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Old 30th January 2015, 22:10   #106
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by humyum View Post
.
Quote:
Originally Posted by lurker View Post
On some Fiat forum in UK, one person was mentioning how in a Fiat dealership/factory, none of the employees drive a Fiat and the only Fiat cars around are the company cars. One of the main reasons is that Fiat suggests 20000 kms interval for MJD engines in Europe. They have same issues there as the ones in India.
Ridiculous.
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Originally Posted by a4anurag View Post
Other point of engine oil turning black, With 100 kms of the engine oil change, it looks black. AFAIK, nothing happens if it does look black.
We've moved on quite a bit-

Yeah- In my personal...err...investigations, came across a cabbie with a 2010 Linea. Okay- straight to the very question. Oil consumption. Timing chains- et cetera.

His answer- He was indeed aware of the recall. The T/C was changed. And post that- well in excess of 1,00,000 kilometers has been clocked. No oil consumption issues, no power loss, no nothing. The odo- 2.5 lakh.

There you go. The plot thickens.
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Old 30th January 2015, 22:52   #107
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Originally Posted by justin.das View Post

Yes am planning for the same .

Yes some fellow enthusiast suggested a private garage named Continental Automotive Trivandrum.
Any update on the situation?
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Old 31st January 2015, 09:46   #108
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by a4anurag View Post
Any update on the situation?
Sorry for the late replay guys .i was very busy at office .yet to visit continental garage as am short of Vitamin M factor . What i understand from the EGR discussion is that the issue occurred to my car because of over care .I used to drive at 80-100 kms/hr max even at highways not crossing 2500 rpm range .In the city's 40-80 km/hr range .

Last edited by justin.das : 31st January 2015 at 09:53.
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Old 31st January 2015, 09:58   #109
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by justin.das View Post
Sorry for the late replay guys .i was very busy at office .yet to visit continental garage as am short of Vitamin M factor .
A question to you- Would you still recommend the FIAT Linea now- apart from this TC Issue- which I understand has been dealt with- In the following model years (2012 onwards).

I have an excellent relationship with the MSIL Sales here- Having bought multiple cars from there. And yet- Cannot avoid the Linea, because of its sheer VFM and charisma factor. The A$$ of FIAT is better equipped than MSIL- atleast from what I've seen.

In the direct comparision- The Linea wins. Look at the pic below:

Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall-fiatlineadashboard059.jpg

Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall-maruticiazdashboard059.jpg

See? The Linea wins. Hands down .
But as a package- Still recommendable?
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Old 31st January 2015, 10:21   #110
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by FINTAIL View Post
A question to you- Would you still recommend the FIAT Linea now- apart from this TC Issue- which I understand has been dealt with- In the following model years (2012 onwards).

See? The Linea wins. Hands down .
But as a package- Still recommendable?
Yes i will .Apart from all these issues am still in love with car .Nothing below 30 lakh price bracket touched my heart more than Fiat 's .The way it becomes sheer extension of our body while driving is unmatched and the steering feedback is to die for .Handling ,Balance ,Feedback ,Metal quality above all soul .As a package nothing comes near .
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Old 31st January 2015, 22:20   #111
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

Same feelings here. I can't find a better car or I would put it this way. " Im stuck with Linea, with the aesthetics, driveability, sense of security and innumerable reasons." Till now I cant find a better replacement for it. The reason is, I am not liking any cars in this bracket. But the closest that came was a Renault duster.
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Old 3rd February 2015, 09:38   #112
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

If EGR is the culprit why 75bhp version is not affected with the same issue ? .75bhp is far more reliable than the 90bhp version .some of my friends crossed a lakh kilometers on 75bhp maruthi's and is very reliable.

Last edited by justin.das : 3rd February 2015 at 09:40.
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Old 3rd February 2015, 10:15   #113
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by justin.das View Post
If EGR is the culprit why 75bhp version is not affected with the same issue ? .75bhp is far more reliable than the 90bhp version .some of my friends crossed a lakh kilometers on 75bhp maruthi's and is very reliable.
I know of at least two 75 hp Punto's where the chain snapped. The problem is probably lesser than the 90hp Punto/Lineas , but it does exist.

As a preventive measure, I got my 75 HP Punto's timing chain replaced recently at 75K km even though there were no problems. I was planning to get it changed at the 1lac km mark, but got it done earlier after reading all the horror stories.
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Old 3rd February 2015, 10:19   #114
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by justin.das View Post
If EGR is the culprit why 75bhp version is not affected with the same issue ? .75bhp is far more reliable than the 90bhp version .some of my friends crossed a lakh kilometers on 75bhp maruthi's and is very reliable.
See- I find the recent posts in this thread pertinent to the EGR, to be utter nonsense.

It takes us nowhere closer to resolve the problem. It has been suggested- that a Code6 Remap- so as to delete the EGR. Why on earth?

Is the MJD so sensitive that all the owners have to think about remapping it? What if the owner were a novice? And- are we all so called 'tune-happy-people' who must fiddle with the motor- just so as to extract that little ounce of performance hiding just somewhere?

