Wow. That moment at 1:02 attempting to start the engine, without any prior context or mention of the starter problems - dead silence except for the pathetic noises of the failed start, and then the deadpan narration explaining the situation - including a "12 days of Christmas" -esque list of the necessary troubleshooting (which still didn't work.) Nobody could have written a more hilarious comedic satire of a car if they were trying to do so.
1:54 Wtaf? I’ve driven some cars whose wheel alignment was off but I’ve never seen anything like that. That’s a full quarter turn and on a brand new car no less.
I looked at a two door . It drove well but wires hanging down under the dashboard scared me on a brand new car. That the dealers didn't fix these problems before they allowed customers to see the cars is odd.
Well the term originated back then. Now they have no quality control issues and don't rust. Haven't had major issues for a decade that they've been back in America. Reality check for you
Bob Mayer would be great at poker or PR. This car makes the "haunted" 1979 Chrysler New Yorker and the hard-starting 1980 Chevrolet Citation look like paragons of quality in comparison. Although he had to be bailed out multiple times during his days of driving this Fiat, he never explicitly said that it was a terrible car that you should run away from.
Those were the dark days for Fiat. The amazing and successful little Uno of 1983 kept the company from going to the wall and in a few years, Fiat were back on its feet. Overseas, the Strada got an attractive facelift for '83 and spawned a Jetta-like sedan variant called the Regata. Quality was greatly improved. There was an Abarth version of the Strada that blew the doors off the Golf GTi.
Excellent and correct comment. It's a shame America never got to see the facelifted Strada and Regatta, Croma and Uno models. Waited 30 years for Fiat's return and now, of course, they make fine rust proof vehicles with the same high revving flair that all Fiats in the past had. That and they bought Chrysler too!
back in the early 90's my Uncle had a used car lot. I worked in sales while going to college. I had a lady want to trade in a Fiat similar to this one on a used Toyota Tercel. I remember my Uncle saying" I wouldn't take it on trade if she offered me money." Not surprisingly she said no one would take the car on a trade in and she didn't know what to do with it.
The Strada has to be one of the era’s worst examples of 5mph bumper conversions. The Euro spec model looked cute and tidy. This car, with its reliability and quality problems, had so many plastic filler panels to cover where the lights, grille, and bumpers were supposed to be, but regulations dictated that they had to shift. Ugh.
Disappointing final inspection by FIAT, re the steering wheel alignment. However it wasn't uncommon for batteries to die during export shipping. However, what is truly atrocious is the apparent complete lack of pre-delivery inspection and preparation by the Dealer. It's incredible these faults were not picked up before providing a test car to an evaluating News crew! Can you imagine a more unprofessional yet effective method to sabotage sales, and indeed damage the Brand you are 'trying' to sell?
man, no wonder they didn't sell that many of these in the USA. I doubt very many have survived, I don't recall seeing one of these cars in about 40 years, they have simply vanished
No, the Yugo was based on the Fiat 127 from 1971, this Strada was the US market version of the Fiat Ritmo, launched in 1978, one size class larger than the 127/Yugo
Fiats have always been known for being a poorly made joke car. They gave up selling them in the u.s. in the 80s. Go figure they would come back decades later and take over Chrysler.
Clearly the poor little Fiat didnt want to go out in the rain, because it knew it would start rusting almost immediately! What a cheap, flimsy car - so far out of its element in the USA, I can't believe they tried selling them here at all. Cheap, small, ugly, and unreliable are not good characteristics. The Strada is like the 5-door version of the Triumph TR7.
I barely remember seeing only a small handful of these cars even when they were brand new. What a POS !!!! No wonder FIAT pulled out of the US market. It's a shame that they really haven't improved much in 35 years. Quality is still below par. Let's see what STALANTIS will bring.
Millennials: "OMG! Where are the nav screens?! OMG! Where is the entertainment system?! OMG! Where's the Bluetooth icon?!" Gen X-er: "This car doesn't have any of those things. You just get in it and drive."
Had a 75 Fiat Coupe...unreliable as heck...Fiat keeps leaving and returning to the US, but it's never going to be relevant here again. I remember the Strada and most people thought it was a sad piece of junk btw.
Perfectly safe. It sits safely in your garage, on the back of a tow truck, or in the dealerships service department. If you can't drive it, you can't get in an accident.
Disgusting...there is no excuse for such crappy quality. $6000 could by a LOT of used car in 1979...I dunno - like an old Volvo, or a decent AMC Hornet was probably only $1000.
Wow. That moment at 1:02 attempting to start the engine, without any prior context or mention of the starter problems - dead silence except for the pathetic noises of the failed start, and then the deadpan narration explaining the situation - including a "12 days of Christmas" -esque list of the necessary troubleshooting (which still didn't work.) Nobody could have written a more hilarious comedic satire of a car if they were trying to do so.
1:54 Wtaf? I’ve driven some cars whose wheel alignment was off but I’ve never seen anything like that. That’s a full quarter turn and on a brand new car no less.
I looked at a two door . It drove well but wires hanging down under the dashboard scared me on a brand new car. That the dealers didn't fix these problems before they allowed customers to see the cars is odd.
Jesus, how did that make it out of the factory like that? Was the quality control guy sick that day???
Even back then FIAT still stood for FIX IT AGAIN TONY
Well the term originated back then. Now they have no quality control issues and don't rust. Haven't had major issues for a decade that they've been back in America. Reality check for you
@@624radicalham Except many of the models sold in the US under the Fiat name are still crap and not even made in Italy.
