Why no love for FIAT

[DaveT]

First car ever driven was Dad's 131 Miafiore - up & down the road. Great fun at 8yo - until he found out of course!

Learned to drive in a 131.

Fiats, Alfa's and Massers all the way ever since.

 

[Evo Cymru]

Had a Fiat Uno back in the day - thrashed it everywhere and it still never let me down (though a few bits fell off.....)

Keep looking at 595 Comps but can't quite find a good enough reason to get one at their present price - look great fun though.

 

[montravia]

My first was a 1959 600. Absolutely dangerously **** but I loved it.

Had a few. They're very good a small cheap chuckabouts. Eminently engaging.

Had a 500 lounge for ages. Little mountain goat. It's the best crappy little car in the world. Love it. Cha Cha Cha Azure

No wonder ever 7th new car in Europe is a 500

 

[Corranga]

Bad press re rot not nearly as bad as Lancia, at least FIAT still sell to the UK.

To be fair, the state they've made of Lancia in recent years, it's probably not a bad thing...
The Delta and Ypsilon (sold here disguised as Chrysler but retaining the blatantly obvious to those who know model names) were just uglier reskinned Fiats.

 

[Wack61]

I had a Ypsilon hire car in italy last year, drove OK but very slow , tiny petrol engine in it

 

[MrMickS]

The Ypsilon is just a 5 door Fiat 500. They sell pretty well in Italy though.

No mention of Lancia at all in the FCA 5 year plan. Never say never, but I think that its pretty much done as a brand when the next 500 comes out. They are talking about a 500 Giardiniera for the next one, kind of an estate version, I'd anticipate that it'll target the market that are still buying Lancia.

 

[Billy3200]

Back to Fiats
I have an irrational love for Fiats. My first being a fantastic 128 3p which i did more that 80,000 miles in. Its replacement in 1992 was 124 Spider (1608) which I still own and will remain when all else has gone! There was a Punto GT MK1 great fun, a real go-kart - does a standard one still exist? I doubt it. A company Marea Weekend - 5 cylinder diesel, actually not a bad car.
When a "station" car was needed it had to be a Mk 2 Punto Sporting. Lots of fun for no money, 50,000 miles in this, until....my daughter made a new driver error, over corrected and went up a bank. No one hurt thankfully, but made me think about my children needing to drive not only fun but safe cars. To be fair the Sporting did protect her, God knows what would have happened in the Mk1 or the 3p!

 

[Trev Latter]

My first car was a Fiat 127 Sport, bought for £300, which lasted about 3 months having been thrashed to within inches of it's life. It all came to an abrupt end with the front struts breaking away from the turrets to find an exit point through the bonnet following an airborne episode over a hump back bridge. Loved that thing though. Passed my test in it and went all over the place. After that one died I went back to bikes for a bit before buying another one (which lasted a bit longer). Every petrol engined Fiat I've ever driven has been a thrash it senseless thing and great fun if not fast.

 

[Andyk]

My 2nd car was a Fiat X19 .... Loved that little car....but let's face it one gem amongst lots of rubbish were Fiat are concerned.

 

[philw696]

Always had a soft spot for the X19 especially the very early 1300 ones for me.
Just a shame that they rusted like they did.

 

[Andyk]

I bought mine in 1983 think and it was riddled with rust then. My father was a mechanic so we did it up, painted it and it looked lovely again. Mine was the limited edition Lido. Bought it for £600 and sold in for £1600 2 years later. Had so much fun in it and at 17 it was a pretty decent car to have.

 

[2b1ask1]

I’ve had more Fiats than I care to recal, always revvy little petrol engines that loved to be spanked everywhere. The only spot chucker was a fully specked Ulysses that had started life as an exec airport car for a corporate somewhere.

 

[TridentTested]

I've loved Fiats since I was a kid listening to 124s making that lovely exhaust rasp. I knew nothing about cars but I knew that rasp sounded sporty and way cooler than other dads' Vauxhall Vivas and Ford Escorts sounded.

Together with a good friend of mine we young school boys used to cycle to the local Fiat dealer regularly just to look at them. We had an autistic level of knowledge of each model and trim levels. That friend has gone on to be a mechanic tool-maker and his Fiat addiction has just got worse. He has a garden full, and sheds full, of gently rotting Fiats of all years which he someday hopes to restore.

On his wedding day he used a restored 124, in white luckily, I got to drive it for a laugh and I have to say it made me smile: slick gear change, light communicative pedals and steering and the responsive peppy engine just sparkled in such a light car. The little terrier was much more fun to drive than I expected.

 

[allandwf]

Always had a soft spot for the X19 especially the very early 1300 ones for me.
Just a shame that they rusted like they did.

I just got my brotherinlaws one started after 9 years sitting.

 

[philw696]

I just got my brotherinlaws one started after 9 years sitting.

That's the joy with the older stuff.
Some fresh fuel a good battery and a spark away they go

 

[Andyk]

Certainly weren't as complicated as they are now.

 

[conaero]

Never had a Fiat myself but Wifey has had 3. Grande Punto, 500 and now a 500x.

Descent little cars particularly the X. The 1.25 engine in the Punto/500 couldn’t pull the skin off a rice pudding but the 1.6 16v in the X is descent.

 

[zagatoes30]

Really need to try an Abarth 595 as it will be an ideal car for bombing around Ireland when I'm over there

 

[Needamaser]

Owning a 1980 Strada scarred me for life.
Seem to recall the selling feature was they were built by robots. The robots obvioulsy had a sense of humour.

 

[Cyclone1]

Love a Fiat, the Coupé in 20VT guise is now starting to surpass many Maseratis in desirability and value……