Punto goes putter putter putter putter...

You did know that FIAT stands for Fix It Again Tomorrow ? (and that came from the mechanics at the local FIAT garage!)

A lesson I'm learning the expensive way. To be fair, the car has 90k on the clock, which might be nothing for a well build and strong BMW but is probably at the limit of reliable driving for a vastly cheaper shopping trolley.

Regards,

Tim

You could get the same issues with any car - longevity is much more dependent on how well previous owners looked after the car than it is on the badge on the grille.

Not from my experience of the cheapest Ford in the range. It may be a Fiat thing.

Right until this point you were doing okay.

That's racist, incorrect and downright rude.

My Fiat Brava just took me to Sweden and back from Scotland and ran like a Swiss watch. I've heard so much about Fiat's being crap. They're not all s**te.

I would have to disagree there. NCAP 5* doesn't indicate flimsy and insubstantial.

Well I've just been towed home by a nice guy at the RAC. It was previously just burning oil with no performance loss, but has now developed this stuttering. The car started to overheat in traffic so I pulled in. A few revs of the engine and plenty of white smoke out of the back. Another Punto head gasket bites the dust then. £295+vat from a local garage which includes parts (inc timing belt), labour and a head skim.

Regards,

Tim

Maybe, I got the car with 40k on the clock. Oil change every 6-10k since then (a bit overkill I know, but I'm just following Mr Haynes advice). It overheated a couple of times about 20k ago, looks like the thermostat had gone. I guess this has probably left of long term issue that has developed.

Regards,

Tim

I've heard that an engine is never the same after the head has come off. Is this true and should I just flog the car after I've got it fixed up?

Regards,

Tim

I've run 3 Fiats in the last decade. Only one was 'shitty' - that was my

1979 Spider. Rust was the biggest problem - mechanically it was excellent.

No more so than many, many other brands.

Blown head gaskets also affect lots of other makers, too. Most of it is due to poor maintenance and mis-diagnosis.

I had a HG fail diagnosed on my Cinq. Sporting - it wasn't - it was the waterpump that had failed. However, this was partially my fault as I'd been a tightwad and not replaced it when I did the cambelt.

Since the mid-90s Fiat and Alfa have made cars that are demonstrably more rust resistant than just about every other mainstream manufacturer.

No build quality issues with our Fiats or Alfas. The worst thing that went wrong with my Marea was that the cassette flap broke. And that was German made....

Bollocks.

Most aren't. You do need to properly maintain them, though.

Fortunately, for the clued-up used buyer, most people have this outdated opinion of Fiats, meaning they are superb value on the used market.

Where else can you get a 2lt family saloon at well under 8 years old with a screaming 155bhp 5-pot engine for £800?

You'll probably find that the issues are caused by mass-produced Bosch ignition parts.....

SteveH ( snipped-for-privacy@italiancar.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

Fortunately, few other people have been daft enough to try to shoehorn a straight five transversely into a mid-size car.

"To change cambelt, first remove inner wing with angle grinder"

Well, there you go.

If there's a HG issue, it's due to a failed thermostat and overheating.

Hardly a design failure if the driver allows the vehicle to overheat, is it?

And before anyone makes comment about the thermostat - it'll be a mass-produced part also used by other makers.

Well, yes, that's a downside.

However, you can get the job done by an independent for 400 quid these days. Which isn't so far removed from a 4-pot belt change that it could be considered unreasonable.

The transverse 5-pot is a much under-used layout ;-)

SteveH ( snipped-for-privacy@italiancar.co.uk) gurgled happily, sounding much like they were saying :

No, no, no. The transverse engine is a much over-used one.

When done properly it's fine. Lots of headgaskets go due to other issues that are not found and addressed. Although I have heard that some Punto's have a plastic thermostat housing that can cause heat discrepancies at that part of the head. It's possible. Still, £346.62 and a half pence (to be precise) sounds reasonable (not dirt cheap) for a head gasket change with a new belt and head skimming.