Most car makes seem to be represented on this forum but we don't hear much about Fiats. SWMBO is pestering me about changing her old Toyota, so far we have narrowed the choice down to another Toyota, maybe a Yaris, or a Renault Modus (my favorite), or a Panda 4x4. No she doesn't need a 4x4 but we won't go there. I value my hair colour and sanity.
Years ago we had a new Fiat 131 Mirafiori and is was awful. But I am sure Fiats are fine nowadays. What are the new Fiats like and in particular the Panda? Seems well written up to me and terrific value.
|
I have clients called Cheshire Punto Centre who seem to do very well out of nearly new Puntos (quelle surprise!) and they all seem to be well priced and when I have had a look, reasonably well made.
I actually know of a couple of satisfied customers and CPC may be able to get hold of Panda's for you as well.
--
Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
|
|
Here in Poland, every second car seems to be new Panda. They are everywhere. If they?re popular with Poles, they must be good value.
|
I have a Fiat Coupe which I'm immensely pleased with. However my recommendation probably has to be taken with a pinch of salt due to the following reasons:
1) The Coupe isn't current, so not necessarily relevant.
2) The Coupe is a very different car to the average Fiat, so not necessarily relevant.
3) I had an Alfa before this, and thought that was a fantastic car too, so I probably must just be a glutton for punishment or something.
|
|
|
Here in Poland, every second car seems to be new Panda. They are everywhere. If they?re popular with Poles, they must be good value.
Ehhmm... Not exactly. They simply can't afford a better car. You see, an average man in Poland earns about 200-300 of your 'quids' (that's after taxation) a month. All those Mercs, BMWs, Jags etc. are mostly company cars & various mobsters'.
|
|
|
|
Thats because they are made there,Andy
|
|
|
|
|
Hello Xileno
I currently drive a Fiat Marea Weekend 2.4 litre turbo diesel, first registered in 1998(R). It is a lovely car to drive. I have also driven several of the Fiat garage's Puntos, the best being the common rail diesel - that really flew and was very quiet. The specification on most of their cars is fairly good.
In the past Fiats used to have a very bad image, mainly the bodies rusted and the electrics failed. Try and find a badly rusted Fiat now, they seem to have solved this problem. All modern cars are getting more complex, I personally believe that many of the leading marks are also suffering from electrical problems, and I do not think Fiat are as bad as some.
I presume the you have read HJ's report on the Panda - he rates it very highly and is always recommending it in the Saturday Telegraph. Fiat have always been good at making small cars.
Chatting with the Service Manager at the Fiat garage (alas now closed, but still have 2 nearby) they seemed to have had little problem with the new Fiats they had sold, so provided you are near a Fiat dealer then you should have no problem. I personally would have no problem with another Fiat provided I did not buy it new.
On the downside the number of Fiat dealers is fairly sparse and some are not too highly rated. Spare parts can sometimes be expensive and secialist parts have to be shipped over from Italy, sometimes taking a couple of weeks. Depreciation on medium and large Fiats can be high, but does make them excellent second hand buys. There is also the question about the long term profitability of the Fiat Group.
With regard to Renault, my wife has a Clio (R reg) she has had for nearly 6 years. When she changes it she would never buy another Renault. It has not been the most reliable car and she will no longer use either of the 2 local dealers as they are very expensive for servicing, besides not always doing the complete job. Once she was told that the brake pads had 70% left, 4 days later the front pads shattered and scored the discs badly. Luckily she was only a couple of miles away from the garage when it happened. When the remains were checked they were wafer thin - she only had to pay for the parts at their inflated prices.
If your wife wants reliability and good residuals then the Yaris should be your choice.
Hope this helps.
|
Fiats are quite common around my way - they are very keenly priced and Fiat has always had a way with small cars that it never demonstrated on its larger variants.
Such low initial prices means that they can be picked up used "for a song" at a comparatively early time in their lifespan.
Incidentally, about two years ago on a trip to Cornwall, I was admiring a then new Fiat Stilo in dark blue in the hotel car park and wondering why its "face" seemed so familiar.
Then it clicked. About five cars away was a VW Passat and the Fiat's front styling, including the air dam, was almost exactly the same...:-)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
|
|
I drive an Alfa but there are several Fiats in my family (2 puntos, 1 coupe, 1 Tipo) all of which are great cars. No reliability issues and the 1.9JTD punto does 58mpg regularly. Ive sat in the new Panda and it is a lovely car imho, better than the slightly bigger and more expensive Punto
|
I'm not one of the anti Fiat brigade, either.
