Home · 2014 Fiat 500 Bev · Complaints

What 124 owners told NHTSA about the 2014 Fiat 500 Bev

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (124)Crash / fire / injury (17)Transmission & drivetrain (67)Electrical system (22)Engine (19)Speed control (7)Body & structure (6)Steering (6)Airbags (5)Brakes (4)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (4)Lights (4)

5 of 124 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · crash/fire/injury only · clear filters

Oct 26, 2016Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemFire

AIR CONDITIONER ELECTRICAL FIRE AND TRANSMISSION NOT SHIFTING OR MOVING WHILE ON IDLE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10918994

Apr 5, 2016Transmission & drivetrainFire

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FIAT 500L. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS IN DRIVE AND IDLING, THE TRANSMISSON CLUCTH STARTED TO HEAT UP AND SMOKE. THE CONTACT HAD TO TURN THE VEHICLE OFF IN ORDER FOR THE FAILURE TO STOP. THE FAILURE RECURRED ON NUMERIOUS OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER TWICE. ON THE FIRST VISIT, THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE FAILURE WOULD STOP EVENTUALLY. ON THE SECOND VISIT, THE DEALER ADVISED THE CONTACT TO PLACE THE VEHICLE IN NETURAL TO DISENGAGE THE CLUTCH. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 17,000.

NHTSA ODI 10853585

Nov 15, 2015Transmission & drivetrainBrakesCrash

FIRST INCIDENT WAS TWO WEEKS AFTER I PURCHASED THE FIAT 500L. THE BRAKES JAMMED AND I ENDED REAR ENDING ANOTHER VEHICLE. THE SECOND INCIDENT WAS SIX WEEKS AGO AFTER REPLACING THE FRONT BRAKES. I PURCHASED NEW ROTORS AND PADS;THAT EVENING THE BRAKES JAMMED AND CAUSED ME TO REAR END ANOTHER VEHICLE TWICE. MY FIAT 500L HAS EXPERIENCED LOSING COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMPUTER TO THE TRANSMISSION, WHICH CAUSED MY VEHICLE TO STALL ON VARIOUS STREETS AND WHILE IN MOVING TRAFFIC. ON FRIDAY 13, 2015; MY FIAT 500L MADE A NOISE SO LOUD THAT IT SOUNDED LIKE IT WAS GOING TO BLOW UP. I IMMEDIATELY CHECKED THE ENGINE AND IT SOUNDED LIKE A LARGE HEAVY PIECE OF METAL WAS TRYING TO BREAK THROUGH THE ENGINE WALL. I TURNED THE VEHICLE OFF AND WAITED FOR 20 MIN. I STARTED THE VEHICLE AND THE NOISE WENT AWAY. AS I PULLED OFF THE VEHICLE STARTED MAKING A REAL LOUD NOISE AND SHUT OFF. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN TOWED TO THE DEALER; HOWEVER FIAT IS ONLY CONCERNED THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE TO PAY FOR IT BECAUSE THE CAR IS OUT OF WARRANTY. MY ISSUE IS NOT THE MILEAGE; HOWEVER MY SAFETY. I AM NOT EASILY SCARED; HOWEVER I FELT LIKE MY FIAT 500L WAS GOING TO BLOW UP. THERE IS SOMETHING SERIOUSLY WRONG WITH THIS CAR, FCA NEEDS TO BUY BACK EVERY LAST ONE.

NHTSA ODI 10790455

May 27, 2015Transmission & drivetrainElectrical systemFire

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FIAT 500. WHILE AT A STOP, THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO ACCELERATE. THE CONTACT NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE TIRES. IN ADDITION, THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO START. THE FAILURE RECURRED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE TRANSMISSION BALL BEARINGS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 4,000.

NHTSA ODI 10721710

Mar 3, 2015Transmission & drivetrainCrash

IN MAY 2014 MY 2014 FIAT 500L WAS BROUGHT TO ZIEGLER DEALERSHIP FOR A SAFETY RECALL CONCERNING THE AUTOMATIC TRANSAXLE GEAR SHIFT MODULE AND THEY FLASHED THE ESM (RECALL ON NHTSA WEBSITE). IN JANUARY 2015 WE NOTICED A BURNING SMELL UNDER THE ENGINE. IF WE PUT CAR INTO REVERSE AND GAS PEDAL PUSHED, CAR HESITATED 1-2 SECONDS BEFORE THE CAR WOULD START MOVING. CAR LURCHED FORWARD SEVERAL TIMES ON ROAD AT A DEAD STOP. ROUGH SHIFTING ON ROADS. CHECK TRANSMISSION AND ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED IN EARLY FEB 2015 AND WE BROUGHT IT BACK TO ZIEGLER. THEY DETERMINED IT NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE. ONLY 4 MODULES IN THE ENTIRE US, AND ALL WERE SPOKEN FOR (4 OTHER FIATS IN FOR THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM). ZIEGLER CONTACTED THE MANUFACTURER TO GET AN "UPGRADED" TRANSMISSION MODULE, NOT THE ONE ORIGINALLY DESIGNED FOR THE CAR. AFTER BEING TOLD IT WOULD BE 1 1/2 MONTHS TO GET THE UNIT, IT SHOWED UP MID FEBRUARY. I CONFIRMED THAT WE GOT THIS "UPGRADED" UNIT AND DEALER SAID YES. TOOK POSSESSION OF MY CAR ON 2/13/15. THIS PAST WEEK, WE AGAIN HAD A BURNING SMELL IN THE ENGINE, ENCOUNTERED CAR LURCHING WHILE CAR WAS IN DRIVE AND FOOT SECURELY ON THE BRAKE. SLOW ENGINE REACTION WHEN HITTING GAS WHEN PUTTING CAR INTO REVERSE, ROUGH SHIFTING. WAS PLANNING ON CALLING DEALER ON MONDAY 3/2, HOWEVER ON SATURDAY 2/28/15 THE CAR WAS INVOLVED IN A DRIVER SIDE T-BONE CRASH AS THE CAR WOULD NOT MOVE WHEN GAS PEDAL WAS PUSHED. CAR TOTALLED BY INSURANCE COMPANY. MY DAUGHTER COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED BECAUSE THE CAR DID NOT MOVE WHEN GAS PEDAL WAS PRESSED. FIAT IS NOW FIRESELLING THESE 2014 MODELS AND ARE NOT OFFERING THIS "DUAL CLUTCH" TRANSMISSION IN 2015 MODELS. THEY KNOW ABOUT THESE TRANSMISSION ISSUES BUT THEIR "FIX" IS STILL PUTTING LIVES IN JEOPARDY. IF YOU OWN THIS CAR, GET RID OF IT ASAP! *TR

NHTSA ODI 10691739

Working with the data? Download all 124 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 24, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2014 Fiat 500 Bev verdict →