General Should I stay or should I go now....

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General Should I stay or should I go now....

thehighchair

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07 Doblo Cargo 1.3 multijet 240,000kms regularly serviced

After 4ish years of troublefree motoring the van recently failed it's DOE. Discs and pads (corrosion around the edge), Check engine light (EGR), Worn wiper linkages. I expect the wiper repair to be the most expensive.

These repairs will get it through the test, however, there is a knock starting in the CV joints and there is a bit of judder on takeoff (I suspect the clutch is on the way out).

So that's the question; Should I get rid of it? It's a lot of money to spend on a van that is probably worth about €1,000 repaired, only to find that the chain snaps in 6 months (it has a slight rattle now). How many miles can I expect from this engine?

Opinions please, Thanks
 
Play safe keep it at least you know the problems . Buying another vehicle second hand may have more problems . It's just my opinion . Then it's up to you ?
 
I've always driven old bangers up to the point their value depended on the amount of fuel in the tank.

1 Thing I've learned over the years: even if it isn't the most reliable car, as long as the body is good, you still enjoy the car and parts are affordable, it's worth keeping.

This made my decision to get rid of my V70 (never really liked it to begin with, expensive parts kept on coming + head revision coming up after almost 400k km on LPG) and buy a brand new Doblo (bodywork should last me at least a decade, parts are cheap, expensive bits are plentiful used).

I can't imagine sanding off some corrosion, cleaning or replacing an EGR valve and a few strips of metal linking the wipers to the motor be that big of a bill, so if that's all it takes to get you going again, what's to worry about?
 
I can't imagine sanding off some corrosion, cleaning or replacing an EGR valve and a few strips of metal linking the wipers to the motor be that big of a bill, so if that's all it takes to get you going again, what's to worry about?

I've always been a (lucky) banger man too :). This has been about the newest thing I've ever owned. The trick is knowing when to get out lol.

Tried sanding the discs but no good. the brakes and the EGR are really pretty minor things. But I'm expecting the wiper linkages replacement to run into 100s unless I can find a good secondhand set.

The main question is what is the lifespan of these engines? I'm just afraid that, with the CV joints wearing, the clutch going, the EGR and the (slight) rattle from the timing chain, the van is reaching the end of it's serviceable life. I can fix it but is this the start of pouring money into it?
 
I really can't imagine wiper linkages to be that costly. What's the issue with them?

Fiat diesels are known to be very reliable and that 1.3 is put in pretty much every smaller Fiat, Lancia, Alfa and even Vauxhall/Opel, and accidents happen often enough, so finding an engine/gearbox package with low miles and a good clutch for a reasonable price shouldn't be that difficult.
A Doblo, especially the pre-2010 ones, is a simple car, so as long as there's no violent structural rust to worry about, the price of a younger used car will buy you all the parts you need to make your Doblo go well beyond the troublefree years you'll get out of that young used car.
 
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