Bob Mayer would be great at poker or PR. This car makes the "haunted" 1979 Chrysler New Yorker and the hard-starting 1980 Chevrolet Citation look like paragons of quality in comparison. Although he had to be bailed out multiple times during his days of driving this Fiat, he never explicitly said that it was a terrible car that you should run away from.
You're correct, Jason. I never did that. I provided the facts and the viewer could decide what to DO with the facts :-)
@@thecardsaysmoops love your reviews!
Those were the dark days for Fiat. The amazing and successful little Uno of 1983 kept the company from going to the wall and in a few years, Fiat were back on its feet. Overseas, the Strada got an attractive facelift for '83 and spawned a Jetta-like sedan variant called the Regata. Quality was greatly improved. There was an Abarth version of the Strada that blew the doors off the Golf GTi.
Excellent and correct comment. It's a shame America never got to see the facelifted Strada and Regatta, Croma and Uno models. Waited 30 years for Fiat's return and now, of course, they make fine rust proof vehicles with the same high revving flair that all Fiats in the past had. That and they bought Chrysler too!
back in the early 90's my Uncle had a used car lot. I worked in sales while going to college. I had a lady want to trade in a Fiat similar to this one on a used Toyota Tercel. I remember my Uncle saying" I wouldn't take it on trade if she offered me money." Not surprisingly she said no one would take the car on a trade in and she didn't know what to do with it.
What is sad is this car probably didn't make it to 1989. Probably on a used car lot by 1984-1985. Probably got junked about 1987ish.
The Strada has to be one of the era’s worst examples of 5mph bumper conversions. The Euro spec model looked cute and tidy. This car, with its reliability and quality problems, had so many plastic filler panels to cover where the lights, grille, and bumpers were supposed to be, but regulations dictated that they had to shift. Ugh.
Disappointing final inspection by FIAT, re the steering wheel alignment. However it wasn't uncommon for batteries to die during export shipping.
However, what is truly atrocious is the apparent complete lack of pre-delivery inspection and preparation by the Dealer. It's incredible these faults were not picked up before providing a test car to an evaluating News crew! Can you imagine a more unprofessional yet effective method to sabotage sales, and indeed damage the Brand you are 'trying' to sell?
Glad my folks bought a 1979 Toyota Celica (and eventually passed it down to me). Trouble free for years.
Thank god for the camera crew!
man, no wonder they didn't sell that many of these in the USA. I doubt very many have survived, I don't recall seeing one of these cars in about 40 years, they have simply vanished
Pro: comfy seats, nice styling, handles well in the rain. Cons: CAR NO GO
There is a reason these disappeared from the roads quickly.
No wonder Fiat pulled out of the US market not long after….It wasn’t until 2009 when they came back with the 500.
2011
Worth watching Noel Edmond’s review, also on here. He absolutely hated it.
Noel Edmonds was a douchebag disc jockey on Radio Luxembourg. I don't know how that qualified him to critique cars.
Wasn't this car the basis for the Yugo?
No, the Yugo was based on the Fiat 127 from 1971, this Strada was the US market version of the Fiat Ritmo, launched in 1978, one size class larger than the 127/Yugo
Wow! They gave him a wrecked car to review.
Wow, my new pinto was $3439 just a year earlier. Air conditioning wasn't possible on the "pony" model. That seemed a lot of money for any fiat.
It wasn't offered?
No, the pinto pony was the base model -- four speed, sedan only, and no radio. Fewer people wanted air conditioning in 1979.
@@stevejohnson1321 How interesting, very bare bones. Thanks for the reply!
That extra money was for the Italian craftsmanship!
Fiat stands for “Fix It Again Tony”. That’s all you need to know. LOL.
Not anymore since they bought Chrysler in 2010
@@624radicalham Now they're even bigger crap than they were back then.
Someone should have at least drove it before handing it over to test personnel 🤦🏻♂️
Fiats have always been known for being a poorly made joke car. They gave up selling them in the u.s. in the 80s. Go figure they would come back decades later and take over Chrysler.
Clearly the poor little Fiat didnt want to go out in the rain, because it knew it would start rusting almost immediately! What a cheap, flimsy car - so far out of its element in the USA, I can't believe they tried selling them here at all. Cheap, small, ugly, and unreliable are not good characteristics. The Strada is like the 5-door version of the Triumph TR7.
Fiats still aren’t much better drive a 15 fiat 500 at work as a delivery car what a turd
Fix It An Thony
I barely remember seeing only a small handful of these cars even when they were brand new. What a POS !!!! No wonder FIAT pulled out of the US market. It's a shame that they really haven't improved much in 35 years. Quality is still below par. Let's see what STALANTIS will bring.
Quality is not any worse than any American car
Millennials: "OMG! Where are the nav screens?! OMG! Where is the entertainment system?! OMG! Where's the Bluetooth icon?!"
Gen X-er: "This car doesn't have any of those things. You just get in it and drive."
Had a 75 Fiat Coupe...unreliable as heck...Fiat keeps leaving and returning to the US, but it's never going to be relevant here again.
I remember the Strada and most people thought it was a sad piece of junk btw.
It's relevant when they own a huge American company called Chrysler lol
Bolchet
Sounds like a pretty unsafe car.
Perfectly safe. It sits safely in your garage, on the back of a tow truck, or in the dealerships service department. If you can't drive it, you can't get in an accident.
Fiat= fix it again tomorrow
Fiats were always such an undependable,and always felt so cheap
Bad car. Bad car.
Disgusting...there is no excuse for such crappy quality. $6000 could by a LOT of used car in 1979...I dunno - like an old Volvo, or a decent AMC Hornet was probably only $1000.