Marea Weekend 2.0 HLX Headlamps

[Tommo]

Just bought an R reg Marea Weekend 2.0 HLX and pretty pleased with it I am too. My first Fiat since a 1.3 Mirafiori in 1983!

My questions for any other Marea 2.0 Weekend owners are:

1) Do you find dipped beam woefully inadequate even on its highest setting?

2) How the **** are you supposed to get in to change the headlight bulbs? It's all engine and stuff under the bonnet - there seems to be no apparent room to get in to most of the bulb holders?

Any comments/advice gratefully accepted.

Tommo

 

[Spyder]

yes lights are crap

Yep the lights are crap I replaced the bulbs, better but nut much. I now drive with my fog lights on.
The bubls are not easy to change but persevere and be ready for scraped nuckles.
P.S. What does yours do the gallon, I get about 20mpg.

 

[Tommo]

32.5MPG

Thanks for that Spyder - I'll keep the Germolene handy!

So far I'm averaging 32.5 mpg. I can't be driving it hard enough

Tommo

 

[Tony]

Cambelt Changes

note to you 2 guys with the 2.0 marea's, the headlamp bulbs are tricky to replace due to a severe lack of room under the bonnet (but you already figured that out!!) have you both considered what will happen when it comes to replacing the cambelt?????? you should, i work for a used car supermarket as a salesman, a customer of mine just did a cambelt change on his 2.0 bravo, it cost him over 2000 pounds!!!!!!!!! and the bravo and marea are identical under the bonnet!!! just a thought for ya

 

[Spyder]

cam belt

Your wright it is a bugger of a job. Most garages use as an exuse to rip us off, but if u find a decent garage it doesn't have to cost the earth, on my previous marea it cost £550 to have it done.
However the garage now say it will cost in the region of £700, but that now includes replacing cam belt tensioners and other sundry items. His reason being that having done a previous customers car and being strictly instructed to do only the cambelt to keep cost down, a associated part then failed and caused alot more damage.
The garage I use is called BETACAR, they are specialists and can be found in West Yorkshire tele-01535 275560
P.S Never be tempted to unfit the undertray of the car, it might cost u your engine. (debris thrown into cambelt)

 

[Rich]

The headlamp bulbs are not too bad to change (no harder than on a Mk4 Astra). Just remove the induction pipe to access the pass side. The drivers side is straightforward to change. The lights need picking up a little bit (the garage did htis no problem). I have also fitted new phillips brighter bulbs and blue light side lights and have no real complaints. A tip would be to clean them regularly, as the washer jets don't seem to clean the right bit of the lamp.
The cambelt change is not a real problem. for more information on the facts about this, look at www.fiat-coupe.com. the forum there makes good reading. I reckon on £520 for the 72 K service plus about £130 for the cambelt tensioner, idler pulley, water pump, and aux belt lower tensioner (if it needs doing) - this can be the one to fail and can cause problems. So not bad really considering how little you actually paid for the car, and the fact that normal servicing is so cheap. I get 29mpg and I drive mine quite hard.

 

[Gurjit]

Marea headlamps

What type of headlamps are they? HID or Xenon?

Thanks.

 

[Gurjit]

Marea headlamps

What type of headlamps are they? HID or Xenon?

Thanks.