Love it or loathe it Fso Polonez . .

[Richieg]

Hi Guys,

Now i know most of you probably despise the Fso Polonez and i know it has the handling of a boat and granted the engine is derived from 1960s Fiat,they were generally Shite i know but my question is how many have you seen recently?

I reckon zero!,there are near to none left and most of you will probably think GOOD! but nevertheless these cars were around in the 80's and 90's and a lot of people bought them.

Well i have probably done one of the craziest things i have ever done and that is rescued one from a breakers yard!

This is the craziest thing i have ever done as the car was located near Edinburgh and i am based near Gatwick ,so we have a fair few miles inbetween and i have probably paid more than the car is ever worth and i bought it from a crappy,fuzzy picture on Ebay as it was advertised as wheel nuts/spares!

Anyway i hope some of you might be interested in what i have done?

Most people think i am absolutely certifiably mental!

cheers

Richie

Here is said fuzzy picture . .

From the other side plus the poor Granada too!

saved from a fate worse than death!

 

 

 

 

 

There it is at Wetherby services on route to my good friends house in Cambridge where it is going to be woken up ready for the bodywork issues to be properly repaired

[garycox]

OMG that is amazing.

 

 

SUPER_SHITE.

[chaseracer]

Nice save, but was lifting it by the roof such a good idea...?

 

All the best with it - WIP pics please!

[michiel]

GR8 save/sieve!

[RedSparrow]

Man, if you're crazy so is everyone else on this forum!

A truly admirable save.

 

Not seen one for yonks. A girl I went to schools mum had one; it replaced a Triumph Acclaim, which had replaced a Marina coupe. I remember my dad saying once 'My God that woman buys some shit cars'!.

[Cavcraft]

Fantastic!

 

This forum never ceases to amaze me, just when you think someone has bought something really obscure someone else upstages them. If we all had the same car it'd be as dull as hell, so hats off for having the bottle (and dare I say style?) to take this on.

Keep us posted please with some sort of build thread, I reckon it's going to be class seeing how you progress with this. Did the later 'Caro' model have the same sort of engine bay? If so and the engine on your's is knackered you could lob a PSA 1.9 dizzleybop engine in for the ultimate in misery!

 

Hats off to you anyhow, made my day.

[Richieg]

Here she is on the way home at the services(put the wrong picture up)

 

Thanks for your kind comments Guys,i didn't really know what comments expect?,i know it is shit but thats why i love it!

I seem to get more attention with this car than a really shiny Merc,mainly because it is a sight isn't it lol

 

cheers

 

Richie

[cms206]

Shit. The. Bed.

 

YOU = LEGEND.

[pogweasel]

I think you are now winning the Ultimate Shite League.

 

I will bore you all again later with my Polonez experiences.

[eddyramrod]

Richie, you are a winner! Well done sir. I didn't think there were many Polonezes left in the UK; certainly when my dad and I had a matching pair in the mid-90s there weren't many around, and they slowly dwindled from even that level. I won't bore anyone with the pics, they've all been posted in other threads.

 

However! Since coming to Cyprus, I've made friends with a local businessman who used to be the Paphos FSO dealer, and rallied the bloody things! He has several (and 125s) still hanging around, including one that he operated as a rental for a short while, and an unused, unregistered Caro pickup. I mean, wow, just... wow.

 

So no, you're not mad, it will never be worth a fraction of what you spend on restoration but at the end of it you will have a solid reliable car that can do daily-duty for, well, ever. Four-wheel disc brakes and the comfiest seats this side of a Volvo 740, FTW!

[fiatdaft]

well done maniac!

 

just hope the haven't fucked the roof or door tops too much.

[flat4alfa]

My word!

 

Nice colour too.

[Richard]

Looks like it was destined for the track, judging by its neighbours.

 

I can only remember being in one. IIRC the gear lever was in a slightly odd position.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

OMG NEED MOAR BABBER!

[trigger]

Good to see you've postes the photos on here, i said it would go down well!

 

I'd be worried about that roof though, will it be repairable!

[Richieg]

Cheers guys!

You are right the other Polonez that were there and got raced round the track,how this one escaped i don't know?,it is missing a carb so maybe that is why?

Thankfully i have located a new one ,wasn't cheap but hopefully it will help get her started,she hasn't been on the road since 2000 but did drive in to the yard . .so i am optimistic ?

I don't think much damage was done to to the doors or roof thankfully but it can all be repaired and will be.

It desperately needs a new front bumper though and doors would be lovely but i should be able maybe have them repaired,at this minute i don't have an option,i think they are quite rotten which is a shame . . Eddie, don't suppose you could ask that businessman whether he knows of any good doors plus front bumper available to buy and a good courier?? lol

Oh yeah the gear stick is in a weird place too lol

 

cheers

 

Richie

[Richieg]

I think the roof is ok as far as i have been told,it didn't do much damage as far as my friends said??

Thanks Trig,you were totally right Mate lol

cheers

Richie

[Vinylseats]

 

Am I right in thinking that this has the later rear that inspired the Caro, rather than the original rear. I'm sure for a short while in the late 80s/early 90s the Polonez had a Polonez front and a Caro rear.

 

Original Polonez rear

 

 

Later Polonez/Caro rear

[Richieg]

My Polonez is the very last shape before the Caro was introduced,

i think the type is MR89 and it has caro rear end ,revised twin headlights and the extra window behind the rear door which i actually really like !

There are about 4 different variations of the Polonez which i only found out recently.

Practical classics reckon in 2008 there were 16 Polonez' left thankfully mine wasn't included but i dread to think how many have lasted since 2008??

 

cheers

 

Richie

[Angrydicky]

OMG you are my hero!

 

That is so

[dollywobbler]

That's absolute madness, and all the better for it! Great stuff. You can't really be too choosy if you want a Polenez can you? I'd love to try one. Which is probably wrong of me. I remember Auto Express testing one. "We discovered that if you pull the clutch pedal up with your foot, it stays there." Well, don't pull it up with your foot then!

[theorganist]

Thats brilliant!! Well done!!!

[Father Ted]

OrrrSumm

 

Oh hang on, its not Orange. I thought all Polonez's were Orange.

[eddyramrod]

Eddie, don't suppose you could ask that businessman whether he knows of any good doors plus front bumper available to buy and a good courier??

 

If he does, I may be using them myself, as I have my eye on that ex-rental. I loved mine, and was heartbroken when MoT fail + poverty = banger buyer. You're going to find the steering is a bit heavy, but if you've ever had a Hillman Hunter you will be well-trained for that. Gearshift is no odder than the Victor FD/FE OHC models.

 

Repeat after me, Andreas... I do want Eddy to take this car away and love it, I do want Eddy to take this car away and love it, I do...................

 

Father Ted: nope, mine and my dad's were red, and the ones I'm finding here are white. Apart from a Caro pickup in burgundy that I sometimes meet on the road...

[warren t claim]

I'd happily let you have a go on Mrs_Claims furry jackpot for a drive in a Polonez!

 

You sir are Autoshite man of the year!

[Pillock]

I remember seeing shedloads of these, as there was an FSO dealer between my house and my school when I was a young'un. Must have closed down in the mid 90s but always had a forecourt full of Polonez's.

[retro80sboy]

ha! Id forgotten about these!

 

My old Maths teacher had a white one in the early 90s!

 

I also remember nicking a badge off the front of one in one of my local scrapyards (now gone) about the same time! I probably still have it somewhere.

[wuvvum]

You, Sir, are a fucking hero.

[Vinylseats]

I remember years ago Parker's car guide described the Polonez as "crude" - I LOVED that word from then on.

[seth]

Shite-athon!