Technical It's Service Time!

[ahmett]

I've decided to service my car based on my general feel of the car = )
In this case that is 9k miles after my last service, my spark plugs feel less effective than before as I noticed a drop in power especially in low revs and upon starting to move from idle. Don't even ask how it feels with the AC on!
As I have done 75,000 km's in 3 years I will change timing belt + water pump despite the fact that water pump is not leaking I don't want to risk it as I go for long drives.
I will change the Front Pads and Discs, transmission oil, and the rest just normal service stuff including oil + filters.

Mind you, does fuel pump need to be changed in Fiat 500 at any time?
Oh and dualogic people, when can I reasonably expect the clutch of the dualogic to give out?

Gave my mechanic a call, and he will give me a quote of all the spare parts I enquired about. Will cross reference it with online prices and if reasonable, will go ahead with service early next week.

 

[306maxi]

I've decided to service my car based on my general feel of the car = )
In this case that is 9k miles after my last service, my spark plugs feel less effective than before as I noticed a drop in power especially in low revs and upon starting to move from idle. Don't even ask how it feels with the AC on!
As I have done 75,000 km's in 3 years I will change timing belt + water pump despite the fact that water pump is not leaking I don't want to risk it as I go for long drives.
I will change the Front Pads and Discs, transmission oil, and the rest just normal service stuff including oil + filters.

Mind you, does fuel pump need to be changed in Fiat 500 at any time?
Oh and dualogic people, when can I reasonably expect the clutch of the dualogic to give out?

Gave my mechanic a call, and he will give me a quote of all the spare parts I enquired about. Will cross reference it with online prices and if reasonable, will go ahead with service early next week.

Fuel pump isn't a service item, should last the life of the car.

 

[ahmett]

Fuel pump isn't a service item, should last the life of the car.

Thanks for the info.
I'll let you guys know what I changed how much it cost and if there are any unpleasant surprises in the service!

 

[jrkitching]

Ahmett, put a set of iridium plugs in it & you won't need to change them again for ages.

 

[ahmett]

Ahmett, put a set of iridium plugs in it & you won't need to change them again for ages.

Thanks for that I'll check how i can get them for a reasonable price in Greece.

 

[jrkitching]

Thanks for that I'll check how i can get them for a reasonable price in Greece.

They're about £26 delivered in the UK so it might be cheaper to get a set posted from here.

 

[ahmett]

They're about £26 delivered in the UK so it might be cheaper to get a set posted from hete.

Yeah thats cheap but in Greece the state postal service is more than useless and if you do courier like ups dhl that will cost 30 euros alone!

 

[ahmett]

They're about £26 delivered in the UK so it might be cheaper to get a set posted from here.

jrkitching sorry to be annoying but can you show me the link for the iridum spark plugs? I seem to get a price of 42 pounds on amazon!

 

[ahmett]

Guys I have been playing around online and have checked out Bosch Car Service, which is where I got my battery.
From what I can see they have so many car parts and for much cheaper than what fiat offer!
They have brake discs + pads, filters, spark plugs and timing belt kits!
Do you think they would be better quality because they are bosch?
Do you have bosch service centers in the uk? Has anyone used them to fix or replace some spare parts?
Because I am seriously considering using them to service my car, it seems the only thing they don't change is your oil!

 

[jrkitching]

jrkitching sorry to be annoying but can you show me the link for the iridum spark plugs? I seem to get a price of 42 pounds on amazon!

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you Ahmett but I've been very busy buying a new house.

This is where I got mine. Current price is £27.14 including UK delivery.

 

[ahmett]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you Ahmett but I've been very busy buying a new house.

This is where I got mine. Current price is £27.14 including UK delivery.

