Thread on here covers the info on Iridium plugs 
Technical service yourself?
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Technical service yourself?
Hi, Which thread is that? I searched on the forum and some threads say that there isnt a NGK iridium plugs available for the 1.2 engines.Thread on here covers the info on Iridium plugs
Is there a "How to" guide section on the forum btw?
Look at the upgrade part number https://www.ngkpartfinder.co.uk/catalogues/cars/search/spark-plugs/FIAT/500/2018/11129/
These would also be compatible £30 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/334384664242?hash=item4ddae10eb2:g:XhoAAOSwANhiasw1
No plugs from factory not long life, remember shop4parts to ADD vat, just buy branded parts from the like of Bosch Mann etc
For the oil I think this is the correct one cheap too £28 https://www.eurocarparts.com/p/shell-helix-hx7-engine-oil-5w-40-5ltr-521773701
Air filter £8.50 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/333793864361?fits=Car+Make:Fiat|Model:500&epid=1108028618&hash=item4db7aa2aa9:g:yRcAAOSwf4ldAmAz&amdata=enc:AQAHAAAA4F2FPKtH+AHKYzDdvg8gOiwPNxbDT+i6Voojv96JH0epZXpoxflJy5Z3U+YktVVA+UO17SLL4ucwlYHHeL5iBf48xabm0PycFZ6ha+rCEY9A7eR7wRqKML+xxFHXyktWbldzdWyMAH7PXTN2nej/mDM8gu7eRNNfTGrqHreHczrXgpOmZ5/JDRxblLTlU4oghCzdzIrCI7gNckORgMIuLK6pv+j9AYjVBUDP1do3QmoSk4uSMAjsXzyhb33XxQ0ncIb8V/udUFo2BGtNkdWUyvp45O10dULMDVjxfiwPptt3|tkp:BFBM3LCCmqtg
Cabin filter £7 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323674705296?fits=Car+Make:Fiat&epid=249203864&hash=item4b5c840d90:g:cXQAAOSwpRxcVWDm
Oil filter £6 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/153395461916?fits=Car+Make:Fiat&epid=250778354&hash=item23b714ff1c:g:utoAAOSw3k9cdS6y
£80 the lot?
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Thanks for that. Yes I’ll shop around for the parts for sure
I called the dealer to get an idea of parts and they said going with their service schedule I need to have the brake fluid changed aswell. Do you guys recommend I should do this?
Also it was mentioned the cabin/pollen filter won’t need changing as it’s a long life filter? What do you guys think?
Price wise they quoted inc vat:
Oil filter £15.77
Air filter £15.88
Spark plugs £10.32 each so £41.56
Will have to compare online and probs go for oe quality parts as I do on the cars and your suggestions
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I'd still change the cabin filter, not sure what long life means but our Mazda one was full of leaves and other crap it's cheap enough pattern part.
Yes do brake fluid, be aware the rears if drums have a tendency to snap off yours should be OK given the mileage also worth doing the clutch fluid at the same time
Yes do brake fluid, be aware the rears if drums have a tendency to snap off yours should be OK given the mileage also worth doing the clutch fluid at the same time
Our Panda, being a second car - and a bit of a cosseted project for me - doesn't do a high annual mileage. I just run her on the standard plugs - some call them "copper" - which I remove and check gaps at service time because wide plug gaps are a strain on HT components and I wish to avoid that - Incidentally DO NOT attempt to gap "slim electrode" plugs, it's a big No No, they can be damaged by doing this. You just fit them as they come out of the box but examine them visually before you do so in case they've been damaged in transit (unlikely though) - It used to be that removing plugs annually, and maybe using a little Copa slip, or Aluslip if an aluminium head, was a good thing to do because it greatly reduced the chances of plugs corroding their threads. Nowadays most plugs have a sacrificial plated finish on their threads - looks like a chrome or nickel plating but apparently it's actually a sacrificial coating which is designed to shear so making removal after maybe 6 years or more less of a problem - not uncommon on modern extended interval servicing. "Standard" plugs can be bought very cheaply these days I think mine were only about £3.00 each last ones I bought. In fact all the family cars Our Panda, the Punto, Jazz and Astra run ordinary plugs without any problems. The Ibiza runs iridium/platignum or whatever they are because the coils are absolute swines to get out without the special puller and "the knowledge" so my local indy does them for me. First set done earlier this year at commencement of her 7th year.
