RE: SOTW: Fiat Coupe 20v Turbo
Discussion
Balls been in my garage and found lots of spares I have for the 20vturbo.. Yet another reason to get another.
3rd gear in the 5speed 40mph up to c110mph epic truly
Seats set nice and low loads of head room and loads of room the the cockpit. A really nice gear nob too really chunky
Wing mirrors... For visibility poor
Turning circle to get round a multistory not good likewise the 12 point turns...flip side a fast 2.8 turns lock to lock steering rack
Indicator stalk never auto cancelled common fault
Brakes even though brembo were not great could be mine needed new discs pads and brake fluid change though...
Handbrake they freeze on unless you buy an updated handbrake cable
Exhaust apart from a tiny rear section does not wear out but back bit does sadly it's one piece and £170 non OEM
Lights do not give a lot of illumination
Wipers foul the bonnet
Screen wash is mounted on wiperblades and they need lots of frequent adjustment also when cold it freezes in the pipe in the section and as not inside the engine bay do not defrost
Cambelt is £400
Fuel they can do 38mpg
It does seat four adults
Can get four sets of golf clubs in
Lovely noise
Acceleration
The fact it has VAriable valve timing but in reverse to counter turbo lag great
Visco drive meant I rarely lost traction
Mine used 1/2ltr of oil every 1000 miles
I chased a corvette C5 in one of J8/9 M4 up the A404 he gunned it so did I in 3rd then 4th I could smell he unburnt fuel from the v8 ahead and to my surprise he wasn't that far infront. Good fun thumbs up too.
My first 13 car overtake thought I needed 3rd I dint 4th was fine I cleared the line in half the distance I expected.
I did temper the rear discs on my car oops ... On the public highway ahem when doing PH stuff
3rd gear in the 5speed 40mph up to c110mph epic truly
Seats set nice and low loads of head room and loads of room the the cockpit. A really nice gear nob too really chunky
Wing mirrors... For visibility poor
Turning circle to get round a multistory not good likewise the 12 point turns...flip side a fast 2.8 turns lock to lock steering rack
Indicator stalk never auto cancelled common fault
Brakes even though brembo were not great could be mine needed new discs pads and brake fluid change though...
Handbrake they freeze on unless you buy an updated handbrake cable
Exhaust apart from a tiny rear section does not wear out but back bit does sadly it's one piece and £170 non OEM
Lights do not give a lot of illumination
Wipers foul the bonnet
Screen wash is mounted on wiperblades and they need lots of frequent adjustment also when cold it freezes in the pipe in the section and as not inside the engine bay do not defrost
Cambelt is £400
Fuel they can do 38mpg
It does seat four adults
Can get four sets of golf clubs in
Lovely noise
Acceleration
The fact it has VAriable valve timing but in reverse to counter turbo lag great
Visco drive meant I rarely lost traction
Mine used 1/2ltr of oil every 1000 miles
I chased a corvette C5 in one of J8/9 M4 up the A404 he gunned it so did I in 3rd then 4th I could smell he unburnt fuel from the v8 ahead and to my surprise he wasn't that far infront. Good fun thumbs up too.
My first 13 car overtake thought I needed 3rd I dint 4th was fine I cleared the line in half the distance I expected.
I did temper the rear discs on my car oops ... On the public highway ahem when doing PH stuff
J4CKO said:
BuzyG said:
Ok can't resist the temptation to post up a quick pick of my beloved coupe at the ring. 
The best colour !Broom Yellow original launched press car 16v turbo
I loved my Portafino blue
If I had another coupe id choose another colour as I've yet to have any car of the same colour. I'd maybe do this electric blue or grey
Welshbeef said:
J4CKO said:
BuzyG said:
Ok can't resist the temptation to post up a quick pick of my beloved coupe at the ring.
The best colour !Broom Yellow original launched press car 16v turbo
I loved my Portafino blue
If I had another coupe id choose another colour as I've yet to have any car of the same colour. I'd maybe do this electric blue or grey
They are one car that just doesn't suit any body addenda as well, most of the time when people change them they ruin them, even the wheels I think were difficult to improve on, a subtle lowering, 20 mm or so looks good but otherwise leave it alone.
I loved the interior but the leather seas on mine were too slidy and didnt grip you enough, cloth was better.
995?! give me a break...ok, this is not a low mileage example, but you'd get at least 6k€ for this one here in germany.
been owning mine ('98, LE, black) for 7-8 years now, bought it off a fastidious first owner with 20k miles on the clock, 65k now,
been only putting few miles on it in recent years as I am seriously fond of it and don't want to wear it out. clearly a future classic
and not too many unmolested/well looked after examples are left.
as for the car...decent. masterpiece. my daily drivers are a 335i and a 997 carrera, nevertheless, the coup holds its own with attitude.
tres cool off-beat five-pot warble with underlying turbo whirr and still today remarkable straight line performance and turbo punch.
revvy should u so wish, but very impressive mid range torque, so on the autobahn its sufficient to put in into 6th and do 125mph at
about 4500rpm. of course modern cars have picked up, so that bmw diesel estate in the mirror won't be dealt with as brutally as was the case some
years ago, but still we are talking about a properly quick car.
