Technical FIAT 500 SPORT DUALOGIC gear slipping + consumer rights

[Pearl500]

Hi all I'm posting on behalf of my daughter . She bought a 2009 fiat dualogic has 56k miles at the end of January this year . And it's started randomly slipping into neutral while driving and now had trouble going into reverse .she took it into Halfords that didn't really want to touch it but looked and suggested it was a metronic and gearbox issue and told her to go to another garage which she did ,they then said if it's that it will cost around 1800 for metronic plus labour plus more for gearbox and they basically told her to scrap the car as it was so expensive !
After looking on here I see a few posts with this issue so am I right in presuming it's a common problem with the fiat dualogic ? Can it be repaired as opposed to totally replaced ?
Also on another note , as I stated before she bought the car from a dealer on auto trader less than 4 months ago ,is she covered in anyway by the consumer act for repair or refund ? I always thought you were covered up to 6 months after purchase . So maybe this would be an option for her if repair to expensive . Any advice would be great

 

[jrkitching]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

Sorry to hear about your problem, though not surprised. A 2009 dualogic 500 is an end of life car, worth at most a few hundred pounds in the trade; the transmission could fail at any time and if it does, the chances of the car being economically repairable are slim indeed.

Personally I'd forget about trying to have this car repaired; it's basically scrap.

You might want to take a look at this thread.

Also on another note , as I stated before she bought the car from a dealer on auto trader less than 4 months ago ,is she covered in anyway by the consumer act for repair or refund

Possibly, though enforcing those rights might be difficult. The selling garage would be entitled to deduct a percentage from any refund for the use your daughter has already had from the car; on a 2009 car, that could be a significant part of what you paid for it.

Selling the car back to them could be an option that might be worth exploring. If they'll give you 50% of what you paid, bite their hand off.

I'd suggest looking for a way forward that doesn't leave you owning this car.

 

[Pearl500]

Okay thankyou for the advice. i presume webuyanycar would check for such issues and deduct from value ?
I will see what I can achieve with the dealer . She's not even had it 4 months yet

 

[ZaphodB]

What are my consumer rights after 30 days?​

If a problem is found after 30 days, but within six months of purchase, you can request a repair or a replacement vehicle. The onus is on the seller of the car to prove the fault wasn’t present when the car was sold; if they can, and you’re likely to have known about it, you won’t get a refund.



When it comes to repairs, the dealer has one chance to fix the fault. If the fix doesn’t work, you are entitled to a refund. You won’t get the full purchase price back, though. Any usage of the car will be taken into account and the refund will be adjusted accordingly.
Under previous legislation, the supplying dealer was allowed more than one attempt to rectify the problem and it was considerably more difficult to get a refund on a car, so the Consumer Rights Act is good news for consumers.
If a fault appears after six months of ownership, it is down to you to prove that it was there at the time of purchase. To do that, you’re likely to have to get an expert to examine the car or component and get a written report about it.

Get stuff initially in writing ASAP, don't rely on conversations

 

[rmjbn1]

There have been some DIY repairs, but not for a novice.

Involves removing unit, draining, cleaning, replacing seals, and calibration with software.

The one and only Dualogic repair thread | FIAT 500 (2007+)

Ok, so we're had a discussion thread about dualogic issues for a few years now, and it's basically 41 pages of doom and gloom, offering little hope to new folks who come here looking for answers. So I'm starting this one to try to redress the balance. There are a few garages out there claiming...

www.fiatforum.com

I'm disappointed if not surprised FIAT haven't specified this fairly straightforward repair/service routine.

And the fact that so few companies are prepared to work on them makes the cost prohibitive most of the time.

 

[puntodeltathema]

Is this what the forum is for? Telling people to scrap their cars? I thought we were a help group.

 

[jrkitching]

Is this what the forum is for? Telling people to scrap their cars? I thought we were a help group.

We are a help group.

I try to give people the best advice I can, having due regard for their personal circumstances.

Someone with strong mechanical skills who can strip down the actuator, source and fit new seals, and has access to the software needed to recalibrate the unit, may be able to salvage this car.

But for someone with no mechanical knowledge, paying a hitherto unknown garage to repair a 16yr old dualogic with a serious transmission fault is unlikely to end well. Chances are they'd just be throwing good money after bad.

An independent garage might be able to source and fit a fully refurbished transmission for around £2000, but objectively there isn't that much value left in a 16yr old 500.

The OP's least worst option is to take this back to the garage they bought it from and try to get as much of what they paid for it refunded as they can.

 

[ZaphodB]

We are a help group.

I try to give people the best advice I can, having due regard for their personal circumstances.

i.e. telling them what they need to hear rather than what they'd like to hear.

 

[jackwhoo]

There is a garage in stoke on Trent that has a good reputation for fixing these

 

[AnthonyH]

I doubt there is any way of recovering money from the seller.

A repair is possible, you'd have to phone around and find the best price you can. You'll need a nationwide search I'm afraid and have to take the car to wherever you get that price. Otherwise it's £1500+.

Failing that the most likely outcome is the car being scrapped.

 

[ZaphodB]

I doubt there is any way of recovering money from the seller.

