1998 Fiat Cinquecento Sporting review from UK and Ireland

This is a follow on review from an earlier one that I did, just to highlight a particular generic problem with this car, namely that the pivots on the levers operated by the handbrake cable tend to stiffen up, resulting in the handbrake either getting harder to pull on (because they have seized in the off position) or impossible to release leading to the rear wheels running hot (because the levers have seized in the 'on' position). In either case it is hardly any more difficult to fix this problem yourself than it is to change the rear brake shoes, but they will seize up again relatively soon.

You can get a new pair of levers from Fiat for under ten pounds, which may or may not extend the life of the repair. I'm about to try that myself.

Since my original review (headed 'Great Fun To Drive') I have also had the water pump spring a leak on me, and it had to be replaced.

I've also got a persistent problem with the rocker cover gasket leaking within a year even though it is replaced - the car is on the third one it's had and I'm basically getting them replaced F.O.C. every 11 months, one month before Fiat's parts warranty runs out. I've explained this to my dealer and have asked them whether there is not possibly some underlying problem like a warped rocker cover, but they seem content just to replace the gasket for me every 11 months.

My particular specimen possibly has non standard low, hard springs fitted (not by me) so that if I drive over a matchstick it feels like I've driven over a telegraph pole - this means that the wheel balance and alignment are absolutely critical for a smooth ride at speed and I have to have it set up pretty much every three months or so, and I normally have to take it back to get them to do a better job because they only seem to balance them up to within a few grammes or so the first time, even though I always state that they need to do a better than average job. I'd be interested to know whether other owners have or have not had problems with wheel balance (leading to steering wheel judder at higher speeds)

Still great fun to drive and with the big windows within arm's reach in every direction, it feels like you're sitting in an F-16's bubble cockpit giving great driver visibility.