General I am considering buying a Fiat Tipo 2016

[Hexadood]

Hey everyone! I am considering buying a used 2016 Fiat Tipo hatchback and i was interested if you guys have any tips about them what to look for? ( For a bit more context: The car i'm interested in has 133km on the dash and a 1.4 T-Jet engine and lounge specification)
Thank you very much for your time!

 

[varesecrazy]

Hi,
The Tipo is built in Turkiye, from well tested parts

In the UK problems with access to Suspension parts ( springs..) have been encountered

Otherwise a pretty durable car

Is it a common sight in Hungary?

It's pretty unusual in the UK

 

[Hexadood]

Hi,
The Tipo is built in Turkiye, from well tested parts

In the UK problems with access to Suspension parts ( springs..) have been encountered

Otherwise a pretty durable car

Is it a common sight in Hungary?

It's pretty unusual in the UK

I think it's decently common, the country is not overrun by them like from opel astras, however i can find a bunch of tipos online. I read from some threads here that the rear suspension can fail, is that really all that common?

 

[chris3234]

I think it's decently common, the country is not overrun by them like from opel astras, however i can find a bunch of tipos online. I read from some threads here that the rear suspension can fail, is that really all that common?

The original rear shocks and front springs definitely seem to be a weak point after market rear shocks are around
But no other choice of front springs that I can find



Biggest issue with the tjet engine is the awful fuel consumption

 

[Barkydog]

I’ve had one from new it’s 5 yrs old and 35k. It’s been a good car plenty of power smooth and a large boot. Looks good in a metallic colour. No issues except steering rack broke at 3 months old replaced under warranty. Rear shocks showing misting at last mot. Still looks as good as when it was new. I would recommend

 

[JohnHuson]

I have a 1.3 diesel and my wife has a 1.4. Well built reliable cars with proven engines.
These engines are used in many vehicle brands within the GM empire.
Comfortable and easy to drive. 1.4 gives 42mpg. The 1.3 diesel gives 64 mpg.
Not a well known car in UK but superb value.
We have no regrets on our two Tipo purchases from new in 2018.

 

[JTD_Liam]

I've got a Tipo 1.4 T-Jet hatchback which I bought new in 2018. Now on 34,000 miles it's had a new battery under warranty, plus rear washer pipe re-attached (once under warranty & once out of warranty), plus a new DAB aerial base under warranty due to water ingress causing the DAB signal to cut out.

I've also had the wheels refurbed as the lacquer was peeling (common issue with diamond cut wheels from many manufacturers) & it recently failed to start due to a corroded connector on the crank position sensor, but tbh the overall reliability & running costs have been very acceptable in the near 6 years I've owned it.

As others have said, the T-Jet is smooth & powerful enough. Fuel consumption could definitely be better but it's a fairly old style of engine & I'd take the reliability & smoothness I've had over a few more MPG any day.

I'm taking delivery of a new Alfa Tonale in March so the Tipo will be getting part-exchanged, but to say it's been a tough decision is an understatement - it's punched well above its weight, is far better than the motoring press give it credit for & if it weren't for the strong p/x price & current 0% finance on Alfa's, the Tipo would be staying. Weirdly I'm not expecting to love the fancy new Alfa anywhere near as much as I've grown to love the Tipo. The base 1.4 95bhp engine and base Easy trim are harder to love, but that aside I'd not hesitate to recommend one.

 

[RichardH13]

You're lucky to be getting a Tonale!

We miss our Tipo, now that we have a 500x, I miss the Tipo because its a very good car, as you say, far better than the press give them credit for.

It annoys me that FIAT UK really didn't put any effort in to selling the Tipo, they're doing the same with the 500x since it went hybrid.

I'd love a Tonale, but I'm not sure we can afford one, prices on all cars have rocketed in the last few years, but trade in prices are not so great, so may have to go for something non-Italian, for the first time in 20 years, which makes me sad.

 

[Hexadood]

I’ve had one from new it’s 5 yrs old and 35k. It’s been a good car plenty of power smooth and a large boot. Looks good in a metallic colour. No issues except steering rack broke at 3 months old replaced under warranty. Rear shocks showing misting at last mot. Still looks as good as when it was new. I would recommend

Thank you very much!

