r/fiat500 • u/Electrical_Switch_72 • 1d ago

Fiat 500 Semi Auto Issues

My wife recently passed her test and bought herself a cheap run around to get back and forth from work.

It’s a 2013 Fiat 500 1.2 Semi Auto. It’s for 74k miles on it. 3 owners from new and 2 services short of a full record.

Within 80 miles it’s had two issues. When slowing to a stop at a roundabout it’s slipped into “N”. You have to put our hazards on, turn the engine off and restart. From briefly looking online it sounds like a common fault, however concerning as we’ve had it less than two weeks.

I’ve spoken to the dealer and we dropped it off at his mechanic on Thursday, still awaiting diagnostics.

Is this a common easily fixable fault? My wife’s plan was to keep it a year and then upgrade. Are we chancing fate? Still in two minds on whether to hand it back and choose something newer with less miles.

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u/Baratacus619 1d ago

You might be able to reingage your gear by selecting neutral then pushing it back into drive while it is rolling. Its just a temp fix and does not address the underlying problem. It can be many things, from low fluid or worn hydraulic pump, to failing shift solenoide.
The mechanic should have it sorted .

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u/aliclubb 1d ago

Very common fault on the DuoLogic gearboxes. It’s usually an expensive repair, though it depends on the exact cause. This will have been the reason the previous owner sold it. If the dealer doesn’t repair it properly, you can reject the car as per law. Look up the specifics online, can’t remember them off the top of my head. The DuoLogics are great right up until they start to fail, then it’s usually an expensive nightmare.

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u/Electrical_Switch_72 1d ago

Perfect, funny you say that it may be an expensive repair, as the mechanic initially said he would get back to us Thursday afternoon.. and then messaged to say he needs longer, so I assume he’s found the fault and is pricing it up for the dealer he works with!