As a former Lada owner I love seeing Eastern European cars from the 70s and 80s still chugging along. They all got hammered by bad press and cruel jokes but when - in 1989 - a brand new Lada cost less than a 3 year old Ford Escort they made sense to a lot of people on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Great review.
Everyone and their dog slated Lada's but were tough, reliable cars, the Niva an exceptional 4X4. Easy to maintain, apart from if one had the misfortune to have to change the timing chain and sprockets due to owners and garages not checking and adjusting the tension regularly. That crankshaft nut wound itself to astronomical torque.
I've never owned any eastern cars..but as a young mechanic in the 90's I really thought they were overly well built! I worked almost exclusively on Austin Rover car. The Lada that was based on a Fiat (Riva?)was so over engineered with much thicker steel and massive front callipers..I loved driving them!
@@mark70s29 Overbuilt, well maybe for British roads. When Fiat agreed to help found VAZ (Factory who make lada) they tested a fleet of the original italian made cars in rural parts of the various soviet republics. Almost everything broke, even the bodies were found to have developed severe cracks and distortions. What I think really hurt the Lada range was the 1980s restyle (2104 and 2107). They lost all their charm and ended up looking like industrial washing machines. That, and they had a modern 100% self designed hatchback (the samara) that they for some reason didn't export outside USSR for almost a decade. By the time we got it it was long out of date.
Samara was on sale in the UK only three years after being introduced in Russia. The real killer for Lada was Proton. Japanese reliability and build quality for a fraction of the cost.
I sold Ladas in the early 90’s. The Riva was bargain car of the year 1992 at just £2995 otr. We then took on Proton alongside Lada as many dealerships did. I especially remember the Samara having a terrifying amount of brake pedal travel before any hint of stopping!
I love the baby blue color. My father owned one from 1969 till 1976. That was the car that brought me from the hospital where I was born. Greetings from Slovenia.
People of Croatia, where I live, are still really fond of this car, whoever did driving school tests in Yugoslavia, probably did it in Zastava, we call it the Fićo (pronounced Ficho) here. The legend still goes on and lots of people are restoring these since it became a cult classic here. I was lucky enough to drive to drive one from a friend of mine, who was born in the late 90s, same as me, he inherited a really low mileage one from his dad's uncle! If you like tiny cars, and want a daily a classic, this is pretty much a perfect combination. Great video as always HubNut, you never dissapoint.
Fićo was also used as a police car, they had all the sirenes, lights and all. In those days people had respect for the polie and crooks were caught nowadays you give 20 euro's to a cop and he looks the other way. They have fast cars now but are too stupid to catch criminals. You know it was also used as rally car where Fićo's were racing against eachother. Nacionalna klasa. Don't know if you ever watched the movie Nacionalna klasa?If not watch it, you will enjoy it.
@@RWBHere No, it's a nickname for a guy named Filip. Also, I heard that the car got its nickname because there was a running joke in Yugoslavia about a plumber whose nickname was Fićo, and guess what car he had...😂
I love Fićo!!! A very nice car and my uncle (50 years), got his license as well in that car.😂 Once I stopped with my Fiat 500 at red traffic lights in Zagreb and another man in his 50s stopped with his Zastava Fiat. It was so cool and totally weird at the same time. The man winked me and drove away 😂😊
A note regarding the cooling system: the thermostatic flap is located underneath the car, if you rev the engine while standing behind the car you can feel the warm air on the lower part of your legs, said flap has also a mechanism that lets you keep it wide open in hot weather. You are absolutely right about the heater, in the manual for my Seat 600e (essentially the same car) it says that you should keep your windows slightly open while having the heater on because of the fumes.
@@SantiagoS-mz4zz Page 22: It says: "Para activar al circulación de aire en el interior del coche es recomendable abrir un poco uno de los cristales giratorios"
I've heard so many stories from my father about his father owning a Zastava like that (back in the day here in Greece), and the road trips of the whole family (two adults and two children in the 750)
Speaking as a Trabant P601 owner, I have a real soft spot for cars from behind the 'Iron Curtain '. They are often much maligned, but they gave people mobility. As my late father used to say "Second class transport is better than first class walking"!
Yugoslavia was never behind the iron curtain. In fact we broke ties with Ussr in 1948 when Tito refused Stalin. We could travel freely and everybody came to us for holidays. In fact the Yugoslavian passport could get you everywhere.
