pandadig5025
New member
thanks for your reply ,can i just top up fluid myself by undoing cap ,or will it depressurise system.
Technical The one and only Dualogic failure thread
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Technical The one and only Dualogic failure thread
What was the reason for the fluid change?
If it's just been worked on by a garage and you think there's a problem resulting from that work, I'd suggest not messing with it yourself - instead take it back to that garage and share your concerns with them.
If you do anything yourself, you will almost certainly lose any rights you may have, and in all likelihood the garage will refuse to take any responsibility for anything they might have done.
pandadig5025
New member
is going back in wedsday ,will let you know outcome.cheers
If it was fine before they did the work then its not a big leap to think they have done something wrong! especially as they immediately tried to put the blame back onto you for your "erratic driving" which you must have developed as soon as you collected the car from them!, as your driving had not affected the car in the previous 5years,"
Just cause they are an Alfa "specialist" dont mean they know what there doing with Fiats! you might want to "emphasize your displeasure!" with there work and hint at further action(legal) if they dont resolve things to your satisfaction! when you take it back in.
If you do decide to take the complaint further do EVERYTHING! in writing and keep copies of whats said by both them and you!.
Hope you get it sorted! but is there any reason that you did not take it of a fiat specialist or main dealer in the first place?( other than cost of course!).
Just cause they are an Alfa "specialist" dont mean they know what there doing with Fiats! you might want to "emphasize your displeasure!" with there work and hint at further action(legal) if they dont resolve things to your satisfaction! when you take it back in.
If you do decide to take the complaint further do EVERYTHING! in writing and keep copies of whats said by both them and you!.
Hope you get it sorted! but is there any reason that you did not take it of a fiat specialist or main dealer in the first place?( other than cost of course!).
pandadig5025
New member
yes was cost ,but dealer would not change oil and said was sealed for life which i think is cobblers ,ushual dealer fob off i just noticed oil in tank was dirty looking and thought it could o with refresh ,plus the fact i love the car it is my baby.
Sounds like you need a better dealer ! dont it! bloody annoying! they fob us off cause they dont want the job or prefer to do easier more expensive 
for non-mechanical idiots!.
Be good if you can let us all know how you get on as you pursue the issue with them!.
Maybe put a comment (or two!) in the Garage section of this site if you feel the need to steer others away from the idiots you have used! as forewarned is forearmed as me grandad used to say!.
take care!.
for non-mechanical idiots!.Be good if you can let us all know how you get on as you pursue the issue with them!.
Maybe put a comment (or two!) in the Garage section of this site if you feel the need to steer others away from the idiots you have used! as forewarned is forearmed as me grandad used to say!.
take care!.
pandadig5025
New member
thanks bud will defo put crap garage in named and shamed if they dont fix it this time 4th visit currently underway.
heres hoping!
By the way ask what fluid they put in the robot, if it was not tutella selespeed fluid they have no idea what they are doing.
These gearboxes only operate correctly with Tutela selespeed fluid NOTHING else.
pandadig5025
New member
have contacted garage who did indeed put some other make of fluid in gearbox ,could be why it chucked it out ,should have used correct oil .they have sent a sample of oil of to be tested await results ,will post as soon as i find out results .
Unfortunately these days when entrusting your vehicle to so called "professionals" for service or repair it is IMPERITIVE!! that you specify EXACTLY! what you want done and expect of them! and do not assume that they are fully clued in to your vehicles specific requirements or you risk situations like this! best to be extra careful and insistent and pay the premium for proper fluids and parts as appropriate!
hope yours gets sorted and no extra damage has been done! or your in for a bumpy ride!
for service or repair it is IMPERITIVE!! that you specify EXACTLY! what you want done and expect of them! and do not assume that they are fully clued in to your vehicles specific requirements or you risk situations like this! best to be extra careful and insistent and pay the premium for proper fluids and parts as appropriate!hope yours gets sorted and no extra damage has been done!
or your in for a bumpy ride! This isn't an easy post to write.
My own view is that if it has repeatedly leaked to the point of chucking out significant quantities of oil, it's likely to have caused every internal seal to swell or split to the point where only replacement with a new or rebuilt unit will result in a permanent fix that can be relied upon.
Unless you're doing the rebuild yourself, this isn't likely to be economic on a 16yr old Panda.
If the garage somehow manage to return this to you in working order and it fails within the first 28 days, I'd suggest you ask them to reimburse you for the market value of the car. If it works for longer than that, I'd sell it as soon as possible, before it fails again.
My own view is that if it has repeatedly leaked to the point of chucking out significant quantities of oil, it's likely to have caused every internal seal to swell or split to the point where only replacement with a new or rebuilt unit will result in a permanent fix that can be relied upon.
Unless you're doing the rebuild yourself, this isn't likely to be economic on a 16yr old Panda.
If the garage somehow manage to return this to you in working order and it fails within the first 28 days, I'd suggest you ask them to reimburse you for the market value of the car. If it works for longer than that, I'd sell it as soon as possible, before it fails again.
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Dear all,
Weird thing happened to me this morning on 1.2 dualogic. Between the shifts on a bit stronger acceleration, the car did not cut off gas pedal/input and the rpms inclined instead of dropped (check video). After I restarted the car, everything was OK. Did someone have this, what could be the cause? Also the car has new clutch since 3 months
Weird thing happened to me this morning on 1.2 dualogic. Between the shifts on a bit stronger acceleration, the car did not cut off gas pedal/input and the rpms inclined instead of dropped (check video). After I restarted the car, everything was OK. Did someone have this, what could be the cause? Also the car has new clutch since 3 months
What they have told you about sending a sample of oil to be tested sounds like utter rubbish.
