Hey all

I've just been to get my Fiat Bravo HGT (1997) MOT tested but i'm afraid it wasn't good news

The steering rack is insecure and deemed DANGEROUS.
Both rear brakes need new calipers.
Nearside rear shock absorber has a serious fluid leak.
Handbrake is below requirements.

Needless to say it failed the test.

So i'm wondering if anyone has any advice as to what I should do. I basically want to get rid of it, but i obviously wanna get the most cash possible. Is it worth getting the work done. I'd imagine i would struggle to get close to £1k if it had 12 month MOT.

Here's a picture for your perusal. Any advice (or offers) would be great!

Thanks

its a nice looking car, the handbreak being under requirements could just be adjusting the cable, but then again it could be more than that, you really need to investigate that a bit more see it it is the break shoes or just a rusty hand break cable, or in one case i had a rear break cylinder leak, check the break fluid level, shock absorber is just remove old and fit new in my oppinion but i dont have a clue how much they cost, with a steering rack i personaly would get someone profesional to take a look at it, and rear calipers again remove old and fit new i think you may have to replace the rubber pipes going to them aswell, but not quiet sure as i havent done them on a bravo

the ovious thing is YES you will get more for it with 12 month MOT on it

Depending on how much the car cost you and so on and price up how much it will cost to fix, depends on you then deciding is it worth it

Thanks for the info ilsonemo

I'm debating whether I should just sell it as 'spares'. The guy in the garage said it was in good condition apart from the mentioned faults though.

Anyone know how much i could expect to get for it?

:worship:

without MOT it is pretty worthless.

your MOT failure isnt that bad and nothing to worry about. you should expect these things on an R reg car. fixing it is not going to be expensive.

at a scrapyard a pair of rear calipers wil be £20. fit them with new pads (£12) and your handbrake will probably be ok. i would fit a pair of rear shock absorbers. this is easy and they only cost £15 each.

the steering rack issue is more of a hassle. a scrapyard replacement wont cost much at all, but removal and refitting is a bit of a pain. the fiat manual tells you how to do it- download vol1 from here: http://www.babarmalik.com/ledmods.htm

however, before i took the word of an MOT tester i would investigate to make sure the play is actually o the rack, and not elsewhere such as the track rod ends (that would be a very cheap and easy fix) or it could be on the column's joint, or even where the column joins the steering gear up behind the accelerator pedal.

ive just had a look on ebay for bravo spares and repairs, unfortunaty i couldnt find any going for spares or repair, all of them are beeing broken up for the spares so i cant really help you with how much sorry

jug said:

without MOT it is pretty worthless.

your MOT failure isnt that bad and nothing to worry about. you should expect these things on an R reg car. fixing it is not going to be expensive.

at a scrapyard a pair of rear calipers wil be £20. fit them with new pads (£12) and your handbrake will probably be ok. i would fit a pair of rear shock absorbers. this is easy and they only cost £15 each.

the steering rack issue is more of a hassle. a scrapyard replacement wont cost much at all, but removal and refitting is a bit of a pain. the fiat manual tells you how to do it- download vol1 from here: http://www.babarmalik.com/ledmods.htm

however, before i took the word of an MOT tester i would investigate to make sure the play is actually o the rack, and not elsewhere such as the track rod ends (that would be a very cheap and easy fix) or it could be on the column's joint, or even where the column joins the steering gear up behind the accelerator pedal.

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Good morning Jug!

The guy in the garage put the car up on the ramp and showed me the problem with the steering rack - it was hanging on by ONE bolt and looked extremely dodgy! He said if i drove it home it would be on my own back... and strongly advised against it. The rack looked extremely loose and said he could repair it enought just to get it home... but i told him to hang fire until i had some expert advice (ie. you)! Everyone in the garage said i was lucky to be alive! (I drove it from Middlesbrough to Liverpool and back a few months ago!). He also said that the loose rack had caused problems with the power steering... which i replied 'i didn't think it had power steering' hahaha!

I am a complete novice when it comes to mechanical stuff. I'm ok with electrics and replacing sunroof/wing mirrors etc, but would not know where to start with replacing a steering rack! I don't have ramps either so i think it's a no-go for me. I've had a little look at the manual, but i am not confident lol.

The car is still at the garage at the moment... until i decide what to do. The guy did offer me £100 to take it off my hands, but i told him i could get that for the wheels/alloys!

