The 5 cylinder 20v version was superb with alloys , front fog lights, headlight washers and a moody body kit in metallic black one of the most underrated cars ever.
I am from Brazil and I LOVE this car! I have a Brava HGT 1.8 16v 2000, a Marea Weekend HLX 2.4 20v Automatic 2003 and a Marea HLX 2.4 20v Automatic 2005, completely originals and preserved. I think that these cars were one of the most beautiful Fiat ever made. The 5 cilynder sound is a synfony, is amazing. Only Who ever drove these cars, know the adrenalin. Unfortunatelly here in Brazil a lot of People says bshit about them because did not made the correct maintenance or used wrong motor Oil, but Who made it correctly, Just Love the Marea. I dream to add in my collection the Bravo MK1 that was not sold in Brazil. Marea is Love, Marea is Passion and deserves all the Best in its preservation. I simply Love these cars!
I am from Brazil too, and I can say the Marea was a car ahead of its time when it debuted here. Most mechanics didn't know how to do maintenance and most of them suffered negligence of their owners. Nowadays it is easier to do their maintenance than it was back in the day. Also the Inline-5 is music to ears.
Styling was more closer to the Brava/Bravo range than the Punto. Believed floor pan was extended version of same , which in itself was based on the original Tipo / Tempra from late 1980s / early 1990s, no shame in that it was a good basis to start. Soooo very underrated it was cruel, a far better car than many would believe, practical design , storming engines, the 5 cylinder particularly nice to drive behind if a little more expensive to service. But as you have made clear , where are they now , so rare on the road.
Here in Brazil, Fiat Mareas are still a somewhat, common sight here. I used to own a 2000 Fiat Marea HLX Weekend with standard alloys, sadly it was an automatic but I still enjoyed it very much. Nowadays I own a 1994 Fiat Tempra SW SLX 2.0 in "Bleu Winchester", lovely car, it has even a digital dash.
It makes a surprisingly good noise too. The 100 looks like the horsepower rather than the trim level. Good to see this beastie still in active service. Looks like Jim had fun taking it around Scotland too
The wife had the 155hp 20v 5 cyl. It was a terrific car! It sounded magnificent especially after the rear box fell off and was replaced by a bit of pipe which saw the car through for many years.
Amazed to see a Marea on this channel... Here in Italy it was popular in the weekend variant, but not so much the sedan. Obviously the majority of them with the 1.9 JTD 105hp. I also know that they made in Brazil the Marea Turbo with 185 hp😍
My grandma and my dad both had them, they were grate, don't know what happened to them all... the drop down bumper was extremely useful for dogs, as when loading your dog they are climbing on the rougher harder black plastic rather than on your paint, it's something worth baring in mind, it's one of those features that seems pointless till your using it.
I had a 1997 (P reg) Marea Saloon 1.8 back in 2004, bought it from the local auctions for £460 Inc fees (back when you could buy a 7yr old car from the auctions for less than £500!), bought it as I'd spent a fortune on my nice car and wanted a POS to drive so I didn't wreck my nice car. The Marea had a very tappy top end and juddery front brakes, but everything worked. Front brakes fixed themselves after a few spirited miles of driving, serviced it, absolutely hammered it for 20k miles, tapping never got worse from the engine, sold it a year later for £460 to some Latvians for export to Latvia (they were popular over there apparently). Pretty much a years free motoring. I did find some rust, where the sills and floors join, the underseal had trapped water and it was starting to rot all the way along. Some fibreglass and black underseal, good as new.
I had a 1.4brava as a first car. Had a very similar interior and definitely had to be driven like an Italian to make progress! Hopefully one will come up on the channel one day if any left !
@@furiousdriving the fact that it couldnt found a big audience is the sole reason you think it's a good car. most Mareas were nightmares on parts availability, I think that's the reason it dipped on tax 92% lately
I had a 100 16v ELX for 5 years and it was a great car, although not without it's faults. I bought it used and probably should have looked for a better example. But it drove nice and had so much space. The rear bumper was nice to sit on during a break and you could also drive it with the bumper open and the rear hatch closed, when carrying long timber or something. The top hatch had seperate locks on the side. Great video, guys 👍🏻😀
So nice to see you two being friends. I cansider all you lot myfriends, ‘cause I’ve spent so many nights in your company, you helped me out in difficult moments and I learnt to recognise your voice and style. Steph and TwinCam are also part of the group ❤
Have always thought that the Marea Weekend is just a great name for a car. There is a sense of freedom , pack your bags, load up and enjoy the weekend to it.
I learned to drive in a 1.8 115 ELX saloon, great car, especially when you are 17! You mention the Punto and then talk about it being a big car, it was simply the saloon and estate variant of the Bravo/Brava - the front end and interior was exactly the same (bar grille and light alterations). So it was really the Focus equivalent. The great thing about the saloon was that it looked big, but was hardly any heavier than the 5dr Brava, covered with L-plates it looked like it was going to be slow, however, the low gear ratios you mention meant there was always some punch left if you put your foot down. I would absolutely love one, it was comfortable and the engine was tractable (easily pull away in 4th!), they do have the flaw that the timing belt has half the life span that Fiat stated (as my parents discovered).
