James Adlington

I've got a couple of friends with Fiats - nice cars but be prepared for a lot of wheel spin trying to get away from junctions / traffic lights on wet days. Great in the dry though.

Steve Godson

It might become necessary to sell my beloved Impreza in the next 3 months (sob,sob) owing to a property change. To tide me over, I am considering replacing it with a Fiat Coupe20v turbo (I have been offered a 98R for just £11.5k). Whilst I know it's handling can't compare with the Scoob, its does seem an awfull lot of 150mph car for the money (plus I like its looks & can fit my 6' frame into it OK).
Can anybody shed some light on this car in respect of Reliabilty, running costs, driver enjoyment,insurance etc ?

Cheers,
Steve

MarkCSC

There has been a lot said on the coupe on this BBS try doing a search or have a look at

Alan

Well, I'm the one who posted the other thread on the BBS.

My brother and me often swap cars for a few weeks at a time.

Std '99 Fiat 20V Turbo v Std '95 Impreza Turbo.

The Fiat is much quicker in straight lines, but around town the Scooby kills it.

The Fiat has the looks, but doesn't sound or feel half as good the Scooby, even though the 5 Cylinder engine has pleasnt purr.

Fuel consumption is at least 20-30 % better than the Scooby. His Fiat has 20K miles in one year with no reliability or trim problems. Brembos all round and an interior that makes you feel like your in something special. I would expect the Scooby be better in the reliabilty stakes.

Final note: If the Fiat was rear wheel drive, it could easily have been badged with a prancing horse. No one shot me please.

Steve Godson

Thanks very much to everyone who has replied so far. I don't intend to sell my car for 2/3 months or so (I'm having far too much fun !!), but when(if) the time comes, the Fiat could make a decent temporary replacement. I had a (friendly) run-in with one on Sunday. It was as quick in the straights, but I left him floundering in Epping Forest when things got decidedly twisty; you could see the car's front end fighting for grip through the bends.
Has anyone had any thoughts insurance-wise ?
At present I pay around £550 (through Admiral For MY97 UK car).
Cheers,
Steve

EdwardH

and then there was 1 (again.)

Ed


[This message has been edited by EdwardH (edited 31-01-2000).]

Steve Godson

Well, sometimes the only time you can have a sensible conversation is with oneself; so much for all that insurance knowledge......

Martinr

Agree with the comments on straight line speed and lack of grip in the twisty bits. Seats are pants making it feel even worse round the corners.

Also had a voracious appetite for front tyres - got through two sets of P-Zeros in 23K miles. Finally switched to Bridgestone SO2's which seemed to last and grip much better.

Servicing costs were OK with Fiats' Fixed Price offerings. Trim is a bit wobbly and had to claim on the warranty once to have the entire rear of the cabin refitted when it came loose.

Insurance for a New 97 P was about £500 Fully Comp (31, FNCD & low risk garaged.

Overall it was a reasonable car but not in the same class as the Scoob. You pays yer money....

Martinr
MY95 STI2

Mike Rainbird

Dear All,
Apparantly Driven (C4 2030)will be reveiwing the Fiat Coupe 20v against the Couger etc tonight. (Don't think it is the turbo model though...).
Hope this helps.
Mike

MIP

My last car before the scooby was a Limited Edition (LE) version of the coupe.

I had it from new for 8k miles before I changed jobs and bought my scooby.

Scooby is group 17 fiat is group 19

Straight line performance is better in the Fiat when you learn how to drive it without wheel spin (hard in the wet. It is all or nothing though, with a huge kit in the pants from 4000.

Cornering is obviously much better in the scooby although I thought the Fiat was pretty good apart from the suspension crashing horrendously.

Watch out for bumps mid corner, the Fiat will NOT cope at all. I nearly put mine in a ditch when I hit a drain cover mid bend.

The LE had recaros but the standard seats were way to soft and I slid around in them alot during the test drive of a standard 20V

Oh and forget one with a sun roof if you are 6 foot you will hit the roof.

The brakes never inspired confidence (big brembos) but I never had a problem with fading on them. The disks would start to rust if you didn't drive the car for a couple of days.

I had a few problems with trim, window sealing (frameless again) and the dealers sucked big time. Never called you back, didn't finish 1/2 the jobs they were supposed to have done etc. etc..

Good fun car though, used to put a grin on my face. The LE looked awesome with the skirts and spoilers. My other half wanted me to keep the Fiat as she thought it looked awesome (especially compared to the scooby)

IMONSHO

MIP

andyp

Generally agree with everything said so far; just a couple of points to add/amplify
1. FIAT dealers suck (generally) and you get a Punto as a courtesy car, if your lucky.
2. Fuel economy much better that Scoob; especially boring motorway runs.
3. Quieter that Scoob (again on motorway) in both windnoise, gearbox noise and roadnoise.
4. Nice to look at (to the non-petrolhead)
5. Mechanical bits tend to wear out quickly if used hard (brake disks wear, gearbox gets loose)
6. 20V Turbos do have a habbit of overheating, compared to the 16V 'Integrale' engined ones. 16V also bigger turbo with real boost.

