Why do you drive a Fiat?

[s130]

1973 with LHD Fiat 600D, Belgium. Was my mum's car which she let me drive and later take over. My dad worked as a research and development chemist for Exxon and they had contracts with Fiat for petroleum product development so had many 600Ds doing long term trials and testing. I remember seeing high quality pictures of 600D combustion chambers at various test mileages.

I guess due to reliability of the test fleet and a small city car being required they mum/dad chose the 600D. Never asked him/her why they chose the 600D.

Since 600D except for a LHD Triumph Spitfire MK.II and Cortina Mk.II (rubbish car), both for a short while all the other cars have been Fiats.

600D, 127GT, Strada 75CL, Uno 70S, Uno SX, Strada Abarth 130TC, Tipo Brio, Tempra 1.8ie, Punto HGT, Stilo Abarth, Coupe 20V, Croma 2005, Barchetta 2005, 500X

Bold = current Fiats

 

[FiatMatt94]

My love affair for Fiat's started at a very young age as my dad has always had Fiat's & had loads over the years, when I was growing up he had a few 131's including Mirafiori Sport which he still has now & a gold 131 panorama 1600cl auto which he paid £45 for, Regatta's which he absolutely hated, loads of Panda's as they were just brilliant, an Uno which went through front springs like they were going out of fashion , MK1 Punto 55 sx, & there were 3 127's including 1 sport to which my dad rolled all 3 of them, fast forward to 2011 I passed my test, I remember insurance was an issue as it was really dear & i ended up with a bright pink Cinquecento as my first car for about £300 which lasted about 8 months until it fell apart & i crashed into a Peugeot 306 at 80 mph when the old lady driving it decided to pull straight out in front of me, to which I still drive it home afterwards & the insurance took it away, wrote it off instantly category B if I remember right as it had crumbled all the inner wing, front legs were proper bent & the engine was pushed back & gearbox was ripped off the engine hanging by 1 or 2 bolts resulting in the bulkhead being pushed back into the cabin & they gave me 3 times what I paid for it , then I got a Bravo 80 SX which had all the creature comforts compared to the Cinquecento but found it really boring & dull to drive, that wasn't let of so easily either went through 2 hedges in the space of about 3 days, the sills rotted along with the edges of the arches to which I slapped some of my grandads coach paint on them being nearly a match on colour as I was 18 & very skint, then I got my first Mini which my dad got me about a year or so later so he had the Bravo for a few months as his Panda got written off, until the diff went bang & we decided to scrap it in 2015 as it was a right pig by that point & not worth the work, fast forward to 2018 & I'd being driving the Mini everyday for 4 years & the bodywork was looking a bit ropey & questionable along with gearbox issues so I started to look for another car so I could do the Mini up (which never happened as it was too far gone), I never planned to buy a new car originally but used car prices had gone through the roof so i started looking at deals on new Fiat's as they wasn't too much more money at the time, to which in the end it was between a Tipo & a Panda, sat in a Tipo & just didn't like it & so a Panda it was, so my dad & stepmum were looking for me whilst I worked every hour under the sun to get the money together which I managed in less than 4 months, my dad rings me up on the Friday & goes to me come to mine early in the morning, i found a Fiat dealer who have 5 new pre reg Pandas for £7,995, so we went to Tunbridge Wells on the Saturday morning originally for a white Panda, we got there & there were 4 white & 1 black, I ended up being more drawn to the black one away from the rest of them as it just stood out, went for a test drive then started negotiating with the dealer who was about 90 i think & threw loads in as part of the deal, the deal was done on 30th June 2018, I remember the dealer being quite shocked though as I was 24 years old & buying a brand new car outright instead of being on finance & i drove the Mini around for 1 last week whilst Thames Fiat were doing the PDI checks on Luigi & on its final evening on the road went for 1 last spirited drive before hanging the keys up for good & picked up Luigi on 7th July 2018, got him home & gave him a polish & wax & that was where our adventures began which are still going 6 years later with many more to come over time


7th July 2018 after I picked him up



& Most recent

 

[s130]

Thought I would add a Fiat car I always wanted by never got and that was the Panda Sisley 4x4.