I always felt sorry for the ladies and gentlemen that cannot legally push their cars beyond 80mph...its performance beyond that allows you to
appreciate your 20VT a lot more. 0-60..fine. but it is seriously impressive to push the coupe 100mph onwards. strong autobahn competency.
been owning mine ('98, LE, black) for 7-8 years now, bought it off a fastidious first owner with 20k miles on the clock, 65k now,
been only putting few miles on it in recent years as I am seriously fond of it and don't want to wear it out. clearly a future classic
and not too many unmolested/well looked after examples are left.
as for the car...decent. masterpiece. my daily drivers are a 335i and a 997 carrera, nevertheless, the coup holds its own with attitude.
tres cool off-beat five-pot warble with underlying turbo whirr and still today remarkable straight line performance and turbo punch.
revvy should u so wish, but very impressive mid range torque, so on the autobahn its sufficient to put in into 6th and do 125mph at
about 4500rpm. of course modern cars have picked up, so that bmw diesel estate in the mirror won't be dealt with as brutally as was the case some
years ago, but still we are talking about a properly quick car.
I always felt sorry for the ladies and gentlemen that cannot legally push their cars beyond 80mph...its performance beyond that allows you to
appreciate your 20VT a lot more. 0-60..fine. but it is seriously impressive to push the coupe 100mph onwards. strong autobahn competency.
Welshbeef said:
Well that's contentious.
Broom Yellow original launched press car 16v turbo
I loved my Portafino blue
If I had another coupe id choose another colour as I've yet to have any car of the same colour. I'd maybe do this electric blue or grey
+ 1 , speed blue is the one for me, it says 'Turbo' to anybody in the know...Broom Yellow original launched press car 16v turbo
I loved my Portafino blue
If I had another coupe id choose another colour as I've yet to have any car of the same colour. I'd maybe do this electric blue or grey
Right, that's it, I'm not reading this thread any more! I've toyed with the idea of one of these in the past and reading this has got me keen again, but I mustn't. No, I really mustn't! There are other demands on my cash (new baby, possible house extension) and the wife would kill me.
|http://thumbsnap.com/t7liEFZR[/url]Mr2Mike said:
Electric blue is by far the best colour, though very rare.
That looks lovey! The aftermarket wheels really improve the look, that's the one thing I hated on mine (I had an Electic Blue Plus too) plus the wheels always looked to small, if they'd have been 17inch they'd have looked better.Aside from the doors freezing shut (as mentioned an easy fix) I always remember that it was common for the rear valance to melt from the heat of the rear exhaust box.
If I were to go & get another one I'd love to have it modded (or boy a modded one) as mine was such a fine example I left it alone as I felt that as it rare the next buyer would want it pretty standard.
LARK F1 GTR said:
That looks lovey! The aftermarket wheels really improve the look, that's the one thing I hated on mine (I had an Electic Blue Plus too) plus the wheels always looked to small, if they'd have been 17inch they'd have looked better.
Aside from the doors freezing shut (as mentioned an easy fix) I always remember that it was common for the rear valance to melt from the heat of the rear exhaust box.
If I were to go & get another one I'd love to have it modded (or boy a modded one) as mine was such a fine example I left it alone as I felt that as it rare the next buyer would want it pretty standard.
A friend has pointed out that like many cars the wheels look undersized these days, but having lusted these since they came out I don't mind the standard wheels looking small and I'd like a standard one, so I'm one of those turned off by mods and dubious extra badges, silvery sex toy handbrake covers and other bits of shiny metal in the cabin. It was perfect as it was bought to market and to my eyes the later mono colour ones without the black trim around the bottom of the bumpers don't look as good as the earlier ones. I think that Bangle, Fiat and Pininfarina knew what they were doing with this one and it's best left alone.Aside from the doors freezing shut (as mentioned an easy fix) I always remember that it was common for the rear valance to melt from the heat of the rear exhaust box.
If I were to go & get another one I'd love to have it modded (or boy a modded one) as mine was such a fine example I left it alone as I felt that as it rare the next buyer would want it pretty standard.
I used to have the last one of those 20v turbos: so called "Turbo Plus" (2000 reg). Silver coachwork, black leather Recaro seats with red stitching. Ok, it used to eat a pair of front Pirelli P Zero in no time but what a treat. And the turbo kick was awesome, as long as you could keep those front wheels under control... All in all a top car for the money. I have owned a few other sports cars since, including 911s, but I still have a soft spot for the Plus.
