Technical MK2 Punto Power Steering cutting out...

[PuntoFT]

WOW! Car prices have gone down! I feel pants now knowing what I paid for mine just a couple of years ago... Final word on the matter from me...consider whether the repairs will cost you £970? From what you've said above...don't think so. If the car fits your lifestyle/purposes then I'd personally stick with it. Petrol is cheap and your likely getting 50+MPG (should be anyway). Good luck!

 

[snipit]

ha; i thought it was just me, my punto 1.2i 8v 2002 does exactly the same thing

 

[AY786]

mine did this the other day, its never done it before as well, was turning left at this bend and suddenly my steering felt like turning a tank. I turned the car on and off and the red light went off and the steering was back to normal, i read that thread you posted and i hope mine was related to the cold weather, so far touch wood, its not done it since, which was last week

 

[phem0r]

Mine has done it in the winter more so than summer, also it appears to be when turning left it's happened.

Ay786 & Snipit - Yours both just sound exactly like mine :| This is abit pants really heh

 

[MikeSalt]

It is the intermittent nature that makes this dangerous. If you could permanently disable the power steering until Fiat have sorted it out, that would be safer. Guys with power steering experience, please chip-in and suggest how this might be done. Is there a fuse you can pull or a wire you can disconnect from the motor?

 

[phem0r]

Fiat have sorted it out, it just costs you near £600 to have it replaced :|

 

[MikeSalt]

£600? For £600, you could get a Punto mk1 55S - then I can GUARANTEE that the power steering will never fail in that car, simply because it doesn't have it, lol.

 

[phem0r]

Ye...£600 is the Fiat dealership quote though, could get it done for about 300-400 through local garage i think.

I don't want a car without power steering

 

[phem0r]

UPDATE: Took the punto to our usual garage for the last 20 years... Quoted £700 quid to sort it as they need to replace everything :|

 

[MikeSalt]

Still, even at £600-700, it depends on what the car is worth to you whether you get it fixed. A couple of years ago, my Punto mk1 had a noisy input shaft bearing on the gearbox (it still drove fine), and I enquired about the cost of a reconditioned gearbox. The price was just under £600, and the car was worth probably £900-1000. I actually started looking at other cars.

However, each one I saw had little problems that I could see. There were puddles under the radiators and missing caps and messy battery wiring from bodged aftermarket alarm fitting. I soon realised that apart from the gearbox, my car was in pretty good condition, and worth the gearbox swap.

After having the gearbox swap, I fixed any little niggles. I also treated it to a good wash and a nice, new set of mkII alloys and tyres.

Turned out to be a very good decision indeed. Since the gearbox swap, I have done well over 40,000 miles with virtually no trouble, just the odd wear and tear items here and there. The only major work since was a head gasket replacement, which was only £300, less than 6 weeks' worth of fuel for me.

So the motto of the story is, if the car has been reliable and you are familiar with it, it is worth far more to you than Parker's will tell you. Wouldn't swap old faithful for a brand new Grande.

 

[PuntoFT]

Well said...

 

[R1ckyd]

ye im thinkin tht email watchdog idea is a good 1, same thing has happened to me! it started same as u with it goin off on corners etc.. den it gt worse n wud of wen i tried to pull out from ma house,straight away! the onli thing i do 2 stop it is drive with it really stiff n da light on, then next time i drive it the light comes on but remains in city mode.. hopefully tht helps!

 

[phem0r]

Well said aswell Mike.

I have been thinking of that, there's 1 thing though, my clutch bearings sound pretty knackered so i have a feeling within the next 6 month's ill need to replace the clutch or something along those lines costing £400 or something around that.

So it could cost a possible £1100. Its a 51 plate so 7-8 years old. I like the car but am unsure if i can trust it again if you understand what i mean...

I've been looking at MK4 Golf's