The FSO Polonez is a motor vehicle that was developed in Poland in collaboration with Fiat and produced by Fabryka Samochodów Osobowych from 1978 to 2002. It was based on the Polski Fiat 125p platform with a new hatchback designed by , Walter de Silva and Giorgetto Giugiaro. It was available in body styles that included two- and four-door compact-sized cars, station wagons, as well as commercial versions as pickup truck, cargo van, and ambulance. Production totaled more than one million units, excluding the pickup truck and van variants. The Polonez was marketed in other nations and was popular in its domestic market until Poland joined the European Union in 2004.
The car's name comes from the Polish dance, the polonaise, and was chosen through a readers' poll conducted by the newspaper Życie Warszawy.
In 2021, about 33,000 vehicles were still registered in Poland.
Background
The Polonez was based on the Polski Fiat 125p that Fabryka Samochodów Osobowych (FSO) built under license from Fiat. The internal components, including updated 1.3/1.5 Litre engines, (pistons and carburetor), the chassis, and other mechanicals, were from the Polski Fiat 125p. However, the body was an entirely new liftback initially designed in the early 1970s by Centro Stile Fiat as a prototype for Fiat. After the Polish side started cooperation with Fiat over a new car, the original design was changed due to Polish requirements. The car was meant to be equipped with Fiat's 2.0 Litre DOHC engines in the 1980s, but financial problems at the time made it impossible to purchase a license from Fiat. This made producing the 125p alongside the Polonez possible for more than a decade. Moreover, mechanical improvements only occurred when they could be applied to both cars. This limitation changed after the production of the 125p ended in 1991.
An advantage of the FSO Polonez is its safety in an accident, especially compared to many of its rivals from the Eastern Bloc. In 1978, it was the only Eastern European car built to pass U.S. crash tests. Crash tests were performed in 1994 according to EU safety regulations, so the Polonez could be exported worldwide. They proved the car to be safe. The Caro 1.9 GLD hitting a concrete block (without an energy-absorbing metal cage) with 40% of the front at survived very well. All doors could be opened without any difficulty, there were no critical injuries for passengers, and no fuel leakage occurred.
Polonez (1978–1991)
Development
In 1974 FSO chose Fiat's Experimental Safety Vehicle project ESV 2000 prototype as the base of a new car which became known by Fiat at the Type 137.
FSO's designer Zbigniew Wattson joined Walter de Silva to convert the ESV project to suit the donor Fiat 125P floorpan and running gear and designed the exterior and interior for these prototypes of Type 137 and sent them to Poland for FSO to turn into a production car.
Debut
In May 1978, mass production commenced. The official premiere of the FSO Polonez 1500 and FSO Polonez 1300 took place.
In 1979, the FSO Polonez 2000, sold mostly to government officials, appeared. The Polonez 2000 has a Fiat twin-cam engine with 1,995 cc, , a 5-speed gearbox, a 0–100 km/h acceleration of 12.0 seconds, and a top speed.
The FSO Polonez 2000 Rally with a 2-liter Fiat DOHC engine was debuted in the Rallye Monte Carlo.
In 1980, the FSO Polonez 1300 and 1500 three-door appeared. With the same short front doors as the five-door version, it was produced from 1979 until 1981 with about 300 units.
In 1981 and 1983, the FSO Polonez Coupé, with three-door bodywork was introduced. It had the usual 1,481 cc engine with or the 2.0-litre Fiat Twin Cam unit. It was the first FSO model to feature electronic ignition and fuel economizer owing to a supply of pre-heated air to the suction manifold. Only a few dozen were produced.
In 1983, the Polonez C and CE were introduced as a more economical version and was known as the "Kryzysowy" (Crisis) model. This model was stripped of a variety of equipment and trim including the change of rubber bumpers for a black painted steel bumper, Changing the four front lights to a pair of rectangular ones that came from the Wartburg 353, deletion of the side rubbing strips, rear window wiper-washer, fog lamps, hub caps, luggage cover, and tachometer. Basic vinyl was used on the seats and in the luggage compartment, and static seat belts replaced the inertia reel ones. The CE model featured electronic ignition.
At the other end appeared a new top version, the FSO Polonez 1500 X. This was fitted with the AB 1,481 cc engine of , a five-speed gearbox (final drive ratio 4:3), and a radio. It was sold in the domestic market, usually for U.S. dollar payments.
In 1983, the Polski Fiat 125p was renamed FSO 125p, after FSO's licence rights to the Fiat badge expired. The new naming system for FSO's models was as follows:
- FSO 125p: 1.3 L, 1.3 ML, 1.3 ME, 1.5 C, 1.5 L, 1.5 ML, 1.5 MS, 1.5 ME
- FSO Polonez 1.3 C, 1.3 CE, 1.3 L, 1.3 LE, 1.5 C, 1.5 CE, 1.5 L, 1.5 LS, 1.5 LE, 1.5 X, 2000.
Also in 1983, the FSO Polonez 2.0 D Turbo with an Italian VM Motori HR 488 engine of 1,995 cc appeared. It produces at 4,300 rpm and at 2,500 rpm. Final drive ratio is 3,727, for a 0–100 km/h acceleration time of 20,0 s, and a top speed of . Fuel consumption is 7.1/10.6/10.0 L/100 km, and approximately 100 cars were produced to this specification.
