Ok - so first off, I have spent a solid week researching this issue with my 500, and including from this forum, there are no specific solutions and very, very few posts where people have solved the issue and posted results - that includes here and other forums around the world. People tend to post the fault then disappear so I hope that I can get some good advice from other people who have/have had this problem with a view to nipping the issue in the bud. I'd like to keep this thread limited to Fiat 500s.
My car is a 2008 1.4 Sport, just passed MOT with no advisories - 43,000 miles. Excellent condition, literally spotless inside and out with a clean engine bay. I have had new and used cars over many years and this looks and drives like it's just come out of the showroom.
I now have the intermittent issue where I get a warning beep, the ESP yellow fault lamp and the warnings 'ESP Unavailable' and then 'Hill holder unavailable'. The ASR lamp illuminates and the warnings can all be removed by turning the ignition off and restarting the car (until they decide to reappear for no reason later). I gather this is a very common niggle with many other Fiat 500s and other Fiats. The issue occurs for no clearly apparent reason - and has happened when I have done any of the following.
Driving away on my small uphill drive.
Braking when turning corners.
Driving down steep windy hills not applying any brake or clutch.
Driving on a straight level road in 6th gear at 50mph only touching the throttle.
Sitting in traffic with handbrake on not touching anything.
My frustration comes from there being no clear reason for it happening. This week I have driven in all conditions,wet dry, icy - for over 50 miles over 3 days with no fault appearing and I thought it had cleared up, but then it came on today for no apparent reason in dry easy conditions. There is never any following issue with the throttle dropping itself or any hazardous side effects and the car drives completely normally at all times - just with that yellow warning lamp until I restart the car.
The tyres are all excellent. The battery is new and is fully charged. The brake lights work as they should. My Maxiscan which I plugged in shows no recorded faults with the car, even when the ESP warnings are showing.
Although it has no affect on the car whatsoever, I really would like to get rid of these warnings permanently (they are like an itch) whatever it takes, so I will be starting a process of elimination starting with the cheapest possible fault and working my way up!
So as far as I can see, my options right now which could solve the problem are as follows.
Faulty brake switch under passenger dashboard.
Faulty ABS sensors.
ECU issue?? Connectors?
Battery fault (not likely)
Pads? - I cannot see anything else right now which I could work towards which could kill these warnings, but would appreciate any help, feedback or experience from other users. Hopefully I will sort this eventually and post findings at the end
My car is a 2008 1.4 Sport, just passed MOT with no advisories - 43,000 miles. Excellent condition, literally spotless inside and out with a clean engine bay. I have had new and used cars over many years and this looks and drives like it's just come out of the showroom.
I now have the intermittent issue where I get a warning beep, the ESP yellow fault lamp and the warnings 'ESP Unavailable' and then 'Hill holder unavailable'. The ASR lamp illuminates and the warnings can all be removed by turning the ignition off and restarting the car (until they decide to reappear for no reason later). I gather this is a very common niggle with many other Fiat 500s and other Fiats. The issue occurs for no clearly apparent reason - and has happened when I have done any of the following.
Driving away on my small uphill drive.
Braking when turning corners.
Driving down steep windy hills not applying any brake or clutch.
Driving on a straight level road in 6th gear at 50mph only touching the throttle.
Sitting in traffic with handbrake on not touching anything.
My frustration comes from there being no clear reason for it happening. This week I have driven in all conditions,wet dry, icy - for over 50 miles over 3 days with no fault appearing and I thought it had cleared up, but then it came on today for no apparent reason in dry easy conditions. There is never any following issue with the throttle dropping itself or any hazardous side effects and the car drives completely normally at all times - just with that yellow warning lamp until I restart the car.
The tyres are all excellent. The battery is new and is fully charged. The brake lights work as they should. My Maxiscan which I plugged in shows no recorded faults with the car, even when the ESP warnings are showing.
Although it has no affect on the car whatsoever, I really would like to get rid of these warnings permanently (they are like an itch) whatever it takes, so I will be starting a process of elimination starting with the cheapest possible fault and working my way up!
So as far as I can see, my options right now which could solve the problem are as follows.
Faulty brake switch under passenger dashboard.
Faulty ABS sensors.
ECU issue?? Connectors?
Battery fault (not likely)
Pads? - I cannot see anything else right now which I could work towards which could kill these warnings, but would appreciate any help, feedback or experience from other users. Hopefully I will sort this eventually and post findings at the end
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