(T) Rejected Stilo???

Has anybody rejected a Stilo or know somebody who has, if so, how old was it, how long had they owned it and what problems had the car had? I just can't imagine Fiat being very helpful if you wanted to reject a Stilo.

Thanks

How I understand this part of the law is if you have reported any faults to the dealer within a month of picking up your car ( and if the same faults are ongoing months later it won't matter ) you havn't legally accepted it according to Trading Standards BUT I would get in contact with your local TS office and clarify.


one thing I would suggest is not to loose your temper when speaking to your dealers service dept or Fiat customer service keeping a calm manner only confuses customer service depts as they are normally expecting someone to be SHOUTING at them, try get them as much on your side as you can..... say things like you love the car but its sad that it has all these faults and ask what can you do now as you have lost faith in what should be a great car and driving experience.




some info for you
http://www.bbc.co.uk/watchdog/guides_to/buyingacar/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/x-ray/allarticles/stories/s3p17_rejectingacar.shtml



Side note
On browsing the net.... Stilo owners have it better than Mini2 owners some of them are on their 2nd or 3rd car after rejecting plus the faults OMG damm glad I decided not to get one of those.....
http://www.mini2.com/forum/archive/index.php/f-16

Thanks Freelancer for the reply.

I can see it wouldn't be easy to reject any car, especially a Fiat. But I just wondered if anybody had tried, because there are so many posts on this site about ongoing problems. I bought my car when it was a year old, so I don't think I can do much about it, but the dealers should be more understanding to their customers.

Thanks for adding the links, I'll see if they can help me!

I'm so glad I don't have a mini, I though Stilo's are bad!!

Be aware Freelance, i guarantee your car will be 100% ok for at least the first 4 weeks before bits start to go wrong! [V]

2003 3 Door Stilo 1.2 Active, Sassy Grey, 5 disc CD Changer, Abarth boot badge, plastic wheel trims - and 42.4mpg average so far. Love it, Oh yes!

Tashy... even tho your car is a year only, the same law somewhat apply's ( unless the dealer had a sold as seen sticker on the car and that then a big red sign saying buyer beware ) but a call to Trading Standards is what you need to clarify your position.


What has your dealer said and are they sympathetic to your problems or are they palming you off with any old excuse? plus have you spoken to Fiat Customer Service, yes I know the first point of contact is not generally the best, but your call is logged, if that person cannot help you ask to speak to a supervisor or be passed onto a fiat representative.

I wish you luck.


Stiloboy... I will hold you to your 4 week guarantee :);)

yes I agree you only tend to on any car start to see problems arise over time as its very rare for anytime to go wrong in the first few weeks.

I just rejected my used Abarth which I bought in October 03.

During the first week of ownership the gearbox failed (spectacularly, with bits hanging out and everything!) but it also suffered from lots of the usual problems including creaking suspension, ASR/ESP warnings, kangarooing from cold, miles being added to the odometer, headlights turing off without warning, oil temp sensor failure etc.

I requested a replacement in February I think it was, after I realised the car was adding miles to the odometer that I hadn't travelled. The dealer didn't want to know to begin with, but eventually conceded after I'd written them some formal letters sent by recorded post.

There are some good template letters available for this sort of thing available on the trading standards and Citizen's Advice web sites. The key is to complain in writing as early as possible, stating that they are in breach of contract under the sale of goods act (which states that what they sell you should be of merchantable quality, fit for purpose etc.). Also if you paid for the car with a creditr card or are paying for it on some kind of finance agreement, the finance company are 'equally and severally liable' with the dealer, so it's worth writing the same letter to them as they may put some pressure on the dealer to sort you out.

I picked up my replacement car on Saturday and so far I have the following list of new problems:


After about 1 mile, I got a 'Danger of Ice' warning as the outside temperature gauge was reading minus 30c

The alarm has gone off unexpectedly seven times in the last four days (one o'clock this morning was nice - sure the neighbours appreciated that one...)

The car feels underpowered compared to the car I just gave back (I thought the 3 door should be slightly quicker than the 5 door I just gave back)

The driver's puddle light was not working when I picked the car up, but started working again on Sunday

The stereo system has a background whine, like some kind of electrical interference

'Auto gearbox failure' warning appears intermittently (3 times so far)

'Coolant temp sensor failure' warning appears intermittently (once so far)

There's a big rattle coming from somewhere in the back - possibly in the roof

The ConnectNav software has not been upgraded to the latest version, so the satnav voice screeches every now and then

The dealer's solution initially was to wait a week for these to somehow fix themselves; "Well, it's been standing around for a couple of weeks so they'll probably all be gone after you've driven it for a week". Er, no. It's now booked in for repairs - the first but probably not the last time for this car. Who knows, I might get a 1 litre Panda to drive my 60 mile commute in, that'll be nice.

