An interesting thread came up on the leisure lounge recently entitled "why buy Fiat" & it got me thinking what reason people have for buying a Stilo compared to other cars in the same category. Come on people lets have your views (this thread has probably been done before).
I know when the Stilo was first released I thought UURRRGGHH! but after seeing a broom yellow abarth with the 17" shadow chrome alloys in my local Fiat dealer I just had to have one. It strikes me as weird that photo's in a magazine just can't do the car justice (unlike the new Astra which looked nice in the photo's but horrible in the flesh). I remember the girlfriend at the time hated it as well even when we went to see one at the dealer, hence she left & the Abarth came allong, not that I'm saying a car makes up for the loss of a relationship lol A car doesn't inspire the feelings of passion you get in a relationship besides frequent sex stops you peeling the labels off your Budweiser he he

I have just a standard 4 door Active AirCon. I bought it because I was fresh over from living in the States for 18 years. I needed a small, practical car for myself, wife, kid and dog. The dollar exchange rate was (still is) cr@p for me (good for all you guys), so I needed to be cheap. The Stilo got good reviews, and it was reasonable. I picked up my 52 plate with only 52 miles on it last year from Thames Group in Slough for £6000, so it was a good deal, in my mind. I have not had too many problems, other than the usual creaky clutch pedal, strange warning messages that mean nothing, and the dreaded cracked A/C pipe. I also have a weird noise that comes from the back passenger side that sounds like the boot raiser thing (an airy noise), when I go over bumps, but I cannot figure out what it is. I tried removing the boot raisers but still got the noise so I just turn the stereo up . I prefer it to my U.S. Chevrolet Malibu - it has a lot more character, and is perfect for what I need - a small commute with the occasional trip to London. I would like a bit more power, but Rome wasn't built in a day.

I had an Alfa GTV prior to the Stilo and needed a more practical car (a boot and back seats are quite useful) however I wanted something with a bit of omph and with all the toys the Stilo seemed ideal, plus it was good value for money at the time and I was sold. It isn't a bad car infact it has been very reliable, probably the most reliable car I have owned. Even the 5 door can look attractive from the right angle (not from the back) but the 3 door is a really attractive car especially in Abarth specification. I actually went into buy a 3 door Abarth in flat red (my favoruite colour) and came away with a 5 door in Metallic Blue - and before you ask the dealer didn't put any pressure on I just decided 5 doors was required.

i am on my second one now. i had a 1.6 dynamic and now have an abarth selespeed. i had a focus before and it was really dull. the stilo just looks so butch from the back, well the 3 door anyway. it is great value for money and well built, as one magazine said "almost german". with the discounts where else could you get a 2.4L 5cyl engine with a paddle shift gearbox, voice activated satnav, phone, radio and cd player. automatic lights and wipers and cruise control for £13000 new. thats a £20000 car anywhere else.
i love it.

Yeah, looks (3dr) and price did it for me too. I couldn't find any car that gave te same bhp in a diesel and with so many gadgets for even close to the same price. Also, i think it looks great (except for the front bumper which i don't think is quite right though the schumacher has taken care of that) and i figured that if the Bravo still looks good so will the Stilo in a few years time!!!

Cheeap to buy, loads of gadgets, very cheap to run, best looking car and size of car for its money! Pure and simple.

I bought mine as it's different to the main stream models like the Focus, Astra etc. although from first had experience (30 K in a Focus and wifes Astra SRi, both handle much better. Also, I bought mine out of loyalty to Ferrari (LOL). In addition, I think Fiat have the best dealers in all of Britain ;-)

sbaddison said:

In addition, I think Fiat have the best dealers in all of Britain ;-)

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EH????
Also on the handling side I woudn't say either Focus or Astra handle better.
The Focus is a bit more accurate but the Stilo rides better IMO.

I took a relative in my car and he was amazed at how smooth and quiet the car was, it is a great cruiser, well the Abarth is anyway. He drives a Ford Galaxy.

The stilo has a lot of body role but does mean it has a smooth ride.

I have to mirror pretty much what everyone else has said.
Price, Italian Styling and 5 cylinders did it for me. Beautifull cars, simple as that.

I still peel the labels off my buds Ben, and i get it frequently ..

Budweiser that is

well I think for my me and my dad, it was the looks of the Multiwagon jtd, the equipment, the smooth ride as someone said, the build quality and mainly the character of all italian cars. (i admit the 3dr abarth has the most character within the stilo range).

