Overview and Common Failures
Body and Interior The metal is very thin and the paint coating is weak, but the body itself is galvanized. Corrosion regularly occurs only on the front edge of the roof and rear doors. Many problems are related to fragile plastic bumpers, handles, and various fasteners. The interior is nice, but it has low wear resistance and no sound insulation at all. There are minimal electrical problems, usually only the steering wheel switch fails. Engine The gasoline engines are well-known to us from other models and have a good reputation. However, when the catalyst is destroyed, its particles can get into the cylinders and damage them. Also, with overly dynamic driving, the timing chain stretches quite quickly. The diesel power unit is reliable only with proper maintenance. Transmission The five-speed manual turned out to be weak, but the six-speed one serves well. Old-school four-speed automatics are very reliable and have a long service life. The six-speed automatic in this model was from the first version with many teething problems. Chassis The suspension does not like bad roads and often requires investment even before reaching 50,000 km mileage. The brake system is decent, but it is let down by corroded hoses and ABS sensor failures. The steering rack is quite reliable, but there were failures on the early models with power steering.
