General How are peoples marea's holding out now?

[MrMigs08]

Hey guys, my first here, general impressions of the forum are very good with a nice character set behind (You know you get some communities that are just poo... :') )

Anyway, i want this as a general question to everyone, hows the marea doing so many years down the line now?

I ask because im quite new to driving, in august i'l have my first year of no claims and well.

My nanns got a packed up 1.6 marea sx on the front of her drive,

The deal is, you fix it, you can have it ,
Looking at the car and performance information available, the size is a tremendous increase from what i'm driving now, and so is the acceleration (Which i love), i believe its having fuel issues, my nanna thinks its a lazy fuel pump but my general impressions at the moment are sensors and/or injectors, heck even fuses may need a good check over.

I drive a micra at the moment (12 years down the line, faultless, just MOT advisories) but as soon as this offer was mentioned to me (FREE MAREA) i had to look further into it, and i like what i see.

So next weekend, i'm going to begin fixing it (after scowling through hopefully 100 odd pages of forum posts and threads , what i want to know now is how are people finding the marea at this age, is it still operating? or are they being hit hard now.

Cheers and i look forward to talking to some of ya.
Migs.

On a last note, i think she mentioned it having 70k miles, which from reading up, the marea handles fine at that milage (Except, if the timing belts not been done, it desperately needs to be, unless its snapped??)

 

[Venters]

In general I think they are holding up fairly well. Rust underneath is starting to creep in on a few. Mines likes drop links but I think that's a thing for the 20Vs more than the other models.

Sorry I can't help with your fuel pump problem, not enough info.

 

[MrMigs08]

In general I think they are holding up fairly well. Rust underneath is starting to creep in on a few. Mines likes drop links but I think that's a thing for the 20Vs more than the other models.

Sorry I can't help with your fuel pump problem, not enough info.

Haha, its ok buddy, yeah this weekend me and my scrap yard raiding mate will be around and we will certainly get to know this car. I want to clean the major sensors with 100% alcohol, do an ECU reset, check the Injector switch, see if the master key helps me with anything, and plaster it with wd40 (Im an addict here).

Think after the UK winter rust would hit all cars quite hard, idiots and there useless salt hey, i'll keep you up to date on the car (Y).

Tell you though, i'm certainly excited for some reason

Thanks again for reply!
Migs

 

[Renegade_8]

They are great cars, and scored highly in reliability surveys. Not at all sporting, its a nice balanced chassis out of the box and for some reason Fiat then put a front anti roll bar on it that makes it understeer. Ours just does family holdall duties and its unbeatable for thst.

 

[MrMigs08]

They are great cars, and scored highly in reliability surveys. Not at all sporting, its a nice balanced chassis out of the box and for some reason Fiat then put a front anti roll bar on it that makes it understeer. Ours just does family holdall duties and its unbeatable for thst.

Yeah i've read that the handlings centered, so good for multi usage terrain too!, i've heard about the understeer also haha, but i prefer that over oversteer (Micra on stock sus is a bouncy castle mate, put it that way!)

Anyone fitted a strut to the rear to stiff it up a bit?, i like that it is ideal for a family, its why im taking interest, normally i have a full car of grown people, and lets face it, my little car isn't ideal for that sort of travel, and more kick from the engine.

I certainly am confident on the reliability of the fiat, i just really want to get it fixed now hehe! Will try get some pics soon too!, Thanks again guys, appreciate it!

 

[bulldog5046]

the 1.6 is prone to injector failure so check the resistance on them to see if they are equal.

if you do some searching in the bravo/a section you will find the resistance values they should mesure, IIRC its around 12-14 ohms but its been a long time since i've looked at a Fiat!

Ry

 

[rat20v]

There really good cars, i am on my 3rd 20v weekend and have never had anything really bad (well i blew my 02 plate 150 up) but i prefer the 147's

rust is a issue now as mentioned, but get under it and have a good look along the inner sills and if there looks like any crusty bits then give them a scrape and give them a coating of rust treatment then zinc primer then stone chip paint and then waxoyl and it should be good for a few years, i did a couple of scabs on mine and they have been fine for over a year now

mine is lowered and sitting on gloss black coupe turbo wheels, added a front splitter and full leather, changed teh steering wheel over and gear knob and added some gauges to a custom a pillar pod i made, only need to fit my stainless back box that i have and will be where i want it.

have fun, theya re good cars

cheers

robin

 

[MrMigs08]

There really good cars, i am on my 3rd 20v weekend and have never had anything really bad (well i blew my 02 plate 150 up) but i prefer the 147's

rust is a issue now as mentioned, but get under it and have a good look along the inner sills and if there looks like any crusty bits then give them a scrape and give them a coating of rust treatment then zinc primer then stone chip paint and then waxoyl and it should be good for a few years, i did a couple of scabs on mine and they have been fine for over a year now

mine is lowered and sitting on gloss black coupe turbo wheels, added a front splitter and full leather, changed teh steering wheel over and gear knob and added some gauges to a custom a pillar pod i made, only need to fit my stainless back box that i have and will be where i want it.

have fun, theya re good cars

cheers

robin

Ahh sounds great mate, and i've heard about the injectors, which is what i'm hoping it is, but i read somewhere theres a 10-15 quid fix? what goes wrong with them, do you know?