I looked at the sister car of this years ago as I wanted a Bravo HGT with they glorious 5 cylinder engine but ended up going for something equally as nice in the form of the very rare Citroen ZX 16v. Always liked the Marea - it has good proportions and looked so much more appealing than the dreadfully bland MK4 Astra and MK4 Golf estates.
I think it’s aged really well compared to other more expensive cars of the era. The designers actually put some effort into the dashboard instead of just an iPad.
Very nice to see two of my favorite presenters working together! Great work, gents. Thanks for featuring this Fiat - this is a model I hadn’t seen before. (Watching from the US.)
We had one as a family car when I was a kid, mechanically never gave in but rusted badly and we had to scrap it. Great cars, you almost never see them, we had a red one and you could easily identify it in any parking lot because there was nothing else like it. A nice example recently popped up for sale in my city but I am away in the US for two weeks, if it's still for sale after I come back I am pulling the trigger. It's not the 5 cyl, but it's got all the optional extras you could ask for minus the front fog lights and is in my opinion still worth keeping forever
In Brazil they're a little more common. Great cars, but need a proper mechanics to deal with it. For preparation the Fivetech is a beast, here people reach over 600 BHP from it.
I was based in Germany late 90s. A friend of mine bought one of these around 1998, with the 2l 5 cyl engine. From my distant memory, it fair shifted! He got it cheap too, Tax & Duty free and as it was from Fiat, he also got a NATO discount, saved a small fortune compared to the UK price.
Was one of the most reliable car i ever owned. Drove it for nearly 400k km with only one larger repair. Used it as a rv and it mastered every move....lots and lots of memories....
My dad used to own a marea saloon of the same year with also the 100-engine and ELX-trim. The engine, together with the ride quality was one of the strong points I felt and the car proved to be very reliable over a period of 15 years - never anything really wrong with it. Rustproofing of the chassis was bad though and eventually became the reason the car couldn't be used anymore, even though it usually was in a garage. But all in all: not bad for the cheapest car in its category back then. That exterior styling worked better with the smaller bravo and brava, though and those round shapes in the interior and "cheerful" 1990s fabric were never really to my taste.
I'm a retired piano tuner/technician. That fold down lower tailgate would be great when trying to load a heavy grand piano action to go home to my shop for reconditioning.
We had a green 100TDS turbo diesel in the luxurious ELX trim. Fantastic car: torquey, nice velours seats, a/c and electric windows. Tons of space and quite reliable! Stylingwise it holds up much better than other 90’s cars in my opinion.
Fiat marea - i had 3 of these in the '90s. First one as a company car. The fastest car I could get in my company care price band, then 2 more as they were great value 2nd hand, Mine was a 2 litre 5 cyclinder engine and drove very well .
Mareas were a lot more popular than you're giving them credit for. There was a big choice when we looked for a family car in 2005 and we bought a low mileage, one owner 99-V 115 ELX estate for £1700. Kept it 5 years, drove superbly, decent load space and never a hint of trouble. That's lowering rear bumper is extremely handy , but obviously not French so Ian can't see the point. If it had an Alfa badge on , folk who would be banging on about how great a design it was etc , but it's a FIAT so it just gets the job done quietly and unlike Alfas keeps going with no dramas
@@martijnkosters9024 Traditionally, big & even medium sized Fiats have never done well outside Italy, so it made sense to concentrate on small ones. The 500 has been a big success, you cant drive for 60 seconds without seeing at least one 500 in most European cities, & many owners are repeat buyers, so I wouldn't call that a total fail for Fiat.
I think that little bit on the boot that drops down is to keep the rear of the car looking neat while providing a protective load lip maybe? Also a seating/perching area! Great review, I remember fitting a towbar to a brand new saloon version when I worked as a fitter. I remember driving it into the workshop and loving it! The estate is definitely my favourite though, especially if it had the 5 cylinder engine! I wish these weren't so rare. I can't understand why these didn't do well, they were and are lovely looking motors!
Had a Fiat Stilo Multiwagon diesel, lovely car, very well equipped, went well, had a split tailgate like an early Range Rover and now they're virtually extinct
That flat load entry would have been far better than the Skoda Felicia estate I had (just a stretched hatchback). It probably had similar crappy electrics to the Doblo that replaced said Felicia.
I rented a Fiat Punto some time in the 90's and remember a couple of the knobs on the dashboard coming off in my hand. Didn't leave me with a great impression of the build quality.
