Flipping is Back - with a Brava!

[@alansimpson835]

Imagine if you knew a man who loved Fiats, had a barn full of them and seemed happy to keep adding to his collection

[@rimmersbryggeri]

In beat with the electrics giving up? Got to love a nice fiat though.

[@MattysCars]

Would you like one in green too in case the red one makes you sick?

[@terryatkinson899]

I love fiat's but I'd be divorced if another one arrived on top of what I've got 😏👍🇮🇪

[@darrenwilson8042]

I'd be his worst nightmare - just want to stand in the barn and stare lovingly for hours

[@13Pandam]

Haha, my collection size is only going one way, and that’s down.

[@simonburleigh5551]

Matt, I had several of these when I worked for a Fiat dealer. The manual gearbox was terrible after about 10,000 miles and it felt like it was falling apart so the auto looks like the better option. I am surprised at how well yours has held up, no squeaks, rattles, falling off trim and minimal dodgy electrics.

[@organiccold]

And the door handles are still there

[@jamescoe764]

Matt, you mentioned modern classics. It would be great if you could do a video about what makes a modern classic and the pros and cons of running one. My 2001SEAT Toledo V5 must, surely, be close to modern classic status.

[@TheShinyShow]

Seems like one of those cars that everyone has forgotten so perfect pickup if you always liked them because they've not shot up like a lot of older cars can. That rear wiper parks hideously high though

[@TheOmegastoopreme]

It should be much lower than that. It's either stuck or not on the spindle straight.

[@troygoodacre2718]

I had a 51 bravo 1.2sx. I bought it brand new. It was the first car I had with air conditioning

[@samronin1141]

I've always had a soft spot for the rear lights on the Brava. As silly as they likely are in some ways, the three ellipsis style like that is just so unique to it.

[@oxulucozcan4923]

that tea shelf thingie in front of the passenger (the gaping hole) is actually an after thought. it was planned as a place to put the passenger airbag. the biggest pain with these cars (this era fiats which have 16v engines alike) is the placement of the ECU. it's right between the battery and the engine block (as seen in 9:23) stuck to the block with rivets. the heat from the block cracks the solder joints on the injectors' chips. 4 years and counting; I still hate those engines. good content tho

[@TheOmegastoopreme]

Mine was a 1999 100 HSX 16v in ink black. V78JAR. I just remember it being such a lovely thing to drive. The thing that threw people about the Brava was how low it was compared to a similar ages focus.

[@rau95-n1s]

Love the sound of that automatic sport mode. It's like they predicted how a typical resident of Rome would drive it (max revs all the time) and just went "eh, make it do the same"

[@paultasker7788]

90s cars were so interesting. So much individuality to choose from. Nowadays it's not the same. I've previously liked modern stuff but when I saw a Hyundai Tucson next to a Cupra Formentor I was shocked at the similarity of the profile. Only the details were different. Not even the same manufacturer. I think it's all the safety regulations that mean everything has to be designed the same. And don't mention comparing something like a Ferrari 360 Modena to a new version. I drooled when I saw it in an old men and motors clip. And at the time it was called ugly. Certainly not now it isn't!

[@rau95-n1s]

@@paultasker7788 I know what you mean. The regulations may be part of it but I also think a lot of it will be commercially conservative thinking on the manufacturers. Radical things are scary - people buy safe. I drive a Mazda CX-30 now cause everything all looks the same but Mazda at least have the balls to put their middle finger up to the "turbocharge everything, touch screens everywhere" stuff. It's refreshingly oldschool - as much as any new(ish) car can be!

[@paultasker7788]

@@rau95-n1s have to agree that nothing else looks like that either.

[@MadIIMike]

I wouldn't be surprised if the car would rise in price quite a lot in 5-10 years. It's a very basic spec car, but it's actually really well designed (and I love the Taillights) and rare. As far as Automatic goes, I have to admit I kinda fell in love with it after making fun of it for years. Sure, I wouldn't want it in a sporty car like a MX-5, but here in germany going to any bigger city is almost certain to be in a traffic jam as our government loses it's marbles thinking everyone can do everything on a bike all year long.