Brake fluid change? I have a boiling point tester so I test every year and change when the tester tells me it needs it. If I didn't have one of these I'd be doing a complete flush through every second year and certainly within the 3 years. Trouble with brake fluid is it's hygroscopic - no that's not a spelling error - which, as many of us will know - means it absorbs moisture. Now this is very bad for several reasons but the two biggies are that water boils at a considerably lower point than brake fluid and brakes, say on a long hill descent or extreme emergency stop, can get very hot indeed such that the caliper/brake cylinders can get hot enough to boil the water content in the fluid. If it boils it turns to steam and steam is a gas so is compressible. What you as the driver will find is that your brake pedal starts out good and hard because both the fluid and water content are liquid so virtually incompressible. The pedal continues to feel good during braking but then suddenly, with virtually no warning, goes to the floor as the water content turns to steam. It's a terrifying experience and has resulted in fatalities in the past. The other thing worth thinking about is that if you run with old fluid in the system the water content will corrode the caliper and cylinder pistons - and today with ABS, it's not good for ABS internals either. So folks, yes to a brake fluid change every 2 years or so. A wee smear of anti seize around the nipple threads while you're at it goes a long way to preventing bleed nipples seizing in place too. Clutch fluid isn't under the same stress as brake fluid so, if it's looking clean and not dark in colour, it's probably Ok to leave it. On the other hand bleeding it isn't difficult as long as you don't let air get into the system and remember the pedal will need to be pulled back up from the floor after you've pushed it down with the bleed nipple open because it uses the clutch cover assembly spring to return it under normal operation.
I'm a bit obsessed with pollen filters too, a much ignored component. Our Panda, my boy's Punto and my daughter in law's Jazz, all had absolutely disgusting cabin filters first time I serviced them. I think it unlikely they had ever been changed from new. Sometimes I think the manufacturers are guilty in that they make it a very difficult thing to do. The Panda (It's a 169) is not too bad to access. The Punto, which is the later model built after 2012 has to have it's element sort of folded up into a shape approaching a triangle to get it in and then straightened out again when in place with a slim long screwdriver. It's Ok to do once you figure it out but the first time I did it it took me ages and I ended up with a very sore back. The Ibiza is pretty good, there's a removable cover in the passenger footwell which just releases with sliding catches, no tools needed and the filter almost falls out. The new one goes back in just as easy. But the pick of the bunch is the Jazz which is a peach, you just pull part of the glovebox out and the filter element comes out through the glovebox. You can do it all sitting in the passenger seat. Ten out of ten for that one Honda. I'm going on a bit about this because I've heard people say stuff like "my cabin filter is horrible to do so I just leave it alone. It's still blowing air anyway". What those people need to think about is that most heater fan motors have a range of speeds you can select and to achieve the slower speeds what they do is run the current through a resistor bank, which gets hot! and the slower the speed you select the more resistor it uses so it gets even hotter! I'm talking pretty hot here, you would burn your fingers if you touched it. So how do most of them shed this heat? they stick them in the airflow trunking for the heater blower and let the air flowing through the heater system carry the resistor heat away. Blocked up cabin filters will restrict air flow to this vital resistor pack - which are well known for burning out anyway - and so the life of the resistor pack will be compromised. I check the cabin filters in the "family fleet" every service - so pretty much every year - and mostly I find they last about 2 years on average but I have found my boy's Astra sometimes needs one yearly but he does rack up the miles as he uses it for business. Mostly resistor packs are a bit of a Phaf to change so the longer you can make them last the better.
I see your quoted prices for the filters etc and you can virtually half them if you buy quality after market products and really not compromise on quality. Have an ask around for your local factor - google for Motor Factors/Car Parts in your area. Euro Car Parts have branches all over the place but I find my two locals SRS and Pentland Components nearly always undercut their prices without me asking. Halfords can sometimes be surprisingly economical and my local branch are very helpful. Local trade factors will be supplying the trade around you so it's very unlikely you'll be supplied with anything "dodgy" You need to be a bit more careful if you buy from an "accessory" shop or from some online suppliers. If you're looking at online stuff then go to their website and see what else they are selling. If it's all car stuff and they seem to have a large and diverse stock on offer you'll probably be Ok. If they're selling a few oil filters, maybe some wiper blades, along with sun glasses and hemorrhoid creams, probably better to look elsewhere?
