ON FEBRUARY 5, 2015 AT 8:40 A.M. WHILE DRIVING SOUTH IN THE HIGH SPEED LANE AT 55 MPH ON HIGHWAY 101 FROM SAN RAFAEL TO SAN FRANCISCO, THERE WAS A TOTAL AND CATASTROPHIC ELECTRICAL FAILURE AND RESULTING ZERO MOTOR POWER OF MY FIAT 500E. I WAS ABLE TO COAST THE CAR TO THE SHOULDER AREA CROSSING FOUR LANES OF TRAFFIC. A FIAT REPAI…
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ON FEBRUARY 5, 2015 AT 8:40 A.M. WHILE DRIVING SOUTH IN THE HIGH SPEED LANE AT 55 MPH ON HIGHWAY 101 FROM SAN RAFAEL TO SAN FRANCISCO, THERE WAS A TOTAL AND CATASTROPHIC ELECTRICAL FAILURE AND RESULTING ZERO MOTOR POWER OF MY FIAT 500E. I WAS ABLE TO COAST THE CAR TO THE SHOULDER AREA CROSSING FOUR LANES OF TRAFFIC. A FIAT REPAIR TECHNICIAN COINCIDENTALLY APPEARED ON THE SCENE AND OFFERED ASSISTANCE. I INDICATED I WAS UNWILLING TO DRIVE THE CAR ANY FURTHER. HE INSTEAD DROVE THE FIAT 500E AND I DROVE HIS GASOLINE FIAT TO THE DEALER IN SAN FRANCISCO FOR REPAIR. DEALERSHIP INSPECTION AND DIAGNOSIS INDICATED DEFECTIVE EVCU. DEALER REPLACED EVCU. ON MARCH 19, 2015 - EVCU FAILURE AGAIN; UNABLE TO CHANGE GEARS FROM PARK TO DRIVE WITH "NOT READY" AND ALREADY IN DESIRED GEAR MESSAGES. DEALERSHIP DISCOVERED NO FAULT CODE USING SCAN TOOL. ON MAY 26, 2015 SERVICE PROPULSION SYSTEM WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED INDICATING MALFUNCTION WITH PROPULSION SYSTEM. DEALERSHIP INSPECTION REVEALED "CODE INDICATING BATTERY POSITIVE CIRCUIT HIGH RESISTANCE AT B+ TERMINAL AND POSITIVE BATTERY POST AT 0.11 V OK TEST FUSED B+ WITH TEST LIGHT; TEST PIM CASE GROUND HIGH RESISTANCE FROM PIM CASE TO BATTERY GROUND; FAULT OCCURRED ONCE IN SNAPSHOT DATA. PIM SOFTWARE UPDATE AVAILABLE AND SYMPTOM/CONDITION CAN CAUSE PROBLEM; REPROGRAM POWER INVERTER MODULE TO LATEST SOFTWARE." ON JUNE 23, 2015 R20 SAFETY RECALL" AND RED PLUGGED IN INDICATOR ILLUSTRATED MALFUNCTION/INTERRUPTION DURING VEHICLE CHARGING PROCESS VEHICLE UNABLE TO CHARGE TO PRIOR OPTIMUM LEVEL. CAR BROUGHT TO BURLINGAME FIAT DEALERSHIP FOR FLASH EVCU REPROGRAMMING/ UPDATED SOFTWARE. ON JULY 17, 2015 - SERVICE PROPULSION SYSTEM WARNING LIGHT AGAIN APPEARED; UNABLE TO CHANGE GEARS; DISPLAY INDICATED ALREADY IN DESIRED GEAR. ON AUGUST 16, 2015 - ALREADY IN DESIRED GEAR; UNABLE TO CHANGE GEARS
NHTSA ODI #10759005
150 miles · May 28, 2015
Electrical SystemEngine
3 DAYS AFTER DRIVING MY NEW FIAT 500E WHICH I AM LEASING , I BEGAN TO NOTICE EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE PHYSICAL SENSATIONS. THE ONLY THING I CAN COMPARE IT TO IS TAKING ON AN OLD CELLPHONE FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. IT'S A SIMILAR KIND OF FEELING OF POWER AND RADIATION. I HAVE TAKEN AT LEAST 10 PEOPLE FOR RIDES IN THE CAR. 3 O…
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3 DAYS AFTER DRIVING MY NEW FIAT 500E WHICH I AM LEASING , I BEGAN TO NOTICE EXTREMELY UNCOMFORTABLE PHYSICAL SENSATIONS. THE ONLY THING I CAN COMPARE IT TO IS TAKING ON AN OLD CELLPHONE FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. IT'S A SIMILAR KIND OF FEELING OF POWER AND RADIATION. I HAVE TAKEN AT LEAST 10 PEOPLE FOR RIDES IN THE CAR. 3 OF THEM REPORT SIMILAR SENSATIONS, WITHOUT BEING PROMPTED IN ANY WAY WHILE SOME ARE NOT AWARE OF THE THE RADIATION. EFFECTS/SYMPTOMS (PARTIAL LIST ) : HEAD ACHE, TINGLING ON FACE AND AROUND EARS ,PRESSURE FEELING IN EARS, PRESSURE FEELING IN CENTER OF CHEST, FOGGY FEELING IN HEAD, WHICH CONTINUES FOR 15 TO 60 MINUTES AFTER DRIVING. NOTES: I HAVE TESTED MYSELF SITTING IN THE CAR WITHOUT IT TURNED ON FOR 30 MINUTES. THERE ARE NO NEGATIVE EFFECTS WHATSOEVER. THE SYMPTOMS ARE WORSE WHEN: 1) THE AIR CONDITIONER IS TURNED ON 2) MORE ACCELERATION IS USED, USING MORE POWER. THESE ARE NOT DUE TO THE FEELING OF THE AIR, OR G FORCE FROM ACCELERATION. I HAVE MADE SURE TO RULE OUT BOTH OF THESE FACTORS. I HAVE STOPPED DRIVING THE CAR BECAUSE IT IS NOT SAFE FOR ME TO DRIVE. IT HAD BEEN TESTED AS "NORMAL" BY FIAT MECHANICS. THERE IS NOTHING AT ALL NORMAL ABOUT THIS AND SOMETHING HAS TO BE DONE.
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain model year 2013-2016 Fiat 500e vehicles manufactured March 22, 2012, to January 29, 2016. The power inverter module (PIM) may experience voltage spikes which can cause the propulsion system to shut down and loss of motive power.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Loss of motive power can increase the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will update the PIM software, free of charge. The recall began on July 5, 2016. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is S26.
Chrysler (FCA US LLC) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Fiat 500 EV vehicles manufactured March 27, 2012, to November 1, 2014. If the vehicle goes in to limp home mode, incompatible software between Electric Vehicle Control Unit (EVCU) and Battery Pack Control Module (BPCM) may cause the electric propulsion system to fully shut down.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An electric propulsion system shut down will cause a stall-like condition, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Chrysler will notify owners, and dealers will update the vehicle software to ensure compatability between components, free of charge. The recall began on May 21, 2015. Owners may contact Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403. Chrysler's number for this recall is R15.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1
DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.
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