not my car..

[Tony Sirett]

Morning all, found this forum whilst searching "how to fix" i have just brought a car of off eBay for my daughter item number 174420836372 it has a few problems, not as many as i have seen before on eBay sold cars, i shall up date all the niggles later once i have had time to properly go over it.

cheers Tony

 

[varesecrazy]

Hi to you Both

Its a 1242 petrol..?

I own 3 mj diesels of that era..
They are pleasant cars..
Niggly electrics..and dry suspension bearings feature

That is a very tidy one.. appears looked after

The Yellow bands at top of GP section will cover most niggles

Charlie

 

[Tony Sirett]

well i have had a quick squint around it, rear left indicator didn't work and right hand brake light flashed when you indicated left, also the left hand brake light is permanently on (while the lights are on), removed the rear light, all terminals were very rusty, so rubbed them all down and re connected every thing, left hand indicator now works but unfortunatley the left hand brake light is still on all the time.

the high level brake light doesn't work at all so have ordered new bulbs as the others are all black (might be connected to the rear brake light problem) head lights were yellowed and foggy, so i have rubbed them down and polished them, now crystal clear, brake pads on the front were pretty much non existant and the discs have bigger lips on them than a blow up doll..... or so i have been told ..... so new pads and dscs ordered.

the rubber strip that goes across the bumper on the bottom is half ripped off, any ideas where to get one of them?

also the screenwash bottle is leaking, any ideas on how easy it is to remove?

if anyone can think of anything else i should be looking for then let me know.

thanks Tony

 

[Tony Sirett]

i forgot to add, the rubber strip that goes across the bumper on the bottom is half ripped off, any ideas where to get one of them?

 

[varesecrazy]

Hi again..

Clear out the scuttle drain 'duckbills?

They tend to choke with leafmould

Whip out the spare wheel.. look for water in the wheel well..

Then check and inflate the tyre

Check interior fan works on all 4 speeds..


The washer reservoir is in plain sight if you remove left wheelarch liner

Check if the seal around pump is bad

See GUIDES.. bottom of list.. my screenwash job

I had a weepy bottle on a fiat marea.. I put a tape 'fill line' on it.. still had @2.5 litre capacity

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

well i have had a quick squint around it, rear left indicator didn't work and right hand brake light flashed when you indicated left, also the left hand brake light is permanently on (while the lights are on), removed the rear light, all terminals were very rusty, so rubbed them all down and re connected every thing, left hand indicator now works but unfortunatley the left hand brake light is still on all the time.

the high level brake light doesn't work at all so have ordered new bulbs as the others are all black (might be connected to the rear brake light problem) head lights were yellowed and foggy, so i have rubbed them down and polished them, now crystal clear, brake pads on the front were pretty much non existant and the discs have bigger lips on them than a blow up doll..... or so i have been told ..... so new pads and dscs ordered.

the rubber strip that goes across the bumper on the bottom is half ripped off, any ideas where to get one of them?

also the screenwash bottle is leaking, any ideas on how easy it is to remove?

if anyone can think of anything else i should be looking for then let me know.

thanks Tony

Hello and welcome to the Forum. As Charlie says, there's lots of very handy stuff for you in the guides section of the GP section.

Your permanently on brake light, whilst lights are on, is very typical of an earthing problem - you say the cluster is showing considerable corrosion - What's most likely happening is that the side light earth is poor and the current is feeding through the side light and earthing through the brake bulb. I'd be a rich man if I had a fiver for every time I've seen this. Take it to pieces again and look for corrosion you've missed, maybe even inside a connector? Water leaks past the foam seal on rear lights is a common problem.

Anything else to look for? My experience is mostly with the Petrol engines so is Charlie right that your's is a petrol? If so one thing many people who are not familiar with these cars would not know about is that the steel water pipe which runs along the front of the engine, behind the exhaust manifold so it's difficult to get a good look at, suffers from corrosion and a leaking seal where it fits into the back of the water pump. I've done a few of these and you should be aware that they can suffer from very localized rust. So you might think it's looking nice with lots of smart black paint but when you look closely - often around where the support bracket is welded on - you find a deep rust pit! Shop4parts do excellent quality new ones much cheaper than your Fiat dealer and you can get extra discount when you make just one donation to the forum funds. The engine steady bar which goes from the bottom of the bell housing back to the body ("Dog bone" it's often called) can suffer from worn bushings. Clonky rattles from the front suspension, especially if it's worst when just one wheel goes over a bump - ie not like a "sleeping policeman" band across the whole width of the road - is likely to be drop links.

However, rather than trying to think of all the things which can go wrong you're better to just post on here and I'll bet some knowledgeable person will get back to you shortly. Don't ignore coolant leaks! The petrol engines particularly, which are otherwise very robust wee units, do not like overheating.

My Older boy runs a 2012 Punto 1.4 and we have a 2010 1.2 Panda (probably the same engine as yours) both jolly good cars. Cheapish spares and pretty easy to look after. I particularly like the colour of yours.

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Ah yes, you are a petrol - just looked you up on the MOT checker. Did you have a look? It's not a bad record at all with nothing too serious being raised although last year I notice it had advisory for "under body and suspension component corrosion" Depending on exactly what it is the suspension corrosion may not be too drastic (although our Pandas suffer severe rear axle corrosion to their spring pans) Probably more concerning could be the body corrosion? I'd be having a good crawl around underneath.

 

[MaxHeadroom]

Hello and welcome to the FIAT forums, Tony!

I'm sure you and your daughter will find plenty of useful information (Looks like you already have!) and will be rewarded when you get it all fixed up and working properly

 

[Tony Sirett]

Sorry if I don't reply too quickly, I work 12 hour shifts so replying is usually delayed.
Yes it's a petrol ? I have ordered discs and pads and with all the codes i had from euro car part managed to get the lot for £39.87 with free delivery, as I said I have ordered new bulbs off eBay from Germany for the high level brake light but they are not coming until 5th of October, there doesn't seem to be any power going yo the light so I need to get to the bottom of that.

 

[MaxHeadroom]

Sorry if I don't reply too quickly, I work 12 hour shifts so replying is usually delayed.

No worries there Tony, I do 12 hour days too - so I know what you're saying!

 

[Pugglt Auld Jock]

Sorry if I don't reply too quickly
there doesn't seem to be any power going yo the light so I need to get to the bottom of that.

I quite like the fact that the way the forum works leads you to not expect an instantaneous reply - gives folk time to think.

Lack of power to the high level light. Want to bet on a broken wire inside that rubber boot between the tailgate and body? a wee bit of a fiddly fix but definitely DIY. I'd choose to solder the repair rather than use a crimp.

I've never bought anything from ECP but, as we now have two branches in Edinburgh, perhaps I should look more closely at them?

Good luck with the repairs
Jock

PS, "never bought anything from EPC" just remembered that's not true. I once bought a can of Plus Gas from them!

 

[Tony Sirett]

Well that was easy, calipers and discs off, new discs and pads fitted all in under an hour.