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Chart based on 32 repair trips. The repair cost chart excludes repairs made under warranty, do-it-yourself repairs, and repair trips that include maintenance.
2012 Fiat 500 2dr Hatch
turbocharged 160hp 1.4L I4 5-speed manual FWD
30000 mi
Replaced rear wheel bearings. Both were replaced as there was no way to tell which one was making the noise.
57660 mi
Clunking from front end during slow speed turning.
64000 mi
US $93
Added alignment shims to rear axle due to excessive rear tires wear
10000 mi
US $250
Failure of upper strut mount
27000 mi
US $800
Front wheel bearing replaced
Pads replaced
49000 mi
US $450
Replaced rear wheel bearings. One had gotten slightly noisy and the car is driven on the racetrack often. Proactive or preventative maintenance
7440 mi
Steering wheel slack felt during slow speed reverse driving, such as parking. They re-torqued / replaced the tie rod ends / rack and pinion bolts. Seems ok.
Hearing a thunk in the steering and determined that their are 70 nationwide and need steering rack replaced. It is back ordered for at least two weeks. Said car is safe to drive. They actually did not call me back as promised for replacing the steering rack. So could not get it fixed and deal with the clanking for now. Said many having this problem.
16000 mi
My car started to creak again. Took back as it had to do once again with the steering rack being replaced. This time they fixed it... they had not torqued the right strut correctly.
90000 mi
US $280
Replaced all shock absorbers and strut bearings.
38000 mi
US $260
Sway bar links replaced because car was feeling/sounding clunkier than usual on rough road.
46000 mi
US $150
Replaced noisy rear wheel bearings.
3720 mi
clunking sound from the suspension
21700 mi
suspension bushing replacement for better parts by fiat
42780 mi
clunking noise
55800 mi
steering was shaking.
6000 mi
There was a clunk and some free play in the steering. Dealer trimmed the steering shaft seal. The Dealer said there is a Technical Service Bulletin put out by Fiat regarding this problem, but I can' find it. Car needs to go back again.
7000 mi
It took replacing the Intermediate steering shaft to get rid of the clunk noise and feel in the steering.
10000 mi
Replaced the intermediate steering shaft again (this is the second replacement under warranty).
21000 mi
Clunking in front suspension over bumps.
29760 mi
Car developed a clunk on left front strut only when the suspension hit a dip in pavement. Replaced rubber jounce bumper.
52360 mi
C $900
The jounce bumpers were replaced. Dealer had tried to fix this before under warranty. Clunking in suspension continues. FIAT has a real problem here. Brakes got very rusty from sitting. Decided to replace rotors and pads.
200 mi
Car pulls hard to the right, alignment incorrect from factory.
14000 mi
Front end noises when turning to the right to full lock
Hit a pot hole on passenger side. Damaged rim and alignment. Over time ruined tires. Ordered new rims and tires, took for install and alignment. Ball joint was bad on DRIVER side. Also had to replace strut mount.
64300 mi
US $1140
Bad ball joints, upper strut mounts and bearings. Also replaced wheels & tires. Dealer doesn't sell 2012 part. Forces owners to buy later parts causing much extra expense. FIAT picked up about $300 in parts costs.
86411 mi
US $650
The lower control arm bushings at the rear of the lower control arms had torn badly on the driver's side and some on the passenger's side. I ordered the DNA racing lower control arms which were drop-shipped direct from Italy. Installation is a large job. Front bumper cover has to be removed as well as serious support members. On a positive note, once all bolted in, the alignment was spot on! On a negative note, the racing straight line arms do limit the maximum angle the steering can be turned as wheels will hit the control arm.
10712 mi
Clunking noise in front end was determined to be caused by faulty jounce bumpers; were replaced under warranty.
31620 mi
Clunking noise over bumps returned for the third time. Bump stops and upper strut mounts replaced. New noises over bumps. Struts replaced.
26000 mi
clunking suspension noise
29000 mi
loud metallic noise when turning sharp
46000 mi
Ball Joint, Clicking in steering rod, all items replaced by dealer, had to get Chrysler involved however to ensure the work was done on warranty
35800 mi
jounce bumpers replaced
44000 mi
jounce bumpers again. this time replaced with new "end all" parts. A strut link was also replaced when it could not be removed (seized).
1500 mi
Loud knocking noises when going over speed bumps
5580 mi
Front Suspension arm bushings replaced. Possibly caused by hitting big pothole on freeway, though no problem showed up until a few weeks later. No damage to tire or wheel.
See our lemon odds and nada odds page to see vehicles with no repairs or vehicles with more than three repairs. To see how
frequently 2012 Fiat 500 problems occur, check out our car reliability stats.