Fun, reliable, cheap on gas car
Nothing went wrong with the car, but it was only nine years old when I bought it. I am not sure how reliable it would be now.
It was a good little car. Cheap for petrol and fun to drive.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 15th June, 2011
Great while it lasted
Electrical faults - usually poor earths. Easy to remedy and not so bad, given the car's age. Always sorted by myself.
Rust eventually ate it up.
Purchased as a cheap commuting hack, for which it served me very well indeed. I found this quite low mileage model, and got it laughably cheap - basically the change I had in my wallet.
Having had 2 other Unos, I had overcome my fears, and found this one to be very sweet and crisp feeling, if not the best performer. (Previous one had been good for 170 plus - how about that?) Still quite adequate though. I put in a nice stereo and off we went. It served me very well for about 4 years. Never used oil, and the only breakdown was when it once wouldn't start - bad fuel I suspect.
Alas once I hit a parking bollard and totally destroyed the right front. God, these things are flimsy - crumple zone? Yeah right.. So I wouldn't recommend hitting anything larger than perhaps a bumble bee who had signed up to Jenny Craig in one.
Nevertheless I did like the economy, the versatility - could swallow up a whole lot of gear with the seats folded, and the style. Most men here in NZ seem to like the larger cars, or perhaps a wheezy imported 4x4 on easy hire purchase. I found there seemed to be endless goateed guys driving these sitting right on my rear bumper. I won't go into the whole inadequacy complex thing here; suffice to say that the Uno was good for me, and smarter folks liked my style - let's just say. It probably saved me billions in gas money over the years as well. Couldn't quite hold back the whole Iraq thing though, but close.
Handling wise it wasn't really very good, but not totally awful either. A front sway bar as fitted to the MkII models would probably have helped thing enormously. I have to say I did like the steering, the steering feedback was superb, so you could really push it right to the (lowish) limits. Silly really as I found the skinny 155 section Euro tyres quite hard and expensive to obtain.
Alas as time went on, I got sick of the rust constantly breaking out, despite it being immaculate on purchase. Sold it for 2 1/2 times my purchase price, so I would say it served me very well indeed. You DO need to be a bit handy to fix those electrical anomalies though mind you. I sat in one recently, and found they are quite the small car.
Well, they are all getting a bit long in the tooth now, so I'd not recommend one to anybody... But mine was good!
Happy motoring ;)
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 5th March, 2011
A rare and fun little car
Alternator stopped working - repaired.
Clutch started slipping, replaced clutch kit, master and re-kitted slave.
Turbo started making excessive noise. Engine starts smoking at idle. Engine using excesive coolant.
Engine block cracked, exhaust manifold cracked, turbo seals gone. Replaced complete engine, new turbo, just about new everything else.
Found rust in the floor, repaired.
Car is very fast and fun to drive.
It is actually very reliable, it needed a new engine when I bought it though.
Driving position is not very good, it's a little cramped. Comfortable and quite.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 16th July, 2005
Reliable, cheap to run. Buy a good one
Virtually nothing. I purchased the car from someone who personally imported it into Australia. (There are approximately 2 or 3 Fiat Uno's in this country.
The brakes needed attention. Also it was in need of some TLC. Mainly the interior and a light buff on the exterior.
A cheap to run reliable car that's easy to drive in and around town. Not really suited on the motorways as it's only a 4 speeder. (Needs a 5th gear) but it will cruise comfortably at around 110km/h.
The 999cc FIRE engine is a little underpowered when going up steep hills with 4 passengers, but it returns around 4.5 litres per 100km when driven normally.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 12th September, 2004
Can't complain. Got it for virtually nothing.
***UPDATE***
It's 2012 and I've had the car for over 10 years now.
Driven daily, and the body has a few parking knocks here and there.
Parked outside. Starts every time. Still great on fuel. A bit of rust has just emerged on the door sills.
Had to replace the gear linkage bushes, and did a complete brake overhaul (new brakes all round and a master cylinder), plus the regular scheduled oil & filter changes... and THAT'S ALL!
A testimony to the model. Recently visited Italy, and quite a few are still on the roads over there.
Just goes to show... loads of power isn't everything.
A faithful friend. "Un grande amico".
30th Apr 2005, 21:53
Was it really worth the cost of transporting it?
(NZ Uno 45 owner)