Any diesel mechanics out there?

welf_man

I need to buy a cheap secondhand estate to fit my dogs! My husband wants me to get a diesel because of the high mileage I need to do, which is fair enough, I guess.

I found one I liked at £1900, (1999 Fiat Marea Weekend 1.9 TD) but on enquiry the dealer said he had just discovered it had a dodgy head gasket and because he didn't have time to do it he was either going to send it to auction or drop the price. When I asked, he said it would be about £1300 and would have 12 months MOT.

a) can you get an MOT with a dodgy head gasket?
b) does a dodgy head gasket imply anything about the engine in general?
c) is this a reasonable price reduction considering the cost of getting it fixed?
d) anything else you can tell me?

Thanks,

Mel.

albalad

As far as i know the head gasket will not affect your MOT.
Anytime I've heard anyone talking about head gaskets , it's a big job ,either replaced .......expensive or skimmed ....still expensive

you could try posting the same questions on honest john - here


how about this one instead , 12 mths MOT ,service history and round about the same money.

italiastar

It might just be me, but it sounds dodgy to me - why wouldn't a mechanic fix a car?

welf_man

You may well be right, italiastar - my husband asked an ex-mechanic mate of his, who reckoned it could cost £500 - £1000 - and also said FIAT stands for "Fixed It Again Today"!!

Think we'll give this one a miss.

Thanks, folks.

Mel.

TDIfurby

AND Fix It Again Tomorrow! LOL

Steer clear of FIAT (no pun intended!)

If you want a reliable second hand diesel estate, you want to be looking at older Golf's, say around the S / T reg, with the 90hp TDI engine in them. Will go on FOREVER!

Also generally, the French diesels are OK too - say a Citroen ZX estate - again 90hp TD engine - not a bad motor at all.

JimArnold

head gasket can affect MOT - remember there is an emmissions test

Head gasket replacements can be pricey but most cars these days require a timing belt change at 50kish anyway and the cost of both shouldn't be any higher.

If the belt is due soon I'd go for it esp if I could get him down another £100 or so.

Do you have any independant Fiat mechanis in your area?

vansboy

Don't start off with a faulty car - you'll be forever spending!!!

& a cheap diesel - it doesn't exist!!!

Are you REALLY doing enough miles to need diesel? Plenty of petrol alternatives once you start looking!

VB

welf_man

Thanks for the info., folks. We left the Fiat, and just missed a nice VW Passat today. My husband has a Citroen Xsara, and we're thinking of getting the estate version for me and the dogs (matching cars - aahh, bless!).

Just hope we can find something this weekend or I'll have to spend money on the Matiz, which would be a pain.

And vansboy - I'm not convinced about a diesel, but my husband is determined, and it's mostly his money buying it! I'm doing York-Glasgow and back twice a month for the forseeable future - 12,000 plus a year.

Mel.

vansboy

& with just 12,000 you'll be under the 15,000miles industry, average calculation, that starts to favour diesel!!

VB