hi there,has someone got a clue on this problem i have a 1998 s reg 60s punto
ive had head gasket done around 6 months ago (only thing ever to have gone on it in 7 years apart from exhaust)
now its really struggling to reach 50mph(down hill)i have had her serviced every year and its only done 40.000miles, only do 5ooo miles per year,ive replaced plugs,leads,air filter, but having trouble with the fuel filter as cant undo the rusty bracket which holds it(but is my next job to do), which makes me think that its never been replaced,she still sounds like its running on all cylinders and smooth on tick over,been reading about the ignition coils is this the more likley????
look forward to hearing from you

that's an un usual problem

have you had your exhaust gas analysed at local mot centre they will be able to tell you weather it's a mixture fault or possibly a blocked cat

witch bit of the exhaust did you have changed and was it after market or oem

lambda sensor would be my guess after the fuel filter of course but we will see what happens when you have that finished

thanks for the reply,only had mot done a couple of months ago and passed ok,the exhaust was fitted before mot about 2 months, was aftermarket if fuel filter not the prob will check the lambda sensor,do you no where to get hold of one??

kemp2368 said:

thanks for the reply,only had mot done a couple of months ago and passed ok,the exhaust was fitted before mot about 2 months, was aftermarket if fuel filter not the prob will check the lambda sensor,do you no where to get hold of one??

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FIAT of course

after market lambda sensors are rubbish ask anyone they often as not don't cure mixture problems cause ecu's to think there broken when there not don't last more than a year there just a waste of time and money

when it comes to engine sensors as important as mixture control i.e. lambdas it's best to get the real thing and that goes for any manufacturer

I think it will be somewhere around 50 quid for the part

but best have someone with a gas analyser to check what's going on before you spend your cash

have now done fuel filter,still no joy,next the lambda will keep you posted

after the lambda sensor the only thing i can think of that would affect the fuelling in such a way is the map sensor but these are quite expensive so best do some diagnosis if the lambda don't fix it

i will get back to you with a few test's you can carry out on sensors if so

Nothing wrong with aftermarket sensors so long as there the right type, plus there a lot cheaper.

yea but the real thing comes with the right connector on for the car and you don't have to mess abut with crimping on stainless connectors and such and don't say solder them cos you cant solder stainless wire so enevatebly over time the connector becomes full of road salt and such and ends up with bad connections

90 percent of the time after market sensors on fiats draw to much or too little current on the pre heaters and the car thinks there faulty when there not

fitting lambda on sat,will let you no how i get on,mate has told me it might be the catalytic converter, if its not the sensor will take it down to the local exhaust place to see if they can tell me(i smell whole new system coming on )

right the latest in the saga,fitted new lambda today and it runs really well up to 40mph,but when i floor it its like there`s a restrictor fitted,took it to local exhaust centre and cat is ok but they reckon the problem is the exhaust is blowing just after the cat on the join and that and both boxes are knackerd which i can agree with cos not alot of fumes coming out of tail when i hold hand against it,but they say the exhaust gases are going through cat then hitting the 1st box which is blocked then forcing out to blowing join just after the cat which could be causing the problem ,they have quoted me £110 fitted,anyone think this is the problem or are they just trying to get my money

i would get a second opinion on that blowing exhaust after the cat don't usually cause power problems

110 is a good price but they will not be using oem parts and as it's the cat your best getting the fiat part cos most after market cats fail quickly

if it's not that bad it may just getaway with being welded round to seal

if you go to an exhaust place and ask them to check your exhaust chances are they just sell you an exhaust

i always use genuine fiat parts on my car as I find after market parts are second rate quality and don't last as long also they tend to be the wrong size and require allot of codgery to fit

update,my problem was the exhaust,both boxes were shot but cat was ok
now ive replaced all the other parts as well she feels like a flying machine
thanks for all your help