Learning to Drive! - Falling in love with 126

[Widget]

Hello!

I am from Jersey, Channel Islands UK. And I am going with my friend, who is a mechanic, to take a look at a Fiat 126. I am only just about to start driving lessons, even though I am 25!

A couple of people have said the Fiat 126 is a bad idea for my first car as it can be difficult to drive. I just wondered whether anyone had any thoughts on it?

I am completely falling for the 126 and I really don't want to have a bog standard car.

Thank you!!

[Rusty's Uncle]

  Hi Widget , I can only imagine that your advisors probably drive the equivelent of automatic , air conditioned armchairs on wheels. If you realy want to "LEARN" to drive and have more understanding of how a vehicle responds and interacts with the road then you cannot do much better than a Fiat 126. The earlier Fiat 500 is a more difficult car for a learner with the small engine power and a non syncro gearbox , perhaps that is what they were thinking about. If you get a good one, Bis or Aircooled, you can almost gaurantee that it will change your life. The other side of the coin is when you are driving around in a Ford Boring GLX & see that 126 on the road , how are you going to feel  </6

[dajwid]

Ask your friends that advised against a 126 of they have owned or driven a 126. I would guess the answer is no.

They are fun to drive, to echo what has been said, better than an armchair on wheels. I have a Volvo an off roader and the 126, If I want a fun drive the 126 wins every time, even to the shops and back is fun.

Ignore your friends get a 126, although you may find most of us here are a little biased.

[nathan126]

Welcome to the forum!
I'm only 18, but learnt to drive in a BIS.. wouldn't have swapped that car for anything else!  [-/
I think most people that learn in a 126 become great drivers, as they have to plan stopping distances that bit more  
On the other had i probably got a bit cocky with the handling, wont get that on a modern car  

GET ONE you know you want to 

[Widget]

Thanks for the awesome advice guys! The one I want is a white 126 bis. He said on the phone that it was water cooled I think..... Anyway, we are going to check it out on Tuesday. It's only £600! So fingers crossed! I just love the character of it!

[Gordan]

Hy Widget! I too am a beginner driver, i have my licence for about a year and a half, and have my BIS that long too, and it is a great beginners car, my dad owns a golf and i dont want to drive it becouse its soooo boring (the servo is too soft, the brakes dont have any feedback, cant hear the engine...) and my bros cinquecento is just too spongy, it doesnt have the 126 road-holding capabilities, so all things considered, if you want a great little car, if you want to be different, if you dont care that your top speed is about 70mph, i say buy the 126, if not, im sorry 

[Dom]

if you dont care that your top speed is about 70mph, i say buy the 126, if not, im sorry 

Very true. too often do people get put off by the slow top speeds. But to be fair, other than Autobahns in Germany, there aren't really any places you can legally drive on the road any faster. So you should be less likely to lose your licence. Especially in Jersey, i can't imagine any need for a faster car on a small island!

[Gordan]

Exactly!  [-/

p.s. I think theres a strip of road in Libya with no speed limit 

[Pete126]

Hi Widget, Welcome to the forum you won't be the only one on the island with a 126 its the ideal motor due to the low speed limits, checkout this thread

http://club126uk.co.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3197.msg19188#msg19188