56 of the
319 complaints filed about the Fiat 500X
are about the transmission —
18% of everything owners reported.
The worst model year for it is 2016.
56
Complaints
18%
Share of all complaints
1
Crashes
0
Fires
Transmission & Drivetrain complaints by model year
I was driving vehicle and it all of a sudden get stuck in gear in either park gear or some other gear that wont allow me to turn engine off. Sometimes it just slow down to a stop and will not go into gear again for a while or appears the gears are not engaging putting me at risk for accident on highway. Once it slowed down in traffic and I nearly got hit trying to drive it off the highway. The gears were not engaging putting me at risk of many vehicles hitting me. I was praying someone noticed I had car trouble to slow down as I was no longer in full control of vehicle. After some
NHTSA complaint #11737019 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2016 Fiat 500X. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unintendedly shifted from drive(D) to neutral(N). The RPM became elevated; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. While driving approximately 15 - 20 MPH, the vehicle went into LIMP Mode. While in LIMP Mode, the contact coasted to the side of the road and waited for several minutes before continuing to drive. The failure had occurred twice. Additionally, the check engine warning light illuminated intermittently. The vehicle had been taken to a certified mechanic, who determined that the transmission had failed and needed to be rebuilt. The dealer also diagnosed that there was a failure with the instrument cluster. The instrument cluster lights were cleared; however, the transmission was not repaired. The check engine warning light remained illuminated. The contact was made aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V529000 (Power Train), for the transmission for the same year, make, and model. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the VIN was not included in the recall and opened a case. The failure mileage was approximately 144,000.
NHTSA complaint #11710295 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Car suddenly slowed down while driving on Christmas Day. This was a very unsafe situation because I was on the highway in traffic traveling at 70 miles per hour and the car suddenly slowed down which could have resulted in an accident leading to harm. A warning light then came on to service transmission right as the car slowed down. I Tried to step on the gas pedal and it would not accelerate. There was no warning light prior to this incident. The car was towed to the dealership the next day. On the following Monday we were told the transmission needs to be completely replaced after they completed a diagnosis test. Enclosed is a pic of the invoice.
NHTSA complaint #11708302 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2016 Fiat 500X. The contact stated while driving 30-35 MPH, several messages stating that the 4-WD system and the drive mode selector system were not available were displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where a computer software update was performed, per the manufacturer's recommendation; however, the failure persisted. The contact stated that the failure recurred upon starting the vehicle. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where the cause of the failure could not be determined. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 73,000.
NHTSA complaint #11634312 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
While driving, the vehicle will randomly shift to Neutral with a message appearing about shifting gears. When this happens I cannot accelerate or brake, and cannot shift gears. The only way to get the car to operate properly again is to turn the engine off and back on. Suddenly losing the ability to drive the car while on the road like this is definitely a safety risk, to me and other drivers. This has happened on three separate occasions for me. I took it to a dealership that was unable to diagnose it as they could not replicate the issue themselves during a test drive. It appears to be the same issue that is described in recall S55. However, even though my car is listed in the recall, I was told my specific VIN is not included. The dealership says there is nothing they can do.
NHTSA complaint #11630317 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Driving on the highway approximately 55 MPH and the vehicle went automatically went into neutral thankfully I was able to pull off to the shoulder. I put it in park and shut the vehicle off and turned it back on again, when I shifted into drive it felt like somebody just picked up the car and dropped it. This has been an ongoing issue. Dealerships don’t know what it is. I’ve done research on this specific vehicle from other owners and they have been experiencing the same thing with this make and model of vehicle
NHTSA complaint #11616211 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2016 Fiat 500X. The contact stated that on two occasions while driving approximately 75 MPH, the gear disengaged, and the transmission unexpectedly shifted into neutral. The vehicle was taken to the residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 104,000.
