Technical F.I.A.T - Fix.It.Again.Tim

[fiatstinks]

Is what FIAT really stands for. My wife purchased a bright yellow sporting in 1998 and very proud of it she was too. Within 6 months thiefs had broken into the car (nothing stolen because there was nothing there) but had damaged the locks and creased the door. One re-spray and new locks and £100 from us as insurance excess. 6 months later the same thing. The problem is that with yellow being a translucent colour there are very few bodyshops(ie none)that can match the colour. When one takes into account the fact that the bumpers are (a) plastic and (b) supplied painted to the factory there are now three or even four different shades of the same colour.

More worryingly are the number of major and minor items that have gone wrong with the car in the last 12 months that surely cannot be mileage related: -

Speedo cable (the second)
Washer bottle - at £80 inc labour to replace a ludicrous sum
Electric window motor
CV joint
Fuel tank!!!!!

and all this to a car that is barely 4 years old.

Notwithstanding any warranty issues (the car when bought came with a measley 12 months - they are now 36 months)FIAT UK does not want to know.

FIAT is a poorly financed company that has sadly lost its way (I wonder if it ever knew the way) and one which I will now go out of my way to denegrate.

 

[HP]

firstly, it stands for fix it again tomorrow.<img src=icon_smile.gif border=0 align=middle>
Secondly, if you think Fiat is bad, try Vauxhall.
IMHO unless you buy something like a BMW or Lexus, you're never really gonna see perfect customer service.

Bought a car from a Vauxhall dealers, and honestly had better service from a back street one - lying, pinching accessories after the deal was done, failing to do work they promised, and expecting me to pay for taxis to get home while they do the work they claim had already been done to name a small part of the saga.

The same garage smacked my dad's car, and only admitted it when he found it as he picked it up - would they have done the same if he'd found it when he got home?

Another Vauxhall bodyshop (insurance approved repairer) oversprayed my tyres blue, then put tyre black over it to cover it up.

The thing is with Fiat, they produce cars to a price but build in a level of entertainment that you don't get anywhere else. I've got a Cinquecento that's not as reliable as a Micra, but a hell of a lot nicer to drive and much more fun.

If the car's too much trouble for you, sell it and buy Jap. The wife's got a Mazda 626 that's ever so dull but I doubt it will ever go wrong.

By the way, if the bodyshop can't match the colour, they can't be very good - otherwise thousands of people with broom yellow cinq's, sei's punto's etc. would all be driving patchwork cars, wouldn't they?

Pete.
Cinq sporting
http://mysite.freeserve.com/close_to_cracking_up/

 

[Lawrie]

My wife has the same car (year, model, colour)and is still thrilled with it. The only problem she has had was that the wheel bolts became very rusted after only a few weeks from new, and Fiat changed them. It is unfortunate that thieves attacked your car, but you can hardly blame Fiat for that !

 

[Babysei]

Hello fiat stinks..ive just been chuckling at your post as it sounds very familiar....i have to say i love my Fiat to bits but I too have had problems with it..mine has been broken into twice costing me £400 each time.. ive also had a few problems with the dealers..when my sei sport was delivered it had a cracked windscreen, then I had a problem with the fuel tank, then the electric window broke, then I had a massive leak on the passenger side that ruined the carpets and none of this was my fault!!!
but on the whole I wouldnt swap my baby for anything..ive had all sorts of cars and theres always been a problem so Come on FIATS!!!!

 

[dfalkingham]

Yeah, come on FIATs!

None of the complaints here sound unfamiliar ... my previous owner had the passenger door resprayed and it's a different yellow to the rest of the car (any more patchwork cars out there?!).

And, I've had to replace an electric window motor, and a washer bottle.

But, at the end of it all, they are great to drive and look damn good compared to other small cars.

Darren


Cheers,
Darren