My son’s Fiat 500 1.2 stat is leaking at the gasket. It looks to be a relatively easy repair though it looks as though it’s a whole stat rather than just the gasket.

I read that it’s a common fault and that Fiat have upgraded the part. Any advice? Fiat 500 parts prices are absurd from a dealer so I’d happily buy a generic part but don’t want to be in the same boat or, worse still, see Charlie stranded for the sake of a few quid

A fault that my mates here in Australia have found is that the thermostat of the 1.2 fails as the OEM part has plastic pipes that crack/break. This usually occurs around the 100,000km (60,000 miles) mark.

Suggest you replace the thermostat with an aftermarket one that is of all metal construction (they are available). Here, they are about A$80 (40 quid) from a spare parts shop.

Here is the link to my previous post on this subject: https://www.fiatcoupeclub.org/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1636495/fiat-500-1-2#Post1636495

Ah - cool - thanks so much

Thank you - you were spot-on. I have no idea what they were thinking when they designed that stat.

Thanks MRS, glad to be of assistance.

It would have been a cheap fix as I saw a good selection on Autodoc for around 25 quid for a quality one. Cheaper than a head gasket!

Yup - like always, the simple bits are the hard bits. I couldn’t figure out how the electrical connector “unlocked” - not helped by the yellow tab being in a halfway position to start with. Then I didn’t have the right size of hose clip for the smaller hose (why have I never bought a selection of hose clips?). The rest was easy.

The next job is on the other 500. An exhaust manifold stud has snapped (my initial diagnosis of the noise being confirmed by finding half a stud with a nut on lying on my drive). It has all the appearance of a horrible job in that I think that I’ll need to remove the front bumper and the radiator to get a proper attack on the stud - especially if it needs drilling out.