 

[Steveetee55]

My panda is my 1st fiat, I've had one or two alfas in the past and loved em I bought the panda because firstly its a car that has something different about it, va va voom,Jun an say quar , "excuse the spelling to the French people on here" mojo whatever its different bit like my rusty old alfas, a factor that's makes me want get in it and drive and 2 I wanted a 4x4 and not a Chelsea tractor something unique to the rest of the sheep that exist in our green and unpleasant land, something that shouts its not about the size of the weapon but more about what its capable of, that me done now I need a nap after philosophical outburst

 

[AnthonyH]

I drive Puntos because they are cheap to buy at auction. The dealers don't want them because of all the minor but annoying design problems.

 

[FiatMatt94]

I drive Puntos because they are cheap to buy at auction. The dealers don't want them because of all the minor but annoying design problems.

My dad has a Punto in underground grey which he got new, a 64 plate 1.2 Easy for just short of £9k at the time & it's been a good car, only thing which has gone on it is the wiring in the boot which is common on these & 500's & the stereo has a little tantrum every so often but other than that it's still really good for a nearly 10 year old car

 

[jackwhoo]

Fiat made the Multipla

 

[porta]

Fiat made the Multipla

It’s a ronseal crossed with marmite car, it does exactly what it was designed for, but the looks devided opinion…I, for one, preferred the pre-facelift and it was actually quite entertaining to drive!

 

[jackwhoo]

It’s a ronseal crossed with marmite car, it does exactly what it was designed for, but the looks devided opinion…I, for one, preferred the pre-facelift and it was actually quite entertaining to drive!

The facelift multipla looks very similar to any number of other mpv=boring.

Practically cannot be matched for compact size.

It's more than a van with seats.

1.9 jtd one of the best engines of all time.

Oh and mine is blue(-:
And has been used to pull out trees/move house/function as a skip truck/motorcycle recovery/ambulance

Feast your eyes on her beauty, picture taken Easter 2024 trip to France visiting French part of my family. No I didn't get round to cutting the "grass"

 

[AnthonyH]

My dad has a Punto in underground grey which he got new, a 64 plate 1.2 Easy for just short of £9k at the time & it's been a good car, only thing which has gone on it is the wiring in the boot which is common on these & 500's & the stereo has a little tantrum every so often but other than that it's still really good for a nearly 10 year old car

Most of the design problems were fixed by 2014. Grande Puntos 2005-2010 have lots of little issues, the EVOs 2010 -2012 are better. So the second hand prices of these later Puntos are relatively higher. If you're time rich and cash poor the Grande Puntos are great.

 

[FiatMatt94]

Most of the design problems were fixed by 2014. Grande Puntos 2005-2010 have lots of little issues, the EVOs 2010 -2012 are better. So the second hand prices of these later Puntos are relatively higher. If you're time rich and cash poor the Grande Puntos are great.

I learnt to drive in a Grande Punto, I think the front end on the later cars is a lot nicer to look at as well, along with the dash as well

 

[AnthonyH]

I learnt to drive in a Grande Punto, I think the front end on the later cars is a lot nicer to look at as well, along with the dash as well

I currently have a Grande Punto and an EVO. The EVO is better built but I still prefer the drive of the GP. I've not been able to fathom why this is, some things are intangible, and this is one of them.

 

[FiatMatt94]

I currently have a Grande Punto and an EVO. The EVO is better built but I still prefer the drive of the GP. I've not been able to fathom why this is, some things are intangible, and this is one of them.

Having driven both my dad's later car & the GP, I also thought the GP was a better drive, the GP I drove had the 1.3 Multijet which suited it very well & was quite nippy

 

[AnthonyH]

Having driven both my dad's later car & the GP, I also thought the GP was a better drive, the GP I drove had the 1.3 Multijet which suited it very well & was quite nippy

My GP has a 1.2 8V engine and the EVO is 1.4 8V so both aren't winning any speed races. I've not had a nippy car for a while so could do with that upgrade!

I think it is something to do with the steering, which feels more responsive with the GP.

