I have a Fiat Stilo 1.9 JTD dynamic, 03 plate. It has done 69000 miles. Had it since new. Few electrical problems but otherwise has been ok.

Just had an unexpected garage bill, suspension replated which by the way still is not fixed.

Also read some horror stories on this forum about costly cambelt replacement at 72000 or earlier. I'm getting close to that.

Should I spend some money to repair or should I buy a new car?

Thanks.

Stilovanman1

stilovanman1 said:

I have a Fiat Stilo 1.9 JTD dynamic, 03 plate. It has done 69000 miles. Had it since new. Few electrical problems but otherwise has been ok.

Just had an unexpected garage bill, suspension replated which by the way still is not fixed.

Also read some horror stories on this forum about costly cambelt replacement at 72000 or earlier. I'm getting close to that.

Should I spend some money to repair or should I buy a new car?

Thanks.

Stilovanman1

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tricky one

depends how much you like the car.

i know that my car will be gone by the time its 5 years old and probably be replaced by a newish cheap car (like a panda :yum for reliability and ease of repairs.

plus in 2 or 3 years it will be time to leave home so i need money for that. depends how reliable the stilo is between then and there

You can only answer that one as you own the car ..are you not happy with it ..are cetain aspects of stilo ownership getting you down ?..the JTD should do a damn sight more miles than you have clocked up ..or are you woried about other issuse cropping up on the car and thats why you think you should more on now rather than later :shrug:

Joshua Frost-Lunn said:

tricky one

a panda :yum for reliability and ease of repairs.

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One reason why I chose one after stilo ownership ..you get bored not having to worry about repairing it :devil:

Hi mate,
The JTD will go on and on and on! Once the cambelt is changed it will last you another 72000 miles. Whats the suspension problem you've got?

Alan

i would never trust a cam belt to 72k. 40k max on any diesel, it not a lot of money to replace

Wouldnt mind betting his is having tracking [inside of the tyre wear problems ] can be a pig to cure ..and bad design in the first place

lkots fiats have inside of the tyre wear problems, seems fiat tell people the wrong presures, add 2psi and it goes away

And he can also fit camber bolts to sort this ..

Yea, i wouldn't sell the car just because of that!

stilovanman1 said:

Should I spend some money to repair or should I buy a new car?

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Depends how much money you want to lose.

If you sell it now then you'll cement quite a hefty loss

If you keep it then strictly speaking you haven't lost at all - aside from running costs which are pretty much unavoidable for any motor.

The real trick is to P/X the car just before you get lots of problems; and getting the cam belt changed just a week before it breaks and only buying winning lottery tickets Most of us find that a bit tricky

In my view, it's also pretty dumb to get a car sorted just to sell it as all you've done is coughed up a load of cash for someone else's benefit.

:yeahthat:

the best thing to do would be to maybe see how much a garage will give you in a part ex.

if you sell it privately you will have to inform owners of the problems etc etc.

whereas a garage might knock a bit of for the problems as they can sort it themselves

am i right in saying this.

theres lots of facts and figures to go over in your head.

any car can have problems, and they can be big or small, expensive or cheap.

You don't have to tell the new buyers about any problems if you sell it privetly, but it depends how your conscience is!:devil:

a1ant said:

You don't have to tell the new buyers about any problems if you sell it privetly, but it depends how your conscience is!:devil:

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depends if they are very observant buyers as well

my stilo will probably just be part exed when the time comes due to the ease of it and how long it would take to sell

either that, or it stays in the family lol

i would vote:-

REPAIR THE STILO

PNL said:

or are you woried about other issuse cropping up on the car and thats why you think you should more on now rather than later :shrug:

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That is exactly it. If I knew now that it would last without major expense, I would be happy to keep it. I just don't want to keep spending money and time on repairs.

The other problem is that the dealer can not even fix the suspension problem. So even if I do decide to spend money on repairs, I have no confidence in any garage to do a good job.

a1ant said:

Hi mate,
The JTD will go on and on and on! Once the cambelt is changed it will last you another 72000 miles. Whats the suspension problem you've got?

Alan

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The suspension creaks when going over bumps. The dealer has had a go at fixing, but noise is still there.

I would love for a good mechanic to have a look at my car and advise on the cost of sorting it out properly

i have slightly creaky suspension when going over bumps bit its nothing to major.with music on it goes away.

you cant hear it on a smooth road, only on poorly surfaced roads or humpy roads.

one thing i have got though is when im carrying passengers on the rear 'driver' side of the vehicle though, when they are sat on the seat it starts to produce a really rattly sound which can get a bit annoying

Whereabouts in the world are you?

stilovanman1 said:

The suspension creaks when going over bumps. The dealer has had a go at fixing, but noise is still there.

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Blimey, is that all - I was expecting something major I thought you said you'd already spent a stack of money on the car

There are masses of threads on this sort of issue on the Stilo.

Personally, I'd set an afternoon aside, remove each road wheel in turn and give the suspension a good lube (rubber bushes are the ones to target). I've used Waxyoil on mine and don't suffer any creaks worth mentioning (once again there are many threads on this)

Keep an eye on your undertray too (if you have one) as that can sound just like creaking suspension if it touches the road.

a1ant said:

Whereabouts in the world are you?

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I live in Wakefield West Yorkshire