Sounds like they are not telling you exactly what fluid they put in the dualogic tank. They have possibly now worked out what they did wrong and if so won't be admitting to it.
Thanks for the insightful post.
I have experienced some drops into N when braking, but the pump pressure seems okay (the pump does not engage frequently, it holds pressure well).
I removed the solenoid on a Fiat 500, exactly as you advised.
The solenoid itself is very oxydated on the outside, but its pin moves freely. There is no visible grease, if anything, the whole thing looks dry and not oiled. The nipple moved in its barrel, but I think it could use a little bit of WD40 and maybe a drop of oil.
Do you know what is the part number of the spring?
Any idea where I can order spring and nipple (either in EU or in the UK?)? Before doing a complete overhaul of the Dualogic, I would like to try to replace the spring and maybe the nipple as well, maybe the spring lost some strength over time.
Adrian Tolan
New member
Hello everyone, I am new to this forum and never thought I would be here with car issues lol Just sold a 10yo Citroen C4 after it became a headache and bought a Fiat 500 Dualogic from 2017, 22k miles, 2nd owner, bought in December from car dealer. Another headache. Initially, changed the cam belt, new battery, full service, all good until this week.
Started suddenly with the "Check transmission, see handbook" warning light, once per journey. Clears and drives fine after turning the engine off and back on.
Took it to have it diagnosed and came up with:
I didn't take it to a dealer yet but the garage has expertise in Fiat and Alpha Romeos and basically said he can't promise this is the issue but the actuator needs changing and it will cost £3000. Wow...
Started suddenly with the "Check transmission, see handbook" warning light, once per journey. Clears and drives fine after turning the engine off and back on.
Took it to have it diagnosed and came up with:
I didn't take it to a dealer yet but the garage has expertise in Fiat and Alpha Romeos and basically said he can't promise this is the issue but the actuator needs changing and it will cost £3000. Wow...
Hello and welcome to the forum.
Sorry to hear about your problems. As you'll see from this thread, you're not the first, nor will you be the last, to be facing an expensive unexpected repair to a car with a dualogic transmission fault.
presumably December 2023?
If so, then you may have a claim against the selling dealer. This would be your least worst way forward.
If they attempt a repair and it fails within the first six months, then you're within your rights to reject the car.
If you can't get anywhere with a claim against the selling dealer, then give serious thought to trading the car in before it gets any worse. That's probably a better option than paying £3000 for a repair.
The previous owner may have done exactly that.
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Hi @Adrian Tolan and welcome. Having helped customers with a good few of these units now, those errors point to the actuator mechanism becoming a bit mechanically "sticky" and/or hydraulically "tired" and needing a strip and clean as a minimum. The P060A code can also suggest a mechanical clutch issue but I think given the low mileage of the car that is probably less likely. Best option is to search out a deep specialist like CD Motors in Stoke who can refurb the actuator (by return post if needed) in full to give peace of mind - including testing switches and replacing all seals etc. Carl there is very helpful and could advise you over the phone if you give him the codes. He generally advertises on Facebook but also on eBay (search "dualogic repair"). His base cost is currently GBP 600 but you would need to add labour (either his or a mechanic local to you) to remove and replace the actuator. That's a few hours in total as there is a bit of dismantling involved (battery, tray, bumper, radiator top hose and loosen the front frame of the car enough to swivel the actuator out once its fixings are removed). On replacement some software calibrations are needed using MultiEcuScan (readily available and cheap) or similar. Alternatively if you feel like DIY there are some clever people giving advice on stripdown in earlier posts in this thread...but I tend to leave it to experts like Carl myself. (No connection apart from now being a regular customer of his....)
I see you are based in Kent, I am in London... I also found CD Motors, but I was wondering if there is anyone closer.Hi @Adrian Tolan and welcome. Having helped customers with a good few of these units now, those errors point to the actuator mechanism becoming a bit mechanically "sticky" and/or hydraulically "tired" and needing a strip and clean as a minimum. The P060A code can also suggest a mechanical clutch issue but I think given the low mileage of the car that is probably less likely. Best option is to search out a deep specialist like CD Motors in Stoke who can refurb the actuator (by return post if needed) in full to give peace of mind - including testing switches and replacing all seals etc. Carl there is very helpful and could advise you over the phone if you give him the codes. He generally advertises on Facebook but also on eBay (search "dualogic repair"). His base cost is currently GBP 600 but you would need to add labour (either his or a mechanic local to you) to remove and replace the actuator. That's a few hours in total as there is a bit of dismantling involved (battery, tray, bumper, radiator top hose and loosen the front frame of the car enough to swivel the actuator out once its fixings are removed). On replacement some software calibrations are needed using MultiEcuScan (readily available and cheap) or similar. Alternatively if you feel like DIY there are some clever people giving advice on stripdown in earlier posts in this thread...but I tend to leave it to experts like Carl myself. (No connection apart from now being a regular customer of his....)
Or, at least, do you have someone you trust to dismantle the and reinstall the actuator (in order to post it to CD Motors)?
Hi - if you're on the South East side, or can get a car to me, feel free to drop me a personal message.
