General If they are so bad.... why has everyone still got one
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General If they are so bad.... why has everyone still got one
I might be inclined to actually agree with you on this ahmett! Especially as you are one of the 'race ready professional everyday road drivers' who uses their tacho to time every gear change
By the way, you got me thinking on that, I realised I never look at my own tacho and realised that on a normal road car, it is indeed a complete waste of space, an absolute gimmick thrown in to make a car look, aaahh, sporty?....quite how one achieves that on a 85bhp TA Lounge, is beyond me! :devil:
ahmett
Prominent member
I might be inclined to actually agree with you on this ahmett! Especially as you are one of the 'race ready professional everyday road drivers' who uses their tacho to time every gear change
By the way, you got me thinking on that, I realised I never look at my own tacho and realised that on a normal road car, it is indeed a complete waste of space, an absolute gimmick thrown in to make a car look, aaahh, sporty?....quite how one achieves that on a 85bhp TA Lounge, is beyond me! :devil:
Hahaha when I was test driving the TA I didn't look at the tacho and hit the 6000 stupid rev limiter in 3rd on the motorway. Felt like the engine just died haha! So on a TA I would most definitely need to see the Rev limiter
Yes ahmett, I can and do believe you on that, but trust me, most umm, 'everyday' drivers have got too much going on to worry about looking at the gimmicky tacho, especially Mrs Miggins running her cat down to the vet or trundling down to the garden centre. Real world driving ahmett, not trying to qualify for Monte Carlo on the Oval Road in Croydon!
AGH1965
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Apparently a lot of TA drivers are unable to shift gears by ear. They almost redline the engine without knowing. When they occasionally look at the tacho, they are surprised what they are doing. Therefore a tacho isn't a waste of space, especially not in a car with a TA. (I myself am perfectly able to shift gears by ear though.)
I might be inclined to actually agree with you on this ahmett! Especially as you are one of the 'race ready professional everyday road drivers' who uses their tacho to time every gear change
By the way, you got me thinking on that, I realised I never look at my own tacho and realised that on a normal road car, it is indeed a complete waste of space, an absolute gimmick thrown in to make a car look, aaahh, sporty?....quite how one achieves that on a 85bhp TA Lounge, is beyond me! :devil:
For me the tacho is essential in the TA, peak torque is at 1900rpm so I'm constantly looking at it ensuring I'm 'in the zone' for each gear. One thing I dont like about the new TFT is that the tacho display looks quite compressed and not that easy to see where you are, in fairness I havent driven a TA with TFT though!
JohnGWalker
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Never use the tacho on my TA+.....when it's screaming it's time to change up
I'll agree with that. On a TA test drive, I did exactly the same thing...1st..this is quick...2nd.....crikey.....3rd. Oops red line drop off. The engine doesn't sound like its doing the revs it is, but about 1/2. It will take some getting used to, and I will use the tacho , till I get used to where 2k revs are, before I change up. After that...prov not, only to occasional see what revs equate to what road speed.
My Missus has just walked through the door....I've just asked her if she's looked at her Tacho today when she was changing gears. Her reply? "What's a Tacho?, what are you on about?" Mrs Frupi is an everyday driver and she doesn't rag the butt off her TA
She's also just said we're not allowed to get rid of it because she really likes it. I guess that's my Cactus out of the bloody window then!
JohnGWalker
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Get used to it quick, if you want the best out of your TA that is that absolutely slowest your engine should run. anything bellow 2.5k is bad.
My wife was shocked when she took my car out, she has a disesal juke which doesn't go much above 2K. Said she stalled my car a couple of times thinking she was in her car. then she got the hang of it and realised you have to wring it's neck
AGH1965
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Oh dear, you must be joking, aren't you?
Be careful when throwing a cactus out of the window. You might injure someone!
I promise it'll only hit someone staring at their tacho rather than concentrating on the road
I look at the Tacho ,esp now its not chasing the speed round the dial like it used to on my old 500
ahmett
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AGH1965
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If the sound of your car's engine isn't music to your ears, then you clearly have the wrong car, unless you prefer Nana Mouskouri of course.My music is too loud for that
To get back on topic: The sound of the TA engine can be addictive! Yet another reason to condone the car's weaknesses!
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I think that is it AGH; I wanted a 500 years before I actually got one and took some time looking them up and reading about the power issue, the door handles falling off (a friend of a friends just fell off apparently), the suspension and the suspect MPG amongst other things.
I looked at a LOT of other cars first, and there were a great many cheaper in the size cat I wanted such as the Adam, Swifts, Fabia, Leon etc. but when sitting in them they just didn't feel like home, or me, or with personality inside as well as out. The SEATs especially seemed like great cars for the price but it just felt so bland inside, like being in the office.
They then brought out the 500S and that was it with no questions asked (I was looking at the street to start with).
It's coming on to almost 2 years old now, and I still turn around and look at it as I'm walking away and go 'damn, that's a good looking car' (more so after a good wash and wax lol). Like a person, if you love them, you look past the faults
I can relate to what you say: I wanted a Grande Punto from the moment I 1st saw it in Top Gear magazine, back in late 2005.
I have owned my Grande for over a year now, and I know a lot of people think they are just worthless old junk now, but every time I walk upto or away from it, I always admire the styling. A beautiful car!
It's like an itch, you can scratch it but it never goes away..
I am on my 2nd Fiat, and I fully intend to buy Fiats for as long as possible!
I think in all honesty, you'll probably, more than likely find, that the average driver, couldn't care less about whether there is a tacho present or not. Indeed, I could probably put 10 quid on it that the vast majority of drivers NEVER look at the tacho under normal driving conditions, especially young Mrs Miggins doing the school run or popping down to the supermarket. Most blokes more than likely don't bother looking at the tacho either, they just get in and drive! So I'd argue Citroen have realised this and decided it isn't actually worth chucking one in the car!
I've always paid attention to the tacho. Hence, I can tell you that my Grande Punto 1.4 8v is lower geared than the Punto Mk2b 1.2 8v that I used to own, lol!
I can relate to what you say: I wanted a Grande Punto from the moment I 1st saw it in Top Gear magazine, back in late 2005.
I have owned my Grande for over a year now, and I know a lot of people think they are just worthless old junk now, but every time I walk upto or away from it, I always admire the styling. A beautiful car!
I am on my 2nd Fiat, and I fully intend to buy Fiats for as long as possible!
I've always paid attention to the tacho. Hence, I can tell you that my Grande Punto 1.4 8v is lower geared than the Punto Mk2b 1.2 8v that I used to own, lol!
I never wanted a Fiat in my life, however at the time my other half had a 147 2.0 Lusso twin spark which had been faultless. I thought Fiat cannot be that bad. At first I looked at a 1.9 mjet sporting they had at the dealer it looked beautiful but it 30k on the clock and cheap tyres and curbed alloys. Then he told me that the old finance guy was changing his 1.9 120 elegenza with 2200 on the clock for little more than the sporting. I fell in love with it. Loved looking at it.
What a lemon it turned out to be.
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You were unlucky. I'm now completely and utterly hooked on them.
That's the thing I get the whole emotional attachment to brand but I was not putting up with that again and bad after service.
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I can't comment on the Fiat dealer network, as I bought both of mine from used car dealers. With regards to the cars themselves, my parents Fiat was 1 of the best cars they've had, my old 1 was good, my current 1 seems good, and a few people down my road have bought 2 Fiats on the trot.
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