Northern Auto Tech - ECU and Blue & Me Repairs

General Abarth newbie here

Currently reading:
General Abarth newbie here

S

stillio

New member
Joined
Apr 7, 2009
Messages
8
Points
1
Hi people,just thought i would introduce myself. ben from b'ham
proud owner os a stilo abarth. Firstly what an amazing spec these cars have for the size of them.
though i have just bought it and have a couple of issues if anyone could advise me maybe,i have the dreaded AIR BAG "STOP" light on dash,does anyone know a solid cure for this as car is out of warranty,also intermitent ASR fault flashes( every now & again). gear changes in auto mode seems to hesitate when changing through the gears,is this normal,just curious,as car looks and drives great ,only small problems i'am hoping
look forward to talking to you guys
cheers Ben
 
Hi Ben
Welcome to the forum, I'm sure you will find this website to be the most useful in regards to Stilo's and their well documented gripes.
Have a look at this guide for your airbag fault
https://www.fiatforum.com/stilo-guides/72482-airbag-failure-warnings.html
Really useful and I haven't had any probs since doing the fix.
As for the other issues being a 1.6 owner I can't really comment but a quick search and you should be able to find some similar posts to have a look at.
:)
 
Last edited:
Welcome Ben! Can't comment on the Selespeed issue as my Abarth is manual.

You don't say how old yours is, but odd warnings can be down to poor battery. If yours is more than three or four years old, I'd recommend a new battery. The highest spec you can afford (min 70Amp/hr). Many owners on here report what appeared to be electrical gremlins disappeared once a new battery was in palce.
 
Thanks for your quick reply's its a 2002 MODEL,i have found out today also everytime i go over a bumpy road the brake lights keep flashing....
I will give the airbag mod a go and test the battery to see what its holding
cheers Ben
 
stillio said:
Hi people,just thought i would introduce myself. ben from b'ham
proud owner os a stilo abarth. Firstly what an amazing spec these cars have for the size of them.
though i have just bought it and have a couple of issues if anyone could advise me maybe,i have the dreaded AIR BAG "STOP" light on dash,does anyone know a solid cure for this as car is out of warranty,also intermitent ASR fault flashes( every now & again). gear changes in auto mode seems to hesitate when changing through the gears,is this normal,just curious,as car looks and drives great ,only small problems i'am hoping
look forward to talking to you guys
cheers Ben
Click to expand...

Mine Abarth Sillyspeed used to do the airbag thing every time I washed it - it was down to the D4 connector being soaked. Cleaned it, lagged it up with tape a bit and now its fine and has been for three car washes.

Might be worth checking that also.

Dan
 
danhans115 said:
Mine Abarth Sillyspeed used to do the airbag thing every time I washed it - it was down to the D4 connector being soaked. Cleaned it, lagged it up with tape a bit and now its fine and has been for three car washes.

Might be worth checking that also.

Dan
Click to expand...
ok will check that also,out of intrest how does your gearbox change,do you get a slight delay when changing gear,just seems a bit different from the usual auto's which engage gear straight away,ps d4 connector where is that one?
 
stillio said:
ok will check that also,out of intrest how does your gearbox change,do you get a slight delay when changing gear,just seems a bit different from the usual auto's which engage gear straight away,ps d4 connector where is that one?
Click to expand...

Can be sluggish some times, you get learn to lay off the throttle a little when you sort of expect it to change and its a bit slicker. I previously had a 156 selespeed so I was sort of used to it. I dont think it will ever be upto the speeds of a normal auto or VAG's DSG system, as its really a robotised manual and has one clutch.

I use mine in manual mode 90% of the time, unless im eating/drinking or on the motorway, but overall im very happy with the selespeed - its much better in this car than the Alfa I had.

Dan
 
Last edited:
danhans115 said:
Can be sluggish some times, you get learn to lay off the throttle a little when you sort of expect it to change and its a bit slicker. I previously had a 156 selespeed so I was sort of used to it. I dont think it will ever be upto the speeds of a normal auto or VAG's DSG system, as its really a robotised manual and has one clutch.

I use mine in manual mode 90% of the time, unless im eating/drinking or on the motorway, but overall im very happy with the selespeed - its much better in this car than the Alfa I had.

Dan
Click to expand...
Well i ahve just bought the car which was a bargain,58k miles full sat nav setc... £1300 2002 model in black like yours,looks great and reallygets the looks, but feel iam a bit dissapointed with the drive,sluggish and gear change,its long due a service i suspect as oil sensor comes on around corners and when started says overdue service,iam thinking that maybe the gearbox may need a top up also.
cheers ben
 
I have checked it,looks very clean but i would say on the low side,may attempt a service myself,as i suppose it would be very expensive from a dealer
 
stillio said:
I have checked it,looks very clean but i would say on the low side,may attempt a service myself,as i suppose it would be very expensive from a dealer
Click to expand...
You need to be very cautious when checking the oil level on the Abarth.

Some members have reported thinking the level is OK but then discover the oil doesn't even reach the dipstick (just picks up oil from sides) :eek:
 
Very hard to tell what the oil level is at on dipstick,kind of goes up the sides and does'nt read in the middle part like you say. I think iam going to change it with filters for peice of mind.
 
Yes very true,iam just in the process of looking at the brake light switch,got it off,looks a bit loose. the women i boughtthe car of said cambelt is due in 10kmiles,car has done 58k at moment. going check in manual.
Thank you all very much for your help so far, i will keep you informed of my progress
cheers
 
has it ever had the belt done at all? If not it will be due immediately, think the manual states something like 60k but its recommended to get it done at 36k. AFAIK they updated a lot of things from the manual.

I would get the car looked at by a local independent specialist and do some of the simpler jobs yourself - ive taken fiats to indy places over the years - much cheaper and they will do discount for cash ;-)

Dan
 
I'd SO get the cambelt done straight away. The belt change duration was shortened due to failures. As DanHans says, it's more like 36k miles now and 3 years... get it done... it's cheaper than a new engine! (y)

If you've got the money, I'd find a good independent garage and get them to change the cambelt, water pump, oil, oil filter, gearbox oil, plugs, selespeed fluid, brake fluid as if none of these has been changed yet... they're due. It's costly but worth it for peace of mind (y)
 
hi,due to help from peeps on this site i managed to solve a simular prob with oil level,and found that oil on side of dipstick is there due to it being removed ,,and if you do top up the oil please be carefull as it only takes half a litre to go from bottom of dipstick to top so slow fill and keep checking
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

M
General Fiat Stilo Abarth 5M17 Restoration ( Nuts & Bolts )
Replies
2
Views
426
Moreno83
M
Maxcaddy
Technical Stilo Abarth 2.4 Exhaust flexi pipe.
Replies
1
Views
569
Maxcaddy
Maxcaddy
A
  • Question
General Stilo 2.4 abarth kanarooing
Replies
6
Views
856
Charl73
C
sancarnutrition
Technical Fiat Stilo Abarth Front Brake Discs Calipers 330mm Coversion
Replies
2
Views
848
Maxcaddy
Maxcaddy
J
Technical Abarth lower gearbox mount (dog bone)
Replies
2
Views
605
Maigretnz
M
Back
Top