Fiat Panda TwinAir LPG – 126panda

© gazeo.comThe reducer is only visible from under the car. Keeping it clean is impossible

The main advantage of the whole system is a capacious LPG tank. Placed in the spare wheel well, the torus holds up to 32 l of liquefied gas. So even considering the fact that the engine uses a bit too much fuel, it should be enough to drive around 300 km without refilling. It’s enough, especially that it is mainly a city car after all. As the spare tire is eliminated altogether and replaced by a repair kit, we have the whole – if not very large – boot at our disposal.

To sum up, the gas system is the car’s main advantage. We don’t have anything against Panda’s style or character (the everpresent rounded square shape makes it original and easily recognizable), but we were let down by the 0,9 TwinAir turbo engine. 85 PS (dyno results: almost 88 on gas and almost 94 on petrol – nice bonus!) and 145 Nm (dyno: 155 on gas, 164 on petrol) are promising, but the promise turns out unfulfilled. Outside of the sterile labs that conduct NEDC tests, it’s impossible to have both good performance and low fuel consumption. You have to choose – either you go for it (though maximum torque – according to our tests – can be reached at 2500 rpm and most of it even below 2000 rpm), or fight for every drop of gas accepting that your car will be as dynamic as an accumulator car. Eco mode is supposed to be an added bonus (it lowers engine parameters), but it’s hard to be enthusiastic about it if even driving in the standard mode is not all that enjoyable.

© gazeo.comEasily accessible and functional, but somehow out of place – the fuel type switch

The system that suggests the moment the driver should shift gear makes things even worse. Following its instructions and shifting when it tells us to, we won’t feel any performance whatsoever. The speed will remain almost the same and we can forget about rapid acceleration. If this is how downsizing and saving the internal combustion engine from premature death is supposed to look like, we might as well stop right here and get into electric cars right away. But for now, get your Pandas 1,2 Fire before they’re gone. Maybe you won’t save much (although after the LPG conversion, it won’t be much different than TwinAir), but they will surely be cheaper (the price differential is 8000 PLN or 1500 euros – the cost of two LPG systems!) and less frustrating for the driver. At least you get what you pay for.