Fiat, yes or no? (1 Viewer)

Badknee

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Having never owned or driven a Fiat I don't know for myself but I have been reading some horror stories about juddering in reverse and losing 5th gear.

I have driven VW, Transit, Boxer, Citroen, Trafic and not had any such worries, is it worth me being put off buying one as there are some great Moho's out there built on their chassis?

Confused of Bolton.
 
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Badknee

Badknee

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Well Nick it spent a lot of time on a wrecker but not for juddering in reverse or losing any gears, it was brand new 56 plate and caused us no end of trouble so maybe I will stay away now I know. Thank you.

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had 2 motorhomes in the past 6 years ( inclusive of the current one)both X250 Fiat 2.3 ltr 130.

great drive, good economy, dependant on your right foot, good torque. have had no issues with juddering or loosing gears.
 
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Our current one is on a Fiat and it's fine. No problems at all, plenty of power, decent mpg, no sign of any juddering or anything like that.
 
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Some years back my business partner came in one day nod proudly announced he had done a killer deal to reduce our transport costs by by leasing a number of Fiat Ducato vans. That was the good news, the bad was that we were committed for four years. The vehicles were a nightmare continuously breaking down and and causing no end of problems. The final straw was they failed their first mot on rust perforation!.

ok this was probably 25 years ago but I have never had a Fiat vehicle since. They must be much better today or they would have gone bust.

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Dec 6, 2011
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Some years back my business partner came in one day nod proudly announced he had done a killer deal to reduce our transport costs by by leasing a number of Fiat Ducato vans. That was the good news, the bad was that we were committed for four years. The vehicles were a nightmare continuously breaking down and and causing no end of problems. The final straw was they failed their first mot on rust perforation!.

ok this was probably 25 years ago but I have never had a Fiat vehicle since. They must be much better today or they would have gone bust.


you could have said the same about Skoda cars;). life and engineering moves on i'm pleased to say(y)
 
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Techno

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Many Ducato's like mine run with Iveco engines maybe that's why it is so good? No issues or complaints here.
BTW mine is 3 litre 160 with robotic gear change. No judder and no problem with driving on wet grass

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Chris

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No real problems for us except a leaking fuel filter which I think they have sorted out on newer models.
 
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Badknee

Badknee

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I really don't know guys but there are lots of threads about them.
 
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Techno

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I really don't know guys but there are lots of threads about them.
A drop in the ocean compared to how many run without problems. Just like Dometic fridges, lots of complaints but they sold millions

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DuxDeluxe

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No real problems for us except a leaking fuel filter which I think they have sorted out on newer models.
The guy that bought my Old Auto-Sleeper noted that the fuel filter had leaked..... It let us down twice due to the terrible design and ineptness of Fiat "Professional" service. Finally fixed by buying a cage for tightening the fuel filter off eBay. The only other problem we had was an air conditioning failure where the down pipe had rubbed against the radiator housing. Fixed under warranty. Loved the 3 litre engine - oodles of power and torque.

New van has the 150 2.3 which is a nice engine as well.
 
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as i see it if you dont want a FIAT then thats both the Peugeot and Citroen out also; that cuts out one shed load of available motorhomes and in the main leaves you Merc and Ford Transit and a reduced selection.

just test drive it fully including up an incline in reverse. or get it professionally inspected by the AA or RAC.
 
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the latest fuel filters are replacement complete units so cant leak in the same way as the older ones. and can be retro fitted.

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Chris

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The guy that bought my Old Auto-Sleeper noted that the fuel filter had leaked..... It let us down twice due to the terrible design and ineptness of Fiat "Professional" service. Finally fixed by buying a cage for tightening the fuel filter off eBay. The only other problem we had was an air conditioning failure where the down pipe had rubbed against the radiator housing. Fixed under warranty. Loved the 3 litre engine - oodles of power and torque.

New van has the 150 2.3 which is a nice engine as well.

I know it was a problem, but I am too clueless to know what the problem was ...

We have the 130 2.3 which is a bit underpowered uphill



especially when my wife is driving.
 
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The Boxer is the same vehicle as the Fiat Ducato so if you were happy with that no reason why you wouldn't be happy with the Fiat
Not the same, certainly different engine and properly other components as well . Had Fiats and would not have another.

Mike
 
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Badknee

Badknee

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I have just been quoted ÂŁ536.00 for the requisite bits to replace my 5th gear and synchro.
This quote was from Fiat for supply only!

Has anyone any other suggestions of where to obtain these parts.

Should I start a separate thread of answers to Fiat!!!
cydersyd, Oct 29, 2010 Report

Perhaps its only on the older end units?

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DuxDeluxe

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I know it was a problem, but I am too clueless to know what the problem was ...

We have the 130 2.3 which is a bit underpowered uphill



especially when my wife is driving.

Said the recently deceased Chris..........;)
 
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Not the same, certainly different engine and properly other components as well . Had Fiats and would not have another.

Mike

as far as i am aware it is the same engine as the FIAT but is a 2.2ltr while the FIAT is 2.3 ltr. but it is the same in all other respects " thats what the Peugeot guys told me"!

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DuxDeluxe

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as far as i am aware it is the same engine as the FIAT but is a 2.2ltr while the FIAT is 2.3 ltr. but it is the same in all other respects " thats what the Peugeot guys told me"!
I'm surprised - always thought that the 2.2 Peugeot lump is a Ford unit, not an Iveco one. Would have thought that Peugeot would have known that

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Duratorq_engine
 
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Badknee

Badknee

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as i see it if you dont want a FIAT then thats both the Peugeot and Citroen out also; that cuts out one shed load of available motorhomes and in the main leaves you Merc and Ford Transit and a reduced selection.

just test drive it fully including up an incline in reverse. or get it professionally inspected by the AA or RAC.

Not sure all the boxes will be the same but doing as you suggest might be the answer, or they could have sorted by now
 
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tonka

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The judder and water ingress on engine was mainly on the 2006 - 2008 vans when they introduced the new X250 cabs...
The older 2.8jtd were and still are good.. I had a fuel filter leak on my 2005 model but blame bad mechanics at Chelston, The German ADAC man re-fitted it and it was fine 2 years later when i sold the van..

Now have a 2012 X251 cab... Only a 2.3 engine on a 4250kg Autotrail, done 23,000 in 29 months... Raced down and bounced around Morocco twice and no issues at all...

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magicsurfbus

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The only real problem we've had with our bought-new '05 Ducato 2.3 was the driver's side front wheel bearing went way before its time and was replaced under warranty, but MH wheel bearings are under a heavy load anyway, so a faulty one will show quickly. The gear knob managed to work loose and needed replacing, and one of the hoses on the turbo needed a jubilee clip replacing quite early on - apparently that was a known issue.

No other problems to date, and no fifth gear or reverse judder issues. MPG has been consistent throughout and I've never seen the temperature gauge rise above halfway. I put fuel system cleaner through it regularly and am very happy with how it all works. I'd buy another Fiat if I needed to, and have a Fiat car too.
 
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TheBig1

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the latest fuel filters are replacement complete units so cant leak in the same way as the older ones. and can be retro fitted.
are you certain of the fact the new filters can be retrofitted? the advice i got was they couldnt due to the wiring being different
 
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Not sure all the boxes will be the same but doing as you suggest might be the answer, or they could have sorted by now

maybe i got the wrong end of the stick with the engines, :whistle:

most that had any judder problems were sorted with 1 of 2 different modifications. ( wont go into what mods for now ) but i guess some could still be out there. a good test drive should sort out any concerns.
 
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Nov 12, 2010
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I've driven a 2004 2.8 JTD over 30000 miles in the past 4 years with no probs.
The 5th gear problem was on the previous version, the one which went out of production about 14 years ago!
 
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greyman1

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worth bearing in mind is the fact that a number of the so called reported FIAT faults are due to the base FIAT vehicle in a lot of cases not being used for the purpose it was originally designed for ! ie not left to stand on the driveway [letting water run down the same rain channel for 11 months of the year] . having extended chassis rails fitted to accomodate a fixed bed [which doesnt do anything to aid traction WHEN EMPTY]! and being driven about 2 miles through ALL THE GEARS to the nearest motorway junction for it to spend the next1500 miles in 5th gear to achieve a extra 1.3 mpg !!! it is basically a everyday commercial vehicle that has been adapted for occasional leisure use .the 2 purposes dont allways work together no matter which base vehicle is used !
 
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