Qubo Why did I buy a new Qubo?

[MartinRDB]

Last Friday I became the owner of a new Qubo 95 bhp (Lounge specification) for just under €14000. I had initially intended to buy a larger car; an offer I made on a secondhand Dacia Lodgy was not accepted.

I happened to walk by a Ford garage and was interested in a very new Ford Tourneo Courrier (not yet available in the UK). Noticing that it was compared to the Qubo/Nemo/Bipper, I thought I would take a look. I soon realised that the Ford, which is on a Fiesta base is more or less a copy of the Punto based Qubo. The claimed boot capacity is bigger for the Ford and 10cm longer with the back seats up. With the seats folded the floor area turned out to be the same. The advantage of the Qubo is that the backseats can be removed and are 10cm wider. What I like about these cars is their multifunctional adaptability. Although the Qubo claims a maximum capacity of 2500 litres, I think this is only with a foldable front passenger seat, which I do not think mine has.

Although the headline cost for both were similar a bigger discount was offered by Fiat. Moreover some years ago we had a much loved Multipla and I think we see in the Qubo a mini Multipla. The Qubo seems comfortable and well specified, however I was hoping for a little more oomph. It may be simply that I am not used to when to change gear; also I read somewhere that engine gets more sprightly as it is run in.

I would be interested to know what others can tell me about what to expect or what to look out for.

 

[andydiver]

Welcome. we own the same 95hp engine and find it pulls very well. Have had it from 21k, up to about 27 now, just had the top steer bearings done under warranty as have many here. No Tyre wear issues, never had the tracking checked. We like it as a family car, hope you enjoy yours, don't despair over what you read here. . . .

 

[JimbbobW1977]

I find the 1.3 95bhp engine very noisy and vibrations - but this is based on the same engine using it in a works Corsa.

Performance wise it seems perky enough and quite a revvy engine.

 

[MartinRDB]

Thanks for the responses andydiver and JimbbobW, I have not yet found out how to record a thanks on your monikers. I was a bit alarmed by andydiver's "don't despair" comment: are there problems that I should worry about?

JimbbobW: although the engine seems noisy when cold, it seems, like most diesels to quieten down when warm, though it might be a bit more noisy than the comparable Ford (though I only tried the 75bhp version).

Between the loved Multipla and the new Qubo, I had a second hand Renault Scenic. Unfortunately, this year the Scenic's diesel turbo blew up rather spectacularly rendering the car a write off. This was a strong dissuasive factor against a Dacia, which is part of the Renault group and uses Renault engines. I am not sure I could really feel confident with another Renault engine.

 

[JimbbobW1977]

Diesels are a lot more complex these days and different manufactures have different problems.

The Fiat 1.3 diesel can suffer from timing chain failures reading some of the reports on here.

The PSA 1.6 diesel used in the Ford had problems a few years ago but I don't think they do now.

The BMW 2.0 diesel is known for self destruction at about 90k miles - due to timing chain failure, which is meant to last the life of the engine.

The Qubo is based on the Grande Punto and can suffer similar niggles I believe such as top mounts of the suspension.

 

[stephenriley]

Welcome. we own the same 95hp engine and find it pulls very well. Have had it from 21k, up to about 27 now, just had the top steer bearings done under warranty as have many here. No Tyre wear issues, never had the tracking checked. We like it as a family car, hope you enjoy yours, don't despair over what you read here. . . .

You will generally find that people only post on forums if they have a problem so on reading the Qubo forum pages you may feel that there are lots of problems! Apart from a replacement steering rack under warranty and an oval rear brake drum our 1.3mtj 75 qubo has been fine and my wife and kids love it (even if it is orange!) Stephen

 

[MartinRDB]

Thanks again to all responding.

Sephenriley, I envy your funky orange vehicle, mine is a boring silver grey: I would have to have waited much longer to have a more interesting colour - I rather fancied the green ones as well.

My wife made the optimistic point that it might be a safer bet to buy a car that has been on the market for five years than one that has been in the showrooms for scarcely a couple of months (the Ford Tourneo Courrier). The hope being that the bugs will have been ironed out.

I am getting more used to the Qubo, getting a feel for its dimensions and working out when to change gear. I feel a bit uncertain with gear handbrake coordination using the start/stop when facing uphill.

Incidentally the Renault Scenic diesel had not yet reached 90000 miles when it blew up. I would have expected more than twice this from such an engine. Obviously, I am hoping for a long life from the Qubo.

 

[JimbbobW1977]

The Torneo is based on the Fiesta so it's well proven.

 

[MartinRDB]

The Tourneo Courier will certainly seriously challenge the Qubo. It certainly has the better petrol engine and felt good to drive. The window has a steeper rake, which might be more aerodynamic, but it puts the driver side pillar in a more obtrusive position to the Qubo. Visibility for the driver in a Qubo is really very good.

We will only need 5 in the car very rarely, but this would have been more of a squeeze in the Tourneo Courier. The base is also shared with the B-max, which is even more clearly intended for two in the back.

I am a bit concerned about reliability, as currently reports suggest that Ford does better than Fiat.

 

[JimbbobW1977]

Depends really - the Qubo is grande Punto based and that's had its fair share of regular problems.

I believe the Fiesta is reliable. My Focus has been fault free in the last 20k.

The Qubo is commercial based, so you would like to think it's more up to the demands than a regular super mini.