It sure did - for a short while anyway.

 

Tell us more?

 

It had the 1.4 K Series engine - it was never imported into the UK, but was sold as the FSO Caro.

Modifiers are putting in 1.8 and 1.8 VVC units into their Caro's.

 

I can recall seeing Caros about in the UK, but never in the world would I have thought that they had K-Series engines in them...

 

I'm not sure the UK Caro's had the 1.4 K in them, I seem to remember them having either a 1.5 or 1.9D. I could be wrong though.

 

FSO were another company selling FIAT off-casts. They were imported into the UK in the 1980s, but were never as popular as Lada or Yugo.

They had an old, smokey FIAT 1.5 litre OHC engine back then. Build quality was abysmal and to say they were crude would be the understatement of the century.

Then in around 1984, FSO launched the **all new** FSO Polinez - basically a 1960s FIAT floorpan with a new bodyshell.

I suppose for what you were getting, it wasn't bad - a five door family hatchback, but with nil handling, ride or comfort. The seats gave you backache within minutes, the interior was horrendous - both in quality and in design, and it still had 1960s mechanicals - unchanged. Worm and roller steering anyone? All round unassisted drum brakes? Why thank you. And I'll take the smokey old FIAT engine with a bag of nails tipped in through the oil filler for good measure.

FSO made a brief re-appearance in the UK in the early 1990s. Still the same car, but this time with a new grille, headlamps and a diesel engine. Woo-hoo! £7995 it cost, and worth all of £7.99. Unsuprisingly, it didn't last long.

I never realised they did a version with a K-series engine though. It probably trebled the value of the car...

Incidentally, the factory was taken over by Daewoo in the late 1990s and was used to build a couple of the Daewoo models. It was also going to be used for building the LDV Maxus as part of the joint development between Daewoo and LDV.

After Daewoo went bust, the FSO factory staggered on for a few years in administration, and MG-Rover put in a bid to run the factory in 2002. The administrators put an unrealistic value on the business though, and the results were that everybody walked away. The company closed down in April 2005 - about six days before MG-Rover went bust.

 

Click here for Jeremy Clarkson's always colourful opinion

 

Mike, are you sure the factory's dead? Their website is still up and running, and appears to have switched servers recently. FSO SA Granted, that doesn't necessarily mean anything, as MG Rover's site is still up too. Anyone here read Polish?

 

Looking at that site, they seem to have stopped re-badging Fiats and started to do it to Daewoos. Are they under GM control?

 

My dad used to work for FIAT dealers and they got a few FSO's kickin about... he used to say they were like a fatal disease... once you got it you could never get rid of it !!!

 

Click here for Jeremy Clarkson's always colourful opinion

pmsl :lol:

 

recognise this?

 

Looks like they might have done one with the Peugeot XUD9A engine too

 

Mike, are you sure the factory's dead? Their website is still up and running, and appears to have switched servers recently. FSO SA Granted, that doesn't necessarily mean anything, as MG Rover's site is still up too. Anyone here read Polish?

Using poltran.com, it looks like FSO may be 84.1% Ukranian owned, by the owners of its sister plant in the Ukraine, AvtoZAZ (AutoZAZ?) which was once owned by Daewoo as well. Here's the translaton of the most relevant article on the website which starts:
"AvtoZAZ przejęło akcje FSO.


Od 11 października 2005 br., pakiet 19,9% akcji warszawskiej FSO S.A. należy już oficjalnie do ukraińskiego koncernu AvtoZAZ. "

It has taken over shares (actions) motor-car factory AvtoZAZ. From 11 october 2005 , package belongs to ukrainian concern 19,9% warsaw share (action) motor-car factory s.a. officially already AvtoZAZ. Last day of june 2005 , in gdynia, it include (reach; make) conditional agreement of (convention of) sale of share (action) motor-car factory, joint stock company have headquarters (seat) in (to) on ukraine - Avto ZAZ Zaporożu. New investor has been returned for polish office of protection of competition Żerania and consumers and ministry of interior and about agreement on displacement of ownership of share (action) administration. After translation antimonopolistic procedure < proceed >, chairman presents 22 september UOKiK, cezary has issued positive decision Banasiński. Minister has accepted sale of share (action) on early october also MSWiA Żerania. Bought presents block of shares by 19,9% stock of capital firm AvtoZAZ żerańskiej and it gives for 84,31% voices on company meeting right < law (as of right) >. Remaining participation (quotas) belong to Korean concern in (to) majority daewoo, which (who) has resigned from operative control over motor-car factory. In 5 -years old investment plan for prepare motor-car factory, it has been obliged for affirmation of continuation of activity of company AvtoZAZ, maintenance of employment on hitherto existing 2,2 thousand persons horizontal < level (horizon) > ( ), boost of production and affirmation for new model of car law (as of right) < talk >, production has to be started in 2006 year which (who) already. Ukrainian partner has to invest in (to) motor-car factory ok. 80 Million euro.

History of AvtoZAZ

Company emerged in 1994 on base of state enterprise factory car AvtoZAZ Zaporoska, which was factory machine agricultural kontynuatorem, in 1863 by German settler set up (betted; founded) Abrahama Koopa. There it start production of personal car in 1959 Zaporożec and Tawrija. It establishes enterprise in 1998 Ukraińsko-Koreańskie Avto ZAZ - Daewoo. It reregister in 2003 as a closed limited company with foreign capital name factory structure car Zaporoska. Company has in all greatest cities of ukraine 60 sub-units and it belongs to most supple on motor market this country acting firm. In 2004 , with its (her) tape 126 thousand cars almost < law (as of right) > zjechało. It employs over 15,000. It produces cars and vans and sells under the brands ZAZ, VASES, Daewoo, Chevrolet, Opel, Mercedes-Benz and Dacia.

