My car allergic to water?

Vain

bought my 96 punto around 6 months ago its my first car 1.2 128 miles.. it does da job unless its raining.. if its heavy rain outside i cant drive it for a great amount of time before da revs start dropping if im stopped i have to keep da car revved up or it will cut out.. ex say im in 2nd gear in da rain and goin ten miles per hour when i put my foot flat down it will not build speed quick only when it gets to about 3.500 revs.. also the fummes from the exhaust are puffing out.. and if i was driving while it was very wet it takes a day or 2 before da car is working right again.. tryed to get it fixed but all they did was tighting up the timing belt and cleaned out the carburetor which didnt stop it.. im thinking there might be a hole in the full line

OKenora

Possibly an ignition/electrical problem, check your plug leads and the bits they join to. 96 punto has a distributor cap ? Check it if it does, inside it should be bone dry with no black sooty like deposits. Check the plug holes for water collected in there. Check your air filter, firstly to make sure you have one and secondly to make sure it's not clogged. Check after driving when wet for any water under the bonnet where you would not expect it, is it wetting anything electrical there ?

Might be none of the above but it's a start and near all visual inspections.

Vain

OKenora wrote:

Possibly an ignition/electrical problem, check your plug leads and the bits they join to. 96 punto has a distributor cap ? Check it if it does, inside it should be bone dry with no black sooty like deposits. Check the plug holes for water collected in there. Check your air filter, firstly to make sure you have one and secondly to make sure it's not clogged. Check after driving when wet for any water under the bonnet where you would not expect it, is it wetting anything electrical there ?

Might be none of the above but it's a start and near all visual inspections.

i had a sports air filter but changed back to the standered one a few weeks ago so its not da air flirter as i bought a new one.. in the back arch there r pipes coming down from the petrol cap i was thinking this would be the easyest for water to get in what would happen if water was getting into the petrol.. inside the engine noramlly is dry

crosstownk

I agree with OKenora, check the inside of the distributor cap first - then plug leads and plugs. Your fault is most likely caused by dampness which is affecting the ignition circuitry.

OKenora

what would happen if water was getting into the petrol.

About the petrol pipes leaking, if water can get in, then petrol will get out and I really hope that you would have noticed this before now.....
Most cars have some sort of pipes in/near the arches for the filler pipe. Unless there's an obvious break or deterioration (read leaky = bad for petrol getting out, not water getting in) in these pipes they would not concern me in this problem. Petrol and water do not mix too well but if you had water in your petrol then it would affect the car far more than you say it does, to the stage of it probably would not run at all. Water would be at the bottom of your tank, starting the car after it settled, like the next day, would be impossible as you would get pure water to the cylinders and it would be quite likely to not start if not compression lock the engine.

Check the ignition system for dirt and damp, look for water pools in spark plug holes and faulty spark plug leads. If you need info on the easiest/cheapest way to do these tests just post and I'll give some, they are all free and easy with no tools usually.

If these all check OK then something else is amiss but hard to say without more details or seeing the car. Water in the petrol would be one of my last clutching at straws options.

Seth Brundle

OKenora wrote:

Possibly an ignition/electrical problem, check your plug leads and the bits they join to. 96 punto has a distributor cap ? Check it if it does, inside it should be bone dry with no black sooty like deposits. Check the plug holes for water collected in there.

Just to make sure boards don't get sued, do all of these checks with the engine off!

Seanie M

FIAT = Fix It Again Tomorrow... sorry, just had to add that! Fiat Puntos of the mid-90's as well as Brava's, Marea's, and Ciquecento's have reputations for bad electronics, as well as leaky seals around doors, windows, and sunroofs. Keep an eye on those apparent faults too in the bad weather.

Vain

Seanie M wrote:

FIAT = Fix It Again Tomorrow... sorry, just had to add that! Fiat Puntos of the mid-90's as well as Brava's, Marea's, and Ciquecento's have reputations for bad electronics, as well as leaky seals around doors, windows, and sunroofs. Keep an eye on those apparent faults too in the bad weather.

nah theres not one bit of water getting in the windows or sunroof.. does anyone know where the distributor cap is in a punto.. i dont know much about cars.. nct is up next month so prob will get it sorted then when its been fixed up for it