[@stepheng8779]

Borrowed one back in the day, a gorgeous deep metallic red. I didn't want to give it back to my mate afterwards & that's when i discovered Fiats & fell in love with them ❤️

[@simonsaba4387]

I have one of these and it is still going strong. Autobox is a Japanese unit and it should not always start in sport mode, probably needs a autobox oil change. The autobox is actually very good not like the usually, put your foot down and it is much quicker than you think. As with most Fiats completely underated, drives much better than most of its competitors as i test drove all of them at the time when I bought it. Styling is as you would expected for an italian car, there are many nice details. For its size it is a roomy car with a good boot size. Engine is also like many twin cam italian units, sweet and well engineered, many of these cars disappeared due to the scrappage scheme. It also won car of the year 1996.

[@volt8684]

Had an R reg1.4 brava, paid £80 for it off a student. All foam on back seats was bulging out. Elec sunroof, elec windows and nice stereo. Compared to my rotten 1.3 ohv Ford escort was lovely and refined. Gearbox went 2 yrs later not a penny spent. Shocked me how much better it was than the Ford

[@ShortCycle.]

That's a lovely bit of 90s tin. I learnt in the naughties in a punto so have a soft spot for this era of fiat - the bravo/brava I always thought to be cool looking - nice colours. Buying stuff you don't/won't want to keep seems the way forward for a successful flip series.

[@hectorshouse7348]

Are there any Fiat 132’s left to test? I had one in the early ‘80s, it was a fantastic car

[@furiousdriving]

Not seen one in ages, seen a couple of 131s

[@neilsheppard6673]

That's a nice clean car. I always liked the design of the rear light cluster on these and, for those of us who are old farts like me, I feel that these days we think of 90's car interiors and trim patterns in the same sort of way that we regarded 70's interiors / patterns - back in the 90's! Good choice Matt, hope it gets sold soon and looking forward to the in-depth review and detailing vids.

[@patrickhostler5939]

Wow, I haven’t seen one of those in years!!! I used to really like them, especially the 3 door version. I believe Fiat put a lot of effort into those in term of improved build quality. You do get your hands on some intriguing vehicles I have to say!!!❤

[@tigershoot]

The Marea was launched after the Brava/Bravo and was a saloon version. There was a five pot 20v version that a friend of mine had. It was a rocket ship.

[@tigershoot]

I had the 1.6 petrol SX spec in the exact same colour (160 Metallic Flame Red). It was the colour they chose for the cover of the sales brochure as it looked brilliant. Mine was manual and I had it from when it was seven months old. I paid £9300 for it. Ex Hertz rental car. It had 12k on the clock and was bought from a Fiat Dealer near Guildford. I sold it in mint condition in 2007 when I emigrated for the pitiful sum of £770! It was only ten years old. It looked no different to the day I shelled out nine grand. It was painful to see it go. I loved it.

[@Ruija27]

Immediate flashback to 20 years ago, heading out to a local petting zoo or the aviation museum in granddad's Brava without air conditioning, in the middle of summer. Though I recall that one was a darker shade! This one's rather a hue of "colonoscopy red".

[@xqqqme]

"Nineties automatics were not the finest hour for the breed." Imagine, then, what an OEM Borg-Warner slushbox on a 1969 Volvo 144 was like!

[@furiousdriving]

Ive got that in my Rover P6, BW 35/65 3 speed torture device....

[@simonhodgetts6530]

Sweet! I remember hiring a very similar Brava (albeit a manual), when they were new - very nice to drive, but I found the interior a bit tacky - especially that silly cassette door! These must be very rare beasts now - I can’t remember the last time I saw one on the roads actually. I’m sure it will quickly find a new home! My mk1 Punto 6 speed was also a Fiat press/fleet car, registered in Slough.

[@profrumpo]

What a fabulous choice, not seen one in years and I always thought both this model and the Bravo were really good looking cars, the colour is great too. Cleveland Cars takes me back I had my Fiat Uno serviced there a few times, long gone now (both).

