Interested to see in What Car Jan issue that their 320d Convertible was serviced at main agent Sytner for £161 - this was for a first service at 19,000 miles. (The car also needed a pollen filter which cost an extra £44)

By contrast Peter Robinson of Abarth UK has told me that the menu price for the A500 first service is £318. Whilst he points out that not all dealers are charging the full amount I'm sure none are offering a 50% discount - even in these recessionary times.

Abarth really need to get a grip on this issue and also the relationship of Abarth to the Fiat network and the fact that in many cases it is out of bounds (all warranty work)

If Abarth UK is not careful issues like this will kill the brand before it really gets going and if word gets out about the ludicrous running costs and inadequate service network, secondhand values will plummet.

simer said:

Interested to see in What Car Jan issue that their 320d Convertible was serviced at main agent Sytner for £161 - this was for a first service at 19,000 miles. (The car also needed a pollen filter which cost an extra £44)

By contrast Peter Robinson of Abarth UK has told me that the menu price for the A500 first service is £318. Whilst he points out that not all dealers are charging the full amount I'm sure none are offering a 50% discount - even in these recessionary times.

Abarth really need to get a grip on this issue and also the relationship of Abarth to the Fiat network and the fact that in many cases it is out of bounds (all warranty work)

If Abarth UK is not careful issues like this will kill the brand before it really gets going and if word gets out about the ludicrous running costs and inadequate service network, secondhand values will plummet.

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and? You don't need to get it serviced an Abarth garage to preserve your warranty and Fiat and their dealers are free to charge whatever they want to. Yes it's expensive for a little car, as always shop around for the best price.

I am fully aware of the EC legislation regarding servicing and maintaining a warranty.

However many owners, myself included, would like to maintain a "FASH" but the current set-up is not conducive to this through the exorbitant costs and very sparse service network. For example I live in Bath but my nearest dealer is an hour away (one way) and a simple service (if it is not a while you wait) could involve a there and a back times two i.e. four hours traveling time.

Similarly ANY warranty work, even for the notorious washer jets, will require me to travel for two hours minimum.

Given that one of the Abarth 500's main competitors is the Mini which can be bought with the £185 tlc package which covers servicing for 5yrs/50k miles and it has numerous dealers across the country and you can see the problem.

Abarth have been talking for long enough (over a year now) about additional "service" dealers - what we need is for the whole Fiat network to be authorised to undertake regular servicing and warranty work - and we need it now.

i agree with a lot of what you say - however, as the poster above you notes..you can go to an independent, it really makes no difference to value or warranty etc.

i havent done the mileage for a full service so just out of interest i rang round 4 abarth dealers to get quotes for the 'low mileage' service (basically just oil and filter change, plus a few checks) and was quoted from between £120 up to £210. yes, £210 for a bloody oil change(!)

£120 is a lot better, but even that is a rip-off bearing in mind what they're actually doing. do your bank balance a favour and go somewhere.

you're right about the additional dealerships they promised though for warranty work, thats well annoying but i dont expect them anytime soon.

Should have asked before buying and bought a lovely little Mini instead. They are much better you know. (ducks) :devil:

nottsfiat07 said:

Should have asked before buying and bought a lovely little Mini instead. They are much better you know. (ducks) :devil:

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A network of extra service dealers was promised when the Abarth Grande Punto was launched, well over a year ago, but this has not been forthcoming.

As to costs they seem to have only recently become apparent and as the cars are little different to a bog standard Fiat it seemed reasonable to expect broadly similar servicing costs.

personally i'd use a reputable local independant garage, who will use genuine parts to preserve warrenty.

i don't trust dealers anyway, i'd rather take my car to someone i trust for anything i can't do myself, which isn't much.

Punto_Pete said:

personally i'd use a reputable local independant garage, who will use genuine parts to preserve warrenty.

i don't trust dealers anyway, i'd rather take my car to someone i trust for anything i can't do myself, which isn't much.

