Hello M4rt1n, I just went through the ordeal of getting a 1.3 M-jet and all I can say is that there is
allot of dross out there, at least in my experience.
The manufacturer recommended intervals for oil changes on this engine are 18,000 miles, but anyone knowing anything about turbo charged cars will tell you that's optimistic to say the least, since the engine oil also lubricates the Turbo, so the engine oil gets a pretty hard time in terms of heat and degradation. I would be looking for the service book to show engine oil changes at half the recommended intervals 9K or below. Another important factor is what oil grade has been used for the general health of the engine. These engines need a particular grade of synthetic oil for diesels 5W30 ACEA C2 or above. If this can be confirmed, the engine should be as new.
Overall these engines are very good, the engine won an engine of the year award in Europe in 04 or 05 and were built for 250K plus if they are maintained well. With that said, things to watch out for are a clattery timing chain tensioner from cold (got to know what to listen for over the clatter of a diesel), but if you put your head to the left hand side of the engine top cover you should be able to hear an additional clatter over and above the engine running. Other one is obviously the Turbo, the 90HP version uses a multi-geometry turbo, which if it goes wrong WILL be expensive as it cannot be refurbished, other than at FIAT, and we know how that goes. If you floor the car in any gear up to 4K, you shouldn't see any black or bluish smoke coming out of the back under load, brown smoke is OK and should clear as the car is used. Lastly a blocked EGR valve, which will make the car run sluggish, but this can be cleaned by yourself or a decent mechanic to restore operation.
I believe that the 90HP version also has a DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter), which can be costly if faulty. This is the particulate filter used in diesel cars to get rid of the soot coming out of the back. These can get clogged up if the car has only been driven in town and hasn't had reasonable length runs regularly.
Also the 90HP version uses a DMF (Dual Mass Flywheel). If this is worn the clutch engage can feel juddery. Luckily unlike most other cars to buy both a new clutch and DMF for the M-jet is less than 200 quid if you know where to look.
Lastly, and this is unconfirmed, my research into the cars suggests that the 6-speed gearbox is possibly the M32 unit as used in Vauxhalls and the 1.9 M-jet which are known to be weak and fail. There are some posts about gearbox issues on 1.9 M-jet cars in these forums.
I would doubt however the above should apply to a car with 35K+ on the clock, with the exception of the oil changes and oil grade used for the engine.
I paid the same asking price for a 5 door Dynamic 75HP on an 07 plate, with 79K on the clock, supposedly 1 previous owner and FSH, but the truth turned out to be somewhat different and the car was bought without an MOT or TAX also from a dealer, so tread carefully, the second hand car industry appears pretty dishonest these days and you really got to read between the lines, don't be afraid to ask ackward questions and try to read their response as the dealers don't appear very used to having to deal with knowledgeable people and get pretty defensive pretty quick or just go to the "I don't know" response when they don't want to give the game away. I knew I paid over the odds for the car, but compared to the other GP's I had seen in a week, despite the car being rough around the edges and needed an additional 600+ spending on proper servicing and 4 new tyres to get road worthy, I knew that the car was a little gem and flew through the MOT. The rough edges are superficial and can be sorted in due time.
Something you might be interested in knowing is that the 75HP version does not use a DPF and DMF or a multi-geometry Turbo, or the 6 speed gearbox, so there are definitely less things to go wrong, whilst its essentially the same car.
Hope this helps you in your decision making
Humour
