Just wanted to report that I have just had my local specialist - ProAlfa - in Watford remap our 1.2 63plate Cat6 convertible and I have to say it has become a different car!
Bought it last summer with 7500 miles on the clock to tour Spain and Portugal for a month and I must say it did struggle up the ramps from underground garages and found one hill impossible.
Generally it was ok to drive, but a little sluggish. Now it feels like the elephant that was strapped to the back of it, has been removed.... amazing difference!
They are just completing an oil/filter/coolant/thermostat housing change as I write this....
Very happy!

I recently bought a 500C, albeit 2011 model, for my missus. I love the car and my missus and I fight over it, but it really feels quite gutless, especially up hills (I live in a hilly area).

What's a remap cost and what are the downsides?

The Euro 6 emissions standard on the 1.2 really makes the car gutless. Although this should not effect a 2011 model. There was one very steep hill on holiday that this car would not drive up and underground garages / carparks in Spain were a little problematic on the exit ramps lol. After the remap, this baby is like a different car.. downsides .... hmmmm... it has way more low down torque, is much faster away at roundabouts, no longer hesitant, drives up hilly dual carriageways without the need to change down to 3rd and the MPG has improved to an average of 47mpg from 44mpg...
It was so worth the £250 I paid them.

I'm assuming it's still emissions compliant at mot time?
And if a aftermarket set up can successfully remap it why doesn't Fiat have a better recall to the same standard?

John202020 said:

I'm assuming it's still emissions compliant at mot time?
And if a aftermarket set up can successfully remap it why doesn't Fiat have a better recall to the same standard?

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Fiat wants their cars to be as universal as possible, including coping with high altitude driving on the crappy low octane fuel that is available in some countries.
When remapping you could choose to forsee only more realistic situations, allowing better overall performance.

This is obvious when looking at the criteria more extreme tuners set.
F.e. some tuners push the 1.4 T-Jet engine far beyond 250hp, but rely heavily on safety mechanisms to drastically downtune performance at high altitudes or when running lower than optimum octane fuel.

Isabelle

John202020 said:

I'm assuming it's still emissions compliant at mot time?
And if a aftermarket set up can successfully remap it why doesn't Fiat have a better recall to the same standard?

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I think it's likely it would still pass a UK MOT emissions test. I doubt very much it would meet the full Euro6 homologation requirements.

Car manufacturers have to be extremely careful to ensure that any official remap introduced as part of a recall continues to meet the emissions standards to which the car was originally homologated; with the VW scandal fresh in everyone's memory, I doubt Fiat (or any other manufacturer) would take any chances in this regard.

Remapping the car to improve its performance and economy is easy; remapping it whilst still maintaining Euro6 emissions compliance is not.

did you get a map print out of hp gain torqe gain numbers,i would really like to do this myself but would be unsure if id pass my mot? if its worth it and still with in these then everyone should get it done.

It's a totally different car to the gutless thing before. Granted a 1.2 is never going to set the world alight. It's now a very rev happy machine, that sprints from roundabouts and will cruise at 85mph without slowing down to 50 on inclines lol. I drove it to Spain at the end of January and returned a couple of weeks ago for some maintenance and an MOT.
I use Pro Alfa in Watford who have been amazing.
No issues with the MOT. Just had rear shocks,front pads, discs, cambelt, water pump (4 years 23000miles) and 4 new tyres to keep everything tip top. Car looks and drives like new

I didn't get a print out no.. I didn't ask for one... might be keen for this on the twinair I have... but this was more about making the 1.2 a decent usable car that would drive up hills lol

Our 1.2 is a week short of 4yrs old so very similar age (and mileage) to yours and I always thought it was Euro5 not 6. It was a factory order built March 2013 if anybody can confirm?

Mine is a September 2013 model... I assume it was the Euro6 model...
It certainly was sluggish, with issues getting up steep hills/ramps.
Is yours the same? A remap turned it into a different car!

p6baseunit said:

Is yours the same? A remap turned it into a different car!

