rallycam
New member
Hello from Scotland (Near Edinburgh),
I have been lurking in the back ground for a while but thought best I make an appearance. As this thread might suggest, I am new too Fiat & have recently got my hands on a 2014 500s, with 80k miles on the clock for a little over £1k off of Facebook market place. Cheap, I know but trust me there was a reason..... I like to think myself of somewhat a DIY'er & mechanically minded so why not buy a fixer upper as it had a few month MOT left.
Pictured from its good side, the other side has a big ol' dent on the quarter panel & door - hence the cheaper price. Anyway this was bought for my partner to learn to drive in so I imagine it will get a few more dents on it in the mean time. I will fix it but that is for another day...
Anyway, the first thing needing done was the brakes, horrid noises with a shocking shuddering, I initially thought that the front drivers side wheel bearing was needing done as well but glad it didn't need one, the brakes were just binding. New set of disks & pads -= less noises, sorted! The break lines were an advisory on the last MOT but they look fine to me - an issue for another day...
(Old vs. new for reference, yikes)
Next job was a proper service. No service history with the car. So new wipers all round, engine flush, new oil, filter, spark plugs & air filter (replaced the old K&N one that didn't seem to have much filtration). The cabin filter was going to be replaced but it is near on impossible to get to so waiting for a 5.5mm offset spanner to arrive from amazon to get that changed.
I drove the car 200miles or so then changed the oil again as I suspected the oil had not been changed for a while & put my mind at ease with a proper flush.
A new battery was needed so I replaced that, starts fine now but stop/start still doesn't work. think a break switch is required or something, anyway for another day...Yes it was a stop start battery installed....
Might be placebo but the car seems to be running a lot smoother. The car was also a dog car so I striped the interior & cleaned, the smell persists a bit but hopefully an air-con re-gassed & new cabin filter will help (or I'll buy shares in Jelly Belly).
(No garage & limited parking garage)
I was also impressed with the TFT display as standard so I opted to upgrade the head unit for an xtron unit. I have one in my E90 3 series. It is great although I'm getting some interference noises on occasion when connected wireless to the apple car play - again an issues for another day... Pricey but worth it.
One of the first drives at night I could not see the headlight symbol on display & I was convinced it was broken, turns out the steering wheel was just too low, how daft!
Anyway there is a brief overview of my ownership so far as a way to introduce myself & say hi. I'm so impressed with the guides available & how cheap replacement parts are. I have a long list of what I am going to do but I enjoy using forums so hopefully I can keep you all updated as I go along as I will most likely spend too much money on it, a great wee car & so simple to work on.
Next jobs:
- Full Front Suspension Rebuilt (so many noises & top mounts completely rusted out)
- Earthing Strap
- Replace Rust Sump
- Cam belt & water pump
- Investigate stop start
- Thermostat housing replace (as suggestion in new owners guide)
- Sort dents & replace quarter panel or fill full with body filler.
- Heater control lights intermittent.
- Clutch & Main Shaft bearing replacement.
Cheers, excuse the cheesy thread title
I have been lurking in the back ground for a while but thought best I make an appearance. As this thread might suggest, I am new too Fiat & have recently got my hands on a 2014 500s, with 80k miles on the clock for a little over £1k off of Facebook market place. Cheap, I know but trust me there was a reason..... I like to think myself of somewhat a DIY'er & mechanically minded so why not buy a fixer upper as it had a few month MOT left.
Pictured from its good side, the other side has a big ol' dent on the quarter panel & door - hence the cheaper price. Anyway this was bought for my partner to learn to drive in so I imagine it will get a few more dents on it in the mean time. I will fix it but that is for another day...
Anyway, the first thing needing done was the brakes, horrid noises with a shocking shuddering, I initially thought that the front drivers side wheel bearing was needing done as well but glad it didn't need one, the brakes were just binding. New set of disks & pads -= less noises, sorted! The break lines were an advisory on the last MOT but they look fine to me - an issue for another day...
(Old vs. new for reference, yikes)
Next job was a proper service. No service history with the car. So new wipers all round, engine flush, new oil, filter, spark plugs & air filter (replaced the old K&N one that didn't seem to have much filtration). The cabin filter was going to be replaced but it is near on impossible to get to so waiting for a 5.5mm offset spanner to arrive from amazon to get that changed.
I drove the car 200miles or so then changed the oil again as I suspected the oil had not been changed for a while & put my mind at ease with a proper flush.
A new battery was needed so I replaced that, starts fine now but stop/start still doesn't work. think a break switch is required or something, anyway for another day...Yes it was a stop start battery installed....
Might be placebo but the car seems to be running a lot smoother. The car was also a dog car so I striped the interior & cleaned, the smell persists a bit but hopefully an air-con re-gassed & new cabin filter will help (or I'll buy shares in Jelly Belly).
(No garage & limited parking garage)
I was also impressed with the TFT display as standard so I opted to upgrade the head unit for an xtron unit. I have one in my E90 3 series. It is great although I'm getting some interference noises on occasion when connected wireless to the apple car play - again an issues for another day... Pricey but worth it.
One of the first drives at night I could not see the headlight symbol on display & I was convinced it was broken, turns out the steering wheel was just too low, how daft!
Anyway there is a brief overview of my ownership so far as a way to introduce myself & say hi. I'm so impressed with the guides available & how cheap replacement parts are. I have a long list of what I am going to do but I enjoy using forums so hopefully I can keep you all updated as I go along as I will most likely spend too much money on it, a great wee car & so simple to work on.
Next jobs:
- Full Front Suspension Rebuilt (so many noises & top mounts completely rusted out)
- Earthing Strap
- Replace Rust Sump
- Cam belt & water pump
- Investigate stop start
- Thermostat housing replace (as suggestion in new owners guide)
- Sort dents & replace quarter panel or fill full with body filler.
- Heater control lights intermittent.
- Clutch & Main Shaft bearing replacement.
Cheers, excuse the cheesy thread title
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