1.4 HDi L 3dr Hatchback

A fun car but can be a bit tricky to fix

I have the 1.4 HDi version of this which I bought as a c60k s/h one owner car from a so-called diesel specialist outside Dorking in Surrey who lied about warning lights on the dashboard. It was in good cond. and one owner but slightly behind book and I soon found out why. I took it to a small Autos garage in Epsom who turned out to be equally deadful mis-diagnosing the fault codes resulting in quite unnecessary work as well as possibly causing another fault. Needless to say both refused to return any money despite complaints to Surrey Trading Standards who are totally toothless these days. However I then found a much more helpful mechanic in Chessington who immediately got the right codes which turned out to be a fuel injector. He removed them and I tested them all at a diesel specialist and as this is such a complex job I got four recon ones from a specialist in Lancashire which were a much better deal and Mr Chessington (Ray) fitted them. Having done all this along with various other mileage related fixes which I tend to do anyway, this really is a great fun little car to drive with spectacular fuel economy and low tax. It has easily coped with trips all over the country and I'm hoping to get my money back The diesel is a great but complex engine and gives easy legal max cruising, is fairly quiet and gives good low down acceleration as it is such a tiny car. I think it handles nicely - a bit go-cart like like an old mini - but the steering really is much too light at speed. You accept the lack of space for the fun factor and the cheeky looks. In summary a fun little car and in diesel or larger petrol forms easily able to cope with long journeys. However, watch those fault codes and be aware that the diesel in particular is a complex and hence expensive car to work on because so much crammed under the tiny bonnet and getting at things, even just changing the oil, is not a trivial job. Plus don't buy one from a dodgy dealer or use a dodgy mechanic. Use people who are honest and know what they are doing.

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