Thank you jrkirching don't worry at all, your contribution to my knowledge of the Fiat 500 has been absolutely invaluable although it has caused me to appear very arrogant when I speak with independent dealers =).
I am also going to add bgunn to my thanks list and Jnoiles, you three alone have increased my Fiat 500 knowledge exponentially and sometimes I wish I was in the UK so we could meet and I can pay you guys to service my car instead of some random indie!
I am in the middle of a conversation with a indie who is telling me you should use Italian parts for an Italian car when I am telling him no get Bosch I prefer them to Magnetti Marelli

 

[ahmett]

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you Ahmett but I've been very busy buying a new house.

This is where I got mine. Current price is £27.14 including UK delivery.

For this time, I decided to get the normal copper plugs from Denso for 4 Euros a piece as I want to do the service tomorrow, but will keep this link saved for the future!

Thanks again jrkitching!

 

[ahmett]

Here are the spark plugs after 15000 km

 

[ahmett]

 

[The Twins]

View attachment 123641

Plug looks good. Nice colour, no debris.
Yes, I also thank bgunn, JR, maxi, jnoiles among many others who have educated me about all things 500.
I drove bgunn mad with a million PM's before I changed my suspension : /
His advice was very welcome indeed and prevented me from making some silly mistakes that I may have otherwise done.
And of course Ahmett, I thank you for educating me about Michelin PE2's : )
It's a great forum.

 

[jrkitching]

Plug looks good. Nice colour, no debris.

The plugs do indeed show the engine to be in good condition but the plugs themselves look shot. Those photos don't show the important detail of the shape of the central electrode but you can clearly see a yellow ring around the base of the ceramic.

Good flame propogation needs a sharp edges and unfortunately the central electrode on copper cored plugs rounds off quite quickly due to spark erosion. The performance of Cu plugs degrades significantly after about 10,000 miles - you will usually notice a difference in the way the car drives if you replace the plugs at this point. Ir electrodes are much more durable and maintain a sharp discharge point for many thousands more miles.

 

[The Twins]

The plugs do indeed show the engine to be in good condition but the plugs themselves look shot. Those photos don't show the important detail of the shape of the central electrode but you can clearly see a yellow ring around the base of the ceramic.

Good flame propogation needs a sharp edges and unfortunately the central electrode on copper cored plugs rounds off quite quickly due to spark erosion. The performance of Cu plugs degrades significantly after about 10,000 miles - you will usually notice a difference in the way the car drives if you replace the plugs at this point. Ir electrodes are much more durable and maintain a sharp discharge point for many thousands more miles.

I wonder if the TA uses iridium plugs as standard?

 

[jrkitching]

I wonder if the TA uses iridium plugs as standard?

Yes it does.

 

[staffordmike]

Hmm, I'll have to look at my service records, I can't recall ever seeing spark plugs mentioned.
As an aside, the US Fiat 500 Forum has some interesting FAQ's, such as...

What spark plugs are used in the Fiat 500?
The spark plug used in Europe for the 1.4 liter 16V version of the Fiat 500, NGK’s DCPR7E-N-10 are fitted as Original Equipment. This 12mm spark plug has been developed specifically for the Fiat FIRE MPI engine family. It is a nickel alloy plug.

This small diameter spark plug lends itself well to the compact combustion chamber of the multi-valve 1.4 liter engine.

... I take it that they are standard, not iridium plugs?

 

[306maxi]

Hmm, I'll have to look at my service records, I can't recall ever seeing spark plugs mentioned.
As an aside, the US Fiat 500 Forum has some interesting FAQ's, such as...

What spark plugs are used in the Fiat 500?
The spark plug used in Europe for the 1.4 liter 16V version of the Fiat 500, NGK’s DCPR7E-N-10 are fitted as Original Equipment. This 12mm spark plug has been developed specifically for the Fiat FIRE MPI engine family. It is a nickel alloy plug.

This small diameter spark plug lends itself well to the compact combustion chamber of the multi-valve 1.4 liter engine.

... I take it that they are standard, not iridium plugs?

Standard ones are copper, not iridium sadly.