[@johang7498]

I spotted a grey one a few weeks ago here in Belgium and it dit catch my attention. My father owning a marea saloon for many years (which proved itself very problem-free - had the same 1.6-engine as this brava too) was one reason, another that still now I think it has very elegant lines with that rounded tail (much more so than the marea). Also, making a 3-door car and a 5-door car look very different I always felt was a very ... brave decission, you saw the same thing back then with the Lancia delta/delta HPE and Alfa Romeo 145/146 which were equally or even more interesting. Interior and dashboard of bravo/brava/marea however's a matter of taste - never been a big fan of. That shade of red, you used to see in bravas advertising and brochures: when it shines it will make that brava lift above anything on the road I think. Good luck with this one.

[@markonmotoring]

I saw a Brava in passing recently and that was the first one in a very long time. I do remember these launching and my Uncle had a base spec Bravo which was probably one one of the more stylish cars in its class. I had forgotten about those radio cassette with the flip up cassette cover.

[@marktoby8113]

Matt if I lived in the UK I'd be at your front door and buying it. Love the Brava, have had 2. Sadly customs charges out of UK and into Ireland would just render this too expensive, which is a huge shame.

[@jordyderidder8485]

Fleet cars resold upto after 12 months were usually rentals, leasing cars would go upto 4 years, demonstrators would have been registered to the supplying dealer to a maximum of 6 months (common within dealer organisations) so in this case very likely to be a rental, not a massive issue, still a rare survivor that's been clearly cherished by someone's nan for most of its life, someone will enjoy it for another few years hopefully 👍

[@lordbrennanofsealand5772]

That’s up there with the Renault 19/Megan as core 90s euro funk…. Tigra and mk3 astra also on the nostalgia list.

[@dogblessamerica]

Tigra, yeah! Coincidentally i was given a Tigra as a courtesy car after I bought a Bravo HLX which needed a new clutch.

[@paulie-Gualtieri.]

Wow very unexpected! We had one years ago, it was a white manual 1.6 16V SX, very good car to drive, happy and free reving engine.

[@seancooke7332]

My 1995 Vauxhall Astra was in for service and the Dealer gave my wife a 1.4 Brava as a loaner. He said he would take £2000 along with the Astra for it if we were interested but we were happy with the Vauxhall. Well it was a good car the Astra. That Brava, though, was very cool indeed in its dark blue metallic paint and those taillamps clawed into the rear corners. I do like a nice automatic too.

[@mpersad]

I always rather liked the Brava, as a former Mirafiori owner I always saw it as the 90s successor to that car, with less to go wrong! Good luck with the flip.

[@grdixon83]

I've got to say, really enjoy seeing the wide range of cars, we have seen on your channel! Weather it's, your fleet, your current flip gang, & the brilliant one off car drives!👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@Everything_Evan]

My step father has one of these he bought it brand new I know it's a high spec 51 plate 1.6 manual its been sat on his drive for years, I think I need to save it it's only done 60k.

[@michaellecaplain3377]

That takes me back. My parents bought a white 1998 Brava 1.4 S when it was six months old and only got rid of it when the cost of the welding needed to get it through its last MoT made no financial sense given that it had a bazillion miles on it by that time. They loved it - replaced it with a £500 metallic green 51-plate SX, in fact - but I could never get on with the binary clutch, which made it a pain to drive in stop-start traffic, and rubbery gear shift. Auto's probably the better option! Lovely-looking old things, though, and yours is a cracking colour…

[@colinmoss7343]

I had one in the same colour. 100 elx . I liked it. Never let me down in the 4 years I had it. Tail lights are the best.

[@eneaauriti]

We actually had a Fiat marea weekend it drove beautiful and I remember a incident when we ran out of fuel on the way home because we forgot to refill.

[@aedwards123]

Cobham Services - I used to work remotely out of an office in Leatherhead, and spent a fair few nights in the Days Inn at Cobham services. The 1.6 was the only engine you could get with the automatic. I test drove one when I bought my Xantia, and it was a bit gutless but not a bad car.

[@SuperFIFTHGEAR]

I hadn't realised they were that rare. There's a house locally to us (don't want to say where on here) which has 3-4 of these parked outside.

