Hey Guys,

I've just joined as I think I will be picking up my 20v turbo LE tomorrow morning. It has all the trimmings including starter button and brembo brakes
It's a left hand drive with 84k (miles) on the clock (I converted from KM) 1 owner from new.
The remote central locking doesn't seem to work, and there is no red key???. The car drives faultlessly and only has a couple of minor dinks in it which I will repair in time. Cam belt was done 20k ago.
I'm paying £1,800. Is that about right?

Am I entering a world of pain buying this car? Saying that I am hopefully leaving my Rover world of pain behind so if it's similar pain then I can handle it.

Please let me know what you think as I can still back away from deal and look for another car.

Welcome to Fiat Forum!

Buying without a Red key is always risky as if anything happens to the battery charge and completely runs flat you may not be able to get the immobiliser to disengage. The only way then is at a dealer with a hefty price tag.

Cambelt change is good, although it's due every 3-4years or 36-40k miles what ever's first so check the date on the bill.

Apart from that they are reliable cars when maintained well. 2 common faults off the top of my head are cracked exhaust manifolds (check for blowing on a completely cold start up), These a bit of a pain on these cars because even a brand new cast one from fiat at the cost of £500+ will probably crack again in a short time!.

Another common problem is the rear suspension arm bushes which if they haven't been changed recently (within 2-4years) they will probably need doing again soon.

ChrisUK said:

Welcome to Fiat Forum!

Buying without a Red key is always risky as if anything happens to the battery charge and completely runs flat you may not be able to get the immobiliser to disengage. The only way then is at a dealer with a hefty price tag.

Cambelt change is good, although it's due every 3-4years or 36-40k miles what ever's first so check the date on the bill.

Apart from that they are reliable cars when maintained well. 2 common faults off the top of my head are cracked exhaust manifolds (check for blowing on a completely cold start up), These a bit of a pain on these cars because even a brand new cast one from fiat at the cost of £500+ will probably crack again in a short time!.

Another common problem is the rear suspension arm bushes which if they haven't been changed recently (within 2-4years) they will probably need doing again soon.

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Thanks for reply. Well the garage that is selling it to me has been servicing it for the last 3 years. My concern is that is left hand drive.... Will I be stuck with it when I sell it?
Luckily I have a mechanic friend who looks after my cars relatively cheaply so I hope I will be alright. I am also hoping that the remote not working is just batteries.

I think I am picking the car up tomorrow, I will let you know how I get on with it!

Any other tips then please let me know!

Welcome mate
Why are you going for a left hander ?
If you spend time looking through the ads on the various sites (ebay,pistonheads,fccuk and here),I am sure you could eventually find a right hander.
Either way,they are cracking cars with the correct maintenance and rather fast to boot

fupetep said:

Welcome mate
Why are you going for a left hander ?
If you spend time looking through the ads on the various sites (ebay,pistonheads,fccuk and here),I am sure you could eventually find a right hander.
Either way,they are cracking cars with the correct maintenance and rather fast to boot

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Price! £1800 for a 20vt LE with 80k on clock, 1 owner from new. A right hand drive would cost me a lot more!

Hello and Welcome. £1800 is VERY cheap for an LE, they are usually 3K plus. If the only fault is that there's no red key, snap his hand off! Don't worry about the red key, You're not going to need it. I had no battery in my coop for four months, and it wasn't required. It's only an issue if you lose your key and need another cut, but breakers can sell you a set of locks and decoder for £150-200 so it's not that major.

pinin__prestatyn said:

Hello and Welcome. £1800 is VERY cheap for an LE, they are usually 3K plus. If the only fault is that there's no red key, snap his hand off! Don't worry about the red key, You're not going to need it. I had no battery in my coop for four months, and it wasn't required. It's only an issue if you lose your key and need another cut, but breakers can sell you a set of locks and decoder for £150-200 so it's not that major.

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Thanks! I'm picking it up in a few hours. I have done some research and the year 2000 models use the blue key system??? Is that correct? They don't have a red key. The only reason I know this is I'm trying to order a new alarm FOB and the key specialist said that I need to order it from Fiat for that reason.
If it was the red key system then he doesn't need the red key and get log directly into the ECU and do what he wants. Well so he says.... ;-)

I'll pop into Fiat dealer and ask.