I had one of these in on test for a week when they were new and really liked it - it was top spec (as press cars always are) and finished in a lovely pale blue. So I was pretty miffed when I watched a neighbour opposite my digs drop all his kids off in his car, one evening, omit to close the doors and then reverse at speed, dragging said doors all the way down the side of my brand new press car from front to back. His little face dropped like a stone when I told him that his insurers would be dealing with Fiat GB and not the poverty-stricken twenty-something oik (me) who was driving it… 😆
I love fiat's but the 1.6 cost 636euro to tax in Ireland so that would have made them hard to sell here. My friend had a metallic brown one and it drove well, he drove it like an Italian 🙂👍🇮🇪
We had Mareas in Brazil. They're BOMBS. Specially the 2.4 liter 5 cylinder ones. Those were quite expensive to maintain and quite sensitive in regards to oil changes
I remember being picked up in one of these when I worked in a nightclub back in the 90's. Not the fastest thing with five doormen (every one over 20 stone) and a boot full of staff drinks in it. Of course since it was a company car Steve (the driver) didn't mind too much hammering it mercilessly which was lucky since we actually wanted to get there.
Watching this video thinking "I recognise these places...." you're on my old patch! Remember driving my old Bravo/Brava (the 5 door one, can never remember which was which and which the Marea was based on) round those lanes back in about 2000.
I remember back in the 90s thinking 16v was a game changer. Looking back I’m not sure it was. Always liked the Marea, can’t believe there’s so few of them now.
Our neighbours across the road had a 2.4JTD one of these when I was at college. By their accounts the drivetrain was great (but not as economical as you might think), but the interior (especially the loadbay) was typical Italian flakiness
I was one of those few that bought one (new) in HLX trim and it was a really nice car but it devalued hideously. Gave it away in the end because no-one would buy it - mostly because it needed £1000 worth of major service. The reason for buying it was that load space and lugging a race car around on a trailer with a full load of parts/tools/ wheels... the only thing it suffered from failure wise was the front wishbones
Ah yes the late 90s. The most popular engines in small hatches and estates was the humble 1.6 petrol. No turbo. 16 valves. They were fun to use because you had to rev them to get anywhere and even then a 1.9 litre turbo diesel Passat would shoot past you with your foot hard down! They were not quick. And that was in the hatch. Let alone an estate. They were always pretty buzzy at speed apart from the mark 1 focus which the press criticised as too long geared. Most would sit at 3500-4000rpm at 70 (35mpg), focus only 3000 (40mpg). My 1.6 Bora was 8 valve and thus didn't need as many revs to move, the focus mark 1 16 valve was fine until you loaded it up and then it would feel sluggish. Also got harsh at high revs. I've had a Mazda 3 which feels similar in gearing to your marea and sounds similar. Upgrading to a focus mark 2 1.8 showed that 1.8 was really a better fit for the size of these cars. Felt much perkier and under less stress so quieter. The modern equivalent is probably the 1.0 litre turbo 3 cylinder. These feel a lot punchier but also a lot more complex.
My parents very nearly bought a Fiat Merea in the 90s but in the end got a Mègane Classic instead :) which was the better car anyway. The Fiat was not that big but did had some great engines but it was no more a Mondeo competitor which is what Fiat tried to say it was. They had it makes all wrong. It was a Ford Escourt, Peugeot 306 and Renault Mègane competitor as it was the same size as them. Actually the Mègane Classic aka the saloon Mègane had a 510 litre boot which was bigger than the Merea's boot. I think the Merea might have been a little wider do but length and height wise they were both the same.
My ex wife had one as a company car back in the day. The weekend estate, same colour and spec.Extremely comfortable sears. But the accelerator was a nightmare, it seemed to push back against you. I like Ed it to arm wrestling with someone, only with your right foot. Such a pity as it ruined an otherwise good car. The company she worked for had three of these and all the reps said the same thing. Your example doesn’t have the original sound system. I can’t remember what was annoying about that. Something like the radio didn’t turn off when you took the key out of the ignition, you had to turn it off by the knob/button. But after all these years, can’t remember exactly. I just know there was something odd/annoying with it. I’ve always thought that You, Ian, Steph from I drive a Classic and Ed from twin cam would make a great quartet with your own tv show. Far better than those on actual tv.
The flat load flap I would say is a Tea shelf/seat, so you can sit and drink tea while your wife is trundling towards you with a full shopping trolley. Lol
Mr Furious seem even more excitable than even his usual high level in this video. Putting it at 0,75 speed, its still fast compared to most people. Perhaps the unicorn subject got something to do with it? And who can blame him, a very nice "set of wheels" indeed.
I would love to try the 5 cylinder version. Love the sound of a 5 pot and that would be a very interesting car. Certainly interesting and you can say that it's rarer than a Lamborghini urus. You'll stand out more!
Maybe you could review a Renault Mk1 Megane next preferably the saloon if you can find one if not then the hatchback. You should surely find one of them somewhere in the UK.