I've been quite fortunate in life and my previous cars have been a Lexus IS200 SE , an Alfa 156 2.0TS Veloce and most recently a BMW 325 Ci (until I aqua-planed on the M1 last year and wrote it off!).

Due to an impending house move I needed to save some coin but didn't really want to compromise on power, style, luxury, toys etc and the Stilo really seemed to fit the bill.

I really missed my Alfa but I didn't enjoy the thought of coming back to Fiat dealers (especially having been so well looked after at Lexus and Sytners). Anyway, I saw a lovely '02 3dr Abarth for £9k that ticked all the boxes and given the aforementioned house move, it seemed like the blindingly obvious choice.

6 months on I'm loving it! I love the fact that it turns heads so often - people just have no idea what it is - maybe it's the Champagne/Silver colour, full skirts and smoked chrome alloys that give it an elegant yet slightly touring car look!?

Oh yeah, the fact that out of all the cars I was looking at this was the only one that the missus liked, kinda clinched it too!

I can only echo the thoughts of Neil C, I love the Abarth, just wish visits to my dealer & the "niggles" were less frequent !!.......

Certainly to drive it is one of the most pleasing cars I have been fortunate enough to own ................. anyway wot about??https://www.fiatforum.com/showthread.php?t=28097&highlight=stilo+meet

When we were looking for a new car for the Mrs, the Abarth just stood out. All the toys, great engine, semi auto (one less thing for her to bugger up) and about £6K cheaper than an equivalent Focus RS. Only down side I would say is that it is a bit heavy on the juice compared to similar cars, but hey she only does 9K per annum so we do it in style.

Not too sure on the handling, I've an X-type diesel (Jaguar Mondeo ) and the handling on that is top notch, despite the wider tyres the Stilo seems to plough on into corners and I'm not too sure how "stuck" the back end really is or if it snap breaks away when the limit is reached. Any advice on the latter?

What I do like is the look of panic as MR "BMW I own the outside lane 3 series" is left for dead when you dare to move into their lane to overtake, they steam up behind and you hit warp 9 (Byeeee!!) :devil:

Acordis said:

When we were looking for a new car for the Mrs, the Abarth just stood out. All the toys, great engine, semi auto (one less thing for her to bugger up) and about £6K cheaper than an equivalent Focus RS. Only down side I would say is that it is a bit heavy on the juice compared to similar cars, but hey she only does 9K per annum so we do it in style.

Not too sure on the handling, I've an X-type diesel (Jaguar Mondeo ) and the handling on that is top notch, despite the wider tyres the Stilo seems to plough on into corners and I'm not too sure how "stuck" the back end really is or if it snap breaks away when the limit is reached. Any advice on the latter?

What I do like is the look of panic as MR "BMW I own the outside lane 3 series" is left for dead when you dare to move into their lane to overtake, they steam up behind and you hit warp 9 (Byeeee!!) :devil:

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Just get some Eibach lowering springs fitted and that'll sort out the handling for just a small outlay.

I wanted a diesel due to my ever increasing annual mileage and the Stilo stood out as something affordable & both me and the missus love the looks of the MW.
For the same price we got a new one we could've got (as an example) a 2 year old Golf diesel estate. No comparison and I think the Golf looks cheap inside compared with the Stilo.

I always liked the front view but thought the rear didn't match but now I realise the 3 door is colour sensitive, Still can't get on with the 5 door though. For some reason it reminds me of the Maxi.

I traded up from a punto, which gave me 3 years trouble free motoring, to a stilo 1.6 multiwagon as I needed more space and was impressesd by the reliability of my previous fiats.

Besides, every man and his dog buys a focus/astra/golf so it's nice to drive around in something a bit different and everyone knows that italian cars have more style in the front bumper than most fords have in an entire showroom!!

I just wish that fiat would put the 2.4 engine in the estate with a kicking bodykit.

Yes, I can recommend them, now on number two, had 5dr JTD dynamic for two years (from new) and just brought a JTD multiwagon demonstrator (need more space as number two baby on the way).

Still not so sure about the steering (mind you I don't like any of these modern electric set ups), but rare loads of toys, well built and if you can find a good dealer will give very good enjoyble motoring.

See pic below ... Thats why

kev1 said:

I just wish that fiat would put the 2.4 engine in the estate with a kicking bodykit.

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You could always hunt around for a smashed up Abarth & nick the engine & ECU out of it. I think rest of the ancillaries are the same as the JTD plus you'd be the only person to have an Abarth multi-wagon COOL!