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone, I am sure I will be here asking questions for years to come!

Ori said:

Thanks! I'm picking it up in a few hours. I have done some research and the year 2000 models use the blue key system??? Is that correct? They don't have a red key. The only reason I know this is I'm trying to order a new alarm FOB and the key specialist said that I need to order it from Fiat for that reason.
If it was the red key system then he doesn't need the red key and get log directly into the ECU and do what he wants. Well so he says.... ;-)

I'll pop into Fiat dealer and ask.

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone, I am sure I will be here asking questions for years to come!

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I have a 2001 model and it still has all 3 keys (including the very important red key)

Well, I picked her up today. Drives great although can't really throw her about in this weather! Its the Plus and not the LE. Seems to run beautifully and oil pressure seems to be at the right level too.
The garage has promised me the Red key too as its on it's way from Italy which is a nice bonus.
Only thing I need to look into is the central locking isn't working. Not the internal button or the remote control. Any ideas?

Ori said:

Well, I picked her up today. Drives great although can't really throw her about in this weather! Its the Plus and not the LE. Seems to run beautifully and oil pressure seems to be at the right level too.
The garage has promised me the Red key too as its on it's way from Italy which is a nice bonus.
Only thing I need to look into is the central locking isn't working. Not the internal button or the remote control. Any ideas?

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Just get a few months warranty on it and it should be happy days
You can then thrash it to within an inch of it's life (weather permitting) to see if there are any problems.
Sounds like you have done well
Don't forget the pictures when you get the beast.

Thanks! It really does drive great! Just need to sort out this central locking thing!
Pictures coming up. I'll take some tomorrow during the day!

Love the car so much.
A little bit of background on me. I used to drive porsches back in the day (pre divorce). So after driving bland cars for 4 years I've finally got this car and I feel alive again driving.
Quick question. Super unleaded or regulars?

Regular, and a tank of Optimax every fourth fill or so, the detergents in it keep the internals nice and clean. As standard, the 20VT engine doesn't maximise on any higher octane, you'd be getting no extra BHP. Now when you get her mapped by Flea (and you will, after you get used to standard power) it's more important, but we'll discuss that in a few months, don't want to swamp with too much too soon
With regards the ignition button, on the LE there was a big fault with the starter button, something on the wiring fails, and a replacement is needed. I believe they rectified this by the time the Plus came along, but knowing FIAT and the way they raid the parts bin, it could well be worth looking into. Just did a search for you, and found somebody with a similar fault to yours (see point three) and it has some useful info from some wiser people than I, including a schematic of the wiring:

http://www.fccuk.org/forum/ubbthrea...s=starter+button+fail&Search=true#Post1144411

Remap you say? How much bhp? What will it cost man!?!?!

Remap prices:-

http://www.fcperformance.co.uk/fiat-coupe-20v-turbo.php

Thanks for that.
I think I have to replace the clutch on it as it's slipping on high revs. That's not going to be cheap! I also think the thermostat is stuck on open as it is taking a very long time to reach temperature and even then it doesn't reach it. Been running for 40 mins and it's only just climbed up to the 60 mark. Luckily thermostat is not a big job. Clutch I'm more worried about.

Thermostat is probably the most common fault on the 20VT, I'd hazard a guess that 50% have had or will have this problem at some point. Both my 20VT's have. I got mine replaced, along with three pages (!) of other faults last May, including the clutch. I'm just recovering from the bill now, in time for xmas

As promised. Pictures of my new baby. It's immaculate inside too. Let me know what you think?

Forgot to ask. What oil should I be topping up with?

Normally 10W40 semi synthetic.
This Q normally opens a can of worms,at least on another place I may have visited,been a member or none of the above (where you risk being excecuted at dawn)
I use a fully synthetic which although more expensive,I believe is better for my tuned engine.
Car looks great BTW and you must be over the moon.
The thermostat is not a bad job to do but give yourself a few hours.
Those fiat clips are a pain to butcher off.
Paul