Fiat motorhomes

[tyreman]

I`ve got an 08 peugot based 2.2 5 speed and have had no troubles but still have onlk 5k on the clock,i bought my van knowing the issue with water in the engine bay and possible judder so opted for a 5 speeder where the fault is not so common,would i buy another.....YUP,drives superbly,returns just over 30 mpg.......a lot of vehicles have their faults,nissans have weak gearboxes,renaults have dreadful electrical problems,bmw 1 series eat abs pumps,you pays your money and takes your chance

[Mel B]

jhorsf - If you would like to do a 'trawl' of the internet you can find quite a few forums where people state they have the juddergate problems specifically with the 3 litre and/or the 3L automatic ...

 

If I could get this forum's bl**dy useless search facility to work too, I'm sure there are threads on here as well where people relay problems - but there's no way I'm trailing through goodness knows how may pages to find them 'manually' ... I'd end up with a case of the cross-eyed judders!!!

 

Many think that the Fiat base is great for motorhomes in general, lots of owners think it's brilliant and a dream to drive ... BUT there are REAL problems with the gearboxes/reversing of these vehicles, that cannot be denied.

 

As for the cost - it appears that some people are only upgrading to the 3 litre automatic to try to avoid the judder problems, the difficulty is that there is no guarantee of that and it is a VERY expensive way to gamble - I seem to recall it costs something like £3k+ to upgrade to the bigger engine and the comfortmatic gearbox.

 

 

[Airstream]

Hi,

One aspect on the base - Ford Transit voted UK's most relaible LCV 3rd year running, parts and service costs a fraction of Fiats - and you can actualy get the parts, and in my opinion rear wheel drive is the way to go

Look at Autosleeper Eton as a good example

Regards Ray

 

PS one point is if you intend long term use over in Europe all UK manufacturers warranty ends at your port of departure there is just no UK dealer support over there, but most Euro makes have UK support

 

PPS I have a Fiat based UK motorhome so no axe to grind

[colin]

Mike88 - 2010-03-13 7:33 PM

 

I thought all new Fiat had DMFs and not just the 3 litre.

 

No just the 3l

[Mike88]

Mel Where is the forum with problems relating to the 3 litre automatic? I am genuinely interested.

 

I have found plenty of posts on MHF and here on the 3 litre manual but only about two heresay posts about the auto. By that I mean there is not a single post from an owner of the 3 litre auto reporting a problem but plenty from satisfied owners of the auto.

[jhorsf]

jhorsf - 2010-03-14 6:19 PM

 

Mel B - 2010-03-12 11:25 PM

 

Some say the Fiat X250 3 litre automatic is fine, but there have been some problems with them too, and it is a very expensive way to try to get a base vehicle that does what it should if you don't need an automatic!

 

 

 

 

MelB how do you justify your above statement?Are you aware of some problems with the 3 litre auto that everyone should know about? are you in receipt of facts? if so I would be most interested to hear them as of yet I have not found 1 person that actually OWNS a comfortmatic that does not think it is the best driving van available ,so please tell all

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MelB you stated that the auto has problems now you are saying either the 3 litre man or auto ,this was not what you said , and therefore ask again how do you KNOW the comfortmatic has problems you either have proof or you do not, and are repeating tittle tattle from other people who do not OWN or have never even driven one much I suspect like yourself.If you can show me the proof on here I will be the first to apologise to you for being abrupt with you, but I find your statement annoying when I can see no grain of truth that the auto has problems and your posting must cause considerable worry and anxiety to the people who have one on order. I await your reply with interest.

[Rayjsj]

mel wood - 2010-03-13 6:34 PM

 

 

 

The Peugeot Boxer IS NOT THE SAME AS THE FIAT VERSION but is very similar.

 

 

 

Mel,

I accept that you are pleased with your van but just how differant from a Fiat Ducato do you believe it is ? considering that it is made on the Same assembly line as the Fiat Ducato and the Citroen Jumper.

It's a bit like saying that a Vauxhall Astra is differant from an Opel, both made in Ellesmere Port, and slight differances , Badges/LH Drive/ daytime running lights. But a differant vehicle No.

Badge engineering has been around for a long time remember Riley/Wolseley/Morris/Austin ? 'we' all thought 'Riley's'? were best, but they all came off the same assy. lines. A sad fact of modern engineering.