NHTSA complaint #11603319 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
THE Transmission Valve Body Solenoid was diagnosed as not working. while i was driving on the highway without any indication the car just started slowing down . There was not a warning or anything, then the transmission service lights up, i had to have my car towed to a dealership however they informed me that there was never any service they were supposed to do on my transmission because of the type of vehicle i have. this part is expensive and not easily obtainable. car is still showing transmission issue.
NHTSA complaint #11595749 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
My car spontaneously shifts from driving to neutral while I am actively driving it. This has happened at least a half dozen times so far. Each time this has happened I cannot get my car to continue driving, since it’s shifted to neutral all by itself and stuck there. I have to come to a complete stop, put my car in park, turn the engine off, and then turn it back on again. This has happened for the last year and is happening more and more frequently. The latest incident was 4/1/2024. I talked to the Fiat dealership and they said it looks like my car should have been included in a Transmission issue recall that was assigned to 2016 Fiat 500X cars, but for some reason it wasn’t assigned to my specific VIN.
NHTSA complaint #11581483 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I purchased my 2018 Fiat 500X POP used in April 2023 with only 22k miles. This past weekend 12/16 when I would first start my car up and get ready to leave in the mornings after having been parked for the night, my car would start up normal and I could proceed down the street. The minute I apply the break my car would lose power, stall out or shut off completely. I would press the start button, release the break, shift the gear to drive and proceed forward. I would go about 20 mph as I was driving in a residential area then my car would stall out and shut off again leaving stuck in the roadway. I repeated the start process to pull over to a safe location. I called the dealer and they said there are no recalls for this issue, however, I located one, but my VIN is not coming back as one of the affected vehicles. This is extremely dangerous as I live in an area with freeways as the only way to get to certain areas and cannot have this vehicle shutdown on freeways because it could result in a bad accident. I am looking for any assistance I can receive from this complaint. Fiat is not helpful, and the closest dealer is 2hrs from my residence.
NHTSA complaint #11560961 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
There is an active recall for the power train control module for this car but it is not showing up in the NHTSA list. https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2018/RCRIT-18V524-1313.pdf identifies the specific recall for the powertrain control module for the Fiat 500X https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2018/FIAT/500X/SUV/2WD#recalls lists the recalls done for the vehicle and it does not list the powertrain control module recall issue. We just bought this car from CARMAX and looks like this campaign recall fix was not listed on the site so they didn't address it and now the car wont work or run. If the recall was listed by the VIN they would have been required to fix before selling.
NHTSA complaint #11542790 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2016 Fiat 500X. The contact stated that on two separate occasions, the vehicle stalled without warning. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V529000 (Power Train) which she linked to the failure. The contact called the manufacturer who referred her to the dealer. The dealer advised her to drive the vehicle for 2,000 miles to track the failure and the contact declined. The vehicle remained in the possession of the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 39,000.
NHTSA complaint #11495510 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
I lease a 2016 fiat 500x in may of 2020. I received a letter saying there was a recall on my vehicle. Recently my car has completely stopped working. It was using up oil to fast. My car would stall out in the middle of the road. Or my car would not turn on completely. I kept up with maintenance ( oil changes etc. ) in June of 2022 my car started over heating. The day before I had just got my oil changed. I took it to the dealership. Which they told me I blew my head gasket. I don’t believe that’s is what happened. I believe something else had went wrong. Now they won’t help me fix my car even when having FULL coverage warranty. and I’ve been without a car since then.
NHTSA complaint #11495122 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
The contact owns a 2016 Fiat 500X. The contact stated upon making a complete stop at a traffic light, the vehicle vibrated. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to continue driving. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 40-45 MPH, the vehicle experienced hard shifting from second to third gear. The contact was able to continue driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that three motor mounts were fractured and needed to be replaced. Additionally, the dealer diagnosed that the spark plugs, and an unknown seal needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not assist as the VIN was not under recall, and the vehicle was out of warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 79,300.
