Car diagnosed with transmission cooler failure. Warmed car up in the morning for 5 minutes(cold morning, low below zero). Noticed after getting in the car that it was still cold inside. On the way to work after 8 miles or so and the heater still blowing cold air, the high temperature/turn of engine warning message appeared and the digital temp gauge was at max. Stopped car and had it towed to Fiat dealer for service. They diagnosed it as a transmission cooler failure. Thinking is that the engine coolant froze, damaging the transmission cooler and causing it to mix trans fluid and engine coolant. There were no warning signs this was about to happen, car acted normal previous day of driving. This happened 3000 miles past the warranty expiring.

- Carpentersville, IL, USA

Since I purchased my 2012 Fiat 500 sport in September of 2012 I have had this issue. Occasionally (about 4 times a week), the car fails to start. When turning the key in the ignition, the car makes a noise as if it is going to start but winds down and loses power. I turn the key back, wait about 5 seconds and the car will normally start. This happens all year around. I contacted the holt Fiat of fort worth where the car was purchased and took it in to be looked at. They could not replicate the issue. It is very random but happens very often.

- Burleson, TX, USA

Anytime sport mode is engaged, car does not decrease in speed properly. Even with brake applied, the car lunges forward as I'm trying to slow down. When driving using sport mode, I have to stay very far away from other vehicles in case of sudden braking because the vehicle will not slow down properly. My husband drove my car in sport mode not knowing that it lunged forward when braking and wound up an inch away from someone's bumper after attempting to slow down from a speed of about 20mph. This is extremely unsafe for the driver and other's around.

- Burleson, TX, USA

I was driving to work on dallas North tollway cruising at normal highway speed. I was in 5th gear in the far left lane driving at consistent speed. I heard a pop sound and then a sound as if something were dragging. It was as if I had run over a block of styrofoam in a shopping cart. Immediately my car lost power followed by messages on the hud: Low oil pressure; no oil pressure; see handbook. I immediately let my foot off the pedals and cruised to the shoulder. I saw oil or some other fluid had covered the rear of my car and was covering the ground underneath. The fluid had a reddish tinge to it. A piece of metal appeared to be hanging from underneath the car. Oil was everywhere. [xxx], the general manager of Fiat of mckinney, told me that the engine needed to be replaced but that it would not be covered by the warranty because the maximum engine "over-rev" reached a value of 7300 a total of 26 times. Fiat vehicles are equipped with engine safety features which limit RPM to acceptable values. I have never reached that RPM in that vehicle. I received a copy of the Fiat 500 diagnostics captured using a witech and it shows 3 pieces of data: Total over rev counter = 26, max engine over rev RPM = 7320, total time exceeding max engine RPM 0.0 seconds. There are no times associated with the overrev instances so that one could deduce that an overrev caused the engine failure. If it says that the total time over max engine RPM is 0.0 seconds, how is this possible if it indicated 26 times? since this is valued in total seconds, if the times added up to 0.0444 - which would be the maximum value possible before rounding up to 0.1, that means each of the 26 over rev instances would have lasted 0.0017 seconds. Even if going at 7320 RPM, the Fiat 500 engine can only go $12.44 revolutions in 0.0017 seconds. There is no way that it could be measured this accurately.

- Dallas, TX, USA

I was driving on the highway when the vehicle shut off and dropped speed quickly, was advised by the dealer that it was an electrical shortage to the battery as the car was brand new. Took the vehicle back in for repair, and it has happened three more times since that over the past two years. Two of those times were also on the highway. The most recent was last month (September 13, 2014) while making a U-turn at a light in front of moving traffic the car completely shut off right after my turn. Luckily, I was able to coast to the side and the car behind me saw me in time to stop.

- Orlando, FL, USA

This occurred about 6 times already. When making a left or right turn the vehicle shuts off and coasts until you stop to shut it off and turn back on. The battery and oil pressure lights come on during the coasting. Came very close to being hit twice due to this problem, but the dealer say they haven't heard anything like this before.

- Fort Meade, FL, USA

2012 Fiat 500. Consumer writes in regards to vehicle "generic warning light" illuminated.

- Sparta, GA, USA

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.

- Littleton, CO, USA

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.

- N Las Vegas, NV, USA

When I am driving and I am start slowing down for a light before it get to a full stop the transmission down shift to quick that makes the car jerk, I stop and wait for the light to change and it downshift by itself, it feels like somebody is hitting you on the rear of the car but nobody is there.I brought the car several times to the dealer but because it does not happen all the time nothing they could do about it. One of the times that I was at the dealer it happened. I put the car in reverse, drove it for 10 feet and then shifted to forward and the transmission would not do anything for 3 to 4 seconds then a jump (shifted to 1st gear) I was with the person who makes the appointments so he told me to bring the car next day. Next day they drove it and the car would shift fine so nothing was fixed. Last week, I told then to keep the car and let the foreman to drive it home so he would feel what it was happening, he told me that it happened once but on downshift and that could be a computer program and I have to wait until Fiat develop a new program. They tried everything that they know and the final solution was the way that I drive or the computer have to adjust when I change my driving from the highway to the city I thing is a lot of bs I drive 120 miles daily to work and I am worry that the downshift will happen when I am driving on highway speed and of course they told me that the downshift will not happen on higher speed even that they said they do not know why I keep bringing the car with the same transmission problem. Please help me to resolve this problem because even the car folds on the lemon law still I have to makes the payments. [xxx] information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Worcester, MA, USA

Multiple occasions, probably > 10 times in past two months. At low steady speed, such as driving in a parking lot, when I let up on gas pedal, the car does not slow down immediately. One expects the immediate, slight feeling of deceleration on the body, but it doesn't come right away. Usually it lasts about one second. It has lasted up to three seconds. Recently this happened while driving steadily at 30mph, I let up on accelerator entering a 20mph zone, and car did not slow down immediately. This was the occasion it took 3 seconds. I have been paying attention to this issue recently because it happens so much. I have not noticed this problem at high speed, such as expressway driving.

- Spokane, WA, USA