FIAT 500 Problems to Expect

I have owned my Fiat 500 Abarth for almost half a year now and in today's video I'd like to discuss all of the common problems to expect on a Fiat 500. In my case, I own a US Spec Fiat 500 Abarth with a manual transmission and I've been enjoying driving this car very much; however, they tend to have a few common problems that I think people need to know before purchasing one. None of these are critical or will destroy your car, but it's good to know what to expect when you are buying a new car and need advice. Most of the video talks about the Fiat 500 Pop, Fiat 500 Lounge, Fiat 500 Sport and Turbo versions. Towards the end, I add some Abarth specific items.

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[anamim]

I own a 2015 POP version and really like it. Luckily I had none of those problems. Only oil changes and windshield wipers replacement during these 5 years. I guess it changes from car to car, as he said in the beginning of the video... I still would recommend this car to anyone who wants a economic fun car :)

[stevecorner]

2012 500 Sport - Love Hate relationship. Super Fun car to drive and good fuel economy, but…… 50, 000 miles replaced rear wheel bearings, steering shaft, shifter boot gasket (twice), rear hatch wiring harness wires broken, passenger seat back release cable broke, brake light/hill hold switch and various intermittent wiring issues. Replacement headlight bulbs cost twice what Japanese cars cost, because of the unique connectors.

[mikep]

Excellent advice covering most common problems. Some owners have had few problems after 9 years. While you are taking it easy on the doors, you probably won't break a handle. People will yank/jerk the handle and they are made of pot metal. There's a menu option where unlocking the driver's door unlocks all 3 doors. Burnt front light sockets are common and they can be replaced. Up to 1 quart in 500 miles is considered "normal" by Fiat, but most burn little or no oil. Don't neglect checking, it can kill your car. Stock tires last maybe 30K, but mine sold w/ wheels out of alignment. Rear bearings can often last 60K to 120K, brakes 60K. Hard driving on an Abarth can eat them in 30K. For bearing replacement use factory or good quality. The typical ebay/parts store bearings can go out in 10K. For wiring, the 2012 had a problem with the rear hatch harness being too short. Inspect yearly on all, near the left hinge. Excellent advice on not overfilling the gas. More common is one of the roll-over valves will stick closed and you can't fill the tank. Rap on the filler neck where it enters the tank; will usually fix it at least temporarily. (The other roll-over is part of the fuel pump.)

[hewasdeadwhenigotthere]

Im just now replacing the original clutch at 115k miles exactly! Damn good car havent had any issues other than a fuel cap went out or the rubber dried out around it. 10 dollars for a new one at 80k. Thats it!!i drive the hell out of this thing. Well worth the 10k i paid for it!!

[djstephlove]

I own a 2015 pop or sport and i love it! I broke the armrest when I first got it so I took it off. I don't even miss it. Someone tried to break in it and broke the driver's door handle then a friend broke the passenger handle. I just got both, from Amazon, as I watch your video. I'm gonna install them, myself; no biggie. My ambient temperature sensor is broken so my engine light is on; I can also fix that myself. Other than that, it's a great car and easy enough to fix, yourself.

[otterkarman]

I was writing a list of all the problems!! I gave up after 5 minutes. Thank you!!

[alanboas]

I'm the proud owner of a black Fiat 500 Pop with the 1.4 engine.
I purchased it new in May of 2013.
Today is July 6th, 2021. The odometer reads 16, 796 miles.
So far, in 8 years, so good. No problems with the car except the armrest, which is a defective part.
Two have collapsed while simply leaning my right arm on it. It's smarter to just remove it from the car. Not as comfortable but safer.
The paint still shines metallic black.
Very peppy with excellent handling.
The acceleration is adequate to impressive. This video was very informative and gives me the heads up as to what I might encounter on down the road. Thanks for the walk-through as well.

[jamesbondo]

I was able to permanently fix and reinforce the arm rest by putting 2 nice copper colored bolts with rivet nuts all the way through the armrest at each end. It actually looks stock and hasnt broken after over a year

[nikierna]

I'm the original owner of a 2013 fiat 500 pop with a manual transmission & it has 120, 000+ miles without any problems!
& frankly don't take the best care of her (late oil changes & Detroit potholes the size of elephants).

My niece got a used 2014 pop (automatic) & she hasn't had any problems either.