Brake fluid change? I have a boiling point tester so I test every year and change when the tester tells me it needs it. If I didn't have one of these I'd be doing a complete flush through every second year and certainly within the 3 years. Trouble with brake fluid is it's hygroscopic - no that's not a spelling error - which, as many of us will know - means it absorbs moisture. Now this is very bad for several reasons but the two biggies are that water boils at a considerably lower point than brake fluid and brakes, say on a long hill descent or extreme emergency stop, can get very hot indeed such that the caliper/brake cylinders can get hot enough to boil the water content in the fluid. If it boils it turns to steam and steam is a gas so is compressible. What you as the driver will find is that your brake pedal starts out good and hard because both the fluid and water content are liquid so virtually incompressible. The pedal continues to feel good during braking but then suddenly, with virtually no warning, goes to the floor as the water content turns to steam. It's a terrifying experience and has resulted in fatalities in the past. The other thing worth thinking about is that if you run with old fluid in the system the water content will corrode the caliper and cylinder pistons - and today with ABS, it's not good for ABS internals either. So folks, yes to a brake fluid change every 2 years or so. A wee smear of anti seize around the nipple threads while you're at it goes a long way to preventing bleed nipples seizing in place too. Clutch fluid isn't under the same stress as brake fluid so, if it's looking clean and not dark in colour, it's probably Ok to leave it. On the other hand bleeding it isn't difficult as long as you don't let air get into the system and remember the pedal will need to be pulled back up from the floor after you've pushed it down with the bleed nipple open because it uses the clutch cover assembly spring to return it under normal operation.
I'm a bit obsessed with pollen filters too, a much ignored component. Our Panda, my boy's Punto and my daughter in law's Jazz, all had absolutely disgusting cabin filters first time I serviced them. I think it unlikely they had ever been changed from new. Sometimes I think the manufacturers are guilty in that they make it a very difficult thing to do. The Panda (It's a 169) is not too bad to access. The Punto, which is the later model built after 2012 has to have it's element sort of folded up into a shape approaching a triangle to get it in and then straightened out again when in place with a slim long screwdriver. It's Ok to do once you figure it out but the first time I did it it took me ages and I ended up with a very sore back. The Ibiza is pretty good, there's a removable cover in the passenger footwell which just releases with sliding catches, no tools needed and the filter almost falls out. The new one goes back in just as easy. But the pick of the bunch is the Jazz which is a peach, you just pull part of the glovebox out and the filter element comes out through the glovebox. You can do it all sitting in the passenger seat. Ten out of ten for that one Honda. I'm going on a bit about this because I've heard people say stuff like "my cabin filter is horrible to do so I just leave it alone. It's still blowing air anyway". What those people need to think about is that most heater fan motors have a range of speeds you can select and to achieve the slower speeds what they do is run the current through a resistor bank, which gets hot! and the slower the speed you select the more resistor it uses so it gets even hotter! I'm talking pretty hot here, you would burn your fingers if you touched it. So how do most of them shed this heat? they stick them in the airflow trunking for the heater blower and let the air flowing through the heater system carry the resistor heat away. Blocked up cabin filters will restrict air flow to this vital resistor pack - which are well known for burning out anyway - and so the life of the resistor pack will be compromised. I check the cabin filters in the "family fleet" every service - so pretty much every year - and mostly I find they last about 2 years on average but I have found my boy's Astra sometimes needs one yearly but he does rack up the miles as he uses it for business. Mostly resistor packs are a bit of a Phaf to change so the longer you can make them last the better.
I see your quoted prices for the filters etc and you can virtually half them if you buy quality after market products and really not compromise on quality. Have an ask around for your local factor - google for Motor Factors/Car Parts in your area. Euro Car Parts have branches all over the place but I find my two locals SRS and Pentland Components nearly always undercut their prices without me asking. Halfords can sometimes be surprisingly economical and my local branch are very helpful. Local trade factors will be supplying the trade around you so it's very unlikely you'll be supplied with anything "dodgy" You need to be a bit more careful if you buy from an "accessory" shop or from some online suppliers. If you're looking at online stuff then go to their website and see what else they are selling. If it's all car stuff and they seem to have a large and diverse stock on offer you'll probably be Ok. If they're selling a few oil filters, maybe some wiper blades, along with sun glasses and hemorrhoid creams, probably better to look elsewhere?
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Simple but messy fluid goes all over especially if it's been replaced(slave but not in your case) take the battery and tray out
I get parts from www.carparts4less.co.uk they are owned by Euro and the website is almost identical but they are much much cheaper. Euro offer what look like big 65% discounts but there startin prices are much more. carparts4less have 15, 19 per cent discounts and very occasionally 20%, today they have 20%, delivery is free for most things apart from what they deem hazardous items which includes coolant so they charge you but they are soooo much cheaper than Euros.
