General Mk2 Punto HGT-Decision time

[Dark_Crusader]

Hey guys

I’ve been a member on here for a while, tuned in on and off and hopefully helped some people out with the impromptu guide ’How to Change a PAS steering column’ (judging by the amount of views it recurved I guess it did!?)

So I’ve owned my HGT for 14 of its 21yrs, nearly had it written off and lost to eager insurance companies wanting to kill off older cars but saved it (CAT C) , and for the most part it’s been a pleasure to drive and had planned to keep on driving it until the wheels fell off as they are becoming rarer in the U.K. as the years go on.

Everything was fine... until recently that is. On a recent trip taking a family member out. When parked up I noticed the temperature gauge rise slightly more than normal..

Then a bit more...

Then a bit more...Then it goes right to the top and I can hear the fan working really hard to keep the engine cool, but it’s not winning this time. It’s a problem and I’m gutted in what I’m seeing. I wait for it to cool down I take the car back home. Up on the ramps I start investigating possible causes. I find one! A leaking coolant hose tighten it up, sorted! ???

NOPE

Test it afterwards let it warm up, it’s still needling past it’s normal operating temperature...
??*
Out with the Laptop to see if it throws up any codes, Multiecuscan software now doesn’t work when connecting Car will only speak to the Lappy with red cable connected not green and yet it worked two months prior? ?
Check all fuses, nothings blown can hear the fan working really hard...why? It’s only been running for 30mins? ?

Open bonnet, check fan cut-in...second fan NOT cutting in. Test 2nd fan...

DEAD.

??*

Spend a day swapping out fan from HGT (Have two) currently under restoration. Switch engine on, both fans kicking in when they should, everything all good ! ???

NOPE☝?

Short lived victory, after 20 mins driving temperature needle is creeping up again but this time both fans are doing a better job of cooling the engine but it’s not enough. Take it home for further investigation, hear a gurgle from the coolant tank, this is not good news. I revisit the rad and fan I’ve taken off, examine the deposits from the radiator after flushing the old one out, find some gritty deposits, take my magnetic pick-up tool to see if it picks up said deposits...it picks some up ?. As I pick the assembly up to move it to another locationI hear something drop in the fan assembly which then reveals itself to be...

A star-bit adaptor thought to be lost! ??

So what I can gather is the bit dropped down in the fan assembly and sat there out of sight, then at some point in the last 4 months it decided to jump out and jam fan number 2...The result? a slowly cooked engine resulting in Head Gasket trouble ??*??*??* in this particular timeline we’re experiencing is not the best time.

So after having resigned myself to the head going I tried one last thing which I’m not keen on using as past experience I have used it it’s never yielded any results for me, nothing to lose right?.

Used a non-steel seal head gasket sealer, and...car is back to its old self! ????

However these things are notoriously known for being temporary and not permanent fixes. So reluctantly I had to weigh up fixing the HGT vs investing in a newer vehicle. In the end I yielded to the latter. Why? Well as I mentioned earlier I own two mk2 HGTs both manufactured in 99. Also living in North London we have glorious things like Congestion Charge now 24hrs and the blessed ULEZ , also as I am currently fixing one I don’t have the time or money to fix two HGTs. So as much as it pains me to do so I will have to let this one go.

Question is what to do with it? I can’t store it, I could flog it on eBay and run but that’s not me, I could sell it for scrap but then would you want to do that if you owned a motor for 14yrs and bearing in mind there’s technically less than a 150 left in the U.K.? I’d personally love to see it go to a good home and be restored. The body work is not great but it’s not rusty, has a good frame and currently runs like there’s nothing wrong that’s why I believe the H/G can be saved and car still has life left in it currently sitting on the 95k mark. Mot runs out in October with two or three advisories which would have been sorted had this not happened.

So should I...

Scrap

Sell (obviously won’t get mega bucks for it!)

Sell for parts (not too keen on this idea tbh)

Find somewhere to store it and comeback at a later date? (bearing in mind government are pushing out fossil fuel based cars and pushing electric/hybrid cars firmly in our faces. So that may be a false economy)

Many good fun memories with this car and will be sad to see it go but I guess it is what it is ??*

Sensible suggestions will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance !


Pic added from last year when carbon fibre wrap was added to the roof.

 

[sHAYM4N]

Hey guys

I’ve been a member on here for a while, tuned in on and off and hopefully helped some people out with the impromptu guide ’How to Change a PAS steering column’ (judging by the amount of views it recurved I guess it did!?)

So I’ve owned my HGT for 14 of its 21yrs, nearly had it written off and lost to eager insurance companies wanting to kill off older cars but saved it (CAT C) , and for the most part it’s been a pleasure to drive and had planned to keep on driving it until the wheels fell off as they are becoming rarer in the U.K. as the years go on.

Everything was fine... until recently that is. On a recent trip taking a family member out. When parked up I noticed the temperature gauge rise slightly more than normal..

Then a bit more...

