Dear All thank you for taking the time to read this post! I have a 62 plate fiat 500c. The other day i went to turn my engine on and the steering wheel light came on. The steering was very heavy. I turned the engine off and on again and the steering was normal! Its seems the steering column works when the engine has heated up a bit? Any ideas of what is wrong? I had a mechanic look at it, he said the battery is working fine but there is a low power output to the steering wheel connection, has anyone come across this before and is it common? Ive only done 25k miles. Thank you ?

Laura, hi, and welcome to the forum

Well you've had the battery checked and seemingly you've been informed all is well. However, that said, if you are still on the original battery, even though it might be showing a decent output, it might still not be giving everything it is supposed to. I'm assuming your car is equipped with Stop/Start? Ever had any issues with Stop/Start, or do you disable it?

As it happens, the first 500 we owned, an 11 plate 1.2 POP, the electric steering motor was replaced under warranty very early into our ownership, sub 10k miles. Apparently, sometimes, they do give problems. Dare I say it and at the mercy of being dealt the dealership diagnostic 'groan' by other forum members , it could be an issue that can only be rectified with proper diagnostic evaluation. Diagnostics unfortunately aren't cheap, though they are included within a dealer service.

Check to see just how old your battery is and if it is working correctly. If you don't do many miles, or it's stood for long periods of time without correct trickle charging, it is likely to give issues.

Hello Frupi thank you for getting back to me! Great advice too. I think your right it being the battery because tonight was mild and it started with no steering issues!! I also noticed the handsfree button wasnt working either?!

Thank you for your help Frupi ?

If you need a new battery RING these people, Batterymegastore, 01684 298 800 they are very cheap and give great service free next day delivery, expect to pay £90-120 for a ss version

Thank you John! ?

Definately the battery I would say. A year ago I was getting good SS batteries for £80, the prices seem to have rocketed recently.

typecastboy said:

Definately the battery I would say. A year ago I was getting good SS batteries for £80, the prices seem to have rocketed recently.

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Carparts4less has one for £90 after discount

Hello thank u for the feedback! I tried my car this morning and the steering light came on again, i left the engine running for 2 mins then switched it off an on again, the steering wheel light went off but when i turned it on again the steering was normal and light but it made a juddering noise when i turned the wheel? Once it had heated up i turned the engine off again then back on and the steering was perfect!?? Any ideas? I appreciate all the help ??

If it was a mechanical problem it would judder all the time regardless of battery state, if it is the original battery then it's probably worth changing it, yes it's a £90 "risk" but you'll probably need it anyway once it gets really cold, if you have a friend that you could borrow a battery this could help you rule one way or the other, it only has to fit in place rather than a perfect fit to test the theory as long as you're not driving the car any distance?

As above it is rather pointing to a electrical issue at the minute a new battery would be worth a try
I've just got one for my 500 all through an older none start stop model
So it's only cost me £54

Apparently if the battery is low the car will disable none critical things to enable the car to start, this appears to fit your description as when the battery has been charged by the engine successfully starting the fault disappears.I heard of this exact same issue on a Skoda which the dealer couldn't fix after several attempts replacing batteries etc!
The owner was Czech and made regular trips back home and got it fixed by a small garage near his parents,they traced it to a faulty relay not turning a circuit off when the car was parked overnight and added an isolator switch for good measure and completely resolved it on the first attempt !!
Almost certainly a new battery will fix this and if not a decent auto electrician will.

Thank you John Chris and Pasotibbs! I will replace the battery and let you know if that works! Thank you all so much! ??

Just one little thing you may have like my battery a issues where' you can't get the clamps to tighten fully
Ended up getting some 1.mm copper wiring stripping the insulation off and warapping it around the terminals

Hey presto the clamps hold the battery tight again

Cheers Chris ?

LauraBrown1 said:

Thank you John Chris and Pasotibbs! I will replace the battery and let you know if that works! Thank you all so much! ??

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I posted some ss batteries in this thread that MAY be the correct one for your car too the cheapest SS version being £75
https://www.fiatforum.com/500/45518...when-diy-battery-replacement-500-stop-go.html

Hello all i replaced the battery with a stop start battery and it hasn’t cured the problem ?. Any ideas what i can do now? Although its a 62 plate ive only done 23500 miles in the car, im so worried this is going to cost a fortune. Any help will be hugely appreciated. Thank you Laura

I think you need to find someone in here nearby that will help you that has MES. If you have a light up then MES will tell you what the problem is. What’s your location?

If you can't find anyone with MES, you'll have little option but to bite the bullet and go to a Fiat dealership for diagnostics. I've said it more than several times over the years, but with problems like this, you have the potential of chasing your own backside for weeks or months and may never cure the problem unless you seek professional assistance. Unfortunately, going to the dealership will cost money, but they might be able to pin point the problem within 30 minutes. At least then, you'll know what you're dealing with.

typecastboy said:

I think you need to find someone in here nearby that will help you that has MES. If you have a light up then MES will tell you what the problem is. What’s your location?

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Hi Typecastboy whats MES? I live in Symington South Ayrshire ?

frupi said:

If you can't find anyone with MES, you'll have little option but to bite the bullet and go to a Fiat dealership for diagnostics. I've said it more than several times over the years, but with problems like this, you have the potential of chasing your own backside for weeks or months and may never cure the problem unless you seek professional assistance. Unfortunately, going to the dealership will cost money, but they might be able to pin tpoint the problem within 30 minutes. At least then, you'll know what you're dealing with.

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Thank you Frupi ?