I don't agree..
Clutch fluid doesn't get too much of a hard time but it goes dark very quickly which suggests it's picking up moisture or other contaminants. Moisture in old fluid can cause local spots of corrosion.. and rust can damage the system's o-ring seals.
I'm not sure how many seal/slave failures are actually caused by internal particles rather than external (e.g. dirt/grit on the slave cylinder rod) but it seems prudent to keep the internals as sparkly as possible.
Ralf S.
@500Singh
I bought a 2018 500 in January..
This was one of my initial queries..
www.fiatforum.com
I bought a 2018 500 in January..
This was one of my initial queries..
Technical - Fiat 500 1.2 Pop Spark Plugs
Was just reading this thread as my 1.4's spark plugs feel like rubbish down low in the power with the AC on after about 12 k, so will probably book a service tomorrow and get the oil, filters, and spark plugs changed. I am putting Bosch Spark Plugs, lets see how they feel. (some of you may...
www.fiatforum.com
Shop4Parts are very good - usually next day delivery too. They don't have everything (although I did get a new-old-stock Brava* parcel shelf from them just last year!) but they do have all the genuine fluids for decent prices, plus most fast-moving items. eBay can do the rest - or Euro Car Parts for Mann filters (much better than Fiat branded ones these days, some of which are a bit dubious quality wise IMHO). NGK plugs (which are often Fiat OE) seem best bought from eBay, price-wise. "Allcarpartsfast" online are also good if you have a part number - they can get hold of some obscure stuff and even workshop tools.
(*1995-2001 mid-size Fiat hatch for younger readers.... )
(*1995-2001 mid-size Fiat hatch for younger readers....
)
My view on plugs.. having run different various constructions, coatings, electrode designs, electrode types and numbers of electrodes since 1903 and probably the best part of a million road miles is (you may be surprised to learn) that there is very little discernible difference between the factory plugs and any type or style of aftermarket gadgetry.
If you have a modern injected engine with electronic ignition, the factory plug is pretty much "peak plug" and any extra money you spend on anything flashier is not going to be cost effective. The main effect you notice with a flashy plug is that when you swap it in, the car "runs better".. but then... you just fitted new plugs. It ought to run better than it did on the 5yr old plugs you took out.
The main advantage is that you can leave the flashy plugs in there longer without gapping or replacing them.. but that has con's in that they can seize in there.. so in any case you'll need to take them out to keep them "lubed" and also to inspect/adjust them from time to time... although these days cleaning/gapping isn't even required. Plugs have quite an easy life compared to the carburettor, points, condensers and distributor caps era.
If I take a plug out twice, I rarely put it back in twice... since dismantling the airbox, fishing the plug out of a 20cm deep plug well etc. is a bigger PITA for me than spending £20 on a set of new plugs.. so for my money, the regular "GI Joe" plug makes sense; fit it, do its tour of duty and then swap it.. every 2 years/second service is an easy life for it.
Ralf S.
If you have a modern injected engine with electronic ignition, the factory plug is pretty much "peak plug" and any extra money you spend on anything flashier is not going to be cost effective. The main effect you notice with a flashy plug is that when you swap it in, the car "runs better".. but then...
you just fitted new plugs. It ought to run better than it did on the 5yr old plugs you took out.The main advantage is that you can leave the flashy plugs in there longer without gapping or replacing them.. but that has con's in that they can seize in there.. so in any case you'll need to take them out to keep them "lubed" and also to inspect/adjust them from time to time... although these days cleaning/gapping isn't even required. Plugs have quite an easy life compared to the carburettor, points, condensers and distributor caps era.
If I take a plug out twice, I rarely put it back in twice... since dismantling the airbox, fishing the plug out of a 20cm deep plug well etc. is a bigger PITA for me than spending £20 on a set of new plugs.. so for my money, the regular "GI Joe" plug makes sense; fit it, do its tour of duty and then swap it.. every 2 years/second service is an easy life for it.
Ralf S.
vexorg
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Ebay or ECP just has alarm bells for me for service parts. Twice I've had to stand and argue in our local ECP that the part they gave me was not the right part, and decided they were completely useless as a company after that (first for getting their stock wrong, and second for staff that dont know about car parts)
vexorg
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How old are you?
My view on plugs is decent quality standard plugs, and replace them every year.