Then a bit more...Then it goes right to the top and I can hear the fan working really hard to keep the engine cool, but it’s not winning this time. It’s a problem and I’m gutted in what I’m seeing. I wait for it to cool down I take the car back home. Up on the ramps I start investigating possible causes. I find one! A leaking coolant hose tighten it up, sorted! ???

NOPE

Test it afterwards let it warm up, it’s still needling past it’s normal operating temperature...
??*
Out with the Laptop to see if it throws up any codes, Multiecuscan software now doesn’t work when connecting Car will only speak to the Lappy with red cable connected not green and yet it worked two months prior? ?
Check all fuses, nothings blown can hear the fan working really hard...why? It’s only been running for 30mins? ?

Open bonnet, check fan cut-in...second fan NOT cutting in. Test 2nd fan...

DEAD.

??*

Spend a day swapping out fan from HGT (Have two) currently under restoration. Switch engine on, both fans kicking in when they should, everything all good ! ???

NOPE☝?

Short lived victory, after 20 mins driving temperature needle is creeping up again but this time both fans are doing a better job of cooling the engine but it’s not enough. Take it home for further investigation, hear a gurgle from the coolant tank, this is not good news. I revisit the rad and fan I’ve taken off, examine the deposits from the radiator after flushing the old one out, find some gritty deposits, take my magnetic pick-up tool to see if it picks up said deposits...it picks some up ?. As I pick the assembly up to move it to another locationI hear something drop in the fan assembly which then reveals itself to be...

A star-bit adaptor thought to be lost! ??

So what I can gather is the bit dropped down in the fan assembly and sat there out of sight, then at some point in the last 4 months it decided to jump out and jam fan number 2...The result? a slowly cooked engine resulting in Head Gasket trouble ??*??*??* in this particular timeline we’re experiencing is not the best time.

So after having resigned myself to the head going I tried one last thing which I’m not keen on using as past experience I have used it it’s never yielded any results for me, nothing to lose right?.

Used a non-steel seal head gasket sealer, and...car is back to its old self! ????

However these things are notoriously known for being temporary and not permanent fixes. So reluctantly I had to weigh up fixing the HGT vs investing in a newer vehicle. In the end I yielded to the latter. Why? Well as I mentioned earlier I own two mk2 HGTs both manufactured in 99. Also living in North London we have glorious things like Congestion Charge now 24hrs and the blessed ULEZ , also as I am currently fixing one I don’t have the time or money to fix two HGTs. So as much as it pains me to do so I will have to let this one go.

Question is what to do with it? I can’t store it, I could flog it on eBay and run but that’s not me, I could sell it for scrap but then would you want to do that if you owned a motor for 14yrs and bearing in mind there’s technically less than a 150 left in the U.K.? I’d personally love to see it go to a good home and be restored. The body work is not great but it’s not rusty, has a good frame and currently runs like there’s nothing wrong that’s why I believe the H/G can be saved and car still has life left in it currently sitting on the 95k mark. Mot runs out in October with two or three advisories which would have been sorted had this not happened.

So should I...

Scrap

Sell (obviously won’t get mega bucks for it!)

Sell for parts (not too keen on this idea tbh)

Find somewhere to store it and comeback at a later date? (bearing in mind government are pushing out fossil fuel based cars and pushing electric/hybrid cars firmly in our faces. So that may be a false economy)

Many good fun memories with this car and will be sad to see it go but I guess it is what it is ??*

Sensible suggestions will be appreciated.

Thanks in advance !


Pic added from last year when carbon fibre wrap was added to the roof.

Hey there

Sorry to hear this on your HGT, hope it gets sorted. Afraid I wont be much help here but Im in a similar position. My 05 HGT is fighting wars with Camshaft, Crankshaft, Variator & dipping rev problems atm, so about to write a post myself.

Been quoted around £800 for the work to be done with oem parts (know the variator is now £300 on all the searches Ive had.) Only had mine for a few years but would still be gutted to let it go too. Willing to pay to get it sorted - but the guy at the garage is being fair and prewarning me that its likely to have no impact on the strange stalls its always had so not to expect any miracles there.

Only issue Ive ever had with my temperature gauge is a false positive I think, tends to happen when the battery is low, sometimes on turning the key it'll rocket to max temp with the ecu warning then dive straight back down.

On my old 1.2 MK2 this is what killed it off though, oil leaks and a couple of trips with overheating. Still past its MOT but couldnt rely on it anymore. I only paid £280 for it to be fair, it was a state and it lasted me 4 years despite only buying it to get me buy a month ?

Not sure about you but one of the issues I have is finding garages that want to do the work too. Not many are keen on even looking at it, and use the price of parts/cant find them - "could spend hours tracing this for you/old car as enough to put me off".

Luckily found a few now that are getting used to the car and willing to at least try for me now with it.

Im not very handy myself either Ive only done the basics with mine (spark plug changes, air filters, 3x wiper motors ? cleaning the throttle body, engine earth, new handbrake handle) so anything engine related or requires lifting I end up being stuck. Only videos I see out there on the engine are german or italian so defo becoming much more of a hobby car. I work from home thankfully so dont rely on mine for anything other than a weekend toy.