[@losch78]

My parents bought a Diesel one when this was brand new, exactly same spec (SX), just green; The design was a stunner back then; Shorty after, I learned driving on it, and later inherited it; STill have a massive soft spot, If I was in the UK, I'd buy this in a heartbeat.

[@stuartsaunders4518]

That brings back memories I had a 3dr Bravo back in the late 90s

[@eddiejones.redvees]

A two of my work mates both had one each one from new the other used the one who had the used had trouble with the radio otherwise they liked them

[@davidmitchell8725]

I had a bravo for a about 2 weeks about 14/15 years ago. I gave it such a hard time and it kept soldering on. I can’t remember what ever happened to it though. I want to say it was a 1.4 12v…deffo a 4 cylinder 12 valve anyway

[@MrChris1316]

One of my favorite fits when I worked Halfords audio,so quick once you knew where the clips were.nice drive too.

[@robertgarvey5652]

I had a diesel Brava 16 years ago. It drove very nicely

[@S-Ltd1000]

4 autos left, bloody hell! I'm guessing rust killed most Fiat's of the era. My missus had a metallic mint green one about 20 years ago. She loved that car and it never gave her any problems.

[@slippinjimmy2149]

Rust but also the Scrappage Scheme.

[@TheOmegastoopreme]

Damn you I loved my Brava! If I had any money I'd be there in a shot.

[@peterfi.]

Wow I never knew these came with an automatic! Deliciously original as well. Look at those massive rear headrests lol. Any info on the gearbox? Is it FIATs or was it built by another manufacturer?

[@furiousdriving]

I dont know yet, review coming tomorrow but I havnt researched it fully yet

[@DeGlennen]

I stil remember my dad getting a dark green Brava as a rental cars for our trip to Austria. The person at the front desk of the rental place actually apologized beforehand as they were "only" able to provide a brand new Fiat. The Fiat was an actual surprise in being a fun and quirky car which actually still is quite practical. I still like the Brava rear styling over the the Bravo to be fair.

[@turquoisecat761]

I worked with a fella in the late 90s who had a 5-cylider HGT version of the Bravo; must be about 1995 these came out, I remember the double test in Autocar magazine.

[@williamfence566]

Had a brava in 1999 ( new in 1998 ) from fiat dealership. The next nine months it spent quite a lot of time there and I became on first name terms with an RAC recovery guy. ECU blew every 10-12 weeks and shut the engine down. Fiat were firstly apologetic then after the third time refused to repair for free saying it was a new fault now out of warranty. After fiat finance got involved ( I stopped payments as they had the car more than me ) , I got it back and immediately part ex'd it.

[@angrymuffinsb]

Thrilled with this one! They’re so rare now

[@furiousdriving]

Very!

[@JK061996]

When I was in elementary school my German teacher had a white one, one time we put a couple juice boxes under the wheels to simulate the sound of the tyres popping. It didn't really work though

[@thomasj5083]

Second service at Cleveland Cars! They were brilliant but closed around 2005. Service was excellent!

[@williamwales6619]

Decent runabout. Had one back in the day. Issues were tempremental electricals (rear Lights) . Good Luck

[@marksenior9220]

The only new car I had was a fiat bravo 1.2 sx . X48 CNA. Had it less than two years with endless faults. Think it only lasted around 5 years. Shame as it was a nice blue car.

[@frazzleface753]

Looking at where that car was serviced, and you saying it was a local garage to the owner, there's a very high possibility that I passed that very car more than once in my red '99 Fiat Bravo back in the day!

[@brusselssprouts560]

I have always thought these were a cute and cool looking car, and I could imagine a version with an Alfa Spyder 2.2 V6 in it.

[@adammcallister2260]

Many a memory made in one of these. My mum bought one and took us all over everywhere in it when I was young. Apart from 1 major engine fault which threatened a childhood holiday it was pretty good. I don't remember anything of particular fault. It was in a maroon colour a bit darker than this. If they're treated well, they seem to be pretty stubborn.