I will definitely attempt a full de-rust, also i have an issue with the front bonnet lock not functioning, think i need a replacement,

Any any pics of your marea up? Sounds like its a really nicely done car, always appreciate looking at a good car !

Cheers
Migs.

 

[MrMigs08]

Hey guys, sorry for double post, just want to give you a quick update.

The car itself is...well, immaculate, interior great, exterior great, 1 spot of rust developing from a chipping on the front, and the lower side bonnet lock has completely rusted away but a replacement may fix that problem which i desperately hope it will.

Perished handles as per, but i think plenty of maria plastic handles, same colour in scrap yard!

70k odd miles on clock, oh and guess what, the timing belt got changed at 66k, its been used for 4k miles since replacement, engine bay is gleaming!

Ok, on this 1.6 maria, apparently all that is wrong with it, is it randomly cuts out when its coming to a stop sometimes, apparently it got diagnosed as having a lazy fuel pump (But if it starts sometimes anyway then i severely doubt it), i'm not sure if it will be the injectors since it works sometimes (But i will ohm test them 1 by 1!)

Also there's a rusted rear bumper mount (That's completely crumbled somehow), it looks replaceable? the car body looks fantastic, and a rust conversion + stone chip resistor paint etc would sort any worries in that area! Back bumpers a bit meh looking, kind of like fibreglass has expanded a bit!

What do you guys think could be the problem?

 

[Venters]

Crankcase breather, injector, maf sensor. Will be more possibles but thats all i can think of. Also you can goto the members motor section set the prefix to marea and see a few of the guys on heres cars. Ignore any of bulldogs threads there though as they only have broken links instead of photos.

 

[MrMigs08]

Crankcase breather, injector, maf sensor. Will be more possibles but thats all i can think of. Also you can goto the members motor section set the prefix to marea and see a few of the guys on heres cars. Ignore any of bulldogs threads there though as they only have broken links instead of photos.

Ahh awesome, thank you very much for your help venters!, any idea about the rusted rear bumper mount? (Like underside of the car, not from boot).

Funnily enough, after posting for pictures, you personal thread came up on the home page, and man, does your marea look great mate!.

Thanks for the help everyone! I will blog when i start cleaning the marea up (Hopefully this weekend !)

 

[rat20v]

Here is my one

and before i changed the wheels the front splitter is a golf vr6 one

cheers

robin

 

[MrMigs08]

Ahh robin thats ace,

Splitter looks like it was made for the car, and the new wheels are perfect, not over the top either.

And the sticker planting is always great to see! really like that marea!
(Also the aditional gages look like they were made for that pillar, excellently seated hah!

 

[rat20v]

Ahh robin thats ace,

Splitter looks like it was made for the car, and the new wheels are perfect, not over the top either.

And the sticker planting is always great to see! really like that marea!
(Also the aditional gages look like they were made for that pillar, excellently seated hah!

Thanks man, there are a few dents and scratches but you know what, i think they suit it lol, although i would love to have them done

 

[gijoe]

Ok, on this 1.6 maria, apparently all that is wrong with it, is it randomly cuts out when its coming to a stop sometimes, apparently it got diagnosed as having a lazy fuel pump (But if it starts sometimes anyway then i severely doubt it), i'm not sure if it will be the injectors since it works sometimes (But i will ohm test them 1 by 1!)

If you are experiencing random cut-outs, the problem could be supply to the coil pack. By random, I mean anytime! I got stuck in the passing lane on the M4 out of Dublin doing 120kph, then nothing - power steering packs it in as well. It also cut out on idle at lights, or just after starting, or after hard acceleration.

Problem: Took a while to hunt it down and blew a load of cash on useless mechanics and parts, before I got a manual and used diagnostic info from said mechanics to deduce that replacement coil packs were not the problem. Very simply, the contacts into the coil pack had become splayed, and contact could be lost at anytime due to shock, moisture, dust, and heat (metal expansion).

