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Panda Terra and its mysteries

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In Italy, Fissore christened his creation the “Fiat 127 Combi Scout” and, years later, tried to repeat the success of that one with his “Fiat Panda Penny”, the convertible-pick-up version of the popular utility vehicle.

Well, if we put the dots together, the Seat “Pandita” by Emelba and the Fiat Panda “Penny” by Fissore had a practically identical design, so perhaps - and only perhaps, given the lack of documentation in this regard - Emelba appealed again to Italy in his Panda convertible, as he had done at the beginning of his journey with the 127.

However, Emelba did not mass-produce the interesting Pandita although it had already established the prices for the 35 and 45 versions (452.558 and 485.475 pesetas, respectively) and a variant with a hard top was even planned as an option. What was it that motivated the abandonment of the “Pandita” project? It is unknown, but we can assume -or speculate- that it did not receive the relevant permits from Seat, which (surprise!) Presented its own interpretation of the Panda convertible just the following year.

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earth panda
Less detail than a panda »… yes, but enough for its intended use

Panda Terra, full stop

Indeed, at the Barcelona Motor Show in May 1983, as we said a few lines ago, the Seat Panda Terra was presented, which undoubtedly cut the wings of any other convertible project outside of Martorell. Seat, when it came to raising its open Panda, resorted to transforming it into a mixed vehicle. The tailgate was eliminated - replaced by a simple metal chain - and the structure did not have to be reinforced thanks to the fact that it was secured by separate "roll bars".

The first was located in the middle of the body and the other right at the rear, both being joined by two circular tubes. Covering everything, and to protect from inclement weather, a crude canvas hood was designed with windows that was attached to the body by means of a system of ropes and hooks that cannot help but remind us of those of truck cargo boxes. and vans of that time. The rest of the equipment, exterior and interior, was exact to the basic version of the Panda, with the only exception of the front grill, equivalent to the one mounted on the “luxurious” Seat Marbella.

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In the end, the factory-frank price of the Terra was around 430.000 pesetas, well above the 385.000 of the basic Panda but below the prices predicted by Emelba in its convertible “Pandita”. In addition, it is curious to observe how the design of the Seat Panda Terra coincides almost completely with that of the Fiat Panda “Rock” which was also presented by the Moretti bodybuilder in 1983, which had a fixed tubular rear structure with the same characteristics as that of the Terra.

This Moretti product was made in small series in Italy and, given its pick-up nature, it was offered with both standard front-wheel drive and 4 × 4 drive. In Spain, despite considering the Terra as a “mixed” vehicle, the factory never offered all-wheel drive, a project that was nevertheless presented by Emelba with Juncosa technology but which did not go beyond a prototype.

seat panda
Lacking stabilizer bars, it can oversteer
earth panda
Terra's performance on rough terrain is surprising

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Bomb-proof simplicity

During the photo session we were able to enjoy the little Panda “in his sauce”, these are, along winding bumpy and rural roads, in which the car behaves almost like a real off-road vehicle. A playful use, which is what it was intended for. This is helped by its simple -but tall, and well-studied- suspension scheme, and of course, its cheerful mechanics.

This, in the present case, is based on the spirited 903 cc four-cylinder of the Seat 127. For the Panda, Seat opted to increase the compression to 9: 1, change the timing diagram and carburetion, which produced a loss of 2 hp (Now it only yielded 45 hp), but in return the engine was more elastic, since it has more torque (6,5 mkg instead of 6,3), and it achieves it at 500 laps less.

And also, the Panda Terra weighs more than 20 kilos less than the 127, so the performance is more than reasonable; It goes up well in laps, accelerates with nerve and the odometer is set to 160 km / h, although from 140 the engine works at about 6.000 laps, where the "red zone" begins.

In any case, it is not the speed that characterizes this car, but its joy, agility and versatility of use. What's more, this particular unit has been used in the field frequently - yes, as an all-rounder - since it has been restored. According to its owner, there it more than meets, and surely this will be the opinion of most of those who have had the opportunity to test a Panda: A car that despite its simplicity, does not disappoint.

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seat panda

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Written by Francisco Carrion

My name is Francisco Carrión and I was born in Ciudad Real in 1988, a place that was not at first akin to vintage cars. Fortunately my grandfather, dedicated to the automotive sector, had friends who owned veteran cars and participated in the annual rally that was held (and continues to be held) in my hometown ... Read more

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