Bravo Newbie

[1st fiat bravo]

Morning all. Have just purchased a 2007 fiat bravo 1.4tjet 150. Has full service history and less the 94k miles. One owner from new.

Just looking to find out what I should look out for and how to get the best out of it.

 

[wizk1]

Morning all. Have just purchased a 2007 fiat bravo 1.4tjet 150. Has full service history and less the 94k miles. One owner from new.

Just looking to find out what I should look out for and how to get the best out of it.

Hello. Welcome to the club and well done on your choice of motor .

Yours has done a similar mileage as mine and in that time I've gotten wise to the more common things to go on this car. So if you have the full service and repair history, it might be worth checking for evidence of repairs for the following common issues...

• If yours has the digital climate control, the actuators responsible for directing airflow snap causing air to blow out of the wrong vents
• Driveshaft wear is common and manifests itself by vibration when accelerating. Replacement shafts are very hard to source, but the worn part (spider bearing) is cheap to replace.
• Gearbox whine. This car has the notorious M32 gearbox that is fitted to a lot of Vauxhall models. There are specialists who can replace the worn bearings without having to drop the gearbox out so it's not too expensive to repair.
• Exhausts are not resilient and aftermarket pipes are not available (at least they weren't when I last checked). Instead, I had a custom stainless steel, cat-back system fitted with a lifetime guarantee.
• Door lock solenoids are known to fail.

I'm sure other forum members will have their own items to add to the list, but don't let any of if put you off though. This is stuff I've had to deal with in my 10 years of ownership. It is generally a dependable little car. Just make sure you do regular oil changes using the correct (5w40 C3) oil. I personally have used both Castrol Magnatec and Total Quartz Ineo MC3 and recommend either. Contrary to the service schedule, I do mine every 10k or every year; whichever is sooner.

But if you do run into difficulty with issues, the members of this forum are really helpful and give good advice. They've saved me a fortune in terms of fault diagnosis and recommending reputable garages for repair.

 

[1st fiat bravo]

Hey wizk1

Thanks for the info. Will start having the services looked into. I'm actually surprised with the bravo. Was always against having a fiat but this is a good car to drive.

 

[Malarky191]

Hey wizk1

Thanks for the info. Will start having the services looked into. I'm actually surprised with the bravo. Was always against having a fiat but this is a good car to drive.

Welcome to the Forum, and nice choice on the Bravo I have the Tjet 150 sport version, they are surprisingly good cars, they feel solid on the road. Surprising really considering the pace of development of the Bravo in response to the failure of the previous Stilo - they churned out a motor ten times better in half the time

It is the same platform as the Stilo which itself was a pretty good chassis, only letdown on the driving feel is the electric power steering. If you have the sport version then having the sport mode on removes a lot of the electric power assistance which really helps the driving feel, I also have Powerflex polyurethane bushes installed which have really brought the car alive on the road, can really feel the road underneath you but without any compromise in comfort.

I’ve owned my Bravo since August 2018 so not had as much experience with them as the majority of other members here, the only issues I’ve had are a failed wastegate solenoid and new ball joint on the front offside wishbone, I replaced both wishbones and installed the poly bushes at the same time, wastegate solenoid only cost £35 so I’ve had a reliable experience so far.

As yours is at 94k miles your timing belt should have been changed 22k ago at around about 72k miles, does your service history show this? If so hopefully your water pump was changed at the same time.

The Tjet engine is essentially an evolution of previous Fiat FIRE engine designs and are very reliable, just be sure to keep an eye on your oil level and change the oil every 10k as stated.

https://www.fiat-lancia.org.rs/Manuals/Fiat/Nuova_Bravo/Fiat_NuovaBravo_1.4TjetEngine.pdf

If you’re technically minded have a read at the document I’ve linked above, it gives you a lot of information on everything on the Tjet engine.

 

[1st fiat bravo]

Morning malarky191.

I will certainly have a read of the information. I like a good read. I will check the timing belt was done. It has only had 1owner so the old boy that had it probably has had it done. The back seats still had a sheet over them lol.

So you recommend driving with the sport button pressed do you ??? I can happily do that. How much was it for the polyurethane bushes?

 

[Malarky191]

Morning malarky191.

I will certainly have a read of the information. I like a good read. I will check the timing belt was done. It has only had 1owner so the old boy that had it probably has had it done. The back seats still had a sheet over them lol.

So you recommend driving with the sport button pressed do you ??? I can happily do that. How much was it for the polyurethane bushes?

Sport mode has some other benefits too haha

I think I paid around £120 for the four wishbone bushes, local garage charged only £30 to press them in (I had butchered the old bushes out the wishbones with a hacksaw and a drill prior). They are quite straightforward to fit, just don’t snap any bolts

 

[1st fiat bravo]

Forgot to add a picture of my car. Will get more up soon.

 

[wizk1]

Very tidy . Mine's looking a bit worse for wear, but that's only because I'm lazy and don't wash it as often as I should.

 

[1st fiat bravo]

Very tidy . Mine's looking a bit worse for wear, but that's only because I'm lazy and don't wash it as often as I should.

That was taken at the garage forecourt when I picked it up. I currently live in a building site. So just now she looks very dirty. Can't wait to give her a good wash.