New Member Advice

Hello All

I have just joined this forum as I am looking to buy a Fiat Coupe and join the club and get involved in all things Coop related!
I am currently looking at a few Coupe's and have read the very helpful buyers guide on the forum which has been invaluable to rule out no goers early on in the looking process.

I just wanted to clarify a point in the guide about the timing belt. If a car had the belt changed at 53,000 miles in 2016 and as of today has done 61,000 miles does the best still need replacing next year as per the 6 year suggestion? I just want to check the general rule of thumb is every 6 years and not dependant at all on how many miles it does since each change.

Finally if I wanted to put new brake discs and lines on a coupe would anyone have a rough ball park figure for that work? Is this a big/expensive job?

Thanks again to this forum as I was looking at one coupe which looked to be in great shape apart from a slight leak in the sunroof and a quick search on here brought up the thread on the sunroof issue which was very helpful. Did anyone ever find a solution to this through 3d printing or something?

Thanks

Jeremy

Hi welcome to the forum, I'm sure you'll get plenty of good advice here as we all are passionate about keeping coops on the road.
With regard to the cambelts it varies slightly from model to model the 16v more frequently than the 20v some say 30k for the 16v and 60k for the 20v, but it is not as simple as that the age of the belt is just as important, it's the first I'd do on a car. There are specialists on here who can do it with the engine in place not like Fiat recommend and much cheaper. You need to fins a specialist to advice and do the work.

Brake lines are ubiquitous and are made up by the garage so not difficult or particularly expensive, discs are available so not a game changer as some parts that are very difficult to get.

Not sure there has ever been a conclusion to the sunroof issues, I' ve never had one but from what I understand the frame tends to rust, T wondered whether a bigger aftermarket fitted into more solid surriunding metal might work.

Discs £70-80 on Ebay, maybe cheaper elsewhere. But bare in mind owning coop is never going to a cheap option, they need to be looked after and they are all 20yrs+.

Hi Jeremy, welcome to the forum

Good luck with your hunt for a coupé - keep your eye on the Marketplace section on here as well as the usual vending suspects. Bear in mind you need to have submitted 5 posts before you can send/receive PM's.

The sunroof glass has a bonded metal edge with a lip around which the exterior seal grips. It rusts over time, especially at the leading corners and front centre at the seal join. To my knowledge, although it's an issue for most owners, we don't have much progress to date in finding a solution unfortunately. Many sunroofs are now sealed shut as a result.

Due to the comparatively few numbers left I think a remanufacture would be extremely costly, however any further ideas are most welcome!

I'm based in Chesterfield so Turin Motors in Leeds and Italia tec ltd in Sutton in Ashfield are my nearest fiat specialists. I will be getting in touch with them to talk more about servicing. I will keep an eye out on the selling board here. As much as I would love to get a coop as soon as possible I am not going to rush it as I need to make sure I get a good one. May take some time.

Also just wondering is there a thread around where other members are based at all? Like if I was wanting to know which other forum members are near me etc. is there an existing thread or is it a case of starting a new post to see if there are any coupe owners near me?

Thanks

Many forum members state their location in the same spot you have used for your own. Some don't wish to broadcast it so you'll find alternatives such as

ocation
Corrider of Uncertainty (only understandable by a select cricket-loving few :D) or
Pistonheads

If someone is introducing themselves and keen to meet up with like-minded coupé folk then a post suggesting as much is probably as well seen in Coupé Related Chat. There are plenty of Yorkshire bods on here, I can tell you that

Hi I'm still looking to buy a coupe and I'm thinking of taking a look at this one which is based near Reading. I would be interested to get some opinions and first impressions. Would also be keen to know if there are any garages or coupe members that might have a look at the car with me

https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/231339859108600/

Hi, it looks nice. I´m not sure if 1999 model had black sideskirts and lower parts of bumper. Basically look for corrosioun under car, floor, front/rear subframe, behind rear wheels(this parts you should also check behind carpet in the trunk). Ask when was timing belt and fluids changed.

Can’t stress enough on the rust factor. As said, the Coop is getting on in years and there will always be some rust lurking under neath. Obviously you are going to get under and have a good look. The so called “Eiffel Towers” in each corner tend to be affected badly. Best of luck by the way. When you find your Coupe, remember to check the oil regularly.

PM sent to OP

PS: for Thefica's benefit, this means you have received a Personal Message, you should see an envelope icon next to your name at the top right of the page, click in that and you should see the message....

Hi Dave I have replied :-)