Well, as you probabely know from reading the title of this thread I'm about to purchase a Multiwagon. I'd like some advice, do's and don'ts, things to look out for, infact any info anyone would like to share with me. I already own a 2002 Stilo 1.9 JTD Dynamic and love it, even though she's a little "worse for ware"(forsale soon if anyone is interested). We need more space for our camping trips, looked at other cars but couldn't find anything to replace her so a Multiwagon it is. I'm veiwing this weekend(4th September) so please hit me with as much advice/info as you can. It will all be greatfully received.
I've included a few pictures of the multiwagon, not sure why just thought they may help?

A quick question?
How many different BHP versions of the 1.9 JTD engine is there and how do I tell the difference?

Questions I'd be asking include:

How many previous owners and how long with current owner?
Does it have FSH?
Has the cam belt been changed (assuming it's done enough mileage to need it)
Has it had any accident damange (think about an HPI check)
Why is the current owner getting rid?

You could also do a search, as this question is often raised by prospective Stilo owners.

With the wagon u must drive it down a bumpy road and listen for bangs from the rear suspension as the rear bushes always fail @ 45-70,000 miles. Its an expensive axle out job to replace them, this is why many stilo wagons are sold on as owners dont want the expensive of fixing it, about 6 hrs labour at a garage, loads on here about them.

i think at that age the 80bhp was dropped, you will probo find its the 115bhp, or if its the multijet it will say mjtd on there and it will return 150bhp.
whats already been mentioned i second, its a real pig of a job to do.
also if you can take her for a drive and apply the brakes to see if there is any juddering on the steering or pulling, both our cars have now had the lower wishbones replaced because of this - also check if the front tires are scrubbing, this can also point to tracking out of alignment or other problems with the suspension.
check the aircon and sky roof are working if applicable.

check if the recall work on the suspension springs have been carried out, or was that before the car was made, it may have been 2004 so ignore that....
the jtd as you well know is a solid little car, its only really little things that let it down, but being a previous stilo owner you should know what to expect.
the list can be endless on what to check but this goes for all second hand cars, what i do when i purchase a second hand car is not do the deal until a brand new mot from the date of purchase is completed, i dont car if it had one the week before i always force the issue before i part with the money.
ive only ever had an issue once like this and that was on a fiesta with 9 months mot left, it was for my wife so i pressed home the point of a new mot, the car failed badly so i walked.
it will give you piece of mind asnd motoring for a full year with no worrys - as much a fiat can do that is lol.
roy

The guys that have already posted have better knowledge of the MultiWagon than i do so i won't add anymore on faults/things to look out for, but from looking at those photos you posted, the car seems to be a Dynamic (climate control, body coloured door handles, buttons on steering wheel etc) so i think it has to be a 115 bhp JTD. I'm pretty sure the 80bhp wasn't available on Dynamic models (especially the Multiwagon), and near enough certain it wasn't being used in 2005.

As already mentioned, if it's a Multijet, the engine cover will say Multijet rather than FIAT JTD.

Thanks for your help and advice guys, the wife is eager to have this car so I've brought the veiwing date forward to this evening, anything to keep the peace. lol
Apart from the obvious stuff of what to look out for when buying any new car, it seems to me there are 3 main things to look out for with the Multiwagon?

1. Cambelt
2. Clutch
3. Rear bushes

The Cambelt was replaced 20.000 miles ago.
The clutch was replaced 40,000 miles ago.
Rear bushes replaced last service(has a full service history, 1 previous owner).

So it would seem to me that all the boxes are ticked and I should turn up cash in hand this evening?

The seller says the only faults are:
A warning that the bonnet is open when its clearly not. Only happens once every 2 or 3 weeks and goes off after a few miles and the aircon could do with a re-gas.

So guys, he wants £2700 for it. What do you all think and should I chuck a jug of water over the Sky roof?

Hi,

I bought a multiwagon jtd back in March with 105 k on the clock.
I payed £2000 for it (dealer) and it has been fine. The only glitch i had was it was slow sometimes and found that the maf was trollied.
I will have to do the bushes on the rear at some stage but other than that it has been fine.
For the money it does seem good and why not offer them lots less and work up. As i understand it and i may be totally wrong but the roofs don't leak as such it is more a case they get stuck, something to do with poor maintenance ( i,m sure someone will be along shortly to correct me !!)
Good luck and let us know how you get on.

Cheers

I personally think £2700 is a little high (these days) i paid 4k for mine 3door JTD 2 years ago.

Does look like a good piece of kit though, uprated wheels. Maybe offer 2,400 or 2,500 can only say no.

Shadeyman said:

The seller says the only faults are:
A warning that the bonnet is open when its clearly not. Only happens once every 2 or 3 weeks and goes off after a few miles and the aircon could do with a re-gas.

Click to expand...

Bonnet sensor is NOT standard on Stilos so that means you have a factory fit alarm too

Yes Argonought it does have a factory fitted alarm, infact the original owner had lots of extra's fitted when it was purchased new. Here's the list of them the seller(second owner) sent me.

Upgraded Alarm £127
Sat Nav/Phone System £1191
Elec Rear Windows £137
8 Speaker upgrade with CD multi changer and sub-woofer £255
2 Tone Leather interior £680
Metallic "Techno Grey" paint £263
Louvred Sky Window £510
Sliding Rear Seats £170
Upgraded 17" Alloys £212

Oakley28 I'm happy with the £2700 because of the extras but maybe I will haggle a little

actually looking at the list of items. Looks like a good deal. Good find. Now go get her.

