Technical Folding door mirror just fell apart in my hands

[jrkitching]

Well, this is my update.

Thanks for coming back with the update.

This is great news - FIAT acknowledging that your mirror was faulty & will be fixed under warranty.

Replacement with a new mirror assembly is a simple and straightforward fix which takes only a few minutes so they should be able to do it while you wait.

I'd be curious to know the part number of the replacement - if you could get this for us it would be useful in working out if FIAT have changed the original design.

 

[Tokiyat]

Thanks for coming back with the update.

I'd be curious to know the part number of the replacement - if you could get this for us it would be useful in working out if FIAT have changed the original design.

Thanks, I have now heard that the car is ready for collection. I will come to the service centre tomorrow. I have asked them the part number so I will let you know if I hear from them.

These were the questions from me to them:
1. Whether the side mirror in other side is fine
2. whether they could guarantee this won't happen again
3. What's the part number for the swing pin mechanism.

I will post another update if I hear any useful answer. If any of you have any other questions, please post it here by tomorrow morning (11th April). Then I should be able to ask them.

Have a lovely day!

Tokiyat

PS. Do you know how to post images? Do I have to use HTML ?

 

[Venters]

Thanks, I have now heard that the car is ready for collection. I will come to the service centre tomorrow. I have asked them the part number so I will let you know if I hear from them.

These were the questions from me to them:
1. Whether the side mirror in other side is fine
2. whether they could guarantee this won't happen again
3. What's the part number for the swing pin mechanism.

I will post another update if I hear any useful answer. If any of you have any other questions, please post it here by tomorrow morning (11th April). Then I should be able to ask them.

Have a lovely day!

Tokiyat

PS. Do you know how to post images? Do I have to use HTML ?

In the reply box you can click this

to upload pictures as attachments.

 

[jrkitching]

1. Whether the side mirror in other side is fine

As it will almost certainly be of the same design, it will almost certainly have the same inherent defect.

2. whether they could guarantee this won't happen again

Only if FIAT have redesigned the mirror assembly, which is why it'd be useful to have the part number of the new one. The swing pin doesn't break - the plastic housing wears away so that it can no longer retain the swing pin.

3. What's the part number for the swing pin mechanism.

The swing pin mechanism won't be available as a separate part. It's the part number of the replacement mirror assembly that we need.

 

[Tokiyat]

Thanks for coming back with the update.

This is great news - FIAT acknowledging that your mirror was faulty & will be fixed under warranty.

Replacement with a new mirror assembly is a simple and straightforward fix which takes only a few minutes so they should be able to do it while you wait.

I'd be curious to know the part number of the replacement - if you could get this for us it would be useful in working out if FIAT have changed the original design.

Okay it is now all fixed and I have the part number lol: 735481649

Hope this was helpful.

My warranty expires on January 2014 so the cost was covered with it. They did confirmed that it was defect but denied any issue with the design.

I've asked them what if it happened a year later then they said I would have to pay by myself but I could challenge Fiat to cover.

 

[jrkitching]

Okay it is now all fixed and I have the part number lol: 735481649

Hope this was helpful.

My warranty expires on January 2014 so the cost was covered with it. They did confirmed that it was defect but denied any issue with the design.

I've asked them what if it happened a year later then they said I would have to pay by myself but I could challenge Fiat to cover.

Thanks for the update.

That's still the same old part number as the one which failed on my car.

 

[jrkitching]

I'm reviving this thread as we seem to have another car suffering the same problem, here.

My only surprise is that there haven't been more of these failures - possibly not many 500 owners habitually fold their mirrors?

 

[Sort it out Dad]

Well after two weeks of ownership this has happened to my daughters car. She has got into the habit of folding the door mirrors in and last night having turned them in she returned to the car and went to open the drivers door mirror and it came away.

So she is off to the dealers today and now armed with the info from this thread is preparing for battle.

 

[ahmett]

I'm reviving this thread as we seem to have another car suffering the same problem, here.

My only surprise is that there haven't been more of these failures - possibly not many 500 owners habitually fold their mirrors?

I fold mine all the time JRKitching! Hasn't happened yet will let you know if it does.
A few times the wing mirror plastic cover fell off but I always noticed it right away and popped it back in place.

 

[jrkitching]

I fold mine all the time JRKitching! Hasn't happened yet will let you know if it does.
A few times the wing mirror plastic cover fell off but I always noticed it right away and popped it back in place.

Following on from the "Do you name your car" thread, I propose naming your car "The P*ssy", since it clearly has nine lives.

 

[Dodger53]

your repair post came in very handy - just about to glue copper tabs in place

 

[Bergmann]

Side mirror fell apart in my hands today while I was unfolding it, really carefully! I always fold and unfold side mirrors with care, I know how sensitive Fiat parts are, have had 3 different Fiat cars so far. Bought my Fiat 500 a year ago, brand new, went to the local dealer immediately, and they said it is broken and that I have to buy a new one, with 225 € only!! They've got to be kidding me, I tried to explain what happened but they simply could not accept the facts, and that is so insane and insulting! Is there anyone in here who managed to cover a damage like that with the warranty? If yes, how? Thank you in advance.

