Technical Dualogic gearbox

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Technical Dualogic gearbox

Shakespeare01

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I bought a Qubo Mylife 1.3 auto in June 2013 from a fiat dealership. It was 8 months old and had approx. 6000 miles on clock.
The 3 year warranty ended on 29 Oct 2015.On 1st Dec 2015 I found gearbox stuck in 2nd gear and had to have car transported to Fiat dealer who quoted £96.00 + VAT to diagnose problem.Two days later dealer phoned to say they could not find fault and asked me to agree couple more hours of labour. They still couldn't find problem so they contacted Fiat UK who told them to check various things and ran up many hours of labour.
After several weeks Fiat told dealer to change actuator and said they would pay half of cost leaving me to pay £600 + vat and labour charges.
Dealer fitted new actuator but it didn't solve problem. Fiat have now told dealer that the ECU is the problem and have said they will pay half again leaving me to pay approx. £400 plus labour.Car is still with dealer waiting to change ECU and leaving me with bill for thousands of pounds.
As the car is only 3 years old with under 11000 miles on clock should I be liable for repair or should it be free under Sale of Goods Act 1979 which can cover problems up to 6 years. Has anyone any advice about what I should do as the repairs are now half the value of the car. They also want to charge me for the actuator and because it didn't solve the problem I have no idea if the actuator was faulty. Qubo is still at garage after 10 weeks and they could not supply automatic courtesy car (my wife can't use manual gearbox)
Any advice would be appreciated.
 
Wow. Welcome, you will get lots of advice here. Did you make any payment for the car or repair on a credit card? Their own legal protection might help ref faulty goods or services.





Yes I paid part of the cost with a credit card.
Do you think I could make a claim against the card?
 
Well for the car itself probably too long ago but for the incompetent fault find and repairs so far then it might galvanise them as the credit agreement allows Visa and so on to simply take the monies paid back if they find due cause. Certainly they can refund you.
 
Yes I paid part of the cost with a credit card.
Do you think I could make a claim against the card?

for unnecessary parts -yes, labour you'd agreed to..maybe..,

TBH this kind of thing is relatively common.. semi-skilled people not understanding the product , and playing spare-part roulette:mad:

did you get it back after the 1st "fix" ,
did it actually get out of 2nd gear - then play up again..??:confused:

my suspicion is it's a wiring / power supply fault,
ECU's hardly ever fail - barring water damage;)

as an example;
internal corrosion of the vehicle main earth lead is quite common, but most dealers seem loathed to change that, when they can get a £1000 "repair" out of the customer..

I'm still sticking with FIAT / Alfa specialists who actually understand how the cars are built..unlike the "multi-franchise" dimwits we are surrounded by,:bang:

the gear change system isn't THAT complicated.. it needs an electrical signal the trigger the actuator, and hydraulics to do the rest..,:)

low fluid is the most common failing:)

DO contact FIAT UK to express your displeasure with this garage and their lack of competency.

Charlie - Oxford
 
The Fiat trained mechanic at the Fiat dealership couldn't identify the fault so they contacted FIAT UK who sent their engineer and it was him who told dealer to change the actuator and now it is Fiat UK who have said the ECU may be the problem.
It would appear that Fiat UK don't know how to repair their own products






for unnecessary parts -yes, labour you'd agreed to..maybe..,

TBH this kind of thing is relatively common.. semi-skilled people not understanding the product , and playing spare-part roulette:mad:

did you get it back after the 1st "fix" ,
did it actually get out of 2nd gear - then play up again..??:confused:

my suspicion is it's a wiring / power supply fault,
ECU's hardly ever fail - barring water damage;)

as an example;
internal corrosion of the vehicle main earth lead is quite common, but most dealers seem loathed to change that, when they can get a £1000 "repair" out of the customer..

I'm still sticking with FIAT / Alfa specialists who actually understand how the cars are built..unlike the "multi-franchise" dimwits we are surrounded by,:bang:

the gear change system isn't THAT complicated.. it needs an electrical signal the trigger the actuator, and hydraulics to do the rest..,:)

low fluid is the most common failing:)

DO contact FIAT UK to express your displeasure with this garage and their lack of competency.

Charlie - Oxford
 
I suspect an auto electrician would be the better bet here..,
however that won't recover the LARGE sum FIAT have taken for a non-fix..,

(I had a friend with a dodgy Luton built GM , garage couldn't fix it, HQ engineer DID but wouldn't admit they'd actually done anything..whole industry is NOT accountable due to liability issues - )

contact Slough HQ, and your local Trading Standards.
 
We have just part exchanged our Fiat 500 dualogic 39,000 miles, 3-years 4 months old. We thought we could keep it a lot longer. Started having trouble with that robotic gearbox after 38,000 miles ... and ... of course, out of warranty. To say we are disappointed is an understatement, the car could have killed us. The gearbox cut dead on the same roundabout in Royton, Oldham twice. The AA fixed the problem the first time but Fiat wanted to strip the gearbox down. No f***ing chance mate ... and we part exchanged it for a Jeep Renegade with a 'proper' gearbox only because they gave us a good deal. Fiat know too much about the problem with that gearbox ... and are keeping it quiet.
 
