What to look for - 159 JTS Ti

[AVC29]

Hi guys! I went and test drove a JTD Ti over the weekend and absolutely fell in love with the 159. I wasn't a fan of the diesel, but the overall package of interior, comfort and handling made me an instant convert.

I am looking for a JTS Ti, and of course I've seen many horror stories about the cars costing a fortune when a component breaks. Is there anything in particular I should be looking out for? There seem to be quite a few around-$10k Ti's that have less than 100k on them - should that range of Ks be where I am looking? When does the timing chain need replacing?, and if I'm not doing huge Ks, is the service interval 12 months?

Does buying a relatively low-KM (sub-100k) car help with reliability?

Thanks so much!

[kaleuclint]

Rear suspension bushes worth checking.  My old 2.2 was pretty much trouble free. 

[Colin Edwards]

Hi AVC29,

I've had a 2009 3.2 JTS Q4 Ti for a couple of years now.  Apart from needing to replace the original spark plugs that had done over 80,000k and were causing rough running, the car so far has been 100% reliable. 

The platinum plugs are supposed to last 100,000k - no way!  The centre electrodes on the ones I pulled out had disappeared.  Its a wonder the car ran at all. 

As long as the car has been serviced correctly AND there is documentation to support this, all should be good. 

With regard to the cam drive chain, don't worry about it until you receive an error code related to cam timing.  The ECU will tell you when the chain needs replacing.  When it does don't ignore it! 

Use the best oil you can find and change it and the oil filter every 10,000k.  I'm using Motul 8100 X-cess 5w40.  It has loads of Fiat approvals and is a low volatility oil - critical for Direct Injection engines.

Colin

[fgv]

hi AVC29,

is there anything in particular you didn't prefer with the diesel? as you said you tried it and it handled well etc.. i imagine long freeway drives with a diesel would be quite fun!