Lovely Engine, the ridiculously over square last development DOHC version of the Fiat 128 SOHC, it needs to be worked hard. I drove a fiat Bravo in southern Germany, 2000ft elevation, we are cold in winter. It had a temperature warning that was tested in Turin, when we got to +3°C a warning came up on the dashboard, it started to blink on start up, that worked down to -5°C when it suddenly stopped. At -15°C the temperature sensor went blank and at -20°C the rubber on the roof channels contracted too much and came out of it's mountings, and the winscreen rubber cracked, let water in and split the windscreen, beautiful car though, better than a VW. I worked for a fiat subsiduary and when my dad needed a new motor I had a 33% discount for family members and they did a special -£1500 offer on top of the 33%. So I took Dad to the dealer and it was, I seem to remember, £7700 for a brand new car back in 2000, (I remember he'd bought a Toyota for more in 1985). Dad drove it but couldn't find it within himself to buy the thing though, and ended up buying a superb end of production life Mondeo MkII for £10000. I think the Tempra downed the Marea, both models having being built in the Cassino playground. I remember on the day we were there they had a gleaming 'week after the release' Alfa Romeo 147 on their stand, I noticed that the side indicator hadn't been properly seated in the aperture in the wing, so (being a good employee) I pressed it lightly to make it sit right, at which point it sprung back out and fell on the floor in pieces, thankfully there was no salesman about, I walked away quietly humming The Song of the Italians.
Is this one as rare as mine? 😁 when I've put it back on the road it'll probably be the only Marea 130HLX 2.4jtd in the UK. I know of one other that's maybe going back on the road. Zero left right now, four on SORN. Mine is on my channel
@dylanpidge2284 Hey Dylan 👋 I was driving back home one evening and saw a Marea Weekend, when I got closer I realised it was a 130HLX like mine. Managed to contact the guy and he sent me some pics of it all stripped down for welding. I must see how it's getting on. Unbelievable that it was local to me though !
Nearly bought one of these used. Took it for a test drive but something wasn't right with that particular example, so I walked away. Nice looking cars though.
100 is the hp not the trim level... Theres hundreds of them still bubbling in Portugal... The front is the same as a Fiat Bravo/Brava...the most usual engine in Portugal is the 100 TD...diesel engine
The 5 cylinder 20v version was superb with alloys , front fog lights, headlight washers and a moody body kit in metallic black one of the most underrated cars ever.
Had one, sounded amazing
The black looked purple in some lights and I remember it having splitters just in front of the rear wheels
We still miss ours 🙁
I had one bravo 5cyl 20v back in 2002 sounded glorious
I am from Brazil and I LOVE this car!
I have a Brava HGT 1.8 16v 2000, a Marea Weekend HLX 2.4 20v Automatic 2003 and a Marea HLX 2.4 20v Automatic 2005, completely originals and preserved.
I think that these cars were one of the most beautiful Fiat ever made.
The 5 cilynder sound is a synfony, is amazing. Only Who ever drove these cars, know the adrenalin.
Unfortunatelly here in Brazil a lot of People says bshit about them because did not made the correct maintenance or used wrong motor Oil, but Who made it correctly, Just Love the Marea.
I dream to add in my collection the Bravo MK1 that was not sold in Brazil.
Marea is Love, Marea is Passion and deserves all the Best in its preservation.
I simply Love these cars!
I am from Brazil too, and I can say the Marea was a car ahead of its time when it debuted here. Most mechanics didn't know how to do maintenance and most of them suffered negligence of their owners.
Nowadays it is easier to do their maintenance than it was back in the day. Also the Inline-5 is music to ears.
I bought one, and loved it! Sadly no longer recorded on the DVLA database. I still have the boxed roof rack from it! RIP X556JEG.
I Have a 5 cylinder marea.
It's immaculate, never selling!
The great FIAT era Panda,Cinquecento,Tipo,Brava,Bravo and Marea and 20v Coupe and Barchetta.
I actually see a couple of Fiat Marea around my town whenever I go around, they stand out quite a lot, plus I've always loved estates.
Wow where do you live not seen one for years now!
Styling was more closer to the Brava/Bravo range than the Punto. Believed floor pan was extended version of same , which in itself was based on the original Tipo / Tempra from late 1980s / early 1990s, no shame in that it was a good basis to start. Soooo very underrated it was cruel, a far better car than many would believe, practical design , storming engines, the 5 cylinder particularly nice to drive behind if a little more expensive to service. But as you have made clear , where are they now , so rare on the road.
Here in Brazil, Fiat Mareas are still a somewhat, common sight here.
I used to own a 2000 Fiat Marea HLX Weekend with standard alloys, sadly it was an automatic but I still enjoyed it very much.
Nowadays I own a 1994 Fiat Tempra SW SLX 2.0 in "Bleu Winchester", lovely car, it has even a digital dash.
5:57 That button is actually for displaying the outside temperature on the odometer display.
Nice to see both of you together. Probably (together with Jayemm) my favourite petrol heads..