[@markknoxx7164]

Had one of those back in the day 16.16v great engine sound fantastic when you give it the beans

[@alexmcwhirter6611]

Am surprised there are any still running. Always liked the Brava/Bravo models. In the 1990s Hertz UK had the Brava on its fleet and I hired one in London (silver) and one in Edinburgh (pale metallic green). I thoight it was a great car but steering was too light for me and the ride was more for comfort than road holding ability.

[@will89687]

I could feel the "womp-womp" coming as you panned down to the slushomatic shifter...

[@darrenwilson8042]

I read somewhere that those rear lights were based on a cats claw mark. Round here used Brava's (3 door ) were briefly the car for young lads - looked rakish and the 1,2 went way better than the equivalent Corsa - and were cheap. And if you squinted toy could pretend your car was the 5 cyl

[@Ju1ian10001]

Matt, i wanted one years ago, my work place at the time was involved with car sales and got hold of 1997 Brava with the 2.0l JTD diesel lump, it was a fast car at the time, but i couldn't raise the finance on it (think it was up for £4995, this was in about 2008)i was gutted, but a year later managed to a 2001 Rover 45 1.8 IXL steptronic in Tahiti blue, much better car (Aircon, CD player, electric sunroof and the best bit orange lit dashboard and switchgear just like BMW's of the time had). Yep i'm a huge lover of Automatics, but do love manuals as well.

[@danielrussell446]

Wow what a survivor haven’t seen a brava for years they were fabulous cars so underrated when new my dad borrowed one from our local dealer as he had the fiat tipo which proceeded it After the square tipo it was a much more contemporary design and always loved the tail lamps I do hope it can find a good home! I am sure those Bristol registered cars were Fiat company cars I remember loads at the time

[@lesklower7281]

Firstly Matt l never knew there was a Fiat Brava l did own a Mazda Bravo but that was a ute getting back to the Fiat a very nice clean car and very nice colour l am sure Diamond Bright will improve that but those tail lights aren't they the best tail lights put on any car and you have a good reason to sell it on its an automatic

[@veryrancid3128]

I had a 2001 bravo 1.6 elx cool and later a 1996 bravo 1.6 both were great cars and i enjoyed them immensly

[@usuallyfixingtinkering]

Strangely Matt this is one if them cars where the automatic seems to fair better than the manual in terms of user satisfaction and kong-term reliability. Great find!

[@peterriggall8409]

Didn’t guess that one. Didn’t get these in Australia. You done good on this one. 👍 Nice little car for that sort of money. Sills not full of foam and wood screws…..Grrrrrr.

[@puntomk1uk64]

I'd like a Brava myself, had a Bravo JTD for a while and it was a great car. Like yourself Matt I'd prefer a manual admittedly!! looks a lovely car and I hope it finds a good home. It was probably a pre registration vehicle from Fiat Uk at the time, Fiat did a lot of that in the mid 90's to bump up vehicle registrations. I clearly have too much time on my hands 😂

[@richardsutton7791]

For a man who strongly dislikes automatics, you have quite the collection of them! Hope this one remains easy to part with for you 🙂

[@GuyRavenscroft]

This segment / series / whatever it is really ought to be called ‘Flipping Furious’

[@slippinjimmy2149]

Or Furious Flipping.

[@leeh6953]

I prefer a Automatic, Because I’m lazy and can’t be bothered changing gears I live in the city which makes it easier 🤣

[@Lot76CARS]

I think you cracked your car collecting habit… buy cars you DON’T like.. inspired… looking forward to the road test!

[@patrick103b]

I had a Maria it was a great car just needed anti locking brakes badly used to slide in the rain

[@charliecoco2115]

I tend to believe the drivers front wing has been replaced/resprayed. From what I can see, there is no lacquer on the under bonnet inner part of wing, but passenger side has? Common miss by body shop. Well worth the £1000 though!

[@markdubois4882]

An automatic trans car you might like: early to mid 70s Jensen Interceptor with the 7.2L V8 (440 CID)

[@chrishinchliffe2512]

I could be very tempted by this been an Automatic, my wife would love this to ferry the kids round 👍 how do I get in touch 🤔

[@13Pandam]

Matt tells you towards the end of the video.

