Fiat 500C
Registered from 2009 to 2018.
About this model
The Fiat 500 is an A-segment city car manufactured and marketed by the Italian car maker Fiat, a subdivision of Stellantis, since 2007. It is available in hatchback coupé and fixed-profile convertible body styles, over a single generation, with an intermediate facelift in Europe in the 2016 model year. Developed during FIAT's tenure as a subdivision of FCA, the 500 was internally designated as the Type 312.
From the Wikipedia article Fiat 500 (2007), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
What fails its inspection
Great Britain's MOT record for the 2015 1.2 petrol. 554 of 2,681 tests failed, 21%.
Better than 16% of 2015 cars. The typical one fails 15%, across 894 models with enough tests behind them to say.
| Where | Share of failures | Failed tests |
|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 61% | 338 |
| Tyres and wheels | 23% | 126 |
| Lights and electrics | 17% | 93 |
| Brakes | 15% | 82 |
| Visibility | 11% | 59 |
| Body and structure | 10% | 55 |
The defects inspectors cite
- A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
- A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage
- A shock absorber bush excessively worn
- A tyre seriously damaged
- A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
- Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Where it stands out against its peers
- Suspension: failed more often than 97% of 2015 cars — 61% of its 554 failed tests, where an ordinary 2015 car has 25%.
Same model year only, at least 30 peer cars, zeros included. Every car has a worst part; this shows which, and how far from ordinary it is. A high share means more to check, not a verdict.
NHTSA's investigations are American; no European regulator publishes an equivalent record, so this section has nothing to draw on for a European car. There is no European equivalent of the service-bulletin register either.
Before you buy one
Built from what this car fails on, not from general knowledge of the model.
- Suspension — 61% of its failures
- A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
- A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage
- A shock absorber bush excessively worn
- Tyres and wheels — 23% of its failures
- A tyre seriously damaged
- Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
- A tyre cords visible or damaged
- Brakes — 15% of its failures
- Lights and electrics — 17% of its failures
- Visibility — 11% of its failures
- Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen
- Body and structure — 10% of its failures
When it starts failing
At 80–100k miles this one fails 29% of its inspections, against the 19% an ordinary car of the same age fails.
| Odometer | Failure rate | Rate | Its age | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–20k miles | 10% | 7% | 193 | |
| 20–40k miles | 16% | 10% | 953 | |
| 40–60k miles | 23% | 14% | 968 | |
| 60–80k miles | 27% | 17% | 431 | |
| 80–100k miles | 29% | 19% | 105 |
2,650 British inspections, grouped by the odometer reading recorded at the test.
Half of these have more than 40k miles on them. That is how far people drive this car, not how long it lasts.
Specification
| Year | Measured |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 1.2 petrol · 68 hp · 996 kg · 2300 mm wheelbase · 6.2 L/100km (WLTP) |
| 2017 | 1.2 petrol · 68 hp · 988 kg · 2300 mm wheelbase · 4.2 L/100km (NEDC) |