Ray

[AliB]

Mel B - 2010-03-14 7:11 PM

 

Many think that the Fiat base is great for motorhomes in general, lots of owners think it's brilliant and a dream to drive ... BUT there are REAL problems with the gearboxes/reversing of these vehicles, that cannot be denied.

And there are real fixes that cannot be denied. Speaking from experience of owning a 2.3L

[jhorsf]

As I thought MelB you were repeating things and adding on your own bit, the comfortmatic to my knowledge has no problems with the gearbox judder as if you speak to people who actually know what they are talking about ie,the owners and drivers they will tell you your talking out of your @rse

[Mike88]

It's really annoying when people repeat what they MIGHT have heard or read as if it was fact.

 

There are several people, including myself, who have bought a Comfortmatic and find sweeping statements by non owners decrying particular aspects of a vehicle on the basis of heresay to be extremely unhelpful and frankly mischievous for whatever reason. They might get a kick out of it but I certainly do not.

 

One poster a while back had heard of a problem with a Comfortmatic and glorified in telling us all about it. When asked for the evidence he said he could not supply details for confidential reasons clearly suggesting to me that he had made the whole thing up.

 

Unless Mel responds with some facts we can only conclude that he/she was incorrect. But if the references she has alluded to can be supplied then I might take his/her claims more seriously.

 

 

[Mel B]

Below is the relevant parts of what I ACTUALLY said in my postings:

 

Some say the Fiat X250 3 litre automatic is fine, but there have been some problems with them too, and it is a very expensive way to try to get a base vehicle that does what it should if you don't need an automatic!

 

and

 

jhorsf - If you would like to do a 'trawl' of the internet you can find quite a few forums where people state they have the juddergate problems specifically with the 3 litre and/or the 3L automatic ...

 

There are problems with the 3 litre engines in that the manual ones can 'eat' clutchs, there is plenty of info out there on the various forums about this from actual OWNERS who have had to pay for the replacement clutchs out of their own pockets.

 

This poor chap had a hell of a time in Morocco with his 3L automatic:

 

http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/fiat/12200-3-litre-auto-ducato-manual-gearbox-electronic-clutch.html

 

What I did NOT say was that the problem with the 3 litre automatic judder was specifically when reversing ... the judder can be evident going forwards which I would suggest is rather more of a worry.

 

 

Next one ...

 

Many think that the Fiat base is great for motorhomes in general, lots of owners think it's brilliant and a dream to drive ... BUT there are REAL problems with the gearboxes/reversing of these vehicles, that cannot be denied.

 

The above was a general comment about Fiat based motorhomes on the whole, I did not specify it was the 3L automatic. There is simply no way to tell if you're got a judderer until you need to 'test' it out, also, there is no guarantee of what the long term problems are going to be. There are instances on the forums of people who have a Fiat where the judder has developed later in their ownership, rather than them being aware of it from the start, whether this is because they didn't have the right 'conditions' to incur the judder initially only they can know.

 

As for the cost - it appears that some people are only upgrading to the 3 litre automatic to try to avoid the judder problems, the difficulty is that there is no guarantee of that and it is a VERY expensive way to gamble.

 

Can you guarantee that buying a 3 litre automatic will mean the owners will not have any judder/gearbox/clutch problems?

 

Just because you disagree and can't be bothered to do the research on the internet, doesn't mean that it's not out there.

 

Oh, and I suspect my a*se is prettier that yours, as for talking out of it, nope I don't do that, unless you include the odd f*rt. :D

 

However as you seem to think you know what 'talking out of your a*se' is, you must have first hand experience I assume. :-S

[jhorsf]

Mike88 DITTO I have a comfortmatic and am sick to death of this type of post where lies are told, I do not have a manual gearbox and have no comment on them but when posters put them all together because they know no better it is annoying an misleading,It would seem some get the rating of expert on here by passing comment on all they can whether they talk sense or complete crap

[Mel B]

Mike88 - 2010-03-15 6:58 PM

 

It's really annoying when people repeat what they MIGHT have heard or read as if it was fact.