@@histriamagna1014 There was never really an iron curtain in the first bloody place. Americans and brits were psyching themselves up about the "mysterious brutal eastern bloc" while soviet movie stars were partying in Parisian night clubs and middle class Finns kept drinking their wage packets away in Leningrad. Yugolavia's position between the "blocs" was interesting but also very sad. USA liked to hit USSR with "we don't hate communists, we hate bad guys, why don't you be nice like the Yugoslavs?", Tito found this very comfortable as being used this way meant western bloc didn't shit on yugoslavia like every other red country and instead give massive loans. But when USSR's importance as a world power withers away, washington decides "you have outlived your usefulness". I'm tired of international politics. It's all stupid bullshit to trick people into destroying themselves.
I'd love to see a HubNut version of a Harry's garage Auction walkabout. Be a allot more interesting and affordable :) The Bricklin Harry shunned was the most interesting car at the NEC sale.
I was born in Serbia and when I was kid you saw them by dozens in every street. Where I grew up as a kid you could only get there by 4x4 and with Zastava 750 called Fico.As a kid I didn't like them much now a lot older they all have gone and when I see them I get a smile on my face. My cousin had one he worked as a policeman and they were lso put to work as policecar with 850 engine, in those days the cops used to get criminals faster than now. On holidays in Serbia they have become very very rare if any. In the Yugoslavia days grandma and grandpa with grandchild in the backseat and mom and dad in front to a vacation in Croatia or Montenegro. On the roof a roofrack with suitcases and bags. The smll car struggling to get uphill or keep up with the rest of the traffic on the road, you could hear the engine moaning and groaning to get it's passenger where ever they wanted. Travelling 1200 kilometers was an adventure - it took a while to get there- but you enjoyed it, less stress . It was a real roadmovie for the family in those days. When the engine would get hot you opend the hood and put a stick or a small plnk between the hood and engine bay so the engine could cool off. I myself are very fond of the Zastava 1300/1500( Fiat 1500) called the Yugoslav Mercedes, I especially loved the 2 two tone horn and the tuba like exhaust sound when you floored it, typical of also the Zastava 101. If you can get a hold of a Zastava 101 please do review of it. Thanks for this review that brings lot of memories!
Cool story, My father used to have Zastava 101 Comfort which was the best model, FIAT engine i think cant recall what model with Fiat racing steering wheel, nice interior, we went to Switzerland with it, 2 days trip staying on Bled Lake overnight, going on Authoban and also through Tirol in Austria, staying some 20 days in Switzerland going to Zurich, Bern, Lausanne etc...and the trip back ofc without any issue, my father always said hes best car ever was Fića/Fiat 850, he said most fun he had with that car, going to holiday on seaside in Montenegro...Im from Belgrade btw Awesome review HubNut
I had three 600's back in the day the 600d was much better than the 600 which had suicide doors, and my last one was a 600 Arbarth which was quite quick. They handled quite well (except on windy days )by the standards of the day and I drove from Shropshire via Dover to north of Amsterdam in the Netherlands and back several times. Two up with a stack of luggage. They were all very reliable but the early 600s rotted like there was no tomorrow and to keep the engine cool in hot weather the radiator flap was usually either removed or propped open. Happy days
Ahhh the happy memories of the old bugger who used to fire a rather large PKM machine gun over our camp whilst standing up out of the roll back sunroof in Bosnia! When we caught him after a couple of weeks, he explained he had been "told to do it" and how he only ever fire over the roofs of our compound. True, but his rounds where hitting the houses about 300 metres past us and they where getting somewhat bored of it 🤣 We traded his PKM for a tank of fuel, about 5 gallons a receipt for the weapon and sent him on his way!! Ahhh happy times, winter in northern Bosnia brrrrr ⛄☃️
My father owned a '84 model. Had a lot of fun in it. We even did some long trips in it and it held up quite well. You are correct about perceived quality - that was probably one of best cars (quality wise) that Zastava ever made, with few upgrades such as headlights that bested even the original Fiat-made ones. And yes, since it was so cheap at one point, people saw it as disposable and a lot of them ended up in landfills. Luckily, now the love for it is back, and nice ones command premium price. A very nostalgic video for me - thank you for bringing back memories!
Totally agree that the 600 shaped cars are massively overlooked. Similar situation with the Fiat 133 , lived in the shadow of the 126. That OHV engine saw service way past early Pandas and Uno's, as it was used in the smaller engined Seicento, sold in UK well into the new millennium. It was also the only engine ever fitted to the Fiat 850 too. A true legend of a power unit amongst Fiat followers, tough, robust , reliable and didn't sound bad either.