It makes a surprisingly good noise too. The 100 looks like the horsepower rather than the trim level. Good to see this beastie still in active service. Looks like Jim had fun taking it around Scotland too
The wife had the 155hp 20v 5 cyl. It was a terrific car! It sounded magnificent especially after the rear box fell off and was replaced by a bit of pipe which saw the car through for many years.
Amazed to see a Marea on this channel... Here in Italy it was popular in the weekend variant, but not so much the sedan. Obviously the majority of them with the 1.9 JTD 105hp. I also know that they made in Brazil the Marea Turbo with 185 hp😍
I own Marea weekend 1.9jtd 105hp. Car is tank. Even it is 23 yrs old car now and it has 400.000km its still so reliable car.
@@alwayssmile5382 the exact opposite of EVERY version of the Mareas we got in brazil, here its totally unreliable and hard to repair one of these
My grandma and my dad both had them, they were grate, don't know what happened to them all... the drop down bumper was extremely useful for dogs, as when loading your dog they are climbing on the rougher harder black plastic rather than on your paint, it's something worth baring in mind, it's one of those features that seems pointless till your using it.
I had a 1997 (P reg) Marea Saloon 1.8 back in 2004, bought it from the local auctions for £460 Inc fees (back when you could buy a 7yr old car from the auctions for less than £500!), bought it as I'd spent a fortune on my nice car and wanted a POS to drive so I didn't wreck my nice car. The Marea had a very tappy top end and juddery front brakes, but everything worked. Front brakes fixed themselves after a few spirited miles of driving, serviced it, absolutely hammered it for 20k miles, tapping never got worse from the engine, sold it a year later for £460 to some Latvians for export to Latvia (they were popular over there apparently). Pretty much a years free motoring.
I did find some rust, where the sills and floors join, the underseal had trapped water and it was starting to rot all the way along. Some fibreglass and black underseal, good as new.
Always liked the Bravo/Brava and Marea of this era, great little review Matt and Ian.
Good looking cars but never found a big audience here
I had a 1.4brava as a first car. Had a very similar interior and definitely had to be driven like an Italian to make progress! Hopefully one will come up on the channel one day if any left !
@@furiousdriving the fact that it couldnt found a big audience is the sole reason you think it's a good car. most Mareas were nightmares on parts availability, I think that's the reason it dipped on tax 92% lately
I remember when the Bravo/Brava came out, the styling was in my childhood mind ridiculously futuristic. Those back lights!
@@furiousdriving loved the Bravo
I had a 100 16v ELX for 5 years and it was a great car, although not without it's faults. I bought it used and probably should have looked for a better example. But it drove nice and had so much space. The rear bumper was nice to sit on during a break and you could also drive it with the bumper open and the rear hatch closed, when carrying long timber or something. The top hatch had seperate locks on the side. Great video, guys 👍🏻😀
So nice to see you two being friends. I cansider all you lot myfriends, ‘cause I’ve spent so many nights in your company, you helped me out in difficult moments and I learnt to recognise your voice and style. Steph and TwinCam are also part of the group ❤
Have always thought that the Marea Weekend is just a great name for a car. There is a sense of freedom , pack your bags, load up and enjoy the weekend to it.
I learned to drive in a 1.8 115 ELX saloon, great car, especially when you are 17! You mention the Punto and then talk about it being a big car, it was simply the saloon and estate variant of the Bravo/Brava - the front end and interior was exactly the same (bar grille and light alterations). So it was really the Focus equivalent. The great thing about the saloon was that it looked big, but was hardly any heavier than the 5dr Brava, covered with L-plates it looked like it was going to be slow, however, the low gear ratios you mention meant there was always some punch left if you put your foot down.
I would absolutely love one, it was comfortable and the engine was tractable (easily pull away in 4th!), they do have the flaw that the timing belt has half the life span that Fiat stated (as my parents discovered).
I looked at the sister car of this years ago as I wanted a Bravo HGT with they glorious 5 cylinder engine but ended up going for something equally as nice in the form of the very rare Citroen ZX 16v.
Always liked the Marea - it has good proportions and looked so much more appealing than the dreadfully bland MK4 Astra and MK4 Golf estates.
I miss my Brava 100 16v HSX. Basically the hatch of this. Same age and everything.
Lovely car to drive.
Definitely liked being ragged that engine. :)
8:25 we had the ELX trim and the electric mirror adjustment controls were indeed near the handbrake
I think it’s aged really well compared to other more expensive cars of the era. The designers actually put some effort into the dashboard instead of just an iPad.
Very nice to see two of my favorite presenters working together! Great work, gents. Thanks for featuring this Fiat - this is a model I hadn’t seen before. (Watching from the US.)
