Steve-o_bc said:

Oh dear.
No warranty left, got 6 months with the non fiat dealership i bought it from in 2010.

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Its usually the diff that gives up first in the tjet anyway, excuse to put lsd in

My 56 plate GP Multi-jet had its original box for 55K miles and then it decided to die, so had another one put in and thats already making the same noises as the last and its covered 7K miles. It's under warranty so will be going and getting it sorted this week.

Be careful with the warranty's. Most won't cover wear and tear, and if the bearings go then that is classed as wear and tear.

You might have to be clever with what you come up with. Although if the car is only a few years old and not many miles (less than 50,000) the warranty would be hard pressed to justify fair wear and tear.

Just don't ring them up saying "The bearings have gone in my gearbox". Best thing to do is go to a transmissions specialist and get them to call the warranty company as they will know what to say and justify a repair better. Also don't expect a new fiat gearbox (£2400 with fitting), you'll get a reconditioned one which is still fine and most transmission companies will give a 6-12 month guarantee.

fiat ducato's are normally motorhome based that have the problems because the gearbox is not man enough for the extra load, i've repaired two gearboxes in 50,000miles and just fitted my third, usually its the syncro's that wear out, robin

My 1.4 8V Grande Punto box just detonated with 59960 miles on it, getting rebuilt box put in on Friday with new clutch.

Old thread but a gearbox should last the life of a car unless its for stupidly high miles on it.

Mines whining at 62k

My 2005 1.2 was still driving perfectly when I sold it with 202000 Klms on the clock, YES 202K!!! Does anybody ever check the box for oil or change it? When I bought the car the left drive seal was gone, so I replaced it and changed the gearbox oil. Driving style also effect life, be gentle with them. I had to replace the cables as well, that's wear and tear so no fault of Fiat. I feel we all want somebody to blame when something goes wrong but you MUST maintain a car for any reliability. I now have a 2008 Grande Punto and that has had the gearbox oil changed as well. Preventative maintenance is the key to cheap and cheerful motoring in a car that can be bought for peanuts because people say they are unreliable. I have driven unpopular cars for over 30 yrs and never had a major problem. No such thing as a bad car on sale now only bad maintenance Fiat and Citroen have kept me motoring happily for small money for years.

Tazio said:

I'd say a manual should outlast the car. Synchro rings might require changing but in normal use the box itself should not break.

However, it seems that lately many manual boxes are failing with minimal mileage, I think one reason for this is this new fad of trying to achieve every driving move in 5th gear.

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I tend to leave my 1.4 8v in 5th most of the time, purely because it's low geared and the acceleration is still good in top.

Mines gone, well, still goes but it's crap! Was never great! I have no 4th gear at all and have to turn engine off to put it into reverse. Sometimes it's impossible to get into 1st and others it slips in like I do my mrs....

Went at about 4 years old with 70k on the clock.

I bought my 1.9 in 2009. The gearbox began to sound ropey at around 80k. Sought out a gearbox specialists in Leicester who did the job, with new clutch plate, for around £1300 (about the common cost for the two). I read somewhere that the wheel size might have an impact on gearbox wear - possibly strain on the drive train induced by the torque generated by the turbos - which are very effective/'fierce' in 3rd and 4th.