 

There are several people, including myself, who have bought a Comfortmatic and find sweeping statements by non owners decrying particular aspects of a vehicle on the basis of heresay to be extremely unhelpful and frankly mischievous for whatever reason. They might get a kick out of it but I certainly do not.

 

One poster a while back had heard of a problem with a Comfortmatic and glorified in telling us all about it. When asked for the evidence he said he could not supply details for confidential reasons clearly suggesting to me that he had made the whole thing up.

 

Unless Mel responds with some facts we can only conclude that he/she was incorrect. But if the references she has alluded to can be supplied then I might take his/her claims more seriously.

 

 

Evening Mike88

 

My post just above this took quite a while to post and whilst I was writing it you 'sneaked' in and posted before I could get my response on there! :-D

 

I am very pleased that you have a 3L automatic that is trouble free, long may that continue, I just wish everyone who had a Fiat, in any derivative, was as lucky. :-S

[Rosbotham]

Rayjsj - 2010-03-14 11:36 PM

 

I accept that you are pleased with your van but just how differant from a Fiat Ducato do you believe it is ? considering that it is made on the Same assembly line as the Fiat Ducato and the Citroen Jumper.

It's a bit like saying that a Vauxhall Astra is differant from an Opel, both made in Ellesmere Port, and slight differances , Badges/LH Drive/ daytime running lights.

Ray

 

Not really. The 2.2 is a Ford engine, mated to a 5 speed box (not sure if Fiat or Peugeot origin). The differences go deeper than the badge (although I think if you bought a Fiat 2.2 it'd probably be identical in all but badge, most Fiats are the 2.3).

 

The 100BHP engines with this combination can and do judder, but it doesn't seem to occur at such frequency as the 2.3/6 speed combination. That could be down to differences in the engine, or could be because this combination tends to be used for lighter vans, no-one seems too clear.

 

Incidentally I *thought* the 2.3 had a DMF, but 2.2 doesn't. Can't find the origin of where I got that from though.

 

Paul

[Mel B]

jhorsf - 2010-03-15 7:15 PM

 

Mike88 DITTO I have a comfortmatic and am sick to death of this type of post where lies are told, I do not have a manual gearbox and have no comment on them but when posters put them all together because they know no better it is annoying an misleading,It would seem some get the rating of expert on here by passing comment on all they can whether they talk sense or complete crap

 

Evening Jhorsf

 

I have taken the trouble and quite a bit of time to answer your queries, now, I would be MOST grateful if you would apologies for implying that I am a liar!

 

As for being an classed as an 'expert', that is purely down to the way that the forum is set up, I have not set that 'title' for myself, if you have a problem with the titles that the forum automatically assigns perhaps you should take it up with the forum's owners.

 

As I've just said to Mike, I'm pleased you also have a 3L automatic without problems, again, long may that be the case.

[Mel B]

AliB - 2010-03-15 8:53 AM

 

Mel B - 2010-03-14 7:11 PM

 

Many think that the Fiat base is great for motorhomes in general, lots of owners think it's brilliant and a dream to drive ... BUT there are REAL problems with the gearboxes/reversing of these vehicles, that cannot be denied.

And there are real fixes that cannot be denied. Speaking from experience of owning a 2.3L

 

Totally agree with you AliB, unfortunately though not all of them work as some owners still experience problems even with the fixes.

 

The problem with all of this is that it is still a bit of a lottery. If people choose to have a Fiat/Peugoe/Citroen base they should be aware that there is a possiblity, no matter how big or small, that there could be issues with the vehicles so that they can ensure that any fix is done. I just wish there wasn't a need in the first place and everyone could just enjoy their motorhomes without worry or inconvenience. :-)

[jhorsf]

MelB I ask yet again tell me someone who has a problem with the auto which you said has problems you cannot you are incorrect in the statement you made and will now resort to your usual changing the subject or denying what you said which was quite clear

 

quote

 

Some say the Fiat X250 3 litre automatic is fine,

but there have been some problems with them too,

and it is a very expensive way to try to get a base vehicle that does what it should if you don't need an automatic

 

 

What I did NOT say was that the problem with the 3 litre automatic judder was specifically when reversing ... the judder can be evident going forwards which I would suggest is rather more of a worry.