If youre on facebook probably worth joining the punto owners groups on there too (hope its ok mentioning this admin - but getting lonely for us HGT owners ?) had a few people messaging me on there about mine so someone might be able to help or offer to take it from you to do it up so it lives on. I know roadtax is high too - so can't be fun coughing that up for 2 either!

Best of luck, be interested to hear how you get on with it!

 

[Dark_Crusader]

Hey sHAYM4N

Thanks for your input! I can see you can relate to the struggles of keeping the ol’ Punto’s going ?, still having said that they’re great cars and I love them to bits.
Deffo a lot of humming and Haaing in regards to what do . I guess I have a bit of time to decide it’s fate.

With regards to the Punto owners clubs you mentioned, any one in particular you’d recommend? If you think there is one I’d appreciate if you’re able to PM me with the name when you have the time as I don’t want to join the wrong group lol. And I will deffo give you an update on the fate of my little ‘Silver Bullet’ ???

 

[Liquid Knight II]

What do you need to get yours back on the road? I may be breaking my yellow HGT van project thanks to Covid 19 restrictions I have time but no budget and now these restrictions are starting to be lifted I'll have budget but no time to get the project going again. :bang:

 

[Dark_Crusader]

What do you need to get yours back on the road? I may be breaking my yellow HGT van project thanks to Covid 19 restrictions I have time but no budget and now these restrictions are starting to be lifted I'll have budget but no time to get the project going again. :bang:

Liquid KnightII, like you I’m on a bit of a budget, but I would be probably be looking at some of the Aircon Hose assembly that attaches to the rad, Twin fan assembly, the plate, timing belt cover, Rocker Gasket Cover, everything else seems pretty much ok. Sorry to hear about your project not working out!

 

[Liquid Knight II]

If it's potential head gasket the engine is olde yella is solid.

 

[Liquid Knight II]

So this happened to my beloved blue HGT Friday...

:bang:

...insurance is coming to see her tomorrow but I'm not optimistic.

If you're still considering selling your silver car I could use parts from my yellow one to keep it on the road.

 

[Dark_Crusader]

So this happened to my beloved blue HGT Friday...

:bang:

...insurance is coming to see her tomorrow but I'm not optimistic.

If you're still considering selling your silver car I could use parts from my yellow one to keep it on the road.

Omg, Liquid Knight, mate. Wow I’m so sorry to see that this has happened! I’m gutted for you. Your HGT was a lot more mint than mine too! How’d it happen if you don’t mind me asking?. And yes don’t be suprised if big old insurance want to write it off, they seem to like doing that unfortunately with Fiat cars, but who knows you may be lucky. Worst case if they write it off, depending on the Company and policy if you still want to save your motor you could do what I did after they write it off offer to buy it back? It may have changed since the last time I did it but they’d charge you 11% of the value of the HGT. That’s not always a given though it may be cheaper or more expensive depending on insurer.

 

[Liquid Knight II]

A shop lifter trying to escape security at my local supermarket failed to stop at a Give Way line on the car park. Idiots.

She'll need jig work, inner and outer sills, door step, lower and middle "B" pillar, three quarter, complete door and half respray (possibly full respray).

I've had a local quote and insurance approved parts, labor, raw materials, jig and paint booth time comes to over £3,000

 

[judderbar]

A shop lifter trying to escape security at my local supermarket failed to stop at a Give Way line on the car park. Idiots.

She'll need jig work, inner and outer sills, door step, lower and middle "B" pillar, three quarter, complete door and half respray (possibly full respray).

I've had a local quote and insurance approved parts, labor, raw materials, jig and paint booth time comes to over £3,000

Sorry to here about that.

 

[Dark_Crusader]

That’s amazingly bad luck, after it was in such a mint condition too
Sounds like you’re going to try and save it...am I right?

 

[Dark_Crusader]

Update on the Punto!

So I found a buyer, friend of a friend! So it now lives with him and best yet?
He’s going to FULLY restore it ! Don’t think I could’ve asked for better closure on this, so hopefully it’ll run for a more years yet! He’s also going to send me pics the Punto fully restored once completed ???

Now I can turn my focus on the engine rebuild project I have going on with the other HGT knowing this one has gone to a fellow enthusiast ?

 

[nitramtpr]

Update on the Punto!

So I found a buyer, friend of a friend! So it now lives with him and best yet?
He’s going to FULLY restore it !

Great news :slayer:

And yes, your steering column guide saved me a lot of headache a few years back with our first Punto

 

[Dark_Crusader]

Great news :slayer:

And yes, your steering column guide saved me a lot of headache a few years back with our first Punto

I’m glad it helped you out my friend, I thought everyone could benefit and keep our hard earned cash in our pockets not having it sucked away by greedy garages and dealers ? Feels like an age since I created that guide! 2009 I think ??