Tell me about the Fiat Bravo!
Discussion
I'm looking at geting a first car soon(ish) and I am getting reasonable (for a new driver!) quotes on the 1.6 SX model, like this Linky
What like are these then? Reliability? running costs?
I'm not the most mechanically talented person but I will get my hands dirty and have access to tools and suchlike!
Any information would be appreciated!
Also, If your going to ask why I want one of these rather than a punto... I like to be different
Thanks.
What like are these then? Reliability? running costs?
I'm not the most mechanically talented person but I will get my hands dirty and have access to tools and suchlike!
Any information would be appreciated!
Also, If your going to ask why I want one of these rather than a punto... I like to be different
Thanks.
You're probably going for the (still stunning) looks of the Bravo.
A cheaper alternative would be the Brava (5 door) and even cheaper the Marea (4 door saloon).
I ran a cheap Marea 20v HLX for 20k miles with no problems at all, other than the usual clunking / squeaking from the front ARB drop-links.
Great cars and can be picked up for peanuts.
A cheaper alternative would be the Brava (5 door) and even cheaper the Marea (4 door saloon).
I ran a cheap Marea 20v HLX for 20k miles with no problems at all, other than the usual clunking / squeaking from the front ARB drop-links.
Great cars and can be picked up for peanuts.
Alfa_75_Steve said:
You're probably going for the (still stunning) looks of the Bravo.
A cheaper alternative would be the Brava (5 door) and even cheaper the Marea (4 door saloon).
I ran a cheap Marea 20v HLX for 20k miles with no problems at all, other than the usual clunking / squeaking from the front ARB drop-links.
Great cars and can be picked up for peanuts.
Heh, had a quick look at the clasifieds, and found this BravaA cheaper alternative would be the Brava (5 door) and even cheaper the Marea (4 door saloon).
I ran a cheap Marea 20v HLX for 20k miles with no problems at all, other than the usual clunking / squeaking from the front ARB drop-links.
Great cars and can be picked up for peanuts.
I think he has even realised its a mess!
Not so keen on the brava's admitedly. It's the rear end of the bravo that I like.
The marea again, I'm just not fond of the back end on that, does seem a bargain though...
Still open to suggestions, and steve, i'm shocked you didn't recommend an alfa!
A Cinq. sporting would be very fun, but I imagine that i'll be doing quite a lot of driving to shows, i.e aberdeen>Knockhill>Aberdeen... Can't imagine that being too fun in one of those!
I think I'll be spending a fair while trawling the classifieds, just fancy something different to the norm. of corsas, saxo/106's etc etc, Hmmm.
I think I'll be spending a fair while trawling the classifieds, just fancy something different to the norm. of corsas, saxo/106's etc etc, Hmmm.
Don't know how much you have to spend, but also consider the Stilo.
They look great in 3-door form, not so good as a 5-door.
Also think about going diesel, rather than petrol - the Fiat JTD engines are superb, and you can get them with performance that will at least match the 1.6 petrol.
They look great in 3-door form, not so good as a 5-door.
Also think about going diesel, rather than petrol - the Fiat JTD engines are superb, and you can get them with performance that will at least match the 1.6 petrol.
My girlfriend had a 1.8 HLX 115 on an X plate, it went last week. It has been absolutely no trouble over the last nearly 5 years she had it. I gave it the regular servicing and timing belt change every 3 years (very easy to do on the 4 pot, not so on the 5 pot HGT), and has required nothing other than an exhaust and battery outside regular consumable items.
The engine is easy to work on and the electrics are not a worry. Mechanically these cars are quite simple, and parts are reasonably cheap. It has a low power head on it (compared to Alfa's 1.8 - same base block I'd imagine), but it does have oodles of torque.
It was quite a fun drive, enough poke for long motorway sessions and easy to drive round town and still returned a pretty reasonable mpg as it was not designed for power. The interior was quite nice, the odd rattle but nothing that couldn't be solved with sticky foam pads. It was pretty cheap insurance IIRC.
The engine is easy to work on and the electrics are not a worry. Mechanically these cars are quite simple, and parts are reasonably cheap. It has a low power head on it (compared to Alfa's 1.8 - same base block I'd imagine), but it does have oodles of torque.
It was quite a fun drive, enough poke for long motorway sessions and easy to drive round town and still returned a pretty reasonable mpg as it was not designed for power. The interior was quite nice, the odd rattle but nothing that couldn't be solved with sticky foam pads. It was pretty cheap insurance IIRC.
The HGT is a rapid little car, but The Cambelt change is a three to five hour job (at £60 per hour depending on the garage). Change all three belts and tensioner bearing. The Fiat Coupe derived engine is too much for some of the early gear boxes (especially if the clutch has been uprated) and the Coupe ECU would be the first thing to swap (HGT 155bhp Coupe 170bhp?). Compared to the other hot hatches the weight of the five pot engine makes the car feel slow. The longer chassis and weight distribution gives the car a habbit of understeering rather than lift off oversteer. The 20V turbo engine is a common swap but my choice would be the 1.8 and put the 16V Coupe Turbo engine in there instead. More torque, less weight, cheaper and more room to work.