Edited by Touffaye on Monday 20th February 16:24
firebird350 said:
I have dithered like an ageing fa*t (which I am!) for years now over whether to trade in my 164 24V Cloverleaf for a Fiat 20VT Coupe. "Oh, have both!" everyone says and, yes, if I could find and purchase an old, disused fire station (living quarters upstairs, ground floor garaging for many cars below -plus fireman's pole for Thunderbirds access!), I would.
This dilemma has been true of EVERY Italian car I've owned. I just can't sell them on! And you know what the beauty of older Italian sports cars was? They used to rust until you simply HAD to scrap them. That was literally my only way out!! I've never sold a car on to anyone. Literally wouldn't know how!
Have owned and loved two mid-70's Fiat 124 Sports Coupes (one died of rust, one I crashed), two Mirafiori Sports (one died of rust, the other, rally-prepared, was stolen - what?!), a Fiat X1/9 (died of rust). a Fiat Strada Abarth (died of rust) and a Lancia Montecarlo (currently hanging on for dear life but dying of rust!) and now, horror of horror, the 24V 'Leaf was galvanised at birth - so I'm stuck with it FOREVER!!
I'm terrified even to test drive a Fiat Coupe because with my car history I just know I'll love it instantly and buy the first one I drive, shed or not.
So, don't anyone tell me they're NOT galvanised because then I WILL buy one in spite of not having the necessary garage space or wonga to keep it in good shape.
But they are fantastic cars - I just know it instinctively! One day - when the lottery number and that fire station come up...
Is there therapy available, incidentally, on the Italian NHS, perhaps?
^^ This ^^ The sodding things won't let you sell them. As can be ascertained by my username I've got a GTV and have had for many years. It's not that I haven't thought about selling it and getting something else... It's just that I can't.This dilemma has been true of EVERY Italian car I've owned. I just can't sell them on! And you know what the beauty of older Italian sports cars was? They used to rust until you simply HAD to scrap them. That was literally my only way out!! I've never sold a car on to anyone. Literally wouldn't know how!
Have owned and loved two mid-70's Fiat 124 Sports Coupes (one died of rust, one I crashed), two Mirafiori Sports (one died of rust, the other, rally-prepared, was stolen - what?!), a Fiat X1/9 (died of rust). a Fiat Strada Abarth (died of rust) and a Lancia Montecarlo (currently hanging on for dear life but dying of rust!) and now, horror of horror, the 24V 'Leaf was galvanised at birth - so I'm stuck with it FOREVER!!
I'm terrified even to test drive a Fiat Coupe because with my car history I just know I'll love it instantly and buy the first one I drive, shed or not.
So, don't anyone tell me they're NOT galvanised because then I WILL buy one in spite of not having the necessary garage space or wonga to keep it in good shape.
But they are fantastic cars - I just know it instinctively! One day - when the lottery number and that fire station come up...
Is there therapy available, incidentally, on the Italian NHS, perhaps?
The only way is to add to the garage, but I'm not going near anything Italian in case it sticks.
Oh and regards the handling of these, I know that the GTV has better suspension but I'm sure that the Coupe is almost as good in the twisties, anyone complaining about understeer needs to learn to drive a FWD properly, you see that lump of meat on the end of your left leg? Use it on the brake pedal when going around a corner and the car will come alive and get around the corner a damn sight faster than you previously thought possible.
Foxtrot Oscar said:
One of these pulled up at a set of lights near me on the approach to an empty dual carriageway a couple of weeks ago and I knew what it was when I heard him pull up. When the lights changed he went for it, the sound was glorious. I managed to keep my nose in front of him all the way up the hill but I was made to work hard for it! I dont think I managed to pull more than 3 or 4 car lengths on it. I was in an E46 330i.
Must have been something wrong with it then, because a healthy 20V turbo would no doubt walk away from an E46 330.flatline84 said:
Must have been something wrong with it then, because a healthy 20V turbo would no doubt walk away from an E46 330.
The 330i is no slouch and will have better traction from a standing start, but I'd expect the Coupe to have the egde once moving. It would be pretty close though, I don't think a standard Coupe would exactly walk away.flatline84 said:
Foxtrot Oscar said:
One of these pulled up at a set of lights near me on the approach to an empty dual carriageway a couple of weeks ago and I knew what it was when I heard him pull up. When the lights changed he went for it, the sound was glorious. I managed to keep my nose in front of him all the way up the hill but I was made to work hard for it! I dont think I managed to pull more than 3 or 4 car lengths on it. I was in an E46 330i.
Must have been something wrong with it then, because a healthy 20V turbo would no doubt walk away from an E46 330.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff