FSM Polski Fiat 126 BIS History

Introduced in mid-1987, the 126 BIS (the name derives from the Latin/French 'bis', meaning 'second' or 'repeated') was FSM's attempt to modernise the aging 126p concept rather than replace it outright. The most significant change was structural: the original air-cooled, rear-mounted flat-twin was replaced by a 704 cc water-cooled, horizontally opposed two-cylinder engine mounted at the front, producing 19 kW (26 hp). Moving the engine forward freed up space at the rear to add a practical hatchback tailgate — a feature the standard 126p never offered.

The BIS was produced exclusively at the Bielsko-Biała factory. Its 704 cc unit was derived from the Fiat 500 Giardiniera's power plant, giving the car a top speed of approximately 116 km/h (72 mph) — a genuine improvement over the original. Despite the engineering ambition, the BIS found a smaller market than the mainstream 126p; FSM built 190,361 units before ending production in 1991, as the incoming Fiat Cinquecento rendered it redundant.