We had one as a family car when I was a kid, mechanically never gave in but rusted badly and we had to scrap it. Great cars, you almost never see them, we had a red one and you could easily identify it in any parking lot because there was nothing else like it. A nice example recently popped up for sale in my city but I am away in the US for two weeks, if it's still for sale after I come back I am pulling the trigger. It's not the 5 cyl, but it's got all the optional extras you could ask for minus the front fog lights and is in my opinion still worth keeping forever
In Brazil they're a little more common. Great cars, but need a proper mechanics to deal with it. For preparation the Fivetech is a beast, here people reach over 600 BHP from it.
I was based in Germany late 90s. A friend of mine bought one of these around 1998, with the 2l 5 cyl engine. From my distant memory, it fair shifted! He got it cheap too, Tax & Duty free and as it was from Fiat, he also got a NATO discount, saved a small fortune compared to the UK price.
Was one of the most reliable car i ever owned.
Drove it for nearly 400k km with only one larger repair.
Used it as a rv and it mastered every move....lots and lots of memories....
I had the Bravo Elx . Same styling and mirrors. I loved it and it was very reliable.
What engine did you have ?
@@julienbee3467 1600
I drove a pale green Weekend with huge alloy wheels back in 2002. Nice car back then.
I had a 1.8 saloon back in the day. It went really well.
Yes that was the ideal engine for the car, but the 5-cyl was something else !
My dad used to own a marea saloon of the same year with also the 100-engine and ELX-trim. The engine, together with the ride quality was one of the strong points I felt and the car proved to be very reliable over a period of 15 years - never anything really wrong with it. Rustproofing of the chassis was bad though and eventually became the reason the car couldn't be used anymore, even though it usually was in a garage. But all in all: not bad for the cheapest car in its category back then. That exterior styling worked better with the smaller bravo and brava, though and those round shapes in the interior and "cheerful" 1990s fabric were never really to my taste.
Everything built about then seemed to rust badly. Not sure if that was down to switching to more environmentally friendly paints.
I'm a retired piano tuner/technician. That fold down lower tailgate would be great when trying to load a heavy grand piano action to go home to my shop for reconditioning.
The 2.4jtd had 200lbft torque. Noisy but fairly pokey.
We had a green 100TDS turbo diesel in the luxurious ELX trim. Fantastic car: torquey, nice velours seats, a/c and electric windows. Tons of space and quite reliable! Stylingwise it holds up much better than other 90’s cars in my opinion.
Fiat marea - i had 3 of these in the '90s. First one as a company car. The fastest car I could get in my company care price band, then 2 more as they were great value 2nd hand, Mine was a 2 litre 5 cyclinder engine and drove very well .
You two should review more cars together! Fun to watch and great car.
It would be fun, we need to live nearer!
Mareas were a lot more popular than you're giving them credit for. There was a big choice when we looked for a family car in 2005 and we bought a low mileage, one owner 99-V 115 ELX estate for £1700.
Kept it 5 years, drove superbly, decent load space and never a hint of trouble.
That's lowering rear bumper is extremely handy , but obviously not French so Ian can't see the point.
If it had an Alfa badge on , folk who would be banging on about how great a design it was etc , but it's a FIAT so it just gets the job done quietly and unlike Alfas keeps going with no dramas
The further you go back in time , the more you realize how far FIAT has fallen...
someone has a lot to answer for.
Why do you say that?
@@MrPabsUk The new Tipo, the lack of Punto, the endless 500s on a 15 year old base
That someone would be Sergio Marchionne, RIP after he almost inflicted that fate on the Fiat group ...
@@martijnkosters9024 Traditionally, big & even medium sized Fiats have never done well outside Italy, so it made sense to concentrate on small ones. The 500 has been a big success, you cant drive for 60 seconds without seeing at least one 500 in most European cities, & many owners are repeat buyers, so I wouldn't call that a total fail for Fiat.
True, Peugeot, Citroën and Renault as well.
I think that little bit on the boot that drops down is to keep the rear of the car looking neat while providing a protective load lip maybe? Also a seating/perching area!
Great review, I remember fitting a towbar to a brand new saloon version when I worked as a fitter.
I remember driving it into the workshop and loving it! The estate is definitely my favourite though, especially if it had the 5 cylinder engine! I wish these weren't so rare. I can't understand why these didn't do well, they were and are lovely looking motors!
They were up against the Ford focus that came out in 1998 and the estate by 1999
Had a Fiat Stilo Multiwagon diesel, lovely car, very well equipped, went well, had a split tailgate like an early Range Rover and now they're virtually extinct
Chanced into a 20v weekend as a hire car back in the day, great sound
That flat load entry would have been far better than the Skoda Felicia estate I had (just a stretched hatchback). It probably had similar crappy electrics to the Doblo that replaced said Felicia.
Just love your reviews so honest and down to earth 😊
Isn't 100 the horse power?