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No issues at all, mine might be EU5 and yours EU6. Glad you're happy with the improvement

Has anyone used quantum tunning to remap their fiats?
They have graphs on their website with before/after, interesting results.

p6baseunit said:

Just wanted to report that I have just had my local specialist - ProAlfa - in Watford remap our 1.2 63plate Cat6 convertible and I have to say it has become a different car!

Bought it last summer with 7500 miles on the clock to tour Spain and Portugal for a month and I must say it did struggle up the ramps from underground garages and found one hill impossible.

Generally it was ok to drive, but a little sluggish. Now it feels like the elephant that was strapped to the back of it, has been removed.... amazing difference!

They are just completing an oil/filter/coolant/thermostat housing change as I write this....

Very happy!

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Sounds good but I was wondering how much did your car insurance went up?

Why would you tell the insurance company? This a 1.2 after all, we weren't taking about adding 40bhp to an Abarth

iphotoguys said:

Sounds good but I was wondering how much did your car insurance went up?

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Depends on your insurance company. Some will refuse cover and just cancel your policy.

I'd advise getting the quote first before doing the remap.

I'm not suggesting anyone would do this, but not declaring it is just plain stupid.

p6baseunit said:

Why would you tell the insurance company? This a 1.2 after all, we weren't taking about adding 40bhp to an Abarth

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My understanding is that it effectively voids your insurance cover if you don't declare you have 'modified' your vehicle. There is some info here, the gains in horsepower are less than 10% (though it doesn't mention drivability improvements). http://www.quantumtuning.co.uk/car-remap-tuning-remapping.aspx?Make=Fiat&Range=500

Superchips had this to say about insurance...
At Superchips we tell everyone who is interested in an ECU Remap that they must inform their car insurance company. This is because ECU remapping affects your car’s performance. Which is why you buy one, of course! You should inform your insurer of modifications to your car’s performance. Premiums may remain unchanged by using our specialist partners, Adrian Flux, 0800 587 2943 – www.adrianflux.co.uk, who understand the benefits a Superchip brings.

I can't see how they can prove that my ECU was reprogrammed to give it back the power of the Euro5 set up.
It wasn't chipped, it was remapped to return the power robbed by the Euro6 emissions set up.

It's a course of action I would recommend to anyone with a 1.2 unable to do very steep hill starts

p6baseunit said:

Why would you tell the insurance company?

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Because if you don't, you're driving uninsured.

It's easy enough for a specialist forensic scientist to check if the car's mapping has been modified. The police will likely do this after an accident involving death or serious injury; the insurers will likely do this if facing a significant claim.

It may not be likely, but the police can also do a spot roadside check. If they find evidence of a remap, then one phone call to your insurance company and your car will be going to the police pound on a transporter. You will be going home on the bus with a fixed penalty notice for £300 & 6 points in your pocket.

Something not that dissimilar happened recently to someone I know. A police team were parked in a layby just down the road from the staff car park of a large company; they were pulling cars that had driven out at random, looking for insurance anomolies. Turns out this person had (unknowingly) failed to check their insurance covered driving to and from a place of work; they went home on the bus with a FPN in their pocket. By the time they'd sorted out the insurance, recovered the car and paid the FPN, they were already down over £800 and with another 6 points on their licence, the increase in their next few years insurance premiums will add significantly to that.

If you're involved in an accident in which someone dies, then there is a separate offence of causing death by driving whilst uninsured; you don't even have to have been driving carelessly. The starting point for sentencing is 12 months imprisonment. If you're just driving along the high street and a drunk pedestrian jumps off the pavement in front of you, not declaring a remap could ruin your life.

There's a question on all insurance proposal forms: "Has the vehicle been modified?". Insurers, and the police, take this much more seriously, and interpret it much more strictly, than some car owners.