherish it as much as we have. Contact me if you are interested - thanks Chris

 

Hi @ChrisS, welcome and thanks for posting the update.  I was really thrilled to see that the Panda is looking so good and giving you some fun

Those pesky gear linkages.  If you have read through this thread you'll see I had it go the first time about 100m from the MOT station, and then 1 year later 100m from my house on the way to the MOT station.  I changed pretty much all of the bushes and linkages when it went the first time so I can only assume the kit I bought off ebay was not the highest quality.

Its really nice to see the car getting used.  I had a few nice days out in it but I saw my role more about trying to get a lot of the jobs @spartacus would have had on his list but was unable to finish.  Sadly it eventually became clear that living in the ULEZ zone and parking it on the streets of London really wasn't best for the car and thankfully @Tommyboy12 came to the rescue and got it back in to ship shape

I don't know if its linked in this thread or not but the car also gave me one of the best car collection capers I had, almost like a Top Gear race against the clock which you can read about here

and it also helped make life a little nicer for people in the hospital that cared for @spartacus

https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/people/gifts-donated-to-chesterfield-royal-hospital-in-memory-of-genuine-man-3267643

I'm looking forward to hearing about your story with the car, and hope the new custodian will end up here to and carry on the sterling work you have done

 

 

[Tommyboy12]

What's this? Restored hubcaps? How fancy!

 

[wesacosa]

14 minutes ago, Tommyboy12 said:

What's this? Restored hubcaps? How fancy!

 

and a poooooower scoop on the bonnet too 😃

[ChrisS]

More details coming soon on what we have done to her and a link to an advert on Car & Classic….

[ChrisS]

It's now on Car&Classic

See https://www.carandclassic.com/l/C2194726

We really want it to go to a good home. Lovely little car, mostly all sorted now with 12 months MoT

Located Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire

[littleandy0410]

So it’s time for me to update with my little chapter of this car’s story:

I am Andy, one of the two aforementioned friends of Chris, and after I mentioned to Chris that the Panda was up for sale and a potential buyer (another mutual friend) had pulled out, a hurried plan was hatched, for us to form a syndicate of sorts. Chris could buy the car that kept getting away, and Matt and I could tackle any potential issue it might throw our way…
…But it’s Italian and 1980’s, so I was confident there would be no issues at all! 🤪

After Matt and I sorted the gear linkage issue, I started using the car for my daily 22 mile round trip to work. One quiet Sunday on shift, a colleague and I had a look at the various lighting and other wiring issues it had developed:

1. When the indicator was selected, the headlight flashed instead of the front indicator. A few bad earths were chased, and cleaned/repaired as needed. 
 

2. the rear lights didn’t work. Again, mostly down to dodgy earths. 
 

3. The most comedic fault - when the steering wheel was rotated past the 11 o’clock position to straight ahead, the horn sounded! This had been “remedied” by an inline spade connector in the engine bay being disconnected so it just didn’t have a horn. 

We removed the steering wheel, and found a broken plastic housing for the switch mechanism was the cause, meaning that the horn wiring was shorting to earth via the steering column. Some adjustments, some cleaning of contacts, and some liberal application of 2 part epoxy glue later, and we had a fully functioning and  reassembled horn and wheel. 

Other  jobs I have tackled over the time I’ve used the car have included both door locks. The driver’s door lock didn’t function properly, so I removed the door card, and lubricated and he’s eased any parts that should move and didn’t, and tightened and parts which did move but shouldn’t! 
 

The passenger door had been ok, until one day I locked the car and the lock barrel came off with the key. A bolt and washer had come loose, and then seemingly had disappeared out of the drain hole in the bottom of the door. Lost forever. New bolt and washer sourced and lock reassembled. 

I also gave the hubcaps a refurb, as they had gained more than their fair share of kerb rash. Sanded, primed and resprayed a fetching “wheel silver”, I think they look pretty good now, if not perfect. 

After Craig (previous owner) sourced a new ashtray on a recent trip to a scrapyard in the Netherlands, (as you do!) I decided that the top sliding part of one and the lower clip on part of the other were the best, so some ashtray transplant surgery took place, 

That’s all I can remember for now, I’m sure there were the odd few other jobs I tinkered with.

As well as commuting and general local drives,  it also successfully transported my 14 and 16 year olds and I, and all our camping gear, to Sheringham, Norfolk. A round trip of over 150 miles, and it didn’t miss a beat.  
 

It’s been a lot of fun to work on and to drive, and I’ll be sad to see it go, but also I’m so happy to hear that it’s returning to the family of the original owner. Such an amazing story, and a great end to our journey with it. 

 

[littleandy0410]

[littleandy0410]

[High Jetter]

Visa approved!

[Dick Cheeseburger]

I love the look of this little car.

So the original owner's son has bought the car? What a brilliant next step in the story of Spartacus' Panda. I've enjoyed reading the trials and tribulations on here with a range of owners over the years - let's hope the old girl is equally well maintained and doesn't completely drop off the radar.

I wonder if @Mrs Spart knows the heart-warming news? 

[wesacosa]

1 hour ago, Dick Cheeseburger said:

I love the look of this little car.

So the original owner's son has bought the car? What a brilliant next step in the story of Spartacus' Panda. I've enjoyed reading the trials and tribulations on here with a range of owners over the years - let's hope the old girl is equally well maintained and doesn't completely drop off the radar.

I wonder if @Mrs Spart knows the heart-warming news? 

I believe its the son of the original owner , or at least one of the early owners , also the owner who's kept it in the garage for 20 years (although looking back on page 1 of this thread possiblity not the guy Spartacus bought it from)

Mrs Spart doesn't appear to have stopped by here for a while now but hopefully she will do at some point. If not I'll maybe drop her a line at a later date

Hopefully the new owner will join us here and give us an update