 

Polonez still around

After Daewoo went bust, the FSO factory staggered on for a few years in administration, and MG-Rover put in a bid to run the factory in 2002. The administrators put an unrealistic value on the business though, and the results were that everybody walked away. The company closed down in April 2005 - about six days before MG-Rover went bust.

Actually, the Polonez is still being produced in truck form by Nysa, which I believe is related somehow to the Clic concern (they build sort of a Polish Smart).
Chad

 

If no one has ever heard of these then you would have been like me. Until now I did not know Poland ever made cars, but apparently they do, or more or less did.

Surprising. The main garage for them was Haywood Garage up at Great Haywood - ever wondered why there is a Mercedes at Freedom Caravans with the plate 'FSO 5' on it?

Nasty cars, but for the money they were cheap transport. Basic mechanicals, sturdy engines and gearboxes - Pug 1.9 Diesel and 1.5 Petrol. I seem to remember they were around £4500 new back in the mid 1990's.

They may have been cheap and nasty, but you'd have been alright had you crashed in one. They were beefy, heavy cars. No fun whatsoever, but solid enough .

I used to wash cars(part time when at college) up at Haywood Garage, in 1995 or 1996. The good old days...

I don't recall seeing or hearing of a K-series in the Caro. Doesn't mean it didn't happen, just that I didn't know of it.

--Rich

 

recognise this?

:yikes:

That's some picture, but it shows once and for all that the K-Series engine can be sat up front and used to drive the rear wheels...

...let's just hope Nanjing have the same photo and are thinking what I'm thinking. Rear wheel drive only ZT models with the 1.8 K4 and the 2.5 KV6 engines.

 

:yikes:

That's some picture, but it shows once and for all that the K-Series engine can be sat up front and used to drive the rear wheels...

...let's just hope Nanjing have the same photo and are thinking what I'm thinking. Rear wheel drive only ZT models with the 1.8 K4 and the 2.5 KV6 engines.

Caterham have been doing it for years using Ford RWD boxes to produce RWD K series power Sevens.

 

I've done a tad more investigation into FSO. The factory was taken over by Daewoo, but when GM took over Daewoo, they picked and chose their assets - and the FSO factory wasn't one of them.

The factory continued to build Daewoo vehicles under licence, however, under contracts which were in place for the continued production of cars up until 2006.

So the factory lumbered on in administration, with financial assistance from the Polish government until a saviour could be found.

Unfortunately, whenever one came along, the Polish government said they would have to pay back the money they had been pouring into the factory, and came up with silly prices - like offering to sell it to MG-Rover for £300m when realistically there were no other alternatives on the table.

Eventually, the polish government called it a day and the company collapsed in April 2005 - a few days before MG-Rover. In the case of FSO, however, it appears that there was a saviour once the Polish government had decided to write-off its debts and unrealistic demands. Consequently, the company was bought by AutoZAZ and lives to limp on for another day.

What will happen? Goodness knows. Does anyone actually care? I suspect car lovers everywhere couldn't give a toss.

As to whether the Polinez lives on, I don't know, but it's still up there on the web site. They have (finally!) sorted out the dashboard, so it only looks 20 years out of date - which believe me is an improvement, and have put on a new nose that looks like a mid-1990s Nissan, which is also an improvement. Shock horror - they've also produced a saloon and an estate and I bet you money that nobody is still reading what I'm writing at this point - because the whole range is just so dull... zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

 

The FSO factory is located in Warsaw, on the East bank of the River Vistula. The factory produced old Fiats such as the 124 and 126, and as mentioned above the Polonez, before the link up with Daewoo. The cars are very common in Poland, as you would expect, but regarded as more of a necessity than as desirable.

I was informed that the company had been taken over by Ukrainians, and visited the place late last year. Interestingly, on the site were two Rover 45s; one with post-facelift grille, the other pre-facelift, with Posnan plates.

 

A local taxi firms fleeted up with these when they first came to market, and I must admit they looked quite smart...for about 6 months.

The the doors started to sag, the exterior trim started to fall off and they looked like they had been dragged out of a scrapyard.

I think they replaced them all after about 12 months...

 

Taxi wise - I remember having to carry out Taxi testing for the local council - the dealership I worked at had the contract. Anyway a nearly new FSO came in for it's first test - and I failed it for excessive steering play - outside MOT standards at the time, which if I remeber correctly for a steering box was no more than 3 inches of steering wheel movement before the wheels moved.

Hohum!

S

 

my dad used to have one years ago, would be lethal with a 1.8vvc in there

 

recognise this?

Blimey, that looks like it and the ancillaries have been transplanted from an R8 but turned round to drive the back wheels!

Does Keith have anything on his site about this? Anyone know when Powertrain were selling the K to them? Was it post BMW?

At least it explains MGR's interest in the factory!

 

At least it explains MGR's interest in the factory!

No, cheap labour rates would explain the interest in the factory.

As for RWD K series, as I said before there is nothing special about it - Caterham have been doing it for years (as have Morris Minor and Midget owners).