NHTSA complaint #11491933 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
Since the car was purchased, the electrical system seems to have an issue that no dealership has been able to diagnose or fix. The forward collision warning system will intermittently turn itself off upon starting or even while driving. The car also frequently blows passenger side lights. More recently at about 67,000 miles, the check engine and transmission warning lights came on while highway driving 2.5 hrs away from home. The car has been in and out of the shop at least 3 times over the past month and a half to try and fix the issue but they have been unable to determine what is wrong with it. They said they found metal in the transmission and therefore replaced the torque converter and valve body. However, the issue persists. A burning smell can now be detected when driving. Car is going into the shop for a 3rd time to try and fix it - leaving owner without a vehicle for another undetermined amount of time and many miles away from home (this time >500 miles away from home). The car supposedly passed all previous recalls - cooling fan, oil consumption, etc. All regular service/maintenance intervals have been kept by the owner.
NHTSA complaint #11442001 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
1 year after purchase the car started having electrical issues, hard gear shifting, turns off or fails to start on first try, car has been serviced at South Miami FIAT since the issues started. The dealer could not identify the issues and told me that they would leave a warranty order open in the event that the warranty expired and the issue was not addressed. The dealer is basically not assisting. I have recently taken my car in for the oil consumption test; at first it failed to later be told that it's working just fine. Problems do no fix themselves and I feel that the dealer is not being totally honest with the situation. I am aware that the consumer is on the losing end of this story, but I will say that I along with many others have had a less than desirable experience with FIAT vehicles. Can someone please respond regarding these issues. I know that the past 2 years have been strenuous on all, but this is my last effort to find a solution to this matter. I have reviewed many other owners with almost identical issues with their cars. Thank you for your attention
NHTSA complaint #11430379 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
2016 FIAT 500X EASY SPORT AWD. I TOOK MY CAR IN LAST YEAR DUE TO A CODE IT WAS THREW RELATING TO ENGINE COOLING FAN & FOUND IT WAS ON AN UPDATED RECALL; CAR WAS STALLING BOTH WHILE DRIVING & WHILE AT A COMPLETE STOP, HAD EXCESSIVE OIL CONSUMPTION (1 QRT NEEDED EVERY 2 WKS), SHIFTED HARD FROM 1ST TO 2ND AND ALSO HAD ODD IDLING SOUND AT SPEEDS BTWN 15-25MPH WITH SUDDEN 'POWER BURST' AND LAST, EXCESSIVE HEAT FROM ENGINE RIGHT BEFORE IT THREW THE CODE. FIAT RECALL ASSISTANCE VERY HELPFUL AND GOT ME THE REPLACEMENT PART AND SERVICED AT LOCAL DEALERSHIP. RECALL NEVER SHOWED UP UNDER NHTSA EVEN TO THIS DAY. THE REPLACEMENT PART SEEMED TO CURE ALL EXCEPT FOR THE ODD IDLING SOUND. IT'S AS THOUGH CAR IS GOING TO STALL ANY SECOND, ALMOST A 'KNOCKING' IN ENGINE AND SLIGHT SHAKING CAN BE FELT. RECVD NOTICE TODAY FROM SAME DEALERSHIP THAT TOOK CARE OF LAST RECALL ON MY CAR. APPARENTLY IT HAS BEEN ADDED TO THE POWERTRAIN RECALL 16V529000, SO I WILL BE SCHEDULING AN APPT TOMORROW. WHEN I TRIED TO FIND THE RECALL, MY VIN SEARCH CAME BACK WITH 'YOU HAVE 0 UNREPAIRED RECALLS'??? I HAD TO COMPLETE A SEARCH WITHOUT THE VIN TO FIND OUT WHAT CAMPAIGN IT WAS UNDER. IF DEALER IS SENDING ME ALERTS, CERTAINLY NHTSA SHOULD HAVE MY CAR LISTED FOR THE SAME RECALL AS THEY DO...YOU GUYS DO ALL GO OFF THE SAME RECALL DATABASE AS MFG DO, DON'T YOU?
NHTSA complaint #11408478 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.