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What 14 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Fiat 500

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 (14)Crash / fire / injury (3)Transmission & drivetrain (8)Brakes (3)Electrical system (3)Engine (3)Airbags (2)Electronic Stability Control (esc) (2)Body & structure (1)Suspension (1)Wheels (1)

1 of 14 complaints match · Wheels · clear filters

Aug 21, 2016SuspensionTransmission & drivetrainWheels

WHILE DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AND AT FREEWAY SPEEDS THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE SUSPENSION COMPLETELY SNAPPED WITH NO ACCIDENT OR ROAD DEBRIS INVOLVED. THE WHEEL TURNED SIDEWAYS AND LOST ALL CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE'S ABILITY TO TURN. THE ENGINE THEN GAVE A TRANSMISSION FAILURE WARNING AND THE ENGINE CUT OUT. WAS ABLE TO GET THE CAR TO THE SIDE LANE AND WAITED FOR TRIPLE A TO SHOW UP UNTIL 5AM. TOOK PICTURES OF THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE WHEEL WHICH WAS BASICALLY DANGLING OFF OF THE VEHICLE. IT WAS EXCEPTIONALLY DANGEROUS.

NHTSA ODI 10897463

Working with the data? Download all 14 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 13, 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 2016 Fiat 500 verdict →