I disagree , the OP said the seller was a autotrader dealer., and not a private seller...

To repeat the law/legislation:

"If a problem is found after 30 days, but within six months of purchase, you can request a repair or a replacement vehicle. The onus is on the seller of the car to prove the fault wasn’t present when the car was sold; if they can, and you’re likely to have known about it, you won’t get a refund.

When it comes to repairs, the dealer has one chance to fix the fault. If the fix doesn’t work, you are entitled to a refund. You won’t get the full purchase price back, though. Any usage of the car will be taken into account and the refund will be adjusted accordingly.
Under previous legislation, the supplying dealer was allowed more than one attempt to rectify the problem and it was considerably more difficult to get a refund on a car, so the Consumer Rights Act is good news for consumers.

 

[AnthonyH]

I disagree , the OP said the seller was a autotrader dealer., and not a private seller...

To repeat the law/legislation:

"If a problem is found after 30 days, but within six months of purchase, you can request a repair or a replacement vehicle. The onus is on the seller of the car to prove the fault wasn’t present when the car was sold; if they can, and you’re likely to have known about it, you won’t get a refund.

When it comes to repairs, the dealer has one chance to fix the fault. If the fix doesn’t work, you are entitled to a refund. You won’t get the full purchase price back, though. Any usage of the car will be taken into account and the refund will be adjusted accordingly.
Under previous legislation, the supplying dealer was allowed more than one attempt to rectify the problem and it was considerably more difficult to get a refund on a car, so the Consumer Rights Act is good news for consumers.

The important thing the original poster needs to check is whether the seller was indeed a dealer or merely a private individual. The last time I checked Autotrader allowed both to sell on the website.

 

[ZaphodB]

The important thing the original poster needs to check is whether the seller was indeed a dealer or merely a private individual. The last time I checked Autotrader allowed both to sell on the website.

Yep, absolutely.

And he needs to spare no horses

 

[Pearl500]

The important thing the original poster needs to check is whether the seller was indeed a dealer or merely a private individual. The last time I checked Autotrader allowed both to sell on the website.

He is a dealer .
My daughter paid 4700 . And he has today offered £800 towards repair . I'm just trying to find the best way forward for her .

 

[Pearl500]

This is the actual response the dealer sent me today when I mentioned the consumer rights act "Hi with all the respect legally there is a sellers warranty is for three months which is passed now. I could say to you that sorry I cannot help you at all but i didn’t do that. if you want to go under the consumer right at you most welcome you can go to that route but it will take long process and you will get nothing. so once again as I said before, I will try my best to help you out and contribute towards the cost only because you bought for your daughter and not feeling good to leave you alone in this trouble. Regards"

He later came back to me with this
"With all the respect you don’t have many options except to repair it as I’m not prepared to take it back it’s more than three months and I am only liable for three months to get it sorted if something gets wrong. Still, I’m just trying to help you. I’m very sure you can get it fixed somewhere much cheaper. Only thing you need to shop around any garage who charge your reasonable money. As I mentioned before, I’m happy to contribute something towards the cost of the repair. I didn’t make much profit in that car but I can help you to pay £800 towards the cost of repair which is going through my pocket only to help you out otherwise anyone Else can say you sorry we cannot help you anything . Regards"

 

[ZaphodB]

He's misinformed , or deliberately trying to put you off

It's six months

What is the Consumer Rights Act, and how does it affect my vehicle purchase?

If you bought your car after 01 October 2015, the Consumer Rights Act 2015 applies. This means that, when you buy the vehicle, it has to be of satisfactory

www.themotorombudsman.org

If he's on Autotrader you can point him to their own page which repeats it's six months

Consumer Rights Act 2015 for used and new cars (2025 update) | Autotrader

Here’s how the Consumer Rights Act provides second-hand and new car buyers with a wider range of rights covering the sale of goods and services.

www.autotrader.co.uk

Consumer Rights Act 2015

An Act to amend the law relating to the rights of consumers and protection of their interests; to make provision about investigatory powers for enforcing the regulation of traders; to make provision about private actions in competition law and the Competition Appeal Tribunal; and for connected...

www.legislation.gov.uk

They all state the same six months

 

[jackwhoo]

Big factor is how much time and money do you want to spend chasing the seller. Especially as even if you "win" in court there is very little chance of getting seller to comply.

 

[ZaphodB]

Small claims court , don't fall at the first minor obstacle. (of him refusing)

Make a court claim for money

How to take legal action if someone owes you money (small claims court), how much it costs, what happens next. Includes information from withdrawn guidance EX303, EX304, EX306, EX321, EX325 and EX350.

www.gov.uk

 

[jackwhoo]

Small claims court (up to £10K)

Yes I agree but even IF win unlikely to ever see any money from seller . Unfortunately it is a flawed system that favours litigants with unlimited time and unlimited money. Enforcing a county court judgement is notoriously time consuming and difficult.
Unless the seller is a national chain that wishes to protect it's reputation.......even then...

 

[jackwhoo]

Maybe original poster could let us know if she could get car to garage in stoke on Trent for a repair quote?