Well I was feeling guilty of letting my 500X down by not doing it's 5 Year mega service. I had bought all the parts and was ready and raring to go but had to replace the rear springs on the wife's Barchetta first. Sadly the body suffered with my arthritic wrist (lifting the wheels on and off) and I squished my should/collar body getting wedge in under the car.

So with MOT and service due the thought of removing and replacing all the heavy 500X wheels to change the brake fluid, on top of cambelt & water pump, antifreeze, ...... whilst still suffering I decide to give the job to my trusted independent Fiat specialist who knows me well and how meticulous I am with our cars.

Anyway despite being totally pleased that I did hand this job over (but feeling guilty) I got a very pleasant surprise in that I had mentioned to Dean that on occasions when idling on the drive I could hear a vibration/rattle whilst standing directly in front of the car so asked him check/listen for it as well.

Wait for it ...... :

Engine Software Update : Bulletin N.011.17 - Engine rattle at idle

Would still liked to have done that mega service myself but got a bonus outcome in the end.

Are updates free or part of servicing?

If you are under warranty and still receiving "dealership" servicing then it is my understanding that and required non recall updates should be applied free of charge.

Out of warranty and certainly with an independent Fiat specialist who has access and subscriptions to official Fiat systems then they can do updates but as these can take quit some workshop time they will most likely want to charge for them.

A real important fact to grasp is that not all possible updates are necessarily required. A good independent and suitably equipped specialist will/should advise as to what is a MUST apply and an optional. Many optional updates have no critical or important changes so can be skipped and save you money.