Robert060379 said:
The HGT is a rapid little car, but The Cambelt change is a three to five hour job (at £60 per hour depending on the garage). Change all three belts and tensioner bearing. The Fiat Coupe derived engine is too much for some of the early gear boxes (especially if the clutch has been uprated) and the Coupe ECU would be the first thing to swap (HGT 155bhp Coupe 170bhp?). Compared to the other hot hatches the weight of the five pot engine makes the car feel slow. The longer chassis and weight distribution gives the car a habbit of understeering rather than lift off oversteer. The 20V turbo engine is a common swap but my choice would be the 1.8 and put the 16V Coupe Turbo engine in there instead. More torque, less weight, cheaper and more room to work.
I think the insurance company would have a nice old laugh at a 17 year old trying to insure that 
rockinatmidnight said:
Robert060379 said:
The HGT is a rapid little car, but The Cambelt change is a three to five hour job (at £60 per hour depending on the garage). Change all three belts and tensioner bearing. The Fiat Coupe derived engine is too much for some of the early gear boxes (especially if the clutch has been uprated) and the Coupe ECU would be the first thing to swap (HGT 155bhp Coupe 170bhp?). Compared to the other hot hatches the weight of the five pot engine makes the car feel slow. The longer chassis and weight distribution gives the car a habbit of understeering rather than lift off oversteer. The 20V turbo engine is a common swap but my choice would be the 1.8 and put the 16V Coupe Turbo engine in there instead. More torque, less weight, cheaper and more room to work.
I think the insurance company would have a nice old laugh at a 17 year old trying to insure that The HGT and Coupe 20v lumps are the same power, the gearboxes are well up to the task and there's not much in the handling between a hatch / saloon / coupe, other than the fact that the Coupe rolls less, due to the hatch / saloon being taller.
The 16v Turbo may have more power, but it's nowhere near as 'sweet' to drive as a 20v. Power isn't everything, especially when you have a really revvy 5-pot screaming away under the bonnet
Obviously I was thinking long term, in a few years after some no-claims build up etc. I was comparing the understeer to other hot hatches available. The five pot motor weighs the front down significantly more than the F16 Clio engine or the Honda Type R or S and how cheap the Bravo HGT's are right now it would be fairer to compare to the 205 GTI. Bargain Hot Hatch of the moment?
having owned bravos for the past 6 years now here is a simple guide to common issues on them all
1.2 - Gearbox (my 1.2 went through 14 of the things, but i wanst too gentle on it, including track days and sprints etc)
1.4 - engine (poor oil feed to teh cam shaft means it gets blocked easily if the oil is not changed regularly and eats the cam shaft up...)
1.6 - injectors... they are known to fail
1.8 - no real faults other than as all of the bravos are getting on, rattles etc
2.0 - 400 quid cambelt change
I have had a 1.2 and 2 2.0 litre bravos and also had a 2.0 litre marea.
love teh cars too bits, and wished i had the money to spend on my current HGT that is sat on the drive needing some tlc.
teh 1.2 is by no means gutless or useless, trust me! I used to be the one to lead the convoys if we were running late to shows. get over to www.fiatboo.co.uk for plenty of info and buying guides etc, or feel free to ask myself
1.2 - Gearbox (my 1.2 went through 14 of the things, but i wanst too gentle on it, including track days and sprints etc)
1.4 - engine (poor oil feed to teh cam shaft means it gets blocked easily if the oil is not changed regularly and eats the cam shaft up...)
1.6 - injectors... they are known to fail
1.8 - no real faults other than as all of the bravos are getting on, rattles etc
2.0 - 400 quid cambelt change
I have had a 1.2 and 2 2.0 litre bravos and also had a 2.0 litre marea.
love teh cars too bits, and wished i had the money to spend on my current HGT that is sat on the drive needing some tlc.
teh 1.2 is by no means gutless or useless, trust me! I used to be the one to lead the convoys if we were running late to shows. get over to www.fiatboo.co.uk for plenty of info and buying guides etc, or feel free to ask myself
Mr2Mike said:
Andy_sx said:
2.0 - 400 quid cambelt change
DIY is much cheaper, though small hands are greatly beneficial!Have spannered alot of bravos over the years, gearbox changes are a bit of a speciality (unsupprisingly) but the bare minimal space given in the 2.0 is a royal pita
D.I.Y belt changes are easier to do with the engine out I've found (done them when the clutch went one three cars) and my Coupe. The two HGT gear box failiors I know of, one was a one owner from new near concourse jobbie, the other went on a track day. So low mileage and hammering is a killer. Average mileage and road use with the occaisional track day seems to be the best bet. Give the gear box a good inspection or service after track days to be extra safe.
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