new 480 owner.

[Benjammo]

hello
I normally kick around in the V70 section, but when my beloved fiat seicento decided to blow its head gasket, it was time to say good bye and treat myself to a new car.

I've always loved the 480 and when I found one near my mate down south I had to have it.

So, I'm now the proud owner of an M reg 2liter 480s at a cost of only £174!

ok the archers are buggered but the cars at my mates body shop and should be done and MOT'd by the weekend then I can bring the car back to gods country and have a bit of fun with her.

but I've got a few questions,

• how much does it cost to fill up? I put £30 in and it barely moved the needle.
• what oil pressure should the car run at? the needle goes right to the end of the gauge, I don't know if thats great news or a blockage.
• what sort of fuel economy do you guys get out of them?

[doingitsideways]

Hi amd welcome to the weird and wonderful (read stressful) world of 480 ownership!!

Lol

To answer a couple of your questions:

If you've got pointers rather than the digital dash they can be very slow to react and even stick, a swift slap to the top of the dash helps them along the way!

If your oil pressure guage shoots straight up (even without the engine running, which is hilarious) then you haven't got the proper sender unit needed to operate the guage and it's just connected to the standard switch for the light.
This is most likely because the S didn't come with the extra row of guages as standard and someone's probably fitted them without knowing they needed the sender.
As for getting hold of one, good luck... The Turbo boys don't like letting them go easily, I'm still looking for one after a good 18 months!!

Fuel economy... Rather depends how you drive.
I drive mine like I stole it and average 26.9mpg (also a 2.0)according to the computer, but that really is caning it.
Drive like Miss Daisy and I would have thought it'd do around 35 to the gallon.

Oh, the 400 section can be a bit quiet, best bet is to check out 480 Club

Steve

[AcidicDavey]

Good choice with a 480 .

Make sure you set up a thread in the showroom when she's back on the road!

The fuel tank is about 60 litres so filling it is an expensive task!

The reason you're getting a weird reading on you oil pressure gauge is because you don't have the correct oil pressure sender. Cars without the auxiliary gauges have a different one so when you put the gauges in you don't get the correct reading. It's easy to tell which sender you have, it's located next to the oil filter, the sender needed for the extra dash dials is quite big and round, if you're unsure which you have then put up a pic.

Realistically, round town you'll get between 30 - 35 and on an open A road around 45 mpg or so

Edit: Woops, too slow!

You really must be driving little Nipper hard Steve, I've NEVER had an average MPG readout BELOW 30 mpg!

Example, the other day when nearly empty (like most of the time!) I put in a Tenner @ 1.32 per L and did 74miles before chickening out!

[doingitsideways]

Ha ha ha!!

Had it down to 22 before now!!

That was after resetting it immediately before a back lane beasting though when I don't think the revs dipped below 5k for about 20 miles!!

Steve

[jamesy12345]

lads you should be treating these machines with respect, and driving with a light touch

http://youtu.be/XF7Fe5suMKw
http://youtu.be/_cwcm81zc2Q

~23 mpg is my worst I think. Happy days

Hi Benjammo!

[dcw]

Hi Benjammo!

Good to see another 480 owner!

I can't really add to what the others have said since they have answered your questions about oil pressure and fuel tank.

As for mpg, I have the 2.0 (Celeb) and on mixed driving (and these days she rarely gets a good, 150 mile long run like she used to) my trip computer always shows between 35 & 38 mpg.

In many ways the 2.0 was the most economical engine on these cars. You don't have to drive like Miss Daisy, Steve, to keep that sort of figure up either: believe me, I don't hammer her, but nonetheless I get the full driving experience from my 480! Provided your suspension is in good nick (replace bits as needed) handling, as you will soon find, is very good....

David

[doingitsideways]

No, seriously though, I have had mid thirtys when not driving like a possessed joyrider.

But what can I say? A sweet exhaust note and induction noise, lowered suspension and VERY good rubber on each corner... I just can't help myself sometimes!!

Steve

[Anadinolin]

i can get 550 miles out of my 460 (bigger beastie) but its only 1.8 on a full tank now if changed everything :P