@@neilwalsh4058 However, I have been told that the 903 and 1010 engines should not be mounted in a FIAT/SEAT/Zastava 600 without mounting a front radiator because it would overheat otherwise.
@@SantiagoS-mz4zz I owned a FIAT 850 Sport (coupe) , 1969 so had the slightly larger 903cc engine. Rad was rear mounted ,to the side on the O/S , never had any overheating problems. Permanent belt driven fan , and a big enough area to pull the air in. Distributor with manual points and a tiny twin choke Weber , set up and properly maintained. 40+ years old when I had it ,nice simple motoring , no fancy (pointless) sensors that could fail. Respectable enough 53 bhp , capable of over 90mph, rewarded me with over 50 mpg on a run and never less than 35mpg in daily use. A very easy to own and gorgeous looking little classic 👍
Its amazing how many different companies produced these under licence Fiat 600's. SEAT also made these for the Spanish market. There were even some sporty Abarth versions of the Italian built ones usually seen racing with the rear engine hatch propped open for extra cooling and handy rear spoiler for extra downforce.
Your pronounciation of "voda" and "gorivo" were actually spotless. So happy to see Fičo in such a good condition again. In Slovenia they rusted away, and became very rare.
HubNut quite literally on a roll! Thank you Ian for the great review videos lately, impressive work ethic and great variety of motoring stars (you included) gracing our screens 👍
I completely agree with you about the (let's call it) 600 range being overlooked in favour of the 500. I think both are beautiful classics and the one you are driving looks to be in superb condition.
I daily a 1969 Zastava 750 and I can vouch that they are temperamental little cars. If taken care of, and by that I mean driven daily and maintained, they will serve you no matter the weather or age. Mine has been in the family since it left the factory, and its been both a smugglers car and a rally car. And to this day it sparks up instantly. Truly marvelous little bastards they are. To me, mine is like an old family friend
Hi! So funny watching you trying to read the writings in the car. This car was known for good uphill driving performance (or rather ability) in the snow. Regards from Slovenia!
My dad bought a Lada in early 80's Belfast to get to work as buses had a habit of blowing up then. He parked it up one day and went into a pub to get change for the parking meter and someone had put a timed device on the counter after robbing the place. He ran out and it wouldn't start so made a run for it. The device went off and the whole wooden cladding of the pub was lying on top of the Lada. Next day he arrived to collect it and the fire brigade had removed most of the debris. The bloody tank of a Lada only started up and he continued on his way.
Wonderful review of a wonderful little car, always been one of my favourite Fiats but never quite managed to own one. Engines finally ended up at 1050cc in the fab Autobianchi A112 Abarth (70 BHP !!), the SEAT version put Spain on the motoring map too, Santa has been notified of the auction date ........
Our Fiat dealing friend had a 600 in his back garden for a while. Adore this era of Fiats. ❤️ I don't remember Brightwells being there in the late eighties, or I know where I'd have been every auction. I did attend a rather grubby car auction in Leominster at that time. It was all Mk3 Cortinas, Marinas and early Renault 5's
I have good memories of this, I had a FIAT 600, a white, a nice and very reliable car. Except for a grain of sand in the idle sprinkler (easy repair), a perfect holiday through Luxembourg done from the Netherlands many years ago.
These were the SEAT 600 in Spain manufactured from 1957 to 1973, the car that motorised Spain in thw 60s and an icon here too. Each and all Spanish family owned at least one SEAT 600 at some time.
Many sweet memoried of me sitting in the back of my parents' Fiat 600. Usually sideways with cushions in my back. Quite comfy! With original seats it is surprisingly roomy...
Nice review. I'm glad you corrected yourself about the Eastern Bloc because Yugoslavia was not part of that bloc because of the conflict with Stalin in 1948. It's a wonderful reminder of what a small car it was. Thank you.
A mate gave me a 600. He had skimmed the head and added a stainless banana bunch exhaust. Went like the clappers. A bit like driving a boiled egg in the wet. Never had fumes. lovely little car.
At last a car from my homeland. I used to own a 750, was my second ever car, wasn't bad but highway cruising definitely wasn't an option, but that was also the only instance where it would ever overheat, after it I went on into a Zastava 101 which honestly felt like coming from a Ford Fiesta into a brand new Tesla. I'd still want to own a good old Fićo as we call it, way better and cheaper to own than a Beetle, preferably the 850 and maybe put a newer Fiat gearbox in it with a 5th speed.
