1994 Fiat Panda Fire review from UK and Ireland

The only problems I have ever had with this fantastic little car was when the windscreen wiper motor failed and had to be replaced, at a cost of over £100.

The second incident was when they replaced a bolt in the engine with one which was no the correct size - car was taken back several times to dealership who couldn't find what was wrong...

Get this though... a young, newly qualified AA repair man found the problem within 5 minutes!!!

Fiat were absolutely atrocious on both occasions when it came to ordering the parts... it took 6 months for them to get the parts delivered.

I've got to say, I will be very sad when this little car finally reaches the end of it's days!!

Fantastic little mover, does lack acceleration, but doesn't need much persuading if I want to put my foot down a bit!!

Goes very well when it comes to drinking the juice - or lack of it, it runs at about 52 miles per gallon, I ran from central wales to the Midlands on 1/4 of a tank.

Handles fairly well on the motorway, I tend to keep to 60mph so that it doesn't catch too much of the cross-winds and not to work the engine too hard.

My panda is now 8 years old and it has yet to acquire any rust at all.

Fantastic car to learn to drive in, I flew through my test thanks to the hours of fun I had practicing in my little 'fire engine'.

Really good on the insurance point of view, it may not look much, but it's a fantastic first car for young people like myself.

I'd recommend a Panda to any person who's looking for a cheap economical reliable run-around.