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General First car for a new driver
Conratulations 
Red cars are best cars
Red cars are best cars
I like red cars too. My old Cortina 1500 GT was Dragoon Red and I loved her. My existing Ibiza ST is also Emocion red. Only thing with red is it tends to fade/oxidize so give it a good cote of polish at least once a year if appearance is important. Becky, our 196 model Panda dynamic eco is white but I like white too especially where there's black plastic bits like bumper inserts and wing mirrors etc as it contrasts well with the black plastic. Shortly taking delivery of Skoda Scala to replace the Ibiza, it's in Energy blue, never had a blue car before although the DAF 33 Van I ran about in many years ago was blue.
Great find in today's market! Hope the driver enjoys it.
Treat the rear axle spring pans, oil sump pan and coolant return pipe across the front of the engine for rust, and make sure the 'duckbill' scuttle drains below the wiper are kept clear or rainwater can flood into the cabin.
Treat the rear axle spring pans, oil sump pan and coolant return pipe across the front of the engine for rust, and make sure the 'duckbill' scuttle drains below the wiper are kept clear or rainwater can flood into the cabin.
Thanks for your reply. This lad is a real beginner. The kind of person a garage would love cos you could rip him off easily. Only had a quick look before buying but the rear beam does look like it could do with some love before it goes from surface rust to worse. The sump is self lubricating 
at the moment. So I'll see what is going on there when I get my hands on it. Obviously with car price and insurance and tax and fuel he is abit skint for now. Will try and get him to do the work himself with my help and tools. If he gets the "can do" attitude from the start he will hopefully be more mechanically sympathetic. The clutch is fairly hard to push down with your foot, not sure if that is a future problem or they're all like that. My cinquecento has a new clutch and it's soo easy to press. I did mine myself and bought a new cable incase needed but not required yet, you know how it goes, if you have it you'll never need it 
In Ireland you have to have a full license driver with you when learning buy I see him out on his own sometimes, I mean I did that myself 35 years ago but less chance of getting nicked then. He has his test booked but waiting list is 6 months.
at the moment. So I'll see what is going on there when I get my hands on it. Obviously with car price and insurance and tax and fuel he is abit skint for now. Will try and get him to do the work himself with my help and tools. If he gets the "can do" attitude from the start he will hopefully be more mechanically sympathetic. The clutch is fairly hard to push down with your foot, not sure if that is a future problem or they're all like that. My cinquecento has a new clutch and it's soo easy to press. I did mine myself and bought a new cable incase needed but not required yet, you know how it goes, if you have it you'll never need it In Ireland you have to have a full license driver with you when learning buy I see him out on his own sometimes, I mean I did that myself 35 years ago but less chance of getting nicked then. He has his test booked but waiting list is 6 months.
The Panda in the UK are normally hydraulic
The normally only go stiff when they wear down
Keep an eye on it for a bit, the car may have sat for awhile before being sold
If it does not improve, it will probably need replacing. Not easy to test for
Last one I did was over a year ago. The clutch kit was cheap just over £40 but the gear oil adds another £20
I did fitted new input shaft bearing, you could waggle the end of the shaft a mm or so along with the 3 rubber seals
The normally only go stiff when they wear down
Keep an eye on it for a bit, the car may have sat for awhile before being sold
If it does not improve, it will probably need replacing. Not easy to test for
Last one I did was over a year ago. The clutch kit was cheap just over £40 but the gear oil adds another £20
I did fitted new input shaft bearing, you could waggle the end of the shaft a mm or so along with the 3 rubber seals
You are lucky. Here in Ireland 3 litres of gearbox oil cost me 66 euro and then most of it leaked out as I think i broke the driveshaft flange installing. Was fun looking for a new flange 
so had to buy second hand from Spain via Lithuanian website.... thanks for the info, won't spoil the lads fun yet as he is starting out so in a few weeks I'll get him to show me the car again.
so had to buy second hand from Spain via Lithuanian website.... thanks for the info, won't spoil the lads fun yet as he is starting out so in a few weeks I'll get him to show me the car again.
Yes, red does seem to fade I had a red golf some years ago and I really had to keep on top of the polishing etc.
Metallic reds are ok though.
Metallic paint has lacquer over it that's why it lasts better
My 12 year old punto is going various shades of pink
Door handle / plastic parts are the worst..
I Wanted a metallic finish, but could only buy a UK stock vehicle at the time
white or red was the only option
My only white car was a Fiesta rotbox, the scabby white paint was abysmal
Door handle / plastic parts are the worst..
I Wanted a metallic finish, but could only buy a UK stock vehicle at the time
white or red was the only optionMy only white car was a Fiesta rotbox, the scabby white paint was abysmal
Don't they all have clear coats with UV inhibitors ?
Red always the worse due to the wave length of light
seen a black fiat none metallic with peeling top coat
I had a green Punto, the paint was blue and blue on the V5 but the top coat had a yellow tint
The paint on the Punto was rock hard the white panda is quite soft in comparison
.
I can't remember the paint on the two blue pandas I have owned
Red always the worse due to the wave length of light
seen a black fiat none metallic with peeling top coat
I had a green Punto, the paint was blue and blue on the V5 but the top coat had a yellow tint
The paint on the Punto was rock hard the white panda is quite soft in comparison
.
I can't remember the paint on the two blue pandas I have owned
We've a metallic black panda, still looks fine at 12 years old. Learners car, so may not stay that way for long
The bonnet of the 2012 DOES look like failing lacquer..
I paid extra for a protective coating, as I wasn't too mobile then, knew it wasn't going to see much care
Far better than that junk "ECO PAINT" Volkswagen tried in the mid 90's though thankfully
YepThe bonnet of the 2012 DOES look like failing lacquer..
I paid extra for a protective coating, as I wasn't too mobile then, knew it wasn't going to see much care
Far better than that junk "ECO PAINT" Volkswagen tried in the mid 90's though thankfully
Depends where they are parked
How they are looked after
I also seem to remember there was a bad batch of cars
But once it starts to lift there little that can be done cheaply, other than waxing and stop it from spreading
Pretty common on unloved 500s
Thankfully not THAT BAD, but annoying..
The 58 reg plate punto, is in a Blue Met that I would have chosen in 2012
Far better condition despite being 4 years older, and also having very little care and attention
I can beat that! 2010 Panda Active Eco with 140k miles on the clock.
Roof, tailgate, bumpers, both N/S doors, A & B pillars all have it.
But the O/S doors are like new - they got repainted after a scrape when it was nearly new.
Virtually impossible to sell, not worth painting.
But it is rust-free, annoyingly reliable and cheap to run.
Roof, tailgate, bumpers, both N/S doors, A & B pillars all have it.
But the O/S doors are like new - they got repainted after a scrape when it was nearly new.
Virtually impossible to sell, not worth painting.
But it is rust-free, annoyingly reliable and cheap to run.
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In that case it will sell although it will lessen its appeal to some people. Personally I'd buy a car like that . I wouldn't give a monkey's what people thought of it. Bodywork and reliability are the key. Try it in a few local shops where they charge a pittance or even nothing, to test the water.
I don't. That's why I kept it. But most potential buyers would walk away. Or run.
I've also got a red 100hp which has faded to a mix of dull pink and orange. Same thing there.
(Although it's not as annoyingly reliable or cheap to run)