Hi, Ian. You finally tested the classic car that I own. ¡Congratulations! I am also glad that you liked it. I own the Spanish version: the SEAT 600. It is the most popular classic car in Spain, with a production of almost 800,000 units. It is easy to find parts either used or new (either recently made or old stock).
Awesome! My (much older) Stepbrother had a Fiat 770 in the 70's. As far as I remember this car was orange or yellow... He wrecked so many cars, I tell you...
My dad had the old style fiat 500 used to Go to school in it i It was very slow and noisy but economical cream in colour he always used to say wait for the rubber band to break after that he bought a Renault Dauphine that was a good one as well not many about now fair play to you for bringing us this gem
A thoroughly enjoyable video Ian. It really is a peculiar thing just how engaging these old cars are. Obviously cars have always had an element of styling but I find myself more and more engaged by the notion of cars being functional tools to get from A to B rather than a vainglorious fashion accessory. There's all kinds of shades in-between but I can't help feeling that it's all just gone too far.
True, cars have lost their souls and charm, they are filled with computers and gadgets, they have become impersonal. Just like our society and people living in it. The cars reflect a society that they are built in.
The same engine came into up to 965 cc on the A112 and even 1050 cc - 70 HP on the A112 Abarth! One of those Abarth engines went into my 1985 Panda 4x4 many many years ago, it was amazing!
If there are any in the UK it would be great to see a road test of a Zaporozhets as this is another economy car from the same era. They were manufactured in Ukraine and I suspect probably designed there as well. They look like a cross between a Fiat 600 and a Renault 4CV. The construction is ultra simple and rugged, intended for maintenance by the owner where in Soviet bloc countries you could not rely on there being a competent mechanic in your town. Very unusually for a car intended for mass-market basic transportation, they have a V4 engine.
@Retired Bore I like your handle, a gentle exercise in self-deprecation. I knew the Zapo was air-cooled, but didn't know about the magnesium crankcase. They have become quite a cult car in Ukraine and Russia.
voda=water, gorivo=fuel tank. My first car, bought used in 1989. Lasted two years and another one in my yard before towed to scrapyard. Once in majority on the road, nowadays a rare seen. A basic car, not to be driven fast, 70 km/h is the best option. Mortal, if you have an accident driving as fast as you were.
Nice video. 903cc engine was used in Yugo 45 as well. My family had owned it for 18 years, a 1991. model. 45 hp (engine made by DMB), 4 forward gears, no brake booster. We did around 100.000 km / 60.000 miles in it, the 4 of us.
Actually Ian, the largest capacity version of this engine was the 1050cc 70Hp version used in the Autobianchi A112 Abarth. Ther was also a 956 cc version used in both the Panda 4x4 Mk1 and the Autobianchi A112 Elite.
3 years ago I'm in Singapore, staying at the Fairmont. Heading to the restaurant for breakfast. The restaurant was called Prego (there's a clue!). As I walk in, what should be parked in the restaurant but a Fiat 600 as part of the Italian theme. And that's the last time I saw one!
I'm looking for a nice, small classic for a reasonable price and the Zastava 750 is on my list of options. I'm already familiar with this type of engine, because my Seat Marbella got the 903cc version of it. Your test drive comes to the right time for me and I think now the chance of going for a Zastava is much bigger. So thank you for the look inside of it... 👍
What a characterful little car. Hopefully it’s new will give any necessary TLC. Having owned Skoda Estelle and Lada Riva it’s nice to see an Eastern block car that’s been preserved.
You are very brave for driving a 600 al 60 miles and using only one hand! Hahaha. Here in argentina 500000 of them were sold between 1960 and 1982. I own a 1979 one with a 903 cc engine. Greetengs from buenos aires
Zesty Zastava. There was a '91 Yugo GV with 4000 original miles on it along with a 1971 GMC School Bus both owned by a retired U.S. government employee. I just bought both 😀!
A lovely car, this was sold in Spain as Seat 600 and was also very popular, everyone had one, today unfortunately it is rare to see one. I think the Seat version had 4 gears and a slightly more powerful engine. Later they developed a special version with four doors called Seat 800.
