General My First Car

[NimmyZed]

At the grand old age of 32 I've bought a car. I wanted something small and nippy so went for the siecento.

I just wanted some advice on anything I should be aware of. ie: gearbox problems, steering, etc.

I know nothing about cars. I am a biker and have been for 15 years so this is all new to me. I recently had a baby so I can't very well put him behind me on the bike!

One thing that's worrying me is the safety issue. I hear the Siecento has done very badly in crash tests. Is this true?

There is no power steering. For a learner trying to turn a corner and move from 1st to 2nd with no power steering is a bit of a struggle. Any tips?

Thanks in advance

 

[_CinqueCento_]

Yes, Due to the fact of the Size of the Sei/cinq they are pretty useless in crash situations, they can take a knock here and there but in a fast accident they are pretty weak..
As for lack of powersteering - Hehehe these cars are so light on the steering you'll probly think it has powersteering!!, i might also add these cars are Extremely easy to use every day where ever you live as a first car.. The complete turning circle is very tight/small too making it handy for manouvers..
I have still got my first car - my Cinq And i'm quite happy with it, its served me very well.. I'd reccommend anyone to have a Cinq/Sei for a first car..
As for looking out for things? - the usuall stuff, Probly better sticking to lower millage cars, look out for accident damage (like panals miss aligning etc), look out for oil leaks (the engines are usually pretty gd and don't leak),Tyre wear, broken bits and bobs, water leaks on seals, handbrake works efficently, There shouldn't be any rough idling, and never any dodgey sounds - the Sei is a very smooth sounding car.. Hope some more people will add to this..

Hope this may have helped..

Scott

 

[AppleSei]

The seicento got a 1 star ncap rating however dont let that put you off, they are tough little buggers and will definately give as good as they get if an accident should occur (perish the thought)

Unsure of which seicento you have as you dont mention. The 899 is decent enough round town, but not as refined out of it. With only 39bhp as standard its not the quickest cat out of the block but will cope just about.

You can get a few mods to free up a few horses out of an 899 however if its a quest for a bit of a performance then the 1108 is a better base.

The 1108 is the top model, with plenty of mods available to make quicker and a much better base for an engine transplant should you wish to do one.

Shouldnt worry too much reg. PAS they are fairly decent to manouevre and park without PAS, if you are struggling though there are plenty of PAS models on the market.

In terms of problems there arent many. As mentioned the handbrake cables can be of issue, the cable usually stretches pretty quickly but is an easy and cheap fix.

The other major problem is the clutch cable. These are extremely poor in design and can break at regular intervals, you will no doubt have to change one at some point during your ownership unless you are very fortunate. But agin this is a quick fix.

There was a recall on fuel tanks as well conducted by fiat, your vehicle may or may not have had this done if you notice any leaking petrol, poor mpg etc best to check weather you are entitled to a free one.

The only other little niggle is the fuel gauage readout, it is very optimistic in its display, especially beyong half full. There is no known cure for it and you have to live with it like everyone else. However you will still get decent mpg, just dont plan any long journeys with maybe half a tank and no fuel stations in the vacinity

Other than that thats about it, check all usual places, gearbox etc wear on seats, scratches, panel damage etc all fairly easy to replace should the need arise.

A low mileage car doesnt necessarily mean good, the vehicle could have been stored, not moved etc, things could have seized, corroded so check all previous history and MOTs, and get one with a decent service history.

Enjoy your sei

 

[Advanced Driver]

One thing that's worrying me is the safety issue. I hear the Siecento has done very badly in crash tests. Is this true?

There is no power steering. For a learner trying to turn a corner and move from 1st to 2nd with no power steering is a bit of a struggle. Any tips?

The trick is to not crash :idea: If you want to drive without crashing then I would recommend joining the IAM or a similar advanced motoring organisation. For £85 you can get the skills for life package, which includes the test fee, a book, and as many 'observed drives' (lessons) as you want. It is done by volunteers, which is why it costs virtually nothing. I would recommend it to everybody, it really is a very useful, enjoyable, and rewarding experience.

No powersteering - lol, I learned to drive without powersteering. The lack of power steering doesn't really make it any harder to drive. You can still move the steering wheel with one hand. Without power steering is harder to turn the wheel fast at slow speeds (or when stationary), but this is very bad, especially if you have powersteering. A lot of drivers have this bad habit :shakehead , I certainly wouldn't recommend it in a driving test.

There is a trick to cornering and changing gear at the same time... you don't. Many drivers do, but it is much better if you don't. This is taught on most advanced driving courses. When steering you should keep both hands on the wheel, but I won't go into all of the reasons why. It doesn't matter if you rev the engine a few rpm's higher than usual.

 

[Advanced Driver]

A low mileage car doesnt necessarily mean good, the vehicle could have been stored, not moved etc, things could have seized, corroded so check all previous history and MOTs, and get one with a decent service history.

Yes, I would avoid low mileage cars. Low mileage cars will have probably either been sitting around (with the problems you mentioned) or would have been used for short trips. Short trips are very bad for engines for a number of reasons, but I won't go into the details.

 

[fingers99]

Here's a biker worried about safety (in a car!) who wants to change gear in the middle of a corner? Some mistake, surely.

 

[Punto_irl99]

So fingers ... U an expert???

 

[fingers99]

So fingers ... U an expert???

Only in horizontal dancing, sweet thing.

But everyone knows:

1. Even a Trabant has better passive safely than a bike

2. The last thing you do on a bike when commited is to change gear in a corner. It's a pretty bad thing to do in a car, too.