Technical 'engine ctrl contact garage' bleep again

[bobian81]

'and if you look second hand you can pick up a bargain' Says it all, really.

Zundapp, are you saying that other europeann makes are miles better ?
I've been driving for 30 years, and owned alot of different car makes, too many to list, I dont think modern fiats are any more or less reliable than similar models, as I said in my previous post, my late father stuck by VW,and did experience reliability issues, after his death, earlier this year I had to dispose of his 06 vw passat diesel, I practically had to give it away.
I have owned several japanese cars in the 90's, including a late model nissan micra, that suffered a serious electrical fault to the wiring loom which resulted in a fire serious fire that wrote iy off.
Fiat have a speciality to make small cars, as that is their forte and they should stick to it.

 

[T14086]

They are also very succesful in the commercial sector aswell Bobian, granted the new ducato has had more than its fair share of probs but not as bad as new transit etc.

 

[rolo]

Just picked up on this thread again and would make the following points.
MY multi was by far the most unreliable and costly car I've ever owned.....,but I know another owner who has not had too many problems with their's and is pretty happy with it. The multi for me was a bad experience,but i'ts not a case of seeing other makes through rose tinted specs. I went with the zafira A. Because I spoke to other owners who have not had any problems with their cars,and B. Because repair and servicing are more readilly and locally available. One of the real pain in the arse issues with the multi was that I found out the hard way that most problems needed the dealer,awkward and time consuming to get the car to. The one time I used an independant the car ended up at the dealer anyway....we were without transport for nearly a fortnight in the period leading up to Christmas (loads going on....no means of getting there....irate wife and kids etc etc...). One tip I would give to any prospective multi owner...(and if you get a goodun you'll love it)...is make sure you have an accessible fiat dealer/specialist within reach....preferably next door lol.
My neighbour has a nissan Xtrail,04 plate from new,been a nightmare.I'ts had a gearbox,alternator and 3.....yes 3, blown turbo's.Two of those have shot oil down the exhaust resulting in exhaust/cat needing replacement as well.Now out of warranty he tells me i'ts starting to show the symptoms of another turbo going awol....try telling him about legendary japanese reliability...
So I'm fully aware that any car can turn out to be a lemon,but lets be honest,fiat,along with alfa....citroen etc have always appeared at the bottom of any reliability surveys(which? etc)..there's gotta be a reason for that.

 

[Zundapp]

My first FIAT was a 132 in the late 1970's. I loved it, brilliant engine, very quick, and one of the least reliable cars I've ever had! Mostly down to cheap electrics and rubbish suspension bushes. Still sounds familiar today... I've had many FIATs and Citroens since, and for one reason - they're cheap! Much higher discounts than 'mainstream' vehicles.

At present I have a (new) hugely discounted Grande Punto and a 52 plate Multipla. So far the Punto's not been trouble free, and I'm always having to keep on top of the Multi. Probably most people don't have the time, inclination or knowledge to be prepared to do this.

I like FIATs for their character etc., but I'm not blind to the fact that they are in general cheap cars made with cheap parts. But I can live with that, and in that light are good value.

Just in passing, a local authority close to where I live recently abandoned all their FIAT light commercials at the local dealership due to unreliability issues (they hadn't reached the end of their lease period) and have now standardised on Fords. This may have to do with the standard of that dealership of course.

 

[T14086]

I started of with a 131 TC, great car but rusted underneath so badly it went to the great scrappy in the sky, for more than what I actually paid for it

On the van front it seems (well no it is as I know all the local ford techs) that transits are having terrible problems with turbos, injectors, clutches, power steering pumps, brakes, electrics etc. Seems the mercedes sprinter is proving to be the most reliable (if that bit more expensive) van on the road which is strange considering it shares alot of parts with the transit

 

[bobian81]

Just to add to the vans debate, I'm a motorhome enthusiast, and I've noticed that fiat seems to dominate when it comes to motorhome manufacturers choice of vehicle to build on, if fiat were that bad, and with people investing so much in a modern motorhome, surely they would switch to ford or vw ?

 

[Zundapp]

I started of with a 131 TC, great car but rusted underneath so badly it went to the great scrappy in the sky, for more than what I actually paid for it

On the van front it seems (well no it is as I know all the local ford techs) that transits are having terrible problems with turbos, injectors, clutches, power steering pumps, brakes, electrics etc. Seems the mercedes sprinter is proving to be the most reliable (if that bit more expensive) van on the road which is strange considering it shares alot of parts with the transit

131's - they were really cracking cars. But as you say, scarily rusty. Do you remember the FIAT adverts at the time: Dagenham - 4, Turin - 5. Referring of course to the number of gears on the Cortina against the 5 gears on the 131.

 

[Zundapp]

Just to add to the vans debate, I'm a motorhome enthusiast, and I've noticed that fiat seems to dominate when it comes to motorhome manufacturers choice of vehicle to build on, if fiat were that bad, and with people investing so much in a modern motorhome, surely they would switch to ford or vw ?

If you chose to specify a Ford, Merc or VW chassis/cab for a new motorhome, you'll find they're a fair bit more expensive than the Ducato based option.

In any case, a motorhome typically covers a tiny fraction of the miles a working vehicle does. Problems which show up with stop-start working, often with many different drivers who don't care about the thing anyway, high mileage and pushing the vehicle to its limits much of the time - these problems will never show on a motorhome with it's low annual mileage.

You don't have to look far to find 10 year old motorhomes with less than 50,000 miles on the clock. And that's twice the age expectancy of a working van!

 

[T14086]

Just to add to the vans debate, I'm a motorhome enthusiast, and I've noticed that fiat seems to dominate when it comes to motorhome manufacturers choice of vehicle to build on, if fiat were that bad, and with people investing so much in a modern motorhome, surely they would switch to ford or vw ?

Fiat do realise the 'market' for motorhomes but I think the main problem is the lack of service centers capable of servicing these (often huge) vehicles.

131's - they were really cracking cars. But as you say, scarily rusty. Do you remember the FIAT adverts at the time: Dagenham - 4, Turin - 5. Referring of course to the number of gears on the Cortina against the 5 gears on the 131.

I dont so I assume your older than me:devil:, I remember well blasting the 131 down the M8 was quite fast & nice to drive but at MOT time the chassis legs were rotten beyond repair so sadly had to go & was replaced by a datsun cherry which was actually very good although constantly changing doors,bonnet & wings due to rust did become a chore:bang:

 

[bobian81]

Fiat do realise the 'market' for motorhomes but I think the main problem is the lack of service centers capable of servicing these (often huge) vehicles.



I dont so I assume your older than me:devil:, I remember well blasting the 131 down the M8 was quite fast & nice to drive but at MOT time the chassis legs were rotten beyond repair so sadly had to go & was replaced by a datsun cherry which was actually very good although constantly changing doors,bonnet & wings due to rust did become a chore:bang:

T, I remember owning a dtasun cherry, you were right about them rusting, but I lost patience with it, after the headgasket went twice, it was a weakness on the 1000cc engine wity the aluminium head.

 

[T14086]

lol yeah I had the 120Y sunny, few corollas,carina, 160sss etc all great but rusty