Solution: Pull or delicately prise the tired old contacts back to a tight fit, and you'll love this bit, using a cardboard mask, spray WD40 around the seal leaving the contacts dry, and likewise on the mating part of the coil pack itself. I've had no cut out since, and 2 very wet winters in between.

Sometimes, the obvious is not so obvious. If you ever get a diagnostics check, and the garage informs you of a faulty part, and the problem reoccurs down the line, ask the simple question - 'Is the problem the component, or the systems feeding it?' Remember that diagnostics are only indicative of a place to start investigating.

Lastly, do check the resistance in the injectors. This is very common with the 1.6 100, and it is cheap to do. Tip - you don't need to remove the fuel rail to remove/replace.

These are very cheap solutions, and if they sort things out, it makes a free car all the sweeter. Wish you the best of luck mate.

Joe

 

[MrMigs08]

Hey joe!

Thank you very much for your detailed reply, this i will do, the WD trick makes alot of sense!!

As for the injectors, i will try get hold of a multi meter, i hear that alot of the 1.6 injectors go, so hopefully i can just pull them from a scrapped marea or bravo!,

I appreciate the help alot! Soon i will hopefully get a blog up of the repair!

Cheers,
Migs.

 

[Notorious131]

The wife's Weekend jtd just passed its MOT with one advisory for rear side light bulb.

That's another year of motoring ahead and the MOT was half price at Halfords (£27).
Just need to get my 20v Weekend out of the garage and back on the road now.
I love our Marea's..... how sad does that sound.??

 

[multispoke]

Anyway, i want this as a general question to everyone, hows the marea doing so many years down the line now?
...
My nanns got a packed up 1.6 marea sx on the front of her drive,
...
On a last note, i think she mentioned it having 70k miles, which from reading up, the marea handles fine at that milage (Except, if the timing belts not been done, it desperately needs to be, unless its snapped??)

Hi MrMigs08. You'd probably driving your nan's car by now but the weekender 1.6 petrol model I have has been the best workhorse I've ever had. I would nearly go as far to say that it probably the best car that the whole of Fiat ever made and I've had a lot of them. Car was bought in Nov 05 for €1,600 and today is work probably €0-€500 and it mircaously passed an MOT (NCT) in Feb '10. It has caused me nothing to run bar the standard service (oil, filter, plugs) and some pads for the rear. The only thing that upset the reliability of the car was what I think was the MAF sensor where the idling would get erratic and it would start to overhead - that was fixed fairly promptly after mistakingly thinking that it was a faulty thermostat - so I wasted a bit of € there. Cambelt not changed and still on the original but used as a second 'car' so I'm probably not going to change it unless some IRISH GUY out there (I'm based in Dublin) knows where I can get it done for resonable money (quotes are €500 !) so I've put in on the long finger. I would suggest that MrMigs08 that you get yours done (now isn't that being a bit Irish !)

 

[MrMigs08]

Hi MrMigs08. You'd probably driving your nan's car by now but the weekender 1.6 petrol model I have has been the best workhorse I've ever had. I would nearly go as far to say that it probably the best car that the whole of Fiat ever made and I've had a lot of them. Car was bought in Nov 05 for €1,600 and today is work probably €0-€500 and it mircaously passed an MOT (NCT) in Feb '10. It has caused me nothing to run bar the standard service (oil, filter, plugs) and some pads for the rear. The only thing that upset the reliability of the car was what I think was the MAF sensor where the idling would get erratic and it would start to overhead - that was fixed fairly promptly after mistakingly thinking that it was a faulty thermostat - so I wasted a bit of € there. Cambelt not changed and still on the original but used as a second 'car' so I'm probably not going to change it unless some IRISH GUY out there (I'm based in Dublin) knows where I can get it done for resonable money (quotes are €500 !) so I've put in on the long finger. I would suggest that MrMigs08 that you get yours done (now isn't that being a bit Irish !)

Ahh multispoke, im suprived i've missed this reply?? 6 days, sorry man!

Your telling me the exact same simptoms of my car, with the maf, hmmm could i just clean this, 100% alcohol solution perhaps!

Yes looking at the youtube videos and specifications on the web, the marea packs a rediculous punch for engine size, class of car, i am very close to beginning the restoration and cam belt changed 4K miles ago!! (Looking at the design of engine also, cam belt change looks quite easy!!)

Hope you have time to get back to me spoke ! nice to see a friendly 1.6 user here to help me with my problems haha!,

Thanks again everyone, really enjoying the responses i've had.

 

[Venters]

If your gonna clean the maf be very careful. Iv broken one by cleaning it, was an exspensive mistake.