 

[Hexadood]

The original rear shocks and front springs definitely seem to be a weak point after market rear shocks are around
But no other choice of front springs that I can find



Biggest issue with the tjet engine is the awful fuel consumption

Thank you for your insight!

 

[Hexadood]

I have a 1.3 diesel and my wife has a 1.4. Well built reliable cars with proven engines.
These engines are used in many vehicle brands within the GM empire.
Comfortable and easy to drive. 1.4 gives 42mpg. The 1.3 diesel gives 64 mpg.
Not a well known car in UK but superb value.
We have no regrets on our two Tipo purchases from new in 2018.

Thank you very much for your insight!

 

[Hexadood]

I've got a Tipo 1.4 T-Jet hatchback which I bought new in 2018. Now on 34,000 miles it's had a new battery under warranty, plus rear washer pipe re-attached (once under warranty & once out of warranty), plus a new DAB aerial base under warranty due to water ingress causing the DAB signal to cut out.

I've also had the wheels refurbed as the lacquer was peeling (common issue with diamond cut wheels from many manufacturers) & it recently failed to start due to a corroded connector on the crank position sensor, but tbh the overall reliability & running costs have been very acceptable in the near 6 years I've owned it.

As others have said, the T-Jet is smooth & powerful enough. Fuel consumption could definitely be better but it's a fairly old style of engine & I'd take the reliability & smoothness I've had over a few more MPG any day.

I'm taking delivery of a new Alfa Tonale in March so the Tipo will be getting part-exchanged, but to say it's been a tough decision is an understatement - it's punched well above its weight, is far better than the motoring press give it credit for & if it weren't for the strong p/x price & current 0% finance on Alfa's, the Tipo would be staying. Weirdly I'm not expecting to love the fancy new Alfa anywhere near as much as I've grown to love the Tipo. The base 1.4 95bhp engine and base Easy trim are harder to love, but that aside I'd not hesitate to recommend one.

Thank you very much for your insight!

 

[JTD_Liam]

You're lucky to be getting a Tonale!

We miss our Tipo, now that we have a 500x, I miss the Tipo because its a very good car, as you say, far better than the press give them credit for.

It annoys me that FIAT UK really didn't put any effort in to selling the Tipo, they're doing the same with the 500x since it went hybrid.

I'd love a Tonale, but I'm not sure we can afford one, prices on all cars have rocketed in the last few years, but trade in prices are not so great, so may have to go for something non-Italian, for the first time in 20 years, which makes me sad.

Yeah I do feel fortunate to be able to get a Tonale. I still keep thinking it's a huge amount of money & I don't for a moment expect it to be three times as good as the Tipo despite being three times the price, but I've had the Tipo approaching 6 years and figured that I'm probably going to enter the stage of some unexpected bills with it - the recent crank sensor which left me stuck for 6 hours after work in the wind & rain a few weeks ago (thanks to the useless RAC) being the first issue. Plus the fact that I like cars so 6 years is a long time without a change, in fact apart from my Fiat Stilo I've never kept a car this long, mostly because I couldn't see anything that I'd be happier with unless I spent a lot more money.

Most of the cars I would've looked at have gone electric and I can't easily charge at home, so that left very little choice unless I settled for something which, frankly, the Tipo already does perfectly well, i.e. Ford Focus, Peugeot 308. I couldn't see the sense in spending £25-30k on one of them when I could get a used BMW 1 Series for similar money or a new 1 Series or the Tonale for a bit more, so then i was torn between just 2 cars & the Alfa dealer is (remarkably) closer to where I live & very good, so I went for that!

Alfa are also doing 0% finance with a 35% deposit at the moment, plus 3 years free servicing & they also added an extra £2250 deposit contribution & the dealer gave me a p/x amount which I don't think I could've topped by selling privately, so it all twisted my arm! My parents had a 500x for 3 years & it was decent, but it didn't impress more than expected like the Tipo has. It also had 2 incidents where the MultiAir unit threw a wobbly, which made it undriveable & had an issue with the rear washer pipe coming detached in the door pillar, which kept soaking the rear footwell & made it mouldy, until the 3rd dealer managed to solve it. Can't totally blame the car for that, but it just wasn't quite as good as the Tipo & like you say, the Tipo has way more space - I even got a washing machine in the boot of the Tipo without needing to fold the seats down, which I was super impressed with as it's only the hatchback.