Panda Fiat Panda 169 Mylife 1.2 - My 3rd Fiat

I had been busy with work and missed the 75K service but managed to catch it at 78K.

Just standard oil, oil filter, air filter and general health check for the little Panda.

The butterfly valve in the throttlebody seems to not be gunking up as much as before, perhaps the more regular oil changes are helping?

After a few miles and turning left I'd get a sort of screeching from brakes, I think it was the lower portion of the dust shield contacting the disc, so I bent it back a bit and noise seems to have gone!

Underside is a bit dirty but still not much corrosion.

Really pleased with this little car!

Last did oil at 65,000, I know a 5000 service is a bit pedantic but I do a lot of miles and need this happy and healthy panda for getting to work and more importantly, home!

Replaced front discs and pads with brembos
Magneti Marelli oil filter
Mannol oil - same as I used last time, pretty cheap and Panda seems to like it.

Also took the opportunity to clean and epoxy paint the front subframe - looking clean underneath!

Here's to a happy new year and another 5000 miles of Panamonium

Since I'd gotten the Panda, it's never sat on the mid way mark on the temp gauge, and with the colder weather, it's hardly rising above the 1/4 mark.

The Mylife trim being a 2011> trim must have a different thermostat, as the one I previously ordered was the normal (no sensor) variant. But turns out mines is like the Fiat 500 variant with the sensor. The plastic pipe where the cabin hose connects too was cracked and sheared when I took the hose off - caught just in time. New one has a metal pipe instead of plastic!

My Fiancé is learning about cars too so I let her have a go doing it with my supervision.

Following from my last post about my Panda not starting -

Took it to Planet Performance and they figured out IT WAS the fuel pump. They got that sorted for me ASAP and happy to report I'm back on the road with it!

I'll be looking to DIY change my thermostat as it never reaches the middle mark, only sits 1/4 up, even after an hours drive.

Just for laziness, I'm just going to cut the hose clamp if anyone knows the right size to get? I'll be fitting one of they malakor clips instead of a jubilee clip.

Cheers

Hi folks

So, my little Panda has been pretty flawless since I did the crankshaft position sensor, until today.

Drove fine for my 44 mile commute, did a 12hr shift, jumped in and she was as normal in terms of lights on the dash but she just wouldn't fire into life, she was cranking but I think there was no ignition or fuel?

No warning lights on dash
I pressed the fuel cut off under passenger seat but made no difference.
Battery is strong and even had jumper cables at it.

Had to abandon car and take work van home due to time constraints.

Going to take my OBD2 scanner in with me, have a look at earthing cables, fuses etc,

is there anything else I should be looking at?

Thanks guys

Having done just shy of 5000 miles since I got her, I decided to do a service on the little Panda.

Oil
Oil filter
Oil sump plug
Sparkplugs
Headlight bulbs

I usually use something like Fuchs Titan Race Pro in all my cars, I've decided to go a bit more budget friendly with the Panda (the whole idea of the Panda was a cheap runner) so after some research I opted for Mannol 5W-40 C3 which meets the specifications of Fiat, a fully synthetic oil, £26 for 5L jug of it.

Bulbs I went for Osram night breakers.

The nearside headlight always had a considerable gap between it and the fender, but I've tried my best to rectify it but the lower plastic bracket has snapped. It'll do for now.

She's wanted for nothing and still a joy to drive.

Decided to go camping with the Panda this weekend and she's been pretty flawless.

Set off from my work near Helensburgh to Arrochar to fill up! Then to Tyndrum for some camping gas *didn't have any*. Continued to Glencoe then Fort William as I'd be camping at Glen Nevis.

Today (Saturday 7/9/24) I set off for Ardnarmuchan Lighthouse! The roads are an absolute delight and to be quite honest, the Panda was perfect for the drive. After the lighthouse, I took a jaunt to Mallaig, which I'm glad I had AC as it nearly reached 27°C. Double backed on myself and headed into Corpach as there's a bench by the canal I like to sit at. Then continued into Fort Bill where I'm currently having a BBQ Korean bowl from 'Spoons. Thinking back on my mini roadtrip, after seeing a few big SUVs (Touregs, Landys, Range Rovers with the obligatory "tentbox")makes me think are we going the wrong way with cars? Is bigger really better? The amount that had to really ditch themselves on the single-track roads was quite amusing, yet, I could pass by a woman in a Fiat 500 no bother.

I'm currently on 1/8 of fuel left and I'd say that's really good going. I'll fill her up tomorrow morning and I get home.

I remembered from my 2004 Punto, the throttle body can get a bit gunky due to the breather hose from the rocker cover. Sure enough, it was a bit dirty. I was more shocked at the oil build up at the connection with the air filter box, gave it a right good clean out.

New air filter too.

I love this little car

Got the opportunity to have both my Abarth 595 Competitzione and Fiat Panda MyLife together for a quick photo.

Almost 2 weeks I've had the Panda and despite the flak the Panda gets, it's a very comfortable and 'fun' car when driving it on some nice - downhill - B roads.

I'll be posting updates more on the Panda when I'm doing DIY jobs and where I've been in it. I'll try and get more scenic pictures with it!

A week since I got her and I've had a low but mostly highs. She was faultless the whole 4hr run back up the road, but the next day, she would cut out on idle once warmed up.

She threw an EML and after plugging in my scanner, came up P0335, Crankshaft Position Sensor. Thankfully, Amazon had next day delivery for a Febi Bilstein replacement.

Other than that, she's been flawless and doing her job - being a cheap, fuel sipping runaround. For the whole sum of £35, I was able to go to Stewarton to Wigan and back. I've never had a car so economical.

Looking forward to doing some rust proofing for long term ownership

- I think I'm falling for the Panda charm, look at that face!