Fix It Again Tomorrow FIATS

Handsum bazturd

Hi all was just wondering if the reputation that FIAT`S have is still the same.

you see i really fancy a new car and i have been looking at the 07 - 09 punto`s.

i know they were poor cars a couple of years ago but i was wondering if they have improved inthe last few years so i would like anyone to tell me their stories be it good or bad about the FIAT experience they have had

colm_mcm

Theyre much improved, the panda as a great name for dependability.

The other side of it is that the Japanese don't have as much of an edge as they had 15 years ago.

The 1.2 in the punto is quite underpowered though.

Saab Ed

Its a better car than a Polo and thats a VW. Hope that helps settle the stereotypes out there for you.

Nissan doctor

As above, they are as reliable as any other brand these days IMO.

Handsum bazturd

to be honest i was thinking they would have improved alot over the years but i just wanted to get a few opinions

bazz26

The Grande Punto and Opel Corsa share the same chassis, frame and diesel engine.

166man

An aunt if mine has an '06 Punto 1.2, and with 75k km on it. Never heard her complain of problems with it. Only thing is the interior is a bit sh1t on them though.

kerten

1.4 16v engine is a very efficient one in grande puntos in meaning of economy and performance.

PaulKK

166man wrote: »

An aunt if mine has an '06 Punto 1.2, and with 75k km on it. Never heard her complain of problems with it. Only thing is the interior is a bit sh1t on them though.

A car with 40K miles on it wouldn't want to be giving trouble though in fairness, would it?

Mister Jingles

colm_mcm wrote: »

Theyre much improved, the panda as a great name for dependability.

The other side of it is that the Japanese don't have as much of an edge as they had 15 years ago.

The 1.2 in the punto is quite underpowered though.

Was there ever any reason why the 16v was discontinued ?

barura

Handsum bazturd wrote: »

Hi all was just wondering if the reputation that FIAT`S have is still the same.

you see i really fancy a new car and i have been looking at the 07 - 09 punto`s.

i know they were poor cars a couple of years ago but i was wondering if they have improved inthe last few years so i would like anyone to tell me their stories be it good or bad about the FIAT experience they have had

The problem with FIATs was that people didn't service them properly, wrong coolant and general other stupid irish stuff that gets passed on from father to son and a bad image appears.

The 1.242 engine has been around for a good ten years+ now, it's a pokely little yoke, don't know much about the others.

I like them, and I'm a Polo man. But only the 999cc ones. :P

If I was looking for a cheap car or newer one, Fiat's wouldn't bother me at all. The Panda's are really nice cars, imo.

Celly Smunt

barura wrote: »

The problem with FIATs was that people didn't service them properly, wrong coolant and general other stupid irish stuff that gets passed on from father to son and a bad image appears.

Very true,Fiats aren't a jap car that you can throw any old oil or lube into,I found that if a fiat (old ones) are regularly serviced and some good selenia oil in the engine it will last you as long as a german or jap.

I have two 10 year old fiats now,a bravo and a punto pushing 140000 miles and still not a peep out of them due to regular servicing,if you look after any car it'll last you forever.

colm_mcm

Mister Jingles wrote: »

Was there ever any reason why the 16v was discontinued ?

Dunno, but they upped the 8v to 70hp so maybe they were too similar.

166man

PaulKK wrote: »

A car with 40K miles on it wouldn't want to be giving trouble though in fairness, would it?

That's true but it is nearing six years old at this stage and having spoken about the car it would appear mechanically she's good but the interior isn't the best and by that I mean it's sh1t!

Anan1

pmcmahon wrote: »

Very true,Fiats aren't a jap car that you can throw any old oil or lube into,I found that if a fiat (old ones) are regularly serviced and some good selenia oil in the engine it will last you as long as a german or jap.

I have two 10 year old fiats now,a bravo and a punto pushing 140000 miles and still not a peep out of them due to regular servicing,if you look after any car it'll last you forever.

+1, we used to have a 1990 Tipo TD in the family, bought from new and serviced regularly last I heard it had passed 160,000 miles.

galwaytt

..I'm thinking of getting on this week, tbh......I bought one new, a good few years ago, and it never gave any trouble.