Indeed! Also, Seat 600 are loved popular classic cars here in Spain. There are many owner clubs, lots of parts and many units kept at superb condition. Seat was Fiat licensed for many models on their early ages and both makers ended on court after Fiat Ritmo - Seat Ronda issue. That's a fight that could deserve a movie: Fiat had both licensed those products to Seat for many years and owned an important part of Seat. After 70's oil crisis, Fiat started to go our from that society since there were many risks. The contract between both makers stated that Seat could not keep making Fiat products and needed to sell noticeable different cars. So, Seat took the Fiat Ritmo and made many modifications to create the Seat Ronda, including a Porsche engineering reviewed version of the Fiat 1430 engines, in 1.2 and 1.5 liter versions. These changes were important but the car was clearly a modified Ritmo, so Fiat and Seat went to court. Seat made a Ronda black unit with all different parts painted in orange and finally won the battle. However, it struggled for some years and was later sold to Volkswagen group. Despite that led to great products afterwards, it's kind of a sad story because Seat and Fiat had a great relationship for many years and the selling conditions VW got were never offered to Fiat on the first place. IMHO Fiat is a completely underrated historic maker that made and licensed great and innovative products to many others and introduced innovations that many other used afterwards. As Ian said on the Fiat multipla review: Poor Fiat, it can never win.
I owned a 1957 Fiat 600. Here in New Zealand in the early 1980s. It was such fun and could carry 4 of us about. In heavy rain, in traffic. I slide across a bit of,flooded road and into the back of a new Holden Commodore (some midsized Vauxhall based rubbish). Well that was the end of the 600. OH NO it wasn't. The big Holden was the write off.i,hit it at,about 12mph and the Commodore (crapadore in NZ slang) had a towbar!. The 600 kept running on the road for several more months before any repairs. I always say that having the spare wheel in it's correct space under bonnet absorbed some of the impact .
Zastava car factory in Kragujevac lasted till 2008 (Zastana 10 or licenced Fiat Punto 2 was the last model produced) when FIAT bought the factory and now is Fiat Serbia. They produced Fiat 500L till some years ago, now there are news that they will produce FIAT Pandina (electric version of FIAT Panda)
What a lovely little car Ian, it's the sort of car you don't want to get cold over the winter nights and park it in a hutch.... err... I mean garage. This has so much character. The only real downside of a left hand drive car is seeing for overtaking but I guess this little character is unlikely to want to do too much of that (apart from that VW that pulled out in front of you). I love that it survives from those much simpler times. Many thanks for sharing.
Nice car! I see that you've taken a page of other Ian's playbook and feature auction items 😊 (Ian of Forgotten Weapons for those who don't know of him)
The humble Fiat 600, also known overhere in the Netherlands as 'the Italian VW''. A rather popular little car. Some people couldn't part from it. And indeed bought a Zastava instead.
All quite familiar, coming from a 500 owner here. If it follows the 500, the switch closest the binnacle on the dash is a separate control for the dash illumination lights, they only work when the headlight switch is turned on.
Nice little car, full of that Fiat Fizziness and busy sound. I did think these were a flat twin but not obviously. The 903cc version of that engine was also Fitted to the 90’s Cinquecento and the Seicento, a nice simple OHV unit.
It looks in lovely condition. I agree; certainly in the UK and northern Europe these tend to be overshadowed by the 500, which is a bit of a shame. The SEAT 600 got a lot of Spanish families into car ownership just as this did in Yugoslavia. There is plenty of enthusiasm for them in Spain so probably Spain would be a good source of spares too. Fiat 600Ds were reasonably common in the UK at one time, and I've a feeling that most of the cars sold here were assembled in Dublin. I had a SEAT 133 in the UK for a while, and it had all the charactoristics you mention in the test, including the fumy heater.
What a cool little car! That engine soldiered on as late as the seicento in 899cc injected form, if I'm not mistaken. Can't wait to see what's up for review next!
If my lottery ticket comes up I'd jump at buying this little beauty. I love Soviet Era cars. I've been trying to find a Lada for ages but it seems they've, quite rightly, developed a fan club and are getting a bit few and far between. This car reminds me of my mum and dad's Renault Daufine (apologies for the spelling).
Earlier Skodas had the radiator at the back too, they worked fine, until they moved the radiator to the front, that's when overheating became an issue. You could always see a front radiator skoda at the side of the road on hot days with a puddle under it.
Zastava 750, often called Fića (Fitja) make Yugoslavia mobile, just imagine a family of 5, full luggage for vacationroped onto it, going 1000+ km to the seaside. Generations drove them, it costed brand new 15 average working joe salaries, plus you could get it on loan. Parts were dirt cheap, and everyone could fix them anywhere, in one afternoon you could tear it apart, clean oil up and put back together. If i would have to compare it, its like Moris was in UK, pride of days gone..
Ah, the good old Fića. Sadly, they're even becoming a rare sight on the roads here in Serbia. If I was still in the UK, I'd definitely be putting a cheeky bid on this little scamp.