And talking of deleting the EGR- What then, is the difference between a three decade old engine- say the Mercedes Benz OM621/615/ or the OM616- aka 'Matador' engine- and the 2005 designed MJD?

Surely by deleting EGR- you're deleting a technological advancement, that might've taken years, and multiple applications to perfect?

My response: Take the car to FNG. Open the engine- or do whatever alternative they suggest. But don't comply with the ridiculous advice given by lurker.

An average Swift owner (or any car for that matter!) will not know what a piston is- forget ECU's , EGR's, and the likes. He won't understand all this jargon- is he meant to understand, and fiddle with his car as well? No- right? A car should be useable by all- right? Right from the racy teenager, to the middle aged executive, to the senior citizen who insists on complying all the traffic rules- To the woman who is clueless about the clutch and burns it every alternate minute- To the quick driving woman. To the chauffer who insists that he knows better driving than his (TBHP member) sahhab. Everyone.

The logic dished out by lurkerji is sorry to say- utterly ridiculous. Defies the rules of simple, plain enginnering, automotive enginnering, and most importantly, common sense, as I've explained above.
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Old 3rd February 2015, 16:09   #115
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

Quote:
Originally Posted by justin.das View Post
If EGR is the culprit why 75bhp version is not affected with the same issue ? .75bhp is far more reliable than the 90bhp version .some of my friends crossed a lakh kilometers on 75bhp maruthi's and is very reliable.
As mentioned Swift weighs lesser than 75 bhp Punto. Secondly service interval for Swift used to be 5000 kms. (I don't know how much it is now). You have to be the judge and use your own discretion here.

Also manufacturers test out their cars usually on highways and only 10% city traffic especially if the test drive car is passing through a city. They do not test their engines for 200,000 kms exclusively only on city roads.

If the MJD is so damn reliable, then why the hell Linea owners and Punto 90bhp owners, DESPITE REGULAR SERVICE, AND COMPLYING WITH ALL ITEMS ON SERVICE CHECKLIST have problems with timing chain and oil consumption.

Toyota Innova/Qualis/Liva users do not have such problems despite similar usage patterns and BSIV engines.
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Old 3rd February 2015, 19:02   #116
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Quote:
Originally Posted by justin.das View Post
If EGR is the culprit why 75bhp version is not affected with the same issue ? .75bhp is far more reliable than the 90bhp version .some of my friends crossed a lakh kilometers on 75bhp maruthi's and is very reliable.
EGR is not the culprit. The whole issue is the timing chain is not beefed up to cater to the higher power plus weight the engine has to lug!

The 90HP version of needs a stronger, beefier chain IMO (Just my thought).

Quote:
Originally Posted by lurker View Post
Secondly service interval for Swift used to be 5000 kms. (I don't know how much it is now).
It is 10K kms interval.
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Old 4th February 2015, 12:36   #117
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by a4anurag View Post

EGR is not the culprit. The whole issue is the timing chain is not beefed up to cater to the higher power plus weight the engine has to lug!

The 90HP version of needs a stronger, beefier chain IMO (Just my thought).
Let's put it this way several factors like Timing chain(prime suspect) , Displacement vs weight factor (Logical reason for the premature timing chain failure ),Excessive carbon deposit(Poor Fuel quality and long low rpm runs),Long Service Interval (Not suitable for Indian driving conditions) etc combined to form this issue .Pre-2012 car's are the most affected. Post 2012 car comes with upgraded engine which takes care of these issues .

For Proper reliability of Fiat 90bhp Engines .
  1. Service your car on or before 10,000 km's
  2. clean the EGR every 20,000 km's
  3. If you change your car's timing chain recently keep and eye on the oil level and check the oil level for the next 10,000 kms in 1000km intervals .
  4. Make sure that while changing the timing chain the associated parts like pulleys are also changed as a package and its properly aligned .
  5. if you are changing the timing chain other than in scheduled service make sure the oil is changed .
  6. Don't trust the dealership blindly .After service check your car's oil level the next morning .

Last edited by justin.das : 4th February 2015 at 12:44. Reason: Added more points
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Old 4th February 2015, 13:02   #118
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

>> Excessive carbon deposit(Poor Fuel quality and long low rpm runs)

this can be attributed to EGR and nothing to do with fuel quality.
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Old 5th February 2015, 12:06   #119
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

Does any one know the situation with the Punto Evo, Avventura and updated Linea. Is Fiat India still selling cars that are sure to go through premature timing chain failures?
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Old 5th February 2015, 13:02   #120
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Re: Fiat Linea and Fiat Punto (90 BHP) Owners. Timing chain issue & recall

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Originally Posted by sandeepmohan View Post
Does any one know the situation with the Punto Evo, Avventura and updated Linea. Is Fiat India still selling cars that are sure to go through premature timing chain failures?
They have not updated the engine,and still sticking to 15K Oil change interval;
so i guess, Evo and Facelift linea will go through same fate.
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