Sorry if this has been posted before for a 1.2

Our stop / start system seems to be playing games. Its been faultless till now. It triggers the amber triangle with the exclamation mark before we have done 50 metres with a cold engine or hot engine. It triggers failure whether the SS is enabled or disabled. It always resets after ignition key out.

Have checked the battery voltage, engine off being 12.45 volts. Battery since new or March 2014, though built Nov 2013.

Battery is 12v, 63ah, 450A. Fiat Part number 51816427

Would the battery be the concern here or should i be looking elsewhere..?

Still under warranty till March 2017. Though i do not rate or trust the dealers in my near area where i am.

Is there any message on the dash with the light? SS unavailable say?
Battery would be my first thought, and your output for a "reasonably large" battery seems a bit low, the following is rated at 'only' 54Ah but has 530CCA
https://www.batterymegastore.co.uk/varta-c30.html
Doubt the battery would be covered under any warranty.

John202020 said:

Is there any message on the dash with the light? SS unavailable say?
Battery would be my first thought, and your output for a "reasonably large" battery seems a bit low, the following is rated at 'only' 54Ah but has 530CCA
https://www.batterymegastore.co.uk/varta-c30.html
Doubt the battery would be covered under any warranty.

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Yes, display also says SS unavailable.

The battery fitted at present is a Lancia Fiat Alfa one, but a heavy duty flooded stop start battery. No idea if this a EFB or AGM type that i keep seeing being mentioned.

If it's coming up with unavailable on the dash then it's very likely to be the battery. I've changed a few where this has happened. As soon as a new battery goes in it the light goes off and it works fine.

The same company does a SS battery but costs twice as much.

FiatFleetFamily said:

It triggers the amber triangle with the exclamation mark

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I think of this as the 'wallet warning light'

FiatFleetFamily said:

Battery is 12v, 63ah, 450A. Fiat Part number 51816427

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That is the correct OEM battery for your car. It's an EFB battery. It has now worn to the point where its performance has fallen below the limits needed for correct operation of the S/S system. Reaching this state after 2-3 yrs is absolutely normal and typical of this car.

Replace the battery and your stop/start functionality will likely be fully restored.

The warranty does not cover wear and tear; some have persevered and got Fiat to meet some or all of the cost, but as you're close to the end of the three years, I'd be surprised if they'd accept this as a warranty claim.

An aftermarket battery of the correct specification costs a shade under £100, depending on what deals are available on the day. The usual internet search will soon bring up the best deals. The S/S system will quickly relearn the parameters of the new battery; no reprogramming is required. One of the rare instances of an electrical replacement on the 500 which really is plug 'n play.

John202020 said:

...the following is rated at 'only' 54Ah but has 530CCA
https://www.batterymegastore.co.uk/varta-c30.html

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This would be fine in a non-S/S 500 but won't last long in a S/S car; CCA is only part of the story and what is crucial here is the battery's ability to handle the many small discharge/charge cycles associated with S/S use - it's that cycling which causes these batteries to fail. Fit one of these to a S/S car and you'll likely be back where you started by next winter.

S/S owners should put £30-£40pa into a battery fund; S/S batteries last half as long and cost twice as much, so over the life of the car, it'll cost four times more in battery replacements than a non-S/S version. Most users won't save than much in fuel, but the real advantages of S/S are the reduction in noise and emissions pollution when in stationary traffic.

jrkitching. Many thanks for your input.


I have read that S/S thread well.


This evening I will be disconnecting the battery for at least 1 hour, while disconnected I will see if it needs a top up charge.


Then will reconnect when battery fully recharged. As no residual current will be circulating the S/S will no doubt be re-learning and time will tell if the amber light comes back on.


If it does straight away, will be investing in a Varta or Exide EFB battery. If not then will still get the battery till the time comes around when the amber light revisits.

Quick time for a reverse.

This seems to be a 'warning triangle on therefore no S/S' rather than a 'no S/S thread'

There are many other functions within the ECU that will trigger the warning triangle. Once that is triggered it makes S/S unavailable. It is not an S/S fault, nor is it necessarily a battery fault.

have the code read first, and go from there.

D

rallycinq said:

Quick time for a reverse.

This seems to be a 'warning triangle on therefore no S/S' rather than a 'no S/S thread'

There are many other functions within the ECU that will trigger the warning triangle. Once that is triggered it makes S/S unavailable. It is not an S/S fault, nor is it necessarily a battery fault.

have the code read first, and go from there.

D

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It's certainly possible that it isn't a fault caused by a weak battery, but on past evidence that's by far the most likely explanation. If bench charging fully with a decent charger restores S/S function, even if only briefly, then that would be further evidence pointing to the battery.

Getting the fault codes read is strictly best technical advice. Generic fault code readers on the 500 are at best misleading and at worst downright useless, so your choices are either a main dealer visit or a copy of MES and the appropriate leads. Either will cost you at least half the price of a new battery, and as the battery is most likely close to end of life (as far as S/S functionality is concerned) based on time, personally I'd sooner put the cost of a code read toward a new battery which is likely to need replacing soon anyway.