My dad's Punto was a lowly 45, one of my primary school teachers had a maera weekend, a top spec one in silver
It is
Saw this at FOTU 2023, we were the only other Marea (blue saloon 20v)
We had one for around 3 years, same engine in a saloon, it was good fun to drive, after our 1.0 uno it felt like a spaceship
Loved the collab. Interesting car!
I rented a Fiat Punto some time in the 90's and remember a couple of the knobs on the dashboard coming off in my hand. Didn't leave me with a great impression of the build quality.
Was drunkenly using up my 10 offers on this on ebay last night
I had one of these in on test for a week when they were new and really liked it - it was top spec (as press cars always are) and finished in a lovely pale blue. So I was pretty miffed when I watched a neighbour opposite my digs drop all his kids off in his car, one evening, omit to close the doors and then reverse at speed, dragging said doors all the way down the side of my brand new press car from front to back. His little face dropped like a stone when I told him that his insurers would be dealing with Fiat GB and not the poverty-stricken twenty-something oik (me) who was driving it… 😆
I love it when videos cross over
I love fiat's but the 1.6 cost 636euro to tax in Ireland so that would have made them hard to sell here. My friend had a metallic brown one and it drove well, he drove it like an Italian 🙂👍🇮🇪
We had Mareas in Brazil. They're BOMBS. Specially the 2.4 liter 5 cylinder ones. Those were quite expensive to maintain and quite sensitive in regards to oil changes
I do like the boot entry it’s probably why there’s none around now because the carrying bricks and pallets 😂
I remember being picked up in one of these when I worked in a nightclub back in the 90's. Not the fastest thing with five doormen (every one over 20 stone) and a boot full of staff drinks in it.
Of course since it was a company car Steve (the driver) didn't mind too much hammering it mercilessly which was lucky since we actually wanted to get there.
Watching this video thinking "I recognise these places...." you're on my old patch! Remember driving my old Bravo/Brava (the 5 door one, can never remember which was which and which the Marea was based on) round those lanes back in about 2000.
I remember back in the 90s thinking 16v was a game changer. Looking back I’m not sure it was. Always liked the Marea, can’t believe there’s so few of them now.
Our neighbours across the road had a 2.4JTD one of these when I was at college. By their accounts the drivetrain was great (but not as economical as you might think), but the interior (especially the loadbay) was typical Italian flakiness
I was one of those few that bought one (new) in HLX trim and it was a really nice car but it devalued hideously. Gave it away in the end because no-one would buy it - mostly because it needed £1000 worth of major service. The reason for buying it was that load space and lugging a race car around on a trailer with a full load of parts/tools/ wheels... the only thing it suffered from failure wise was the front wishbones
The joys of older cars having the mirror adjusters on each door. Pain in the backside for adjusting the passenger mirror
If you rented a car in Greece, Spain, Cyprus, in the late 90's, chances are good it would be a Marea. They've now disappeared over there too.
Had a 2.4 diesel. Great car.
These are still everyhwere in eastern europe i cant imagine this being an ultra rare car...
Ah yes the late 90s. The most popular engines in small hatches and estates was the humble 1.6 petrol. No turbo. 16 valves. They were fun to use because you had to rev them to get anywhere and even then a 1.9 litre turbo diesel Passat would shoot past you with your foot hard down! They were not quick. And that was in the hatch. Let alone an estate. They were always pretty buzzy at speed apart from the mark 1 focus which the press criticised as too long geared. Most would sit at 3500-4000rpm at 70 (35mpg), focus only 3000 (40mpg). My 1.6 Bora was 8 valve and thus didn't need as many revs to move, the focus mark 1 16 valve was fine until you loaded it up and then it would feel sluggish. Also got harsh at high revs. I've had a Mazda 3 which feels similar in gearing to your marea and sounds similar. Upgrading to a focus mark 2 1.8 showed that 1.8 was really a better fit for the size of these cars. Felt much perkier and under less stress so quieter. The modern equivalent is probably the 1.0 litre turbo 3 cylinder. These feel a lot punchier but also a lot more complex.
I saw one of these in Sheffield in silver about 2 or 3 years ago. I checked the reg out recently, and it's tax and mot status is all expired.
I like the action’s of the co driver thanks for the video lads greetings from Scotland 🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧
Btw, 100 isn't a trim level, but an indicator for approx. 100HP 1,6 engine.
Brilliant car good work horse I got one in white in bits at back of my workshop had car from new took car off road back in 2013 were just sits
Back in the early 00's I actually wanted one :)
Another combined road test on the same car good one
My parents very nearly bought a Fiat Merea in the 90s but in the end got a Mègane Classic instead :) which was the better car anyway. The Fiat was not that big but did had some great engines but it was no more a Mondeo competitor which is what Fiat tried to say it was. They had it makes all wrong. It was a Ford Escourt, Peugeot 306 and Renault Mègane competitor as it was the same size as them. Actually the Mègane Classic aka the saloon Mègane had a 510 litre boot which was bigger than the Merea's boot. I think the Merea might have been a little wider do but length and height wise they were both the same.
