Thank you for all your advice.. I took the car to Kwik Fit who said it needed new brakes, shoes and drums as well as a new exhaust and tyres. I already knew about the tyres but am gutted about the rest! They quoted me £700 for the lot which I thought was horrific, but I've contacted a mobile mechanic who will do all of the brakes including shoes for £100, and apparently I don't actually need new drums.
My car is fairly old and didn't cost me a huge amount but are these common problems with Fiat Puntos? Is there anything else that can typically go wrong with a 12 year old model at 80000 miles?
Don't say everything I might just cry...
Common issues with Punto's that jump straight out at you are these
1 - The Coil pack derived misfire - DIY fix
2 - The Wiper linkages popping off - DIY fix
3 - The Powersteering - Cry
4 - The Input bearing - Cry
5 - Wear and tear - depends
Every car is subject to wear and tear, a city car will be quicker to wear out the brake and clutch, as you constantly stop start
Where as a motorway car is likely to be wearing faster on wheel bearings and tyres due to lots of miles
It really does depend on the life of the car
The Rear brake are £12ea for drums roughly - £25 shoes
Front are about £12 per disc and about £10 for pads
Brake fluid 2litres will nicely do - About £6 p/l
Exhausts its £100 for the local Quick fit exhaust places
Or
£30 back box
£30 middle pipe and a saturday afternoon
at 12 years old - get underneath the car and have a look at the floor for signs of rust and holes
If the car is looking crusty - and look like its going to fail the mot due to chassis rust, then run it ragged and scrap it
If its clean and tidy underneath
Then Even you - can get underneath with a wire brush to clean road crap off - and reseal the underside
Thats next on my beloved punto
ziggy