Even a blown bulb puts on the triangle

jrkitching said:

It's certainly possible that it isn't a fault caused by a weak battery, but on past evidence that's by far the most likely explanation. If bench charging fully with a decent charger restores S/S function, even if only briefly, then that would be further evidence pointing to the battery.

Getting the fault codes read is strictly best technical advice. Generic fault code readers on the 500 are at best misleading and at worst downright useless, so your choices are either a main dealer visit or a copy of MES and the appropriate leads. Either will cost you at least half the price of a new battery, and as the battery is most likely close to end of life (as far as S/S functionality is concerned) based on time, personally I'd sooner put the cost of a code read toward a new battery which is likely to need replacing soon anyway.

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I see what you are saying, but I know mine has an intermittent earth/short in the steering column. Every so often the triangle will come on and S/S ceases to function.

Clear the fault and S/S reverts to normal until the next time.

This has been going on for over a year and the battery (touch wood) is still perfectly capable of starting and running the car.

If I had jumped at a new battery at the first instance I would have wasted my money.

D

Our 500TA S/S battery is two years old now.
The car is 5years 3months old and this is her 2nd battery.

Our "new" battery wasn't doing its S/S thing properly recently, and since then, I've been putting it on charge every single time the car is parked on the drive.

Now, the battery is performing brilliantly. It'll do the S/S thing for the whole 3mins (when the car/engine is up to temp) and I cannot stress enough that the batteries need to be FULLY CHARGED almost permanently to be a GOOD battery.

Anything less, and any times of leaving idle, will ruin a S/S battery.

I am in no illusions about this. Like JR says, put money aside for a new battery.
Better money IMHO is to be spent on a good battery charger, and also better time spent on connecting up every single time you park up at home.

No doubt our battery won't last indefinitely or even four or five years, but I'll bet ours will last longer than someone's who's is NOT permanently put on charge.

Meanwhile, the original battery is now in our elderly 100,000miles Renault Clio, and is is absolutely wonderful. Starts great and holds it's charge great ................ but it was rubbish in the 500TA.

Buy a new S/S battery.
Buy a good battery charger.
Connect the charger up every time you park up at home.

Good luck and best wishes,
Mick.

As JR pointed out the SS battery is more expensive like this one
https://www.batterymegastore.co.uk/varta-d52.html
However check it will fit in the tray as it maybe too wide height and depth should be OK

Mick F said:

Buy a new S/S battery.
Buy a good battery charger.
Connect the charger up every time you park up at home.

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Not trying to be disrespectful here, but I honestly wouldn't want to be faffing around every day with the charger. I would expect the battery to work perfectly for a period of time (3 years at least) but if not, I'd rather live with S/S not available than spend time charging the battery daily. I'd rather read a book or mown the lawn instead!

When I bought my Ctek charger, it came with a connector that you permanently fit to the battery terminals. This lead has a plug on it.

At the charger end, you can buy an extension cable and this means you can power your charger from a convenient power point in your home ......... ours is in the front porch ............. and feed the extension lead out to the car.

Lift the bonnet, connect the extension to the battery lead, switch on the charger, lower the bonnet.
It's as quick as that.

However, I have a bit of an obsessive personality, so I find this routine quite easy and simple, but I know it's not for everybody.

Cheers,
Mick.

PS:
Having the S/S not working properly is a right pain in the bum. The engine stops and starts almost immediately at every pause at every junction. It becomes annoying.

If you have a 500 that you can switch the S/S off permanently, that's fine, but ours won't. You have to switch it off each and every time you start the car.

Having S/S working properly, it is peaceful and quiet at traffic lights and junctions. S/S is wonderful, and now I'm used to it, I would be very sad indeed not to have it available.

Keeping a good battery charge, is a price worth paying.
As for buying a new battery, what do you do with the old one? It is more than likely a perfect battery for "normal" cars and should be used and not disposed of.

Regards,
Mick.

Mick F said:

PS:
If you have a 500 that you can switch the S/S off permanently, that's fine, but ours won't. You have to switch it off each and every time you start the car.
Regards,
Mick.

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I thought there was a software update way back that sorted this?

Mercky said:

I thought there was a software update way back that sorted this?

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This has been said a few times on here.
Our TA is over five years old. How much does the software update cost?
Is it worth it?

I reckon it's going to be about the price of a new battery, and a new battery will make S/S work properly.

Mick.

Mick F said:

This has been said a few times on here.
Our TA is over five years old. How much does the software update cost?
Is it worth it?

I reckon it's going to be about the price of a new battery, and a new battery will make S/S work properly.

Mick.

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jeez mick I'm surprised at you, I thought your obsessive nature would demand that all systems were tip top and up to date

John202020 said:

Even a blown bulb puts on the triangle

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Err no...


On my display. I have a bulb out icon on the dashboard.