I used to have the 60bhp 1.2 in my old mk2, and it was a great little engine. My mk2 went surprisingly well for that low output, the engine was very much upto the job, and gave good economy.

Likewise, I now have a 77 bhp Grande 1.4, and again, it propels a relatively heavy car surprisingly well, the economy is good even with the climate control on. Like Super Uwe, I have also noticed it's low geared, but it seems to hit the sweet spot of keeping the car responsive whilst still being economical.

ahmett said:

with the 1.4 you need to change down gears. don't even think of trying to overtake unless at max torque at 4,250 rpm.
Must be hard for you diesel owners to switch to NA's. haha

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I certainly need to keep my 1.4 16v 100 on the boil when I want to stay with the pack but it's a capable enough overtaker provided you keep it in that addictive-sounding powerband!

The 1.4 500 is a decent motorway cruiser for sure, the 6th gear gives about 3250 rpm at 80 mph, making long journeys a cinch.

puntofan01 said:

I used to have the 60bhp 1.2 in my old mk2, and it was a great little engine.

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The 60bhp 1.2 is a great and well proven engine (I've got one in Euro4 form in my Panda), but there's no point in comparing it to the current Euro 6 1.2 - by all accounts, they're chalk and cheese.

The 69bhp vvt Euro5 1.2 as fitted to the 500 until 2014ish is not as flexible as the older unit, and is IMO a worse engine (the 60bhp engine was never fitted to the 500). The Euro 6 1.2 has proved to be a complete dog for some folks, with the latest updates seemingly providing only a partial solution.

One of the key points of the main thread on this subject is that you should not rely on past experiences with an older 1.2 as a guide to the driveability of the latest engine.

Some folks are now reporting the latest cars are fine, and others are saying there's still a problem.

My advice remains unchanged - don't commit to any 1.2 until you've driven the specific car you will be buying. If the dealer won't agree to this, walk away.

MarginWalker said:

I certainly need to keep my 1.4 16v 100 on the boil when I want to stay with the pack but it's a capable enough overtaker provided you keep it in that addictive-sounding powerband!



The 1.4 500 is a decent motorway cruiser for sure, the 6th gear gives about 3250 rpm at 80 mph, making long journeys a cinch.

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In a way it is fun making sure the engine does not drop below 4000 rpm on sporty drives! Just make sure you check the oil and coolant before !

The 1.4 500 is a decent motorway cruiser for sure, the 6th gear gives about 3250 rpm at 80 mph, making long journeys a cinch.[/QUOTE]

Must be a similar final drive ratio to the 1.2 as this sits at just shy of 3000rpm at 70mph.

I have a GP and the 1.2 is a cracking little engine. It loves to rev even with just 8 valves, and seems happiest between 3-4k. But it is equally happy poodling along in 3-5thgear at 2000 revs.