- 1984 FSO Polonez 2000 Turbo 3-door - rally car, never got rally homologation, bodywork like Coupé version, but without the Coupé-like front. This car received a turbocharged 1,995 cc Fiat engine, in some variants combined with a supercharger for better torque.
- 1985 FSO Polonez - first five-door cars with a Coupé-like front
:During 1985, the British importer introduced an upmarket version called the FSO Polonez Prima, which received black and gold sidestriping, a glass sunroof, and rear seatbelts among other extras.
- 1986 FSO Polonez 1.5 Turbo mass production launched. Also, a rally version 1.5C Turbo known as "Iron Rain" official premiere.
FSO Polonez - first cars with additional rear-side windows in the C-pillar.
In 1987, the FSO Polonez 1.6 LE appeared. It has a 1,598 cc inline-four with at 5,200 rpm and at 3,800 rpm. Top speed is . There was also the rare FSO 125p 1.6 ME, with the same engine but a top speed of . Very few were made.
FSO Polonez modifications: stamped rear spoiler instead of plastic one, new model labels on the sticking foil, new version coding system with an 'S' supposedly meaning that the car had the additional rear-side windows in the C-pillar, a feature was often broken in practice. The versions available were:
1,3 SCE, 1.3 SL, 1.3 SLE, 1,5 CE, 1.5 L, 1,5 LE, 1,5 SCE, 1,5 SL, 1,5 SLE, 1,6 SLE, 2.0 SLE
In 1988, the FSO Polonez 1500 Turbo with AA 1,481 cc engine, at 7,000 rpm, at 3,200 rpm, 8,5 s, appeared. This was a rally version only, built to group A specifications. Following this competition version, the FSO Polonez 1.5 SLE Turbo with a turbocharged AA engine was introduced in December 1989. With a compression ratio of 8.5 to 1, the 1,481 cc inline-four produces at 6,000 rpm, and at 3,200 rpm. The zero to 100 km/h acceleration was in 11,0 s, and the top speed is . A catalyzed version with was also available. The Turbo Polonez' were built mainly in rally versions (group N), although on special order a Turbo-kit could be installed in mass-produced cars.
- 1988 Prototypes of the FSO Polonez in an ambulance and van versions based on the FSO Truck (pick-up). Lowered chassis and an additional right-side door were added features.
In 1989, the facelifted '89 FSO Polonez was introduced. Changes included a rear boot lid lowered to the bumper level, new rear lamps, a rear window wiper-washer placed horizontally, and side repeaters placed horizontally near the front doors. In January 1989, the first catalyzed Polonez (1500 only) was displayed at the Amsterdam Auto Show. Simultaneously, a version with an Italian FNM-built (Fratelli Negri Motori) turbo-diesel and a five-speed manual appeared (called the "Polonez Piedra 1.3 Turbodiesel"), specifically for the Belgian market. This engine has at 4,500 rpm, enough for a top speed of . -->
Complete knock down (CKD) cars were assembled by El Nasr (in conjunction with Arab American Vehicles) in Egypt from 1983 until 1993, succeeding the locally assembled 125p in that market. In some countries, the FSO Polonez was sold as Celina, Prima, Mistral, Piedra, Atou.
Imports to the UK ceased in 1997, though sales continued in some parts of Western Europe - including France - for at least a year afterward. They were withdrawn from those markets due to more stringent emissions requirements and declining demand.
Dongfanghong
In China, Polonez-based derivatives were produced by YTO Group as the Dongfanghong and Yituo. They were released with station wagon (LT5021) and sedan (LT5022) bodywork, though with many modifications. Trim pieces came from the Volkswagen Santana and were powered by locally produced engines, a carburetted 1.5-litre inline-four from Beijing Engine Factory. These cars were built with locally made spare parts for imported Polonez, which were common in China then. Nevertheless, many other local parts were substituted (Dongfanghong was also working with Fiat at the time on tractor technology, which may have also influenced the choice of a car). A sales advantage for the vehicles was that their parts were easily interchangeable with Polonez. These cars were not nearly as successful as their actual Polonez counterparts.
Legacy
The FSO Polonez suffered from relatively poor performance (except for those models equipped with the Fiat 2.0 DOHC, the Ford 2.0 SOHC, or the Rover 1.4 MPI 16V). Polonez parts were relatively cheap and readily available. After 1992, quality began to increase, especially after 1995 when Daewoo started cooperating with FSO. Since 1997, the last production models (the PLUS series) offered new features such as air conditioning.
Production ended in 2002, after 24 years. The relatively low price of the Polonez was seen as the main advantage over other cars. But demand slumped, and the last versions of the Polonez produced were the Truck versions, valued for their low price, reliability, and high load capability: up to depending on the version.
The Polonez was a common sight in Central and Eastern Europe, particularly in its home country of Poland. Once Poland became a member of the European Union on 1 May 2004, the car was rapidly replaced by cheap and tax-free used cars from Western Europe.
The Polonez has been a popular choice for participants in the Złombol Charity Rally. In 2018, around 300 teams, or approximately 40% of all racers, used versions of the Polonez in this event.
References
External links
- Official web of the FSO Polonez
- History of Stratopolonez
- Stratopolonez on AutoGEN.pl