2012 FIAT 500 Complaints

LOCKING MECHANISM ON DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BELT FAILED. BUCKLE POPPED OPEN AND CANNOT BE LOCKED. MUST USE PASSENGER SIDE LOCKING MECHANISM IN ORDER TO PROTECT DRIVER. IF TWO PASSENGERS ARE IN THE FRONT SEAT, ONLY ONE CAN BE PROTECTED DUE TO THIS FAILURE. LOCKING MECHANISM APPEARS TO BE JAMMED OR LOCKED UP AND WILL NOT "CLICK" WHEN SEAT BELT TONGUE IS INSERTED PER FACTORY SPECIFICATIONS. THIS IS A DANGEROUS DEFECT AND MANUFACTURER STATES CANNOT FIX UNTIL "PARTS ARE AVAILABLE", ESTIMATED NOVEMBER 2014. *TR

PULLING AWAY FROM A STOP LIGHT UNDER LIGHT ACCELERATION, MULTIPLE WARNING LIGHTS CAME ON INCLUDING "ESC DISABLED" AND MULTIPLE LIGHT WARNINGS FOR THE GEARBOX, THE STEERING, ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL, GENERAL MALFUNCTION LIGHT, ESC OFF LIGHT, AND ESC MALFUNCTION LIGHT, AND LOST POWER STEERING, ALMOST CAUSING AN ACCIDENT WHILE TRYING TO GET THE CAR OFF THE ROAD. THE CAR WAS SHUT OFF AND RESTARTED IMMEDIATELY WITH NO CHANGE. AFTER LETTING THE CAR SIT FOR A HALF-HOUR, THE CAR WAS RESTARTED AND STEERING WAS RESTORED AND NO WARNING LIGHT WERE ON. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN HOME AND PARKED UNTIL IT WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THEY DROVE THE CAR OVER 50 MILES AND WERE UNABLE TO REPEAT THE INCIDENT OR IDENTIFY THE PROBLEM SO THEY RELEASED THE UNREPAIRED VEHICLE TO THE OWNER. *TR

PERIODICALLY THE STARTER WILL NOT ENGAGE. IT DOES A WHINE AS THOUGH THE STARTER ON THE VEHICLE IS A STARTER THAT IS GOING OUT. I TOOK IT BACK TO BUTLER FIAT IN INDIANAPOLIS, IN ON APRIL 1ST , AS THE PROBLEM BECAME WORSE AND WORSE. THEY REPLACED THE STARTER UNDER WARRANTY BUT IT STARTED DOING THE SAME THING LESS THAN TWO WEEKS AFTER REPLACEMENT. SOMETHING WAS MENTIONED AT THE TIME ABOUT FAULTY BOLT OR A PART IN THE STARTER CAUSING A MALFUNCTION. IF ANYONE HAS EVER HAD A STARTER GO OUT IN A CAR IT IS THE SAME SOUND WHEN THE ROTARY DOES NOT ENGAGE AND YOU HAVE TO MAKE A SECOND ATTEMPT TO START THE CAR. MY VEHICLE STILL HAS LESS THAN 13,000 MILES ON IT AND I NEED THE PROBLEM FIXED. *TR

THE ESC BUTTON WILL NOT TURN OFF ESC. NORMALLY THIS ISN'T AN ISSUE, BUT WHEN I AM STUCK IN SNOW IT WOULD HELP TO TURN ESC OFF. THE OWNERS MANUAL EVEN SUGGESTS THIS. MY BUTTON WILL NOT DISABLE ESC SOME TIMES. THE BUTTON WORKS INTERMITTENTLY. THE DEALER HAS INSPECTED IT MULTIPLE TIMES. THE "ESC OFF" LIGHT SHOULD ILLUMINATE WHEN IT IS REALLY OFF, BUT THIS DOESN'T HAPPEN. *TR

DRIVING HOME DURING RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC, CAME TO A STOP AT A RED LIGHT. CLUTCH FAILED, COULD NOT ENGAGE ANY GEAR. WAS ABLE TO GET VEHICLE OUT OF TRAFFIC AND TOWED TO SERVICE STATION. FIAT CLAIMING THAT IT IS A WORN CLUTCH AFTER 27,000 MILES. WILL ONLY SUPPORT CLUTCH FOR FIRST 12,000 MILES. IT'S GOOD MY CHILDREN WERE NOT IN THE CAR OR THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN A SERIOUSLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. *JS

ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS, WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AT NIGHT, I HAVE HAD THE HEADLIGHTS FAIL! SUDDENLY JUST GO DARK! EACH TIME, IT HAPPENED WHEN I OPERATED A WINDOW SWITCH. THE OUTAGE EACH TIME WAS SHORT, THE HEADLIGHTS WOULD COME BACK ON WITHIN SECONDS [THOUGH IT SEEMED LONGER]. THE SERVICE GUYS AT THE DEALERSHIP HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO SOLVE IT, NO IDEA WHY IT HAPPENED. *TR

THE VEHICLE "POPS" OUT OF 5TH GEAR AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS OF 60MPH OR HIGHER. THE TACHOMETER GOES INTO THE RED AND THE CAR SLOWS DOWN IN TRAFFIC OR ON A HILL UNTIL PLACED INTO GEAR AGAIN. *TR

I'M A POLICE OFFICER THAT INVESTIGATED A CRASH INVOLVING A FORD F150 P/U TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 35-40 MPH; REAR ENDING, STRAIGHT ON, A 2012 FIAT 500C THAT WAS STOPPED WAITING TO MAKE A TURN. UPON IMPACT BOTH FRONT SEATS IN THE FIAT COMPLETELY RECLINED AND TWISTED OUTWARD TO THE EXTENT THE SEATS COULD NOT RETURN TO THE UPRIGHT POSITION. THE OUTWARD SIDES OF THE SEAT BACKS WERE WEDGE AGAINST THE "B" PILLAR. LEG INJURIES WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKELY IF THERE WERE BACK SEAT PASSENGERS. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 FIAT 500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 10 MPH, SHE DEPRESSED THE CLUTCH BUT IT BECAME JAMMED AND THE VEHICLE BECAME STUCK IN SECOND GEAR. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER, WHO INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND STATED THAT THE MANUAL TRANSMISSION CLUTCH DISC FAILED AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 44,200. *TR

2012 FIAT 500 CLUTCH WENT OUT AS WE WERE NEARING RAILROAD TRACKS. WE COULD NOT GET AUTO INTO ANY GEAR AND HAD TO COAST OVER THE TRACKS AND INTO OUR NEIGHBORHOOD. WE HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALER FOR SERVICE. THEY STATED IT WAS A WORN CLUTCH EVEN THOUGH WE HAD LESS THAN 30,000 MILES. WE ASKED THEM TO INVESTIGATE IF IT WERE FAULTY PARTS. THEY STATED OURS WAS THE ONLY KNOWN CASE. WE FOUND MANY OTHER CASES ON THE INTERNET. WE COULD HAVE HURT OR KILLED, ESPECIALLY IF IT HAD HAPPENED WHILE WE WERE IN THE FREEWAY FAST LANE. FIAT PAID FOR OUR PARTS, AND WE PAID FOR THE LABOR. THEY EVENTUALLY AGREED TO REIMBURSE US FOR THE LABOR "AS A GESTURE OF GOODWILL". WE ARE WAITING FOR THE CHECK. WE ARE STILL CONCERNED ABOUT THE SAFETY OF THESE PARTS IN OTHER CARS, AND ABOUT THE SAFETY OF OUR REPLACED PARTS. *TR