 

[ahmett]

Side mirror fell apart in my hands today while I was unfolding it, really carefully! I always fold and unfold side mirrors with care, I know how sensitive Fiat parts are, have had 3 different Fiat cars so far. Bought my Fiat 500 a year ago, brand new, went to the local dealer immediately, and they said it is broken and that I have to buy a new one, with 225 € only!! They've got to be kidding me, I tried to explain what happened but they simply could not accept the facts, and that is so insane and insulting! Is there anyone in here who managed to cover a damage like that with the warranty? If yes, how? Thank you in advance.

Which Fiat dealer did you go to? I hope it wasn't Autoone!
Basically go to other dealers to check if they will fix it under warranty.
If you go to Sfakianakis, Sarakakis, Autoone and Lamda and all say the same thing, go to Bosch Service and at least they will fix it for less than 225 euros.

 

[Bergmann]

Fiat Corfu Kinisi, the official Fiat dealer in Corfu, Greece. Thank you for replying.

 

[PsFiat]

Fiat Corfu Kinisi, the official Fiat dealer in Corfu, Greece. Thank you for replying.

Unlikely they will accept it as a warranty issue. Difficult to prove that it's a factory fault- dealer will assume you broke it.

 

[Bergmann]

I figured so.. Anyway, I contacted Fiat and they said that they will look into it. I was surprised to read in here though that the same thing has happened to many others too. The dealer said it's the first time he saw something like that. I guess I have to send them the link of this forum, so that they read a little bit. I was amazed to watch the mirror remaining in my hands while I was unfolding it! No hit, no hard pulling. Anyway, thanks for replying.

 

[PsFiat]

Could it just be a quick snap together repair ?

 

[jrkitching]

Difficult to prove that it's a factory fault- dealer will assume you broke it.

It's easy to tell the difference between those that fail due to the inherently poor design, and those which have been damaged. If the failure is due to the design weakness, it literally disassembles itself - none of the constituent parts are broken in any way.

Could it just be a quick snap together repair ?

Sadly not, although it is possible to fix it yourself.

The first few posts in this thread tell you exactly what happens and why, and what you need to do if you want to repair it.

It's not a job for the feint hearted, or the hamfisted, but if done in the manner suggested, will likely last the life of the car.

Replacement OEM mirrors will have the same inherent weakness that caused it to fail in the first place, unless FIAT have changed the design.

I'm surprised there haven't been more of these failures (the door handle hinge failure, also down to cr#p design, is much more common). I guess folks don't fold their mirrors as often as they open their doors.

And to Bergmann - there's nothing you could have done to prevent this. No matter how carefully you fold/unfold your door mirror, one day it will just come apart in your hand without warning.

Tokiyat got a replacement mirror under warranty, so it's definitely worth asking if it happens to you.

 

[Bergmann]

Thank you all for your replies. I've got some news. Went to the local dealer again today. When I called Fiat yesterday, they asked me if the local dealer gave me an official report of the incident. I said no, since nothing like that was ever given to me! How am I supposed to know the process anyway, I am just a client. To cut a long way short, whenever you get your car to an official dealer, no matter what the problem is, they are obliged to follow a certain process: take photos of the damage, check your warranty to see if it covers the client, and give you back some kind of report on a piece of paper. In my case, that process was not followed. All they did was check the damage and tell me how much the spare part costs. After contacting Fiat yesterday, Fiat contacted the local dealer, and this is how I found out about all this. And when I got there today, the dealer said I mentioned nothing about warranty yesterday.. People, this is not the right way to get things done. The company is supposed to check for any warranty issues, not the client! Anyway, I'm waiting for their final answer tomorrow now. I hope I'll get covered by the warranty after all. To all those who may come across a similar case: ask for a report next time you take your car to an official dealer, even for a simple check!

 

[ahmett]

Thank you all for your replies. I've got some news. Went to the local dealer again today. When I called Fiat yesterday, they asked me if the local dealer gave me an official report of the incident. I said no, since nothing like that was ever given to me! How am I supposed to know the process anyway, I am just a client. To cut a long way short, whenever you get your car to an official dealer, no matter what the problem is, they are obliged to follow a certain process: take photos of the damage, check your warranty to see if it covers the client, and give you back some kind of report on a piece of paper. In my case, that process was not followed. All they did was check the damage and tell me how much the spare part costs. After contacting Fiat yesterday, Fiat contacted the local dealer, and this is how I found out about all this. And when I got there today, the dealer said I mentioned nothing about warranty yesterday.. People, this is not the right way to get things done. The company is supposed to check for any warranty issues, not the client! Anyway, I'm waiting for their final answer tomorrow now. I hope I'll get covered by the warranty after all. To all those who may come across a similar case: ask for a report next time you take your car to an official dealer, even for a simple check!

Good job Bergmann. I have found Fiat Greece very helpful in the past compared to the awful Fiat dealers. Good job for reporting the dealer and I hope they fix it for free.