Mrs V had an Uno 70sx, back in D reg times. Super car to drive & much better spec than a Fiesta for the same money, back then.
The Punto will be EXCELLENT value compared to the Yaris, but probably won't sell on nearly as fast, when you need to swap again. But it will be cheaper up front.
& the Panda does seem a better BIG small car, all round. Made in Poland too, though, not Italy, I understand.
VB
|
Check the insurance on the fiat 4*4
being a 4*4 they are normally much more expensive
at least it was when i had an old bone of a fiat panda 4*4 many yrs ago :)
--
www.storme.co.uk
|
- I can confirm that the new Panda IS built in Poland. I bought a new one 2 months ago and I can't fault the build quality. It's easily comparable with the new VW Lupo that I purchased 5 years ago, but is better equipped and well over a grand cheaper. Low labour rates in Poland must play a part of course, but build quality does not suffer.
Only snag with the Panda 4x4 that I've heard about is that the fuel tank size is reduced to barely 7 gallons (to make room for the 4wd running gear). Add a 1.2 petrol engine and allow for the greater weight of the car and you'll be lucky to get more than 250 miles on a tank of fuel...
|
|
|
|
Why no Fiats?
Because the dealers, at least here in Sunderland, are so duff that they can't sell them.
Due to the dealer allegedly forgetting to order my Panda 4x4 it will not be delivered until July, five months after ordering it!
Fiat dealers, don't talk to me about Fiat dealers, mumble, mutter, moan........
|
|
|
I have a Fiat (899cc Seicento)! It's been pretty reliable. The exhaust's gone, and I've had the battery go, but that can go on any car.
With the Panda I'd only get the 4x4 if you really needed 4x4. It's slow, drinks more fuel, is probably more to insure, and it looks uglier. Oh, it's probably more expensive too. I think the normal Pandas should be good though.
|
Funny enough, I've been driving round in a Sciento all week for a delivery job I'm doing. No idea what size engine it's got and it is only a base model, wind up windows etc but it is quite a pleasant little car to nip about in.
Subject to knowing what long term reliability is like I would happily own one if I wanted a baby hatch. It is a 51 reg, no rattles or squeaks and a the engine is nice and quiet. I should think it is well above average mileage but I haven't discovered which button switches between trip and odo yet. I can't manage to turn on the radio either, I had a brief fiddle with a button or two and nothing happened, but I would think that is down to my advancing years rather than a fault.
|
|
Sorry, mis-spelt Seicento.
|
|
|
Funny enough, I've been driving round in a Sciento all week for a delivery job I'm doing. No idea what size engine it's got and it is only a base model, wind up windows etc but it is quite a pleasant little car to nip about in. Subject to knowing what long term reliability is like I would happily own one if I wanted a baby hatch. It is a 51 reg, no rattles or squeaks and a the engine is nice and quiet. I should think it is well above average mileage.
51 plate might be post the 2000 update, which put the 1108 "FIRE" engine in all versions.
See HJ Car by car.
|
|
|
|
|
My daughter has ran her 96 Cinquecento with the 899cc engine for nearly 3 years now and regularly motors up from Leicester to Sunderland to see us. The problems it has developed (exhaust, handbrake cable, battery, water pump) relate more to its very low mileage before she bought it than any fundamental flaws and running costs (especially with a mechanic called dad) are very low.
New Panda 4x4, I know, slow, not very economical, booming noise above 60mph from the back end, but I always wanted the old Panda 4x4 but was never in a position to buy one so decided to try the new one. Let's face it, if after a couple of years I'm sick of it I'm sure it will be easy to find a buyer.
|
Thanks for all the replies. As I thought, modern Fiats seem quite good these days.
Personally I like the Modus but then I'm biased, I like all Renaults and have had good service from them. SWMBO is not too keen on the styling though.
I have decided to let her go down to the showrooms herself, if I go there will be disputes. She can then get what she wants (within reason) and pass me the invoice.
|
I drove a Merea. I thought it rolled like a pig and a fidgety ride.
Lots of Puntos in Stoke on Trent. No rust. My local garage man does not like them due to the continuiing rear suspension failures after 60k miles (suspension control arms?) Mind you he hates (HATES) Peugeot/Citroen as well!:-)
Like the new Panda . Nice design.