[@In_memory_of_Dad]

I had a Brava some years ago, it was actually a really good car...

[@andrewsimpson718]

It knows it’s Italian and wants to be in sport mode ! :-) great car I’m loving this trading up series since the mondeo onwards….

[@chrisbury4635]

Well i remember those very well as i worked for Fiat/Alfa when they were brand new, I always used to like the 1.6 & 1.8 auto's, they always sounded great, a very well thought out design those car's were, sharing platforms and design etc, lost count how many ex Fiat fleet car's I've worked on, we seemed to have sold loads once Fiat had done with them !

[@djharry2821]

Forgot all about these! These were really good looking cars back in the day, especially the Bravo. Too bad I could never bring myself to buy a Fiat 😂

[@johnclarke2997]

Shame about the radio LCD. I suppose you may find a similar radio on the after market or just sell the car on knowing the radio is working, but with duff LCD.

[@commodore665]

Nice car that , don't they put a service sticker on the car in the UK ? over here in NZ they put one on the top right corner of the windscreen , plus the oil used

[@furiousdriving]

Its up to the garage, some do but not standard or that common

[@philcrockford5534]

The Brava used to be a regular hire car for me back in the early to mid 2000s. Had two virtually brand new ones in successive weeks (less than 2000 miles in) , both went into limp home mode on a busy motorway run resulting in a max 40mph top speed and some suicidal moments trying to get off the slip road onto busy roundabouts in rush hour! Let's just say it put me off them........

[@gwengo4167]

I remember my dad had a Fiat Tipo, I thought that was a great car, very comfortable.

[@notpoliticallycorrect1303]

Years back I met a car dealer mate in a pub on the coast that we frequent from time to time,he arrived in a nearly new brava but left in a taxi,he forgot parking it there and reported it stolen,3 months later we met again in that pub, guess what was still in the car park😂

[@furiousdriving]

I had a mate did something similar with a very cheap Range Rover and the car park next to work...

[@kidcowdy1231]

Hmmm I may be tempted by this for the misses, would you consider swapping for a 07 Astra estate think it has about 118k on the clock.

[@GSimpsonOAM]

My FIAT Stilo has City mode and Normal. The 2.4 5 cylinder is pretty smooth though.

[@thesis4349]

Interesting, the front bumper in brasilian version is different, being the same as the Marea.

[@donnysweekendvanlifetravel7854]

i remember the add brava or bravo which one shall we chose great car in day autos are best manual ones gearboxes were hidious good luck with sale donny

[@furiousdriving]

Yes! I’d kind of forgotten those ads, and so much else about them to be honest

[@markdoyle6414]

I just bought a bike that is the same colour, would be a good match for the bike.

[@furiousdriving]

no reason not to!

[@thughes52]

Nice car but am a ford fan me but should sell quite easily I should think although I think your pricing maybe a little low being a family auto up to you though 👍

[@fhwolthuis]

Ha, I guessed correctly! Nice car, it deserves a good home 😀

[@janpellegrom9649]

I love how 90s car drive! So understated and comfy.

[@BrianWinstanley-lv7gw]

Not seen one for years. Very stylish. Love the rear lights

[@timhancock6626]

Losing the red key was the kiss of death for the value of many Fiats and Alfas of that era.

[@smoothmicra]

Wow, tremendous condition, lovely example. Auto box not for me, but otherwise very desirable. Rare and pretty, those elegant rear light clusters, Fiat made some lovely motors in that era.

[@bikeman123]

An auto? I had a marea and when cold the auto box refused to change up until 3000rpm. And no I didnt have it in sport mode either. Fiat dealer never did manage to fix it.

[@robincook3367]

Fiat Brava was the equivalent to the Ford Escort/Focus, Vauxhall Astra, VW Golf, Bravo was the saloon equivalent to the Ford Orion/Escort, Focus saloon. Marea was the esate version.

[@nigelbrett5703]

Looks good. Unfortunately, the ‘well maintained’ bit is hearsay only.

[@furiousdriving]

Its from a reliable source