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I take your point but when you are talking about a brand new £15k car it is not unreasonable to expect to be able to EASILY service it at a main agent.

simer said:

I take your point but when you are talking about a brand new £15k car it is not unreasonable to expect to be able to EASILY service it at a main agent.

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You did know about the Abarth dealer/service situation *before* you bought it, didn't you?

You realise as well that you are comparing a run-of-the-mill, common as muck BMW with a comparatively rare sports car. If you wanted it to be cheap to run and cheap to service you should have gone for a cheaper option, Evo drivers don't complaint that they have to have their cars serviced every 500 yds because it's part of the package. Deal with it.

:yeahthat:

Since the Abarth only has the standard fiat 1.4 turbo engine anyway I think it's nuts that any Fiat dealer can't service it. They could of course, but this would negate the exclusivity thing which seems to matter to some people who like spending money.

Same with £5000 handbags: why? I have heard fashionistas attempt to justify it, and I'm inclined towards a variation on Dr Johnson's comment...

"I told him I had been that morning at a meeting of the people called Quakers, where I had heard a woman preach. Johnson: "Sir, a woman's preaching is like a dog's walking on his hind legs. It is not done well; but you are surprised to find it done at all."
Boswell: Life of Johnson.

zanes said:

You did know about the Abarth dealer/service situation *before* you bought it, didn't you?

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I was a very early customer in February '09 and the promised service network has not been forthcoming - so no I didn't know that there were going to be so few service agents.

Eklipze3k said:

You realise as well that you are comparing a run-of-the-mill, common as muck BMW with a comparatively rare sports car. If you wanted it to be cheap to run and cheap to service you should have gone for a cheaper option, Evo drivers don't complaint that they have to have their cars serviced every 500 yds because it's part of the package. Deal with it.

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It might be rare, it might be sporty but at the end of the day its no more mechanically sophisticated than any other warm/hot hatch. The current situation is a rip off which will damage the brand.

Abarth needs to wake up to this and sort it out.

Eklipze3k said:

You realise as well that you are comparing a run-of-the-mill, common as muck BMW with a comparatively rare sports car.

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Its a panda in a slutty dress.

i dont really see what you mean comparing these 2 cars, your comparing a luxury base model diesel to a hatch, top model petrol there about as far apart as you can get lol.

that bmw price is just for an oil service.

go and price up an inspection 2 on a bmw m3 that would be more of a comparison

So are we saying that BMW is a benchmark in quality and customer service that Fiat/Abarth has specifically put itself forward to beat, or are we saying BMW are crap but still better than Fiat/Abarth?

Or maybe because the 500 is a retro design and so is the Mini, comparison between the two marques is justified and warranted?

simer said:

I am fully aware of the EC legislation regarding servicing and maintaining a warranty.

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Then what are you bitching about? Seriously, what?

simer said:

I was a very early customer in February '09 and the promised service network has not been forthcoming - so no I didn't know that there were going to be so few service agents.

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Who promised you this? Abarth? As I understood it was always going to be exclusive and the dealer network would be tiny. By extension then, it's reasonable to expect the servicing network to be small as well.

simer said:

However many owners, myself included, would like to maintain a "FASH" but the current set-up is not conducive to this through the exorbitant costs and very sparse service network.

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Then it'll cost. As has been pointed out you can get it serviced with genuine parts anywhere and maintain warranty. If you want it to be a FASH then pay for it. I don't see where the problem lies? I want a Lamborghini and I'd really like to pay Fiat 500 money for one. Let me know if you see one at those sort of prices, won't you?

simer said:

Given that one of the Abarth 500's main competitors is the Mini which can be bought with the £185 tlc package which covers servicing for 5yrs/50k miles and it has numerous dealers across the country and you can see the problem.

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Yes, yes the problem is very clear now. You bought the wrong car. Clearly what you wanted was a car with very cheap servicing and a huge dealer network.

Eklipze3k said:

a comparatively rare sports car.

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haha pmsl.

its only a fiat 500, a very small warm hatch.

it's a punto for girls, they share the same engine and chassis after all.

I just had the merc servised it was 2000 and she is only 5 years old they know how to charge its about 100 pound an hour