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Fiat 126 and Maluch
Inline-two-cylinder, 594 cm3 (73,5 mm * 70 mm), 7,5 : 1, 39 Nm at 3400 rpm, 17 kW (23 HP) at 4700 rpm, air cooling, rear engine, longitudinal, rear drive, drum brakes f/r, two
circuit,
wheelbase 1.840 mm, length 3.054 mm, width 1.377 mm, height 1.300 mm, kerb weight 590 kg + driver, towing capacity, 450 kg (12 %), 105 km/h, from 1972, purchase price 4.990 DM.
We still remember two phenomena in traffic in the People's Republic of Poland that seemed incompatible: the mostly extremely bumpy motorways and the incredibly common Fiat 126 Polski, the car that
shook its occupants the most.
Sometimes even driving slowly didn't help, but that was the only way to do it with this car anyway. We had the impression that things got a little better at 120 km/h, and we accepted the risk of damage to our
car. The EU later addressed this situation, but by then the time of the 126p was almost over.
It was the result of a collaboration between Fiat in Turin and the long-established company Polski-Fiat. This time, however, compensation for the license was not delivered in the form of easily rusting metal
sheets from the East, but rather 800,000 fully assembled drive units.
Both versions came onto the market at about the same time in 1972/73. As the number '126' suggests, work on a successor to the 500 Nuova had already begun very early on (1968). Opinions, however, varied
widely, which meant that Dante Giacosa, for example, was relegated more to the role of an spectator towards the end of his period of service.
So it was definitely a difficult birth. But the styling was surprisingly good. The new one basically had the floor pan and drive of the old one, only the body was extended and stabilized, and the engine was
reinforced accordingly. The most important measure for assessing the interior also remained unchanged: the wheelbase.
You could also see it when you looked at the car from the side; it could have used a few more centimeters. But the pressure on costs was high. It couldn't be too expensive because of the needs in the country
and of course in Poland. So its advantages were highlighted, e.g. its maneuverability in the city and advantages when parking.
Only the tank moved to the back, which creates this strange closing on the left side, but also more luggage space and safety in the event of an accident. It remains a car with a rattling two-cylinder twin, the
worst possible design for a multi-cylinder engine. You can almost do without the second cylinder because both always do the same thing, especially in the 126 with relatively large flywheel masses.
| Starter directly actuated, without solenoid switch. |
Because it was already the 1970s, it was high time that the gears were synchronized, which proved impossible with the first one. Giacosa clearly pointed out the advantages of the chassis, e.g. the transverse
leaf spring at the front, which replaced the stabilizer. At the rear, however, there were no contemporary semi-trailing arms because there were no real joints on the outside, so that positive camber was possible.
Above you can see the car with the L version. It cost 300 DM more and offered reclining seat fittings and better materials for the dashboard and seat covers. The footwell was then covered with carpet instead of
rubber mats. The outer side protection vou can see above too, which was combined with wider bumpers. Strangely, the heated rear window was only available in the L version, but for an extra 95 DM. On the
other hand, the sunroof was significantly cheaper here. Instead of 350 DM, it only cost 200 DM.
| Four bumpers in the course of development: painted, chrome-plated, hard and softer
plastic. |
It is also important to mention that the three-phase generator was only available in the L version, while automatically retracting seat belts, radial tires and dual-circuit brakes were mandatory for both versions.
Despite all the extra costs, the Fiat 126 remained a cheap car with 5.4 liters/100km, even if driving safety, comfort and performance were already at the edge of the acceptable in Germany at that time.
It wasn't just commercial vehicles that prevented from making rapid progress, but also the Fiat 126p, the VW Beetle a la Polski, which were built around 3.3 million times up until 2000. No, the owners didn't
want to subject their hard-earned vehicle to the top speed of 105 km/h, the speedometer showed a maximum of just under 80 km/h, a challenge if you were driving behind it and still wanted to go to the
Masurian Lake District.
Fabryka Samochodow Malolitrazowych also produced the Fiat Polski, which resembled the 125 only in terms of appearance but not in terms of technology, and the Polonez, a station wagon with similarly
modest technology, but which cost an almost immeasurable amount of money by Polish standards. Tragically for the 126p, too, it was born at a time when people had actually hoped that things would improve.
| Nicknames |
| Bambino | Italy.: Sonny |
| Maluch | Poland.: Manikin |
| Peglica | Yugoslavia.: Iron |
| Bolha | Slovakia.: Flea |
| Polaquito | Cuba.: Little Pole |
There is a reason why it was built for so long and not, as in the West, at least replaced by a Polish Panda. The waiting times are not quite as long as later in the GDR, but you have to reckon with an average
of five years. And to even get on the waiting list, a substantial deposit is of course required. There are no used car dealers, you can easily get rid of your 'old' car.
From around 1976, political pressure from the communist government increased and the economic situation deteriorates. The higher prices of basic foodstuffs lead to the first unrest. In 1978, the Pole Karel
Wojtyla became Pope and Solidarnosc was founded in 1980. After all, the production of own vehicles with Western licenses was also based on the hope that foreign currency could be earned through their
sale. In the GDR it smelled of two-strokes engines, in Poland of coal.
Poland's economic collapse was dramatic. Food stamps were introduced in early 1981. At the end of the year, martial law was imposed under General Jaruzelski and a wave of arrests took place. It was only
after the end of communism in 1989 that the economy began to develop again. From 2004 onwards, EU funds flowed noticeably into road construction, for example.
Under these circumstances, it is perhaps understandable that not much changed in the 126p produced in Bielsko Biala (up to 1980) and Tychy until 1987. In 1980, the first million had been reached and,
perhaps because of the end of production of the 126 in Italy, the second in 1985. In 1983, there was only the 650 E (pictured above) with 647 cm3 displacement.
In 1987, the first real changes came with the 126 BIS. The engine was enlarged to 700 cm3, liquid-cooled and laid on its side like the Fiat 500 Giardiniera. This created a loading area above the
engine with access through a larger tailgate. Unfortunately, the cooling method did not prove successful in this case, so the version soon disappeared again.
| Prototypes of the 126 from FSO |
| Extension at the front |
| Coupé variant |
| Box body with flap |
| Open military version |
| Multi-wheeler |
| Tracked vehicle |
| Extension (below) |
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