In the end of the day, if you find a good one for under 11K you'll be laughing - get a lemon and you'll be cursing..... it is a very good Italian car....but still Italian.

Good luck

Andyp

Nightmare

all I can say is 'nice interior, shame about the handling'

also - the gearboxes on all fiats are crap, fall to pieces, or rust. Personally I would never own anything they made ever. I dont know a single person who's owned anything made by them which hasnt had some serious problems.

but only one's had the coupe, and she drove it into a tree, so that doesnt really count

RoShamBo

iTrader: (1)

Mip

>>huge kit in the pants <<

....Now you really are just showing off...

Sorry - couldn't resist

Ro

[This message has been edited by RoShamBo (edited 01-02-2000).]

Steve Godson

Thanks for all the replies so far. It just goes to show no matter what car people own, the views/experiences can differ dramatically. Personally, I am still tempted in future to buy one (for the reasons I have already explained). The only factors that concerned me would be depreciation/insurance costs (Group 19!!!). Admiral insurance (that I use) quote the Scoob at only group 16 !!.
Fiat has had a bad reputation in the past with reliability, but everything I have heard since, suggests this has improved.
Cheers,
Steve

MIP

Ro,



kick , I meant kick


Re group 16, maybe its just the LE that is 19 ?

MIP

sunilp

We have one of these on the car fleet at work, its a R Reg i think but the interior rattles like hell and build quality is ****e

Moz

I like the bit about fiat dealers who suck, Carstins of balsall common are a fiat dealer,They are also a franchised subaru dealer.

Justin

Steve,

I looked at a Fiat 20V Turbo before looking at a Scooby - I always wanted an Impreza but I thought I wouldn't be able to afford to run one!

After looking into it the Fiat cost more to insure and the 70-80k service(can't remember which?)started at approx. £1000 because it was 15 hours labour?? I do 'highish' milage so I would've hit that one.

In the end I decided to import a WRX from Japan using an agent (Home Straight). The car's having the UK mods done at the moment and then I'm away! :-)

Just a thought - why not trade for an older Scooby?

Best of luck.

Justin.

chrisp

I nearly brought a Fait coupe turbo, good car. I was offered a cancelation scooby and took it as the time it was a couple of grand cheaper and my first choice.

Depreciation seems higher than a scooby. I have just been on the autotrader site and seen a V reg 20v Turbo with leather, air-con and delivery miles and non-import for 20K (list price is quoted in the advert as 25.5K). If my maths is right thats 5.5K before the car has turned a wheel. Whats is going to be worth in two years time ?

I know this is going off the thread a little but its part of a cars ownership.

cheers

chrisp

scoobiestu

popular belief states that you need to take the engine out to do the cambelt on a coop turbo but you dont need to in reality im not saying it is easy but it can and has been done so £1500 major service bills is just fiat ripping you off!! a good independant garage will do it for about £3-400

CraigH

I think you're 4 years too late

Matt_Turbo_2000

Didnt notice the date on the first posts I was thinking 11.5k for a fiat turbo that a bit much haha then I found the date feb 2000

mozzaITA

Ive lost count the amount of times the fiat coupe 20vt has been on here and i did get to drive two of them and both times i was left feeling that the car was not that special whatsoever! I didnt find it that fast and a BMW m3 can slaughter it, really dont see the fascination with it. It can be expensive to run, my mates has had some huge bills for it, changing the cam belt, clutch and discs pads + servicing.....

whatever rocks ur boat i supose.

Moz

Writer/Researcher and Sales Rapid Cars

www.rapidcarsltd.co.uk

fatherpierre

Did you do the same in 3rd? You'd have changed your views!

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Mine is quicker once rolling than a UK Scoob, tried both and bought the Fiat, Scoob is better in many ways and I may stilll get one but the Fiat is very quick, stayed with a T reg 911 the other day up to a ton and its only got very mild mods, thought the 911 would murder it but it didnt, even got a cheery thumbs up from the driver of the Porsche, suspect it may have pulled away after a ton but the mid range of the Fiat is superb. Can get a chip for thirty quid that will give another 30 bhp, am waiting though as to be honest its quick enough at the moment. Some of the lads on the Fiat Coupe forum are running 300 bhp and what I would imagine is scary performance, A lad called Nigel (NigelO on here) has a Coupe and a Ferrari 355 and reckons his modded Coupe is quicker in the real world due to power curves and stuff like that.

The only time I really wish I had gone for a Scoob is indeed when there is any sign of rain, I have had wheelspin at 60/70 in the wet which is slightly alarming, basically water means game over in the Coupe wheras its playtime in a Scoob.

Still reckon its one of the best looking cars on the road, even if it is basically a Fiat Tipo with afterburners.

Evo6.5

My m8 is selling his 20VT "R" 1998 and I test drove it 2 days ago. The exterior design is not all that, but the interior is something special. Its feel like your in an expensive car. It was dry and the handling I thought was not bad, the performance was very good too. Like someone said, when it rains, its game over ! I've been told that the intercooler is too small.

Kev

Matt_Turbo_2000

I would have one I think they look unusual obviously going to be on par with a scooby turbo when on the move same sort of BHP but at the end of the day it's FWD. Never the less I may buy one one day just to experience one.