Sad to hear the Abarth has so many issues :(

[casavababyistripping]

I have a 2012 Fiat 500 sport. Got it used in 2017 for my kid. Had 70k miles on it. 2018 throttle body went out. 2019 the starter went out and one of the headlights. And the window wouldn't roll up. And for some odd reason the odometer blinks. Took the door off and the window regulator the plastic part is completely broken off. 2020 the 02 sensor check engine light came on. Rotors replaced this year and wheel bearing bad on the driverside. And you are right 93 works wonders i can tell the difference

[bitterliltroll]

Re Steering Column clunking. No need buy a replacement shaft. Remove the shaft, lube it liberally with Mobile 1 synthetic GREASE working the shaft up and down (no nasty comments please) and reinstall. Noise will be gone. Cheap fix. Had a 2013 Abarth, ran it hard and sold it at 80K running like new. These are great cars. Underrated and therefore a great deal for an Italian sports car. They're all over europe and known for their reliability. Yes a few annoying things go wrong here and there but mine never left me stranded. Thanks for the video. Played it at 1.5 speed, lol

I just bought a 2012 Abarth from a relative, who bought it new. 143000 miles. Original clutch, still runs great. Drivers door handle has been replaced thrice, has a few quirks you mentioned. Rear hatch doesn’t open with remote, rear wiper has a mind of its own (wire harness gets crunched in the back). All around fun car! I paid $500 for it, as it had a little body damage. I’m pretty sure the timing belt is original too. I’m not looking forward to doing that.

[amzab]

A very important detail about these cars is the infamous MultiAir Brick (i have an Abarth, not sure about this part on the normal engines). The valves are actuated by oil pressure instead of being mechanically actuated like on every other car ever. This means that if you let the car sit for long enough, the oil can get too low in the engine and starve the brick, potentially causing one or more of your cylinders to lose pressure or simply not fire. I bought a 2013 Abarth and didn't take it out for a month. Keep in mind my car is impeccable mechanically. When I wanted to go out for a Costco run, Cylinder 2 wouldn't fire anymore. I had to go through the whole MultiAir bleeding process to get the engine firing on all four again (which to be fair isn't complicated, just mighty inconvenient and time consuming. Not to mention the stress !). Thankfully I don't need my car to get to work but if you use your car once every three to four weeks, you might have an unpleasant surprise. The same goes for any Fiat with the 1.4L turbo engine (Dodge Dart, 500 Turbo, 124 Spyder, and more).

Aside from that, it's an incredibly fun car and surprisingly very easy to work on (if you have small to medium hands)

[hi]

I have 65k miles on my 2013 fiat 500. Both rear break calipers seized and needed replacement. Th front door handle broke off - fiat cheaper out on parts like that. The front seat ratcheting system broke so I needed to get a new front seat. Hubcaps fall off easily. And obviously the armrests break too easily. The shocks need to be replaced but that’s too expensive compared to what the car is worth. Some electrical issues from bad wiring. The engine is solid so that’s nice.

[boondoc]

6:36 I've had mine for about 9 years and i just figured this out in recent times. If you're in the car and the doors are in the locked position, when you pull the handle to get out it also unlocks the back hatch. I love my Abarth and I'll be honest, some of these problems i have not experienced but I've seen them on others though.

I work around all types of vehicles and these cars are pretty solid. I have definitely neglected mine a bit and it still treats me well but I do plan to keep this car forever so I'm currently in the process of maintaining it. Whats great is that its simple to work on.

[gabrielamartinez]

I have a Fiat 2013, bought it brand new... it is 2021 and I am bearly starting to have ‘older car problems’. I am a single girl and takes care of it. My arm rest did brake within like 2 years but got it replaced and has been good ever since. My car looks pretty decent for being a 2013.

[Rumblefan]

I think they’re pretty cool, especially the abarth model. My coworker has an abarth and he was telling me about some issues he’s had with it, and they were pretty much all covered in this video, so I guess it is common.

[ucnhtmenow]

The loom tubing on every car does the same. Plastic cracks after being exposed to high temperatures over years. Use heat shrink wire loom or electrical tape. When done correctly it looks very good. My neice but bought a 500l that has 120, 000 miles on it and I told her it was a bad idea especially when she said the transmission felt weird when she test dri5ve it. I guess we live and we learn.

[RiskiestGeeMan]

Really appreciate all the details you included here and wanted to say this information really helps new buyers and those interested in good upkeep of abarths and f500s not to mention all vehicles in general usage cases. Thank you very much.

[londo]

Here in Australia fiat 500 and abarths are known to be reliable. Any car after few years will need things changed. The interior and cosmetic issues in the USA might be because your models are produced in Mexico.