 

[FiatMatt94]

My GP has a 1.2 8V engine and the EVO is 1.4 8V so both aren't winning any speed races. I've not had a nippy car for a while so could do with that upgrade!

I think it is something to do with the steering, which feels more responsive with the GP.

The good old FIRE engine, both our cars have the 1.2 8v FIRE in them, the steering & I always thought the ride was slightly better in the GP as well

 

[AndyRKett]

My GP has a 1.2 8V engine and the EVO is 1.4 8V so both aren't winning any speed races. I've not had a nippy car for a while so could do with that upgrade!

I think it is something to do with the steering, which feels more responsive with the GP.

You need a sporting Evo, possibly the best Punto with a Fiat badge.

I had a 1.4 8v grande and absolutely hated that car the engine was just horrible, I have no idea how they took all the generations of fire engines and made a 1.4 displacement engine with less power than the 1.2 engine currently sitting in my 25 year old mk1. there was just nothing about that car I liked but I especially hated the gutless and wheezy engine.
The Evo was a welcome update of the interior but you still need a good engine in the Evo to make it worth while.

 

[AndyRKett]

The facelift multipla looks very similar to any number of other mpv=boring.

Practically cannot be matched for compact size.

It's more than a van with seats.

1.9 jtd one of the best engines of all time.

Oh and mine is blue(-:
And has been used to pull out trees/move house/function as a skip truck/motorcycle recovery/ambulance

Feast your eyes on her beauty, picture taken Easter 2024 trip to France visiting French part of my family. No I didn't get round to cutting the "grass"

I was never a fan of the looks of the multipla but my god it was a brilliant car, I drove loads of them and they were quirky in all the right places with practicality everywhere you looked and the boot was massive especially with the seats down. 3 seats in the front was a stroke of genius, such a shame that it didn’t get a fair crack of the whip

I’d love to get my hands on a camper converted multipla made by a uk company

 

[AnthonyH]

You need a sporting Evo, possibly the best Punto with a Fiat badge.

I'd like more room in a fiat car at GP prices, but I can't ever find that. I'd consider a Multipla if it was indeed roomy and cheap.

I had a 1.4 8v grande and absolutely hated that car the engine was just horrible, I have no idea how they took all the generations of fire engines and made a 1.4 displacement engine with less power than the 1.2 engine currently sitting in my 25 year old mk1. there was just nothing about that car I liked but I especially hated the gutless and wheezy engine.
The Evo was a welcome update of the interior but you still need a good engine in the Evo to make it worth while.

I've got a 1.4 8V GP sat in the drive as SORN. It is an identical engine to the one in my EVO an 199 A4000, the differences under the bonnet are mainly electrical, i.e. the EVO has a bigger battery for the stop start and bigger alternator.

You're right in that I really can't see any acceleration difference between the 1.2 and 1.4 engines. Also I just checked the specs the 1.2 has 65bhp, does 0-60 in 14s and fuel economy 47mpg combined. The 1.4 has 77bhp, does 0-60 in 12.8s and fuel economy 47mpg.

So they increased bhp by 18% and got 9% faster acceleration?!

The Sporting EVO has 135bhp, I presume they didn't waste that but haven't looked at the specs.

 

[AndyRKett]

The Sporting EVO has 135bhp, I presume they didn't waste that but haven't looked at the specs.

Well I had the 1.6 diesel sporting which was akin to my old 1.9 multijet HGT Punto, both fairly rare cars but I think the Evo might actually have been more rare.

Mine had leather, dual zone climate control, cruise control the top end blue and me set up, literally all the top options, what it missed out on was the auto wipers and headlights as well as the panoramic sunroof and rear parking sensors, I haven’t seen a car with all those things so I assume they were never alll available together.

It was 120hp 0-60 in 8.something seconds and would easily do 55+ mpg in everyday use with normal driving.

I’m a big lover of diesels so I would probably not feel the same about the multiair engine with 135hp

 

[AnthonyH]

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I can see something like you what had in this advert, going for £2,000. The advert says its going cheap and market price is nearer to £3,000.

The advert says "DPF/CAT and EGR delete can easily take this to 190hp stage"!