We have just part exchanged our Fiat 500 dualogic 39,000 miles, 3-years 4 months old. We thought we could keep it a lot longer. Started having trouble with that robotic gearbox after 38,000 miles ... and ... of course, out of warranty. To say we are disappointed is an understatement, the car could have killed us. The gearbox cut dead on the same roundabout in Royton, Oldham twice. The AA fixed the problem the first time but Fiat wanted to strip the gearbox down. No f***ing chance mate ... and we part exchanged it for a Jeep Renegade with a 'proper' gearbox only because they gave us a good deal. Fiat know too much about the problem with that gearbox ... and are keeping it quiet.

Hi, :)
that's very worrying.:(

if a gearbox cut's dead it's seized.. how did this happen twice..??:confused:

the gearbox is just a punto spec. manaual g-box,
nothing complicated, it's the control systems that can play-up..,
and clueless / poorly trained people cannot understand how they work,
so want to change EVERYTHING in the system instead of dealing with the individual part at fault:bang:

most common are electrical supply issues to gearchange controls, and low fluid in the Selespeed gearchanging system.

not exactly rocket science.:eek:

the "proper" gearbox you mention will have a dipstick to check fluid levels..,
the fiat one has a conventional level plug in the manual g-box, and a clear tank..so you can see a level for the fluid.

shame these are seldom checked..
 
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This happened on the roundabout near Elk Mill in Royton, Oldham. Just as we were ready to set off at the roundabout lights the red warning light came on and the gearbox read N no matter which position we put it in. It was difficult to push off the road. The AA diagnosed the fault and reset it. Okay, the car drove again. ... A few days ago I said to my partner "lets drive to the same very spot the car cut out ..." and frightingly the same thing happened in the same spot. Luckily we coasted to the Toby Inn round the corner, turned the engine off, restarted the car and it ran okay. But to us this is far too dangerous. The car is gone MJ62 DYA. Upsetting. We really loved that little engine.
 
being 2012 it could even have been due a battery:eek:

Don't have the duologic but am a professional Robotics engineer and the battery comment strikes a chord with me. The actuators must move quickly against stiction and for moments of time need much more current than the alternator creates. A poor earth or weak battery could indeed cause them to take longer than they should or stall. Much the same as 98% of all poor starting being battery or wiring contacts not the motor. The control system will be sensitive to that and will fault. Auto mechanics can be a good but are not known for fault finding wiring or electronics.
 
Hi Queb O, and varesecrazy,

As I know you both have duologic gearboxes, any idea where the reservoir is for the Selespeed gearchanging system?

Had a look at the diagram for one, however cannot find anything under the bonnet that resembles that ( knowing me, I'm either probably looking in the wrong place or the wrong shaped thing! )

The Qubo has just done 48,000 and we have had it since it was on 10500 about 2 1/2 years now, apart from top struts ( fixed ) it has had no major problems, self serviced, since the warranty expired and so I would like to keep it that way!

Any pointers, most appreciated.

Thanks

Ken
 
Hi Mad one,
Search box....Fiat-Dualogic-M20-Training-Manual.pdf

When page opens, click on top listing, and your computer should download the full specs, and instructions for the gearbox,as a PDF document, which you can save into your computer for future reference, including pictures/diagrams.

Hope it helps.

Cheers Qube O.
 
Hi Queb O, and varesecrazy,
As I know you both have duologic gearboxes, any idea where the reservoir is for the Selespeed gearchanging system?

Had a look at the diagram for one, however cannot find anything under the bonnet that resembles that ( knowing me, I'm either probably looking in the wrong place or the wrong shaped thing! )

Any pointers, most appreciated. Thanks Ken

I've not got a "commercial" , :eek:
my experience is from Idea, and Panda, ;)

the fluid reservoir tends to be a clear plastic ( like a screenwash tank)
and wrapped around the gearbox / bell housing..
an alli foil "baking tray / pie dish" is the tell tale to it's location (y)

worth checking the fluid level..as there is a train of though that some are ONLY JUST filled enough at the factory..so self-bleeding / VERY minor leaks can soon make the level too low for reliable operation:(

do have fun, :rolleyes:
please feel free to post any photo's of the location / access, :worship:
cheers,
Charlie
 
Hi Queb O, and varesecrazy,

Thanks very much for the link, 56 pages printed out and bound into a file ( thanks work stationary and printer.....)

Having looked at the manual, very comprehensive, and informative, I took a wander out to the car.....

Gulp..... 90% of it on top of the gearbox is hidden by the battery and the battery tray!

If the weather is nicer at the weekend I will have another look and if possible take some photos. ( probably have to take battery off and maybe the tray....) certainly not a quick check at the moment.

I think that it will be worth it though as it would set my mind at rest.

Having read the manual, if a clutch change is required, it looks like multiscan is the only way of setting the new clutch up / bleeding the system...... Could be interesting.

Again, thanks for all your advice / help

Ken
 
where are you based ?, plenty of forum members have MES

Charlie - Oxford


Hi Charlie,

I am at Kings Lynn, Norfolk.

I however only mentioned MES as part of what was required for clutch change,

I have a registered working copy myself, as I have serviced the car since the 3 years warranty ran out last year.

I also turned off the seat belt audio chime as mine kept going off intermittently, despite being fully belted on, and I can live with the occasional flashing seat belt sign!

Thanks for the offer / suggestion over MES.

Ken
 
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