 

 

 

 

 

 

you made up the **FACT** that there have been problems with the auto if not tell me where this great font of knowledge came from, I suspect you cant so will now deny ever saying the above quote or resort to being abusive instead.What you may not realise is as I pointed out before people tend to believe what they read on here and your misinformation is very damaging to people who have ordered a van with auto option and the people who lose there jobs when conveters cannot sell autos .I have no beef with you personally MelB but get annoyed for the above reasons

[Guest Tracker]

If you disagree with a posting at least have the decency to word your reply with courtesy.

 

It has been very peaceful here of late with everyone feeling free to air their views without fear of being shot down to try and help others.

 

We all get it wrong from time to time, not that I am suggesting that anyone has got it wrong on this thread - I don't know as I don't have and never will have one of these wretched Sevel X250s - but that does not excuse bad manners.

 

[jhorsf]

I wondered how long it would be till big ears popped up. I will apologise if MelB thought I was implying that they were telling lies I thought it was clear I said they were telling lies .

[Mel B]

Jhorsf

 

If you can't be bothered to look for yourself, and you obviously can't, or won't, or don't know how to, do not try to insult me just because you dont' want to do the leg work. Whether you believe me or not is up to you, personally I don't give a jot. If you want to deny the problems, you can, I just hope you continue not to have any with your van.

 

Others who do know me know that I do NOT make things up and I certainly would not do so for something as important as this. Now I suggest you go and look as I have suggested and find the stuff - it is out there.

 

Have you even bothered to read the link I did put on?

[Guest Tracker]

jhorsf - 2010-03-15 8:03 PM

 

I wondered how long it would be till big ears popped up. I will apologise if MelB thought I was implying that they were telling lies I thought it was clear I said they were telling lies .

 

Do you think that response has helped anyone in any way?

[GypsyTom]

This is fun isn't it!

[jhorsf]

as i suspected you cannot provide any valid evidence of the problems you say you know about with the auto gearbox as there are non, that is why I did not imply but CALLED you a liar, you have already tried the pretend I meant the manual but that has not worked as

 

quote Melb

 

 

What I did NOT say was that the problem with the 3 litre automatic judder was specifically when reversing ... the judder can be evident going forwards which I would suggest is rather more of a worry.

 

 

 

is really clear to all

now you may not give a jot as you say because you have not spent money on one or got one on order and the reason you cannot be bothered to look for your ****facts**** is as i said you made it all up or repeated what you were told that was not true either way it does not make it the truth

[jhorsf]

Tracker - 2010-03-15 8:16 PM

 

jhorsf - 2010-03-15 8:03 PM

 

I wondered how long it would be till big ears popped up. I will apologise if MelB thought I was implying that they were telling lies I thought it was clear I said they were telling lies .

 

Do you think that response has helped anyone in any way?

 

 

as you have again poked your nose in i will answer yes i think people on here should be told the truth about the auto box not damaging misinformation

[emmbeedee]

jhorsf - 2010-03-15 8:32 PM

 

Tracker - 2010-03-15 8:16 PM

 

jhorsf - 2010-03-15 8:03 PM

 

I wondered how long it would be till big ears popped up. I will apologise if MelB thought I was implying that they were telling lies I thought it was clear I said they were telling lies .

 

Do you think that response has helped anyone in any way?

 

 

 

 

as you have again poked your nose in i will answer yes i think people on here should be told the truth about the auto box not damaging misinformation

 

 

Well I have to say that I do not know either you or Mel B personally, but you do come across as an extremely rude & ignorant fellow. I say "fellow" as I assume you are male.

In one of your earlier posts, you asked Mel B to provide evidence. She then posted a link to a couple who experienced extreme difficulties in Morocco. Was this not evidence in your eyes? Did you even bother to read it? No, you just continue to berate Mel.

I do not often post on this forum, although I do read it most days. With people as rude as you on here, no wonder the forum is losing popularity, as reported elsewhere. Personally, I feel your posts should be reported to the moderaters.

I can understand that having spent a considerable amount on a Fiat you are upset when others cast aspersions, but that does not excuse your offensive posts. Yes, as the Americans say, if you throw enough sh1t against a wall some of it is bound to stick, & that is certainly true of Fiat. Quite deservedly so, IMHO, the way Fiat have treated some of their users is totally disgusting. Which goes a long way to explaining why I don't have one & probably never will.