So, even if you reject the car and get a replacement you may not be any better off! In my particular case a refund would have been a better solution. I may even end up selling this car when it's fixed to buy something German or Japanese which is a shame because in all respects besides reliability it's a great car.

RRO

RRO - I see what you mean about rejecting a car, it doesn't really do much use. I'm not thinking about rejecting mine at the mo, but I am getting extremely impatient with it, I think I might buy a VW next, and I said I never would, but they don't break down.

Freelancer - the dealer where I bought it from, have been the best Fiat I have taken it to, but they don't seem to understand why I get so annoyed, all they say is, we can't help it if the problems re-occur, but why should it be my problem? My car has 1 year of its warranty left, and it will have to go before then, imagine how much Fiat will charge to fix it after 3 years? I complained to Fiat a couple of months ago, when my wipers stopped working and my local Fiat refused to give me a car, because I didn't buy it from them!!! All they did was lodge the complaint, what use are they?

Yes Customer Services are lousy.. but they are the first point of contact and after the convesation I had earlier today they don't know JACK about the cars they are feilding questions about you need to get your call elevated to a Fiat Representative or Technical Dept.

My question earlier to Fiat CS....

Me: I see that the Abarth Manual has the option for an upgrade to the CD to MP3 player.. my dealer says this is not an option on the Abarth Manual but is on the Dynamic, who is right the Dealer or the Website?

CS: Is the dealer a Fiat registered one?

Me: YES

CS: Are you sure?

ME: NO thats why I said yes!

CS: OK what car is it again?

ME: Stilo MY04 Abarth Manual... does it have the option for MP3 upgrade?

CS: Mmm do we do a Manual *I hear pages being turned in the background, this doesnt look good*

ME: well I hope so as I have test drove one already?

CS: OK .... well not in the manual we have the option is only on the Dynamic.

ME: So which is right you and your book or the newly updated webpage because someone is wrong YES?

CS: Let me get back to you on this...

ME: OK

Well they wont get back to me,


So what i'm getting at is you need to get your call to CS elevated.... if that dont work Write to Fiat Head Office in Slough ( not got the address to hand ) with the att of Managing Director adn send it registered as some fool will have to sign for it so they cannot say "we didnt recieve it" plus send a copy to Trading Standards and make it known in the letter.

Oh before I forget use this global email address and see if you get a different response http://www.fiat.com/cgi-bin/pbrand.dll/FIAT_COM/contact/contact.jsp

RealRiledOne, tell me your new car is an 04.... Go on tell me! Make my day! :(

2003 3 Door Stilo 1.2 Active, Sassy Grey, 5 disc CD Changer, Abarth boot badge, plastic wheel trims - and 42.4mpg average so far. Love it, Oh yes!

The Head Office address is:

FIAT Auto UK Limited
FIAT House
260 Bath Road
Slough
SL1 4HJ

When I enquired last, the Customer Relations Manager was a guy by the name of Andy Giles.

________________________________________________
I have a drink problem...only one mouth but two hands!

1.6 Active 5 door in Crystal Green.

http://www.clubstilo.com

Sorry to disappoint StiloBoy, I think it's an 03. To be honest I won't know for certain until the log book arrives as it was delivered with a private plate. At least I hope it's a private plate, otherwise it's a 'T' reg! [:0]

On the subject of Fiat 'Customer Services' - they aren't really Fiat at all. They are just a call centre operation hired by Fiat to field customer calls. They have scripts and books to look things up in to answer the majority of simple questions, but refer 'real' questions to Fiat's ACTUAL customer service department. This is who you need to speak to if you want decisions made, but I can't vouch for their technical knowledge.

RRO

REAL preety bad luck with cars mate ... especially FIATs i suppose.

I cannot understand how can you get so so so so much errors on the first week of driving ...

i do laugh on the danger of ice in the 1st mile ... thats SILLY

FIAT STILO 1.6 3dR Tiziano Red
Sub=Pioneer TS WX20LPA
AUTOMOBILE SK