Our 2002 Stilo had been re-mapped by a previous owner, don't know who did the actual re-mapping, don't really know much about it.
After a little searching I noticed a thread on here were Argonought said he'd had his re-mapped by "Angel Tuning". Argonought, I don't suppose you'd like to enlighten me a little as to cost and if I should bother do it?

1 more question if I may.
A friend had a Multiwagon and he told me to get fit Eibach springs. Said it would improve the looks slightly, give better control and most of all slow down the wear on the rear bushes by reducing the travel/twist the bushes have to deal with. Is he right, will it basically help increase the life of the rear bushes?

why bother with the expense of a remap when you can get one of the excellent tuning boxes which can be removed in a few mins and dont actually change anything on the car on a permant basis.

thats a intresting point about the bushes and lowering the car, he is correct about the looks will be changed, but im not so sure about wether it would make the bushes last longer as the bushes are silent blocks, they are there to stop some of the banging from the wheels and assembly.
i had those springs on my old 5dr and the suspension was rock hard in comparison to the standard setup so im not sure this would stop the bushes from blowing as the amount of vibrations from the wheels will be higher. i understand the logic but in the real world i not sure that would be the case, but would be intresting to find out for sure though.

we have two multiwagons and tbh they look really nice not lowered, unlike the 5dr which does sit too high and looks like its on stilts the mutiwagon is a bit more graceful in its appearence.
for an estate car these things handle really well, ive not yet had that feeling of the backside fishtailing like i used to get quiet often at lower speeds on my old sierra estate and my old granada.
roy

There are plenty of people who would argue a tuning box is inferior to a bespoke re-map. I can thoroughly recommend Angel Tuning, their re-map will cost you around £300.

I once test drove a Multiwagon and its performance around bends was more like sailing a boat than driving a car! An alternative to Eibachs (I agree with Mr C they will firm up the ride a lot) is to consider fitting better quality dampers. I used KONI Sport adjustables on my Stilo 1.6 and they transformed the handling, while preserving a good ride quality.

Shadeyman said:

I don't suppose you'd like to enlighten me a little as to cost and if I should bother do it?

A friend had a Multiwagon and he told me to get fit Eibach springs. Said it would improve the looks slightly, give better control and most of all slow down the wear on the rear bushes by reducing the travel/twist the bushes have to deal with. Is he right, will it basically help increase the life of the rear bushes?

Click to expand...

I wouldn't bother with either TBH - at least to start with.

In my experience a remap degrades mpg a little (mainly I suspect because the power comes in so easily) although if you're the type of driver that likes to get a move on then you'll just love it (about £250-300) :devil:

Fitting lowering springs without also fitting matching dampers will be a disaster (it might look better but you'll have a worse ride AND degraded handling). Therefore having to also replace dampers makes the job a bit pricey - although many on here report good results especially if you keep to Eibach kit.

Another popular option, if you like good ground clearance, is to only upgrade the dampers (to say Koni adjustable) which should reduce the wallowing of the standard setup.

Re-map v's tuning box ?

I feel like I'm about to opening a can of worms here so I'll just stick to the point. Our 2002 Stilo was re-mapped I think to give us extra BHP and better fuel economy. I'd like the same performance/economy as before so is Angel Tuning the place to go?

As for the springs my friend said(during several pints of Guinness I might add) that its the amount of travel the standard srings allow that put a slight twisting action on the rear bushes. As you say Roy they are "silent blocks, to stop some of the banging from the wheels and assembly" not really designed for the twisting action the large amoung of travel the standard spings allow. By using Eibach springs you reduce the amount of travel there by reducing the twisting action and increasing the life span of the bushes. He said he fitted new bushes and Eibach springs at the same time so the bushes were torqued into place at the correct ride hight of the car when fitted with Eibach springs and this was crucial?

He's also the reason I'm purchasing this Multiwagon because his Multiwagon was great, long, low and fast. Never had a problem in the 4 years he owned it.

as i said i can understand the logic behind it, but the blocks are designed (although not very well) for the movement involved, im not sure the eibachs would stop that much movement and would lower the ride quality.
with the extra vibrations etc im sure it would knock out the bushes at the same rate if not quicker - but this is an asumption from doing the bushes a number of times on the multiwagon.

the multiwagon is a different sort of car to the 3 and 5dr and will be more boat like as pointed out, the extra metal on the rear without independant suspension will always feel like that. as they are used as mainly family cars stiffer suspension isnt always a good idea.

i dont think your going to get the fuel consumption / power delivery as you have seen on a smaller stilo, i still manage around 50mpg from mine, with excellent acceration but they wont be as quick as the 3/5dr because they weigh a whole lot more.

the tuning kits i never said were better as someone pointed out, actually a remap is probo the best, but the tuning kits can be put on in 10mins flat, removed if needed, cheaper to do and user adjustable.
there has also been some people on here reporting problems after remaps (the reason why i never considered a remap tbh), and personally if my ecu is working 100% then im not willing to test that, but it is horses for courses either way is a vast improvement.
good luck it does look like a nice example and i personally think is a cracking price, i payed 2.9k for my 53 dynamic in jan so yours looks a bit like a steal to me.
roy

Well I'm off now to take it for a spin. Everything looked fine on paper so I'll report back once I've got it home.

Its good, small scuff on the front bumper, apart from that all is good. The satnav has a phone built into it. Keeps askin for a sim card. Where does it go?

The SIM should fit into a credit card sized holder that slots into the unit!

It is a crap unit though but the car does sound very good overall