MOT advisories on used Fiat 500 should I be worried

bamboo44

Hello, I am looking for some advice. I have put a deposit on a Fiat 500 lounge semi automatic 2010. It has a new MOT and passed after just failing for break pads and tyres.

The mot before even when passed had these advisories. The recent MOT has none of these advisories on it. So does that mean they are repaired? 

Should I avoid it, or ask to see proof of repairs? It is a certain age car, but its not cheap. 

Appreciate any help thank you. 

29 September 2021

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

• Nearside Rear Coil spring corroded (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Offside Rear Coil spring corroded (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Nearside Rear Brake hose has slight corrosion to ferrule (1.1.12 (f) (i))
• Offside Rear Brake hose has slight corrosion to ferrule (1.1.12 (f) (i))
• Rear axle beam corroded.
• Rear Exhaust has a minor leak of exhaust gases silencer box, (6.1.2 (a))
• Rear silencer box outer skin badly corroded.
• Nearside Front Outer Tyre has a cut but not deep enough to reach the ply or cords sidewall. (5.2.3 (d) (i))

29 September 2020

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

• Rear exhaust silencer outer skins heavily corroded.
• Rear suspension axle corroded.
• Nearside Front Coil spring corroded (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Offside Front Coil spring corroded (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Nearside Rear Coil spring corroded (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Offside Rear Coil spring corroded (5.3.1 (b) (i))
• Offside Front Tyre valve 

Car_54

Ask for proof of repairs, and also of routine servicing. An MOT fail for tyres and brakes suggests there may not have been any!

bamboo44

Car_54 said:

Ask for proof of repairs, and also of routine servicing. An MOT fail for tyres and brakes suggests there may not have been any!

Thanks for your advice. This is is what came up @Car_54 and then new mot passed after put back through for these fails. It is more the corrosion and all from the last ones. Worried I will have more repairs to do in the year. 

Do not drive until repaired (dangerous defects):

• Nearside Front Brake pad(s) less than 1.5 mm thick (1.1.13 (a) (ii))

Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):

• Offside Front Tyre worn close to legal limit/worn on edge inner edge (5.2.3 (e))

facade

It is going to need a new exhaust soon unless it has been changed.

The corroded springs, axle beam and the ferrules on the brake pipes could all be sorted with a wire brush and a lick of paint or spray of black stonechip, they will all be surface rust at the moment, and all fiat 500s are like that (unless someone has had the wire brush and the paint out). They are advisories, and as "they are all like that" some testers won't bother recording them, but others do.

A decent dealer would have had the wire brush and paint to it, and be proud to tell you that they have done it and you'll have no worries for years.

The silencer outer skin is just that, an outer skin that people often remove when it corrodes to avoid the advisory. The leak is a worry though, as it may be starting to corrode more severely and need a new one.

The real problem with Fiat 500s is they go through the void bushes on the rear shock absorbers like an elephant goes through a bag of sticky buns, not massively expensive but often gone.

force_ten

have a look at that video fiat 500 with the very same issues 

https://youtu.be/zMASGPVxHO8

Ectophile

Sounds like the exhaust is on the way out.  And have a good look at the tyre.

The advisory on the springs can safely be ignored.  I have a Fiat Panda that I bought new.  That's pretty much the same car as the 500, apart from the bodywork.  On it's first MOT at 3 years, it got an advisory on the springs.  On its 11th MOT, I was finally told that two of the springs really did need replacing, though even then they hadn't actually snapped.

Some MOT inspectors just seem to have a need to put an advisory on something.

EssexExile

Ectophile said:

Sounds like the exhaust is on the way out.  And have a good look at the tyre.

The advisory on the springs can safely be ignored.  I have a Fiat Panda that I bought new.  That's pretty much the same car as the 500, apart from the bodywork.  On it's first MOT at 3 years, it got an advisory on the springs.  On its 11th MOT, I was finally told that two of the springs really did need replacing, though even then they hadn't actually snapped.

Some MOT inspectors just seem to have a need to put an advisory on something.

Likewise the brake hose corrosion, I had the same advisory on my Astravan for 17 years.

Grey_Critic

Exhaust corrode from the inside out so the *minor leak* tells you it is goiung o need replaciong in the near future.

lordmountararat

Those electro/magnetic clutch semi automatics are just awful to drive, imho. Jerky and horrible. Honest John recommends the Fiat 500, but advises against the 'auto' version on his website. Small automatics are much better served with the tried and tested torque converter, such as slightly older Hyundai i10 or Kia Picanto. You get a much longer warranty, too.

Goudy

They are all problems common the the 500/Panda.
The silencer is triple skinned so can look in a right state before it leaks, newer models have a drain hole to let the condensation out which helps them last longer.

Rear axles and the springs do tend to rust, the lower spring pans on the back axle can rust badly and snap off.
Replacements aren't too expensive, there's a company that makes replacements with thicker steel and better paint protection.

What would worry me is the semi auto "Dualogic" gearbox.
It's notorious for going wrong and very very expensive to fix and as already mentioned, they drive terrible.
Best avoided as it's a when not if thing.
This might give you a flavour of what's to come https://www.fiatforum.com/threads/the-one-and-only-dualogic-failure-thread.425006/

[Deleted User]

force_ten said:

have a look at that video fiat 500 with the very same issues 

https://youtu.be/zMASGPVxHO8

When I seen them advisories I did wonder if that's the same car that's james is trying to sell for that old woman.