None look as much fun as the Fiat 124 Mirafiore I had for 3 weeks in the 1970s. Wonderful engine note at 6,000rpm. As it was a hire car I never worried about rust etc.
Always had a soft spot for Fiats after that: but never bought one, (I'd have to be soft in the head to do that then!).
Only troble is, Fiat are trying to emulate Rover and losing a fortune in Italy. If it continues they may well emulate Rover to the end..
madf
|
|
|
|
Renault sell a 4*4 Kangoo in France, but I don't recall seeing one in the UK.
|
Don´t go anywhere near the 4x4 Panda - it´s a dog. Slow as a snail and drinks like a fish. The 1.2 2wd Panda, on the other hand, is an absolute cracker, and by all accounts the 1.3 Multijet is a corker, if you can justify the extra outlay.
The 3 door Stilo IMHO is a handsome underrated car. The Punto is a nightmare on the motorway, and goes round corners like Kylie at a roller disco. Owners report all sorts of probs with the Stilo, however, and the dealers have a bad reputation.
Check the archives for other discussions of the new Panda - it´s mentioned fairly often, always positively.
Has she thought about the Barchetta....?
|
|
|
Renault sell a 4*4 Kangoo in France, but I don't recall seeing one in the UK.
They do sell it over here - they call it the Trekka
tinyurl.com/a5cf8
|
|
They must be very keen to shift Fiats. No deposit and 0% finance over 3 years! On that deal I guess you'll pay list price but it smacks of desperation to me.
|
>>Where are all the FIATs?
Dumfries & Galloway police use loads of Puntos as their panda cars. There's about a dozen of them sitting in their yard every time I drive past plus whatever they have already out and about.
|
See:
tinyurl.com/87k9u
with the sound on...
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
|
|
SWMBO can't make up her mind what to replace her Toyota with. This week she's quite keen on the Yaris D4D. But I expect next week it will be something else.
|
Xileno, try and get her into a Fabia, or is she as conservative as mine? The Modus 80 bhp diesel sounds good, though - I hope you'll let us know what you think if you have a test drive.
It has to be as good as a 205 GRD, doesn't it! SWMBO had two 205s and a 206 and the 206 was a sad disappointment.
|
|
|
|
|
Strange policemen! Why don't they use Pandas as Panada cars? Seems easy to me!
|
Or Renault Traffics as traffic cars
Or Nissan Patrols as patrol cars
-- Lee .. A festivus for the rest of us.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ahh! The 131 Mirafiori!
Awful - absolutely. Used to share cars to work many years back with a colleague who had one of these. It always seems to be a very 'loose' car with the bodyshell shaken about as we drove along. Then came the day the toughened windscreen shattered. He knocked a hole in it, intending to drive to work and call out a mobile fitter.
As we started off the windscreen surround started wobbling alarmingly, shaking the screen and showering us in glass fragments. So, we took the whole thing out, collecting it it a blanket. The refuse truck had recently passed leaving a row of empty dustbins, so we tidily emptied the screen into one of those. Often wonder what the householder thought!
When we started off the 'empty' screen aperture allowed so much scuttle shake the car wasn't drivable above a few miles an hour without the dash shaking one way and the roof the other. It was frightening. Now, I know the screen adds torsional stiffness, but this was ridiculous. I've driven cars with broken screen before, and had no such problems. We crept back and waited for the local screen fitters to open, and had a laminated screen fitted.
JS
|
Indeed
131 Mirafiori! In fact - 1979 131 1.6 supermirafiori estate.
Chosen becuase it offered the most "goodies" at the time
( A high intensity rear fog light, rev counter, rear wash wipe, head rests,)
Had a trully awful single spoke steering wheel. Handled like a dog drunk on cider. Arrived brand new, 52 miles with rust blooming everywhere.
Brakes were amazing, really good, I found out why, pads and disks lasted approx 5000 miles.
It had a good engine tho, twin choke webber, a real flyer in its day. And the two litre twin cam version? jeez that flew - off the road mainly.
|
Would you believe that many workers in Panda factory use ordinary bicycles to travel around (I mean within the factory itself). It's the cheapest and most efficient transport in this huge factory.
Over 1000 cars a day, fully recycled (no pollution whatsoever), awarded by FIAT because of exceptional quality - only about 5% of defects.
|
|
|
|
