General New to the group

[graham7694]

Good evening
I have just joined having bought a 54 plate Fiat Stilo multi wagon active 1.9jtd diesel.
Low mileage @ 67k and driven straight to the garage upon purchase as no records in the service history of a timing belt change so having that done before putting it to work.
Car has been owned by 2 elderly owners and most years has only done 2 to 3 k miles
Any thing I should be looking out for when she starts working properly?
One quick question - in the boot area there are a couple of storage compartments and the clip on one of them is missing. Anyone know where I can get replacements from or what they are called?
Regards
Graham

 

[Artermis]

Hi Graham,

Congrats on your new car. Hope you like it.

The JTD engine is bullet proof and has appeared in everything from the Fiat Doblo taxi to the Alfa 156. It even made it into a bunch of vauxhalls and later Saabs too. They're strong as an Ox.

Diesel engines as a general rule of thumb don't tend to like doing lots of little short journeys. Its not as important on these generations of diesel but the newer stuff, probably Euro 4 onwards really can't tolerate it.

You'll do well to give it some good long runs where it gets properly warm and up to temperature to help keep soot / carbon buildup to a minimum.

The engines don't really have anything in the way of known faults or issues - they're just that good. It's the typical things all diesels suffer with like split boost pipes, blocked EGR valves and failing turbos to keep your eye on. Literally just the generic stuff.

Car wise, the Stilo is very probably one of the best built of the Fiat range you'll come across from the turn of the century. Fiat genuinely made a significant effort to overcome the reliability and build quality misconceptions. The car has some very Germanic like qualities to the cabin and interior and the electrics are indeed all Bosch (German). Their efforts paid off too - they're a good strong well build car.

Other than your perishables, like suspension and roll bar bushes, exhausts and brake discs / pads mechanically I'd advise you keep an eye on the front springs as they're known for snapping.

Top tip too - if you're replacing the rear pads, the near side (passenger UK) rear caliper is reverse threaded. If you try and force the piston in whilst turning it clockwise (i.e. out) you'll probably knacker it!

Enjoy your new Stilo!

 

[graham7694]

Thank so for the advice
I just called in to see my mechanic and he says it is a little gem
He has changed the cam belt and not a moment too soon as there were cracks in it and he thinks it was the original belt. He has also done the alternator belt, oill and filters and gone over the car and can find no faults
The old boy had told me there was no air con but found the button when I went to view.
The air con wasn't working but hey presto with a regas it is brilliant so obviously over the few years he has had it the gas has escaped as he had not used it
It will get to work on Saturday as I don't want to tax it until the first and will soon be doing 500 miles a week.
I am sure I will find a few little problems as it runs in as most of its life has been spent just tootling around which is not great for it
Regards
Graham

 

[graham7694]

Ok car is on the road and drives well ?
One quick question........ it has a aftermarket stereo fitted with false facia to tak up the original space. Radio only works when the ignition is on and not in standby position. I am presuming that no one fitted the ISO converter???
Not pulled the stereo out yet

 

[Artermis]

Ok car is on the road and drives well ?
One quick question........ it has a aftermarket stereo fitted with false facia to tak up the original space. Radio only works when the ignition is on and not in standby position. I am presuming that no one fitted the ISO converter???
Not pulled the stereo out yet

Sounds like the wiring might have been bodged to some extent.

The original stereo (with the exception of the factory Connect Nav / Nav+ satnavs) were CANBUS radios. This means they were switched on and off with the CANBUS computer network rather than using the traditional constant (yellow) and switched (red) live setup of the ISO configuration.

You'll have to figure whether your headunit is operating correctly in terms of retaining memory etc and pull the wiring to work out exactly what the installer has done to fit it and rectify from there.

The recommended approach around here is to fit an additional fuse into the fuse box (by your right knee, if you pull the panel down) or use a piggyback fuse on one of the fuses which is switching with the ignition. You can search piggy back fuse on eBay they're readily available.

Keep it fused, keep it safe.

 

[Yellow Peril]

Any thing I should be looking out for when she starts working properly?
One quick question - in the boot area there are a couple of storage compartments and the clip on one of them is missing. Anyone know where I can get replacements from or what they are called?

Welcome to the forum. Thinks like clips and fixings can only be sourced from a FIAT dealer parts department. For general info about the Stilo, you might find this of interest:

https://www.fiatforum.com/stilo/273562-buyers-guide-fiat-stilo.html

 

[graham7694]

Thanks gents
I will pull it all out this morning to see what has been done and try to rectify the situation ?
I work in my car and cannot cope with the radio only working when the engine is on!!!
I found half the broken clip in the boot so bodged the other half up so at least that works now
Regards
Graham