eBay Bargain: R699JWH

Hi guys,

Took a gamble on eBay with a Porto 20V Turbo listed as spares or repairs http://bit.ly/1b4FkNe

With the car only being 30miles away I decided to have a drive up and see it, speaking to the dealer he informed me that it had an immobiliser fault. Car would spin over fine but not fire up, no injector light or code light.

However there was no Red Key present or alarm fob which set alarm bells ringing, I quick investigation revealed a snapped bonnet cable and a very suspicious looking yellow connector of death.

Not wanting to fix the car and have the seller realist it as working condition I left and decided to take a gamble..

Long story short arrived to pick the car up tonight armed with an A-frame just incase the worst case scenario was true.

Money and paperwork exchanged, went outside and rejiggeled the Yellow connector
Car fired up straight away and promptly left before the angry salesman stoodby in disbelief became emotional!

The only downside is I have no history for the car, but having only had 2 owners from new, the last since 2002 coupled to the fact it is IMMACULATE and all the vital parts have been wax-oiled someone has looked after it.

Other than that the car has driven home fine, holds 3bar+ oil pressure on hot idle and is in much better condition than my existing P-reg Sprinty

If anyone knows any history on R699JWH (supplied new to Zenith Car Leasing) it would be much appreciated!

Now... I'm off to convince the other half to let me keep both Coupes... *ahem*

Nicely done, good skills

Brilliant!!!

3 bar at hot idle sounds amazing to me. You lucky sod.

Jealousy kicks in

Fair play though mate sounds like a bargain.

Hahaha, well done. Enjoy!

nice one! Looks in good condition.

Very well done.

Great effort there!

If in doubt with no history it'd be prudent to get the belts done. Otherwise enjoy!!

Ha ha! well done for getting one over on a dealer, it's good to redress the balance now and then. Make sure you give them a friendly wave whenever you drive past.

Great story, don't be bullied by your other half to get rid. When I've bought stuff back I just waited out the storm and said I've got it now too much hastle to get rid! Haha

Thanks for the comments guys, The other half is a bit of a car pervert too and thinks I should donate one of the coupes to her!

I suppose it would get me out of a Christmas present and it would still be sat on the drive

Sounds like a plan!

What's the yellow connector. Off
death

"Yellow connector of death" is the fuel pump earth and power feed. It is located to the right of the main fuse consol on the drivers side (R/H/D) About an 1" wide and 2" long.

I have submitted a freedom of information request to Fiat requiring full details of the fatalities and serious injuries caused by the so called " connector of death." I plan to share the article with the forum once published in the daily mail.


Yours sincerely

A concerned owner

PMSL

So it was you who snaggled it from me

To be honest, I missed the end time. I was going to have a punt at it as I had the same hunch as you but didn't want to send the seller a message mentioning it, just in case he did what you said he might of done, but hey ho I missed it anyway, you snooze you lose as they say

I was bidding on that aswell,made him an offer,if the buyer didn't come through etc

Nice one

Awesome work mate!! You make a valid point about gifting her the car. Depending upon how the finances work in your house, give her the one that needs the most work, and you can gladly take it out on regular test drives, but when that turbo dies...or doesnt...be sure she replaces it with a GTX

That would simply backfire on me, when she inevitably breaks something I'll still be expected to finance and carry out its repairs!

Well done on this, I looked and looked and was put off by the distance in the end.

Ahh, well still hats off to you sir!

That's a good tale. I hadn't bid but was very interested in this.

Does amaze me really. My green coupe was a cheap email steal. Owner mentioned that the engine was making a ticking noise, turbo had been replaced to try and cure it!!

Noise disappeared after idling for 10 minutes, suspected hydraulic tappet or manifold.

Was not even a cracked manifold. The manifold had not been tightened up properly to the head.

Like bargains like this, nice one.

As she stands as of today, now registered J7TKN

Bit of a thread resurrection but I've just spotted this on YouTube and then found this thread.

R699 JWH

£1000-£2000 estimate at https://wbandsons.com/listing/fiat-coupe-turbo/

Had a wee smile at the pins on the bonnet, haven’t seen that for a while, apart from the rally cars that actually need them .

No need with a metal bonnet but I do keep wondering about putting some on mine because the fibreglass one does bounce a little at motorway speeds when near other vehicles.

The ones on the Coupe were just for show

Got some rust under the arches plus some dents that need sorting. Are those seats that Nigel used to recommend from a Hyundai Coupe?