We've a B6 Tdi Passat at work nicknamed the ....'Whatsupwiththat (now....) ' I didn't know a vehicle could use so many injectors.........

dgt

Handsum bazturd wrote: »

Hi all was just wondering if the reputation that FIAT`S have is still the same.

you see i really fancy a new car and i have been looking at the 07 - 09 punto`s.

i know they were poor cars a couple of years ago but i was wondering if they have improved inthe last few years so i would like anyone to tell me their stories be it good or bad about the FIAT experience they have had

No. Thats long gone. Since the Tempra, the quality has improved dramatically. Bravos are still a solid car all these years later, no squeaks or irritating niggles. Not bad for a car that made its debut in 1995

We have had Fiats for years at the house. Out of dozens of Fiats we have really had one true lemmon, a 2001 Bravo that had a major accelerating problem. The cause? Shoddy crash repair and lack of maintenance :rolleyes:

My cousin had a 97 Punto 1.7TD. Had 305k miles before his daughter wrote it off

I have 2 Tempras, one an ex taxi with 196k miles (100k put up on LPG)

The other has 350k Miles. Both petrols

Easy to work on and parts are cheap. Very little goes wrong when looked after properly

I'd recommend one any day

Cantona's Collars

I've had 3 Fiats and never had a problem with them.I think the stereotypical view of fix it again tommorow comes from older people who drove in the days when cars were less reliable.
Heard good things about their diesel engines regarding mpg etc.

Nissan doctor

Old Fiats(80's and earlier) used to turn into a pile of rust at the sight of water and the 1.2 8v and 16v engines can suffer head gasket failure if not maintained correctly.

Thats about the jist of the major Fiat flaws of the last 30 years IMO.

kerten

I think bad luck of fiats comes from their low prices after 4-5 years. Target audience for this kind cars usually doesn't care maintenance and like many other brands fiats can't survive through this.

Old japanese models survived better through no maintenance hell and now they have the reputation well earned but it doesn't mean other brands are worse if you gonna look after your cars

Nissan doctor

kerten wrote: »

I think bad luck of fiats comes from their low prices after 4-5 years. Target audience for this kind cars usually doesn't care maintenance and like many other brands fiats can't survive through this.

Old japanese models survived better through no maintenance hell and now they have the reputation well earned but it doesn't mean other brands are worse if you gonna look after your cars

100% spot on IMO

alias no.9

I spotted a familiar looking '97 Bravo last week, after a double take on the reg it was indeed the one I had owned from 2002 to 2004, still motoring and looking far better than most hatches of the era.

working fool

I've a 2002 punto
Great wee car .
Drive it when my BMW breaks down
Which is quite often .
Bad publicity is there major downfall
Look what Skoda done !
And they use vw parts .. Which are suspect at best .

Tea 1000

Nissan doctor wrote: »

Old Fiats(80's and earlier) used to turn into a pile of rust at the sight of water and the 1.2 8v and 16v engines can suffer head gasket failure if not maintained correctly.

Thats about the jist of the major Fiat flaws of the last 30 years IMO.

In fairness, most things that weren't German in the 80's turned to rust! Jap included.
OP, you should look at the new Bravo 1.4. They're nicer looking outside than the Punto, and much nicer inside, and are very cheap used.

johnos1984

NOICE for the price

http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/2640579

Are these any good?

They seem to be trying to achieve the BIGGEST DEPRECIATION of the year award

colm_mcm

That one is on the older €333 tax band, this suggests it's not ultra efficient, but that's a bargain.

Being boggo spec, I assume there's no aircon

Was able to pick these up in 08 with delivery miles for something ridiculous like 9k

johnos1984

colm_mcm wrote: »

Being boggo spec, I assume there's no aircon

I assumed they all came with aircon............


Which means I've made a mistake on another thread I just created

colm_mcm

I'm 99% sure you need to get the dynamic model for that.

cathal02

Driven Two Puntos, The current one is an 2001 and is still running, the problems tend to be small but annoying (electrical mainly: wipers, lights, heat, break pads etc, indicator lights), have replaced fan-belt, clutch, water-steel pipe and steering module, car battery. Steering rack will go eventually too. It's the kind of car you can keep on running but be prepared to have to fork out once in a while, good thing about the punto is it's generally quite cheap and easy to fix, once you have a trusty mechanic.

colm_mcm

2011 thanks you