Fiat Linea 1.3 / 1.6 Multijet common problems.

Engine / equipment

1.3 Multijet / 1.3 JTD / 1.3 CDTI (Fiat Panda, 500, Punto, Doblò; Opel Corsa, Astra, Meriva, Combo; Lancia Ypsilon and Musa; Alfa MiTo; Peugeot Bipper and Citroën Nemo)

Period mentioned

2003–2020

Symptoms

Chain rattle on cold starts; oil level rising and smelling of diesel; particulate filter warning; power loss from a dirty EGR or the turbo.

Possible cause described

Single-row timing chain that is very sensitive to oil quality and long intervals: it stretches and the tensioner loses pressure, with a risk of breaking. In town use the DPF cannot finish regenerating and diesel dilutes the oil, which speeds up chain and turbo wear.

Check for the garage

Listen to a cold start, check whether the oil is above maximum or smells of diesel, read the DPF status and check the oil change history.

Cost cited in the source

Chain kit: €150–300 in parts plus €600–1,200 labour; DPF cleaning: €200–400A rough figure from the original database, not an up-to-date quote.

Mileage cited in the database: 80,000–120,000 km. This is not a maintenance interval and does not predict a failure.

Sources from the original database