My ex wife had one as a company car back in the day. The weekend estate, same colour and spec.Extremely comfortable sears. But the accelerator was a nightmare, it seemed to push back against you. I like Ed it to arm wrestling with someone, only with your right foot. Such a pity as it ruined an otherwise good car. The company she worked for had three of these and all the reps said the same thing. Your example doesn’t have the original sound system. I can’t remember what was annoying about that. Something like the radio didn’t turn off when you took the key out of the ignition, you had to turn it off by the knob/button. But after all these years, can’t remember exactly. I just know there was something odd/annoying with it.
I’ve always thought that You, Ian, Steph from I drive a Classic and Ed from twin cam would make a great quartet with your own tv show. Far better than those on actual tv.
The flat load flap I would say is a Tea shelf/seat, so you can sit and drink tea while your wife is trundling towards you with a full shopping trolley. Lol
Mr Furious seem even more excitable than even his usual high level in this video. Putting it at 0,75 speed, its still fast compared to most people. Perhaps the unicorn subject got something to do with it? And who can blame him, a very nice "set of wheels" indeed.
More collaborations between you to please.....my two favourite car youtubers
you would probably need to comapre mirrors sizes with a 106 for thay claim!
Used to see a few when they were new but can't remember last time I seen one
The flap at the back is to stop things rolling out if they have moved during driving
Brown was the right colour choice
Great car!
We had a white one when I worked for Avis car rental that even had leather seats!
For best results: 3rd gear pulls all the way to redline. Will surprise you just how much it can pull
I would love to try the 5 cylinder version. Love the sound of a 5 pot and that would be a very interesting car. Certainly interesting and you can say that it's rarer than a Lamborghini urus. You'll stand out more!
I Have a 5 cylinder marea.
It's immaculate, never selling!
You have to disassemble the whole front just to change the belt... But it's a great car.
Nice lovely Fiat Car the Marea i would definitely have as Saloon in Petrol & Turbo Diesel
Haven't seen one of these on the road for years.
Maybe you could review a Renault Mk1 Megane next preferably the saloon if you can find one if not then the hatchback. You should surely find one of them somewhere in the UK.
I would believe that the flat boot is partially for people to sit and have a picnic at the back for the car
Lovely Engine, the ridiculously over square last development DOHC version of the Fiat 128 SOHC, it needs to be worked hard. I drove a fiat Bravo in southern Germany, 2000ft elevation, we are cold in winter. It had a temperature warning that was tested in Turin, when we got to +3°C a warning came up on the dashboard, it started to blink on start up, that worked down to -5°C when it suddenly stopped. At -15°C the temperature sensor went blank and at -20°C the rubber on the roof channels contracted too much and came out of it's mountings, and the winscreen rubber cracked, let water in and split the windscreen, beautiful car though, better than a VW. I worked for a fiat subsiduary and when my dad needed a new motor I had a 33% discount for family members and they did a special -£1500 offer on top of the 33%. So I took Dad to the dealer and it was, I seem to remember, £7700 for a brand new car back in 2000, (I remember he'd bought a Toyota for more in 1985). Dad drove it but couldn't find it within himself to buy the thing though, and ended up buying a superb end of production life Mondeo MkII for £10000. I think the Tempra downed the Marea, both models having being built in the Cassino playground. I remember on the day we were there they had a gleaming 'week after the release' Alfa Romeo 147 on their stand, I noticed that the side indicator hadn't been properly seated in the aperture in the wing, so (being a good employee) I pressed it lightly to make it sit right, at which point it sprung back out and fell on the floor in pieces, thankfully there was no salesman about, I walked away quietly humming The Song of the Italians.
Protects bumper
I had a 2001 Marea Weekend
Jim’s car?
Yup
Swapsies with the Merc, Matt? 😋👍
I considered offering the Rover!
Is this one as rare as mine? 😁 when I've put it back on the road it'll probably be the only Marea 130HLX 2.4jtd in the UK. I know of one other that's maybe going back on the road. Zero left right now, four on SORN. Mine is on my channel
Fancy seeing you here! cool!
What is that one other you mention?
@dylanpidge2284 Hey Dylan 👋 I was driving back home one evening and saw a Marea Weekend, when I got closer I realised it was a 130HLX like mine. Managed to contact the guy and he sent me some pics of it all stripped down for welding. I must see how it's getting on. Unbelievable that it was local to me though !
@@FullBoostJ4 Wow! cool!
Something for the Weekend sir?
Nearly bought one of these used. Took it for a test drive but something wasn't right with that particular example, so I walked away. Nice looking cars though.
100 is the hp not the trim level...
Theres hundreds of them still bubbling in Portugal...
The front is the same as a Fiat Bravo/Brava...the most usual engine in Portugal is the 100 TD...diesel engine
Can anyone tell me how much it costs to get one now?
£1500? Depends what the owner wants, as its about the only one left