Jug, do you know anyone who would buy it from me 'as-is'?

Thanks

try advertising it in classifieds see what happens

ilsonemo said:

try advertising it in classifieds see what happens

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I need to get it from the garage to my house first lol

Would £300 be a good starting point to sell it?

CraigSkel said:

showed me the problem with the steering rack - it was hanging on by ONE bolt and looked extremely dodgy!

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if the other bolts have snapped off (can happen when you hit a kurb) you only need to drill them out and refit new bolts.

or is there something else wrong

i dont know anyone who would buy it, and its really hard to value.

jug said:

if the other bolts have snapped off (can happen when you hit a kurb) you only need to drill them out and refit new bolts.

or is there something else wrong

i dont know anyone who would buy it, and its really hard to value.

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I'm not sure if there is anything else wrong... they did mention it had dug into some cables (power steering cable?) and they would need replacing. Would it just be a case of putting another bolt in? Then it would be ok to drive back from the garage?

thanks

yes, if the only problem is as sheared off or missing bolt you can replace it and then you're good to go.

power steering isnt neccessary, so you can drive it from the garage and it will be ok to drive as long as you are not a weak girl

jug said:

yes, if the only problem is as sheared off or missing bolt you can replace it and then you're good to go.

power steering isnt neccessary, so you can drive it from the garage and it will be ok to drive as long as you are not a weak girl

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I've phoned the garage and i'm gonna collect it from them in the morning. They seem to think that fixing the steering rack would cost a lot due to the labour charges... how long does it take to replace a bolt lol. I'll take it home tomorrow and see what i can do (ie. take photos lol).

I will keep you posted

How do they know that the callipers need replacing without stripping them down?????? Sounds very fishy. the callipers are easy to service in order for the pistons to move freely.
Hand brake cables are easily changed and often wear.
alternately they are adjustable.

Have another garage or mechanic, take a look at the brakes and steering rack etc

bridges said:

How do they know that the callipers need replacing without stripping them down?????? Sounds very fishy. the callipers are easy to service in order for the pistons to move freely.
Hand brake cables are easily changed and often wear.
alternately they are adjustable.

Have another garage or mechanic, take a look at the brakes and steering rack etc

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I went to collect my Bravo from the garage on Saturday morning... one of the (nicer) guys said I just need to put a bolt in the steering rack and it'll be fine... except for the brake callipers etc. He tightened the existing bolt and the steering felt so much better!!!

I may have a look into doing this myself

Is it easy to tell the difference between a new(ish) caliper and a worn one? The garage said they cost £100 each new... without the fitting!

Thanks again

your calipers should be fine if you replace the pads (the act of pad replacement frees them up). make sure you add a dab of copper grease on the appropriate places during the replacement so they do not stick again.

well the rear handbrake effecancy could be to do with the rear callipers. in not sure if there twin pot on the rears of the bravo. on my mr2 the bottom pot on both sceezed. they worked...just not very well.

if the calapers dont move freely, 9 times out of 10 your past the refurb stage

goodgirl156 said:

if the calapers dont move freely, 9 times out of 10 your past the refurb stage

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no way. i've fixed loads of fully seized MOT failure calipers simply by cleaning them up and adding copper grease.

I think i will attempt to clean them as Jug says... although i won't have a clue what i'm doing ha!

I have the bravo haynes manual so i will give that a read

Can you physically see the calipers move when you hit the brakes?

Sorry for being dumb :worship:

CraigSkel said:

Can you physically see the calipers move when you hit the brakes?

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not really.

the rear calipers sit on 2 sliding pins. you need to check both are moving freely. its easy to check if you remove the pads and then refit the caliper, then you can slide it back and forth. apply fresh grease to the pins if you have any doubt. there should be rubber covers to prevent dirt entering the pins. if those covers are damaged use a big blob of grease to prevent dirt entering until you can get to a scrapyeard to get some new rubber covers.

if those 2 pins slide fine then the next thing to check is the piston. fitting new pads means you need to fully retrect the piston, that is usually enough to free it. if it seems especially stiff then you can pop the piston out and then clean and grease both the piston and insdie the caliper. if you find the contact surfaces are rippled or scored then the caliper needs replacing.

the last 3 callipers i have had the pleasure of working on..... the pistons would not move. not at all.
you couldn't remove them to put new seals and clean them up in the first place!

i know you have more experience than me jug, but im just going on my own experience