Polski Fiat 126p
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Polski Fiat 126p (literally in English: Polish Fiat 126p) is a small car produced in Poland between 1973 and 2000. It was a type of Fiat 126 and to distinguish it from other types from other countries the letter "p" was added to its name. It was produced by Fabryka Samochodów Małolitrażowych (FSM) in Bielsko-Biała and Tychy with Italian Fiat license. Due to a relatively low price it used to be very popular in Poland and was arguably the most popular car in Poland in 1980s. Its very small size gave it the nickname Maluch ("the small one"). The nick-name became so popular, that in 1997 it was accepted by the producer as the official name of the car.
It was exported to many Eastern bloc countries and for several years it was one of the most popular cars in Poland and Hungary.
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[edit] History
- 1972 – the FSM car factory was built in Bielsko-Biała.
- 6 June 1973 – the first Polski Fiat 126p constructed from Italian parts. It cost about 69 000 zlotys (an average monthly salary in that times was about 3,500 zlotys)
- 22 July 1973 – the official opening of the factory's production line (till the end of that year over 1500 Fiats were manufactured)
- September 1975 – production started in a factory in Tychy.
- 1977 – engine capacity increased from 594 cm³ to 652 cm³. Engine power increased to about 24 hp equal about 17 kW.
- 1978 – production of types with engine capacity 594 cm³ stopped.
- 1979 – production of Polski Fiat 126p continued only in Bielsko-Biała.
- 1981 – 1,000,000th Polski Fiat 126p produced.
- December 1984 – technical changes in the construction and body. Type FL created.
- 1987 – beginning of the production of Polski Fiat 126p Bis version (capacity 700 cm³).
- May 1993 – 3,000,000th Polish Fiat 126p produced.
- September 1994 – body improvement, creating type "el" with parts similar to those used in Fiat Cinquecento.
- January 1997 – introduction of a catalytic converter.
- October 2000 – production was stopped after a production of 3.320.000 units. All Fiats of the last limited Happy End series were yellow.
The global production of this sympatic car was 4.670.000 units : 1.350.000 in Italy and 3.320.000 in Poland.
[edit] Political connotation
The PF 126p had a strong connection with Polish politics in a communist period (Polish People's Republic, up to 1989). In a communist system, a private car was considered a luxury good, due to limited availability and low salaries. It should be noted, that in a planned economy, a decision whether a factory can produce a car, was a political one. The authorities themselves initially did not find the idea of private cars attractive. It was very difficult to buy a foreign car, because the Polish currency złoty was not exchangeable, just like currencies in other communist states, and there was no free market. The first relatively cheap car was Syrena, but its production was limited. The PF 126p was supposed to be the first real popular car, to motorize ordinary families (from this point of view, it was the Polish Volkswagen Beetle or Citroën 2CV). The licence was bought after the rule in Poland was taken by the new communist party leader, Edward Gierek, who wanted to gain popular favour by increasing consumption after spartan times of Władysław Gomułka. Despite it was a small city car, but in a reality of a communist system, it was the only car available to most families, playing a role of a family car. Its production, however, was not sufficient and the PF 126p was distributed through a waiting list. Often the families had to wait a couple of years to buy a car. A coupon for a car could also be given by the authorities for merits.
[edit] Nicknames
In Serbo-Croatian it was known as 'Peglica', in Slovene as 'Bolha'.
[edit] In Popular Culture
Tom Peters drove a Maluch in the television show Tom Goes to the Mayor.
