Fault File
All models / All cars / City cars / Abarth 595 / 695

Abarth 595 / 695

All generations and engines together · 21,341 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 43k

Reliability verdict
CBy age
BBy miles

Graded against its peers

Middling for its age among city cars, and better than most per mile driven. Watch suspension and emissions/leaks. A fair used buy, provided its MOT history has no repeating suspension advisories.

First-time failure at age 7
21.4%
Across 3,669 tests. The average for city cars is 20.2%.
First-time failure at 50-60k miles
27.0%
Across 2,549 tests. The average for city cars is 30.1%.
Rank in its class
14 of 18
1 = lowest failure rate among the 18 city cars we can rank.
Typical mileage at age 7
43k miles
How far the average car has gone by seven years old. Low-mileage models can look better by age than they are.

What owners report

Reported

Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.

MTA (Dualogic) automated gearbox wear

EmergingAutomated manual (MTA) only

Some 595s were sold with Fiat's MTA/Dualogic single-clutch automated manual instead of the standard 5-speed. Owners describe jerky, hesitant take-up at low speed and hard, delayed changes as the clutch actuator wears; Honest John logged a transmission failure with gear and shaft damage on a 2013 car at 30,000 miles, and the Abarth owners' forum runs a standing warning thread about the repair bills that come with this gearbox. Actuator or clutch-pack replacement typically runs into four figures once the car is out of warranty. Manual cars don't have this problem.

Reported from around 30k miles · sources: Honest John, FIAT Forum (Abarth 500/595/695 subforum)

Rear suspension knocks and torsion beam corrosion

Partly in the MOT data

Owners and buying guides both flag creaks, clunks and knocking from the rear end, usually put down to the torsion beam mounts and bushes taking a battering from the car's stiff, lowered sports suspension. EVO's used-buying advice for the 695 specifically tells buyers to listen for suspension noise and check the rear beam for corrosion. That lines up with this model's measured MOT data, where suspension is the standout defect for the segment, so the folklore and the numbers point the same way.

Reported from around 5 years old · sources: EVO (Abarth 695 buying guide), site MOT data

Tailgate wiring loom and random electrical faults

Emerging

The wiring loom running into the tailgate flexes every time the boot is opened and can fray over time; Honest John has logged cases where this killed the speedometer, indicators and brake lights all at once, alongside separate reports of bulbs popping and a heater stuck on hot at 43,000 miles. Forum owners report the same family of gremlins, including CAN-bus fault codes and dead Blue&Me/Uconnect head units that need a dealer reset. No recall or manufacturer bulletin covers any of it.

Reported at various ages · sources: Honest John, FIAT Forum

Sudden power loss and "won't rev" complaints

Emerging

A recurring complaint is the engine cutting power and refusing to rev past idle-plus with no warning light, occasionally ending in a full engine replacement even on cars with only a few hundred miles showing; Honest John has logged cases at 363 miles and 1,630 miles. The Abarth forum has its own long-running threads on "major engine problems" and check-engine lights flickering on and off. No single cause or manufacturer statement has been confirmed publicly.

Reported from new to high mileage · sources: Honest John, FIAT Forum

Oil sludge on short-journey cars

Disputed

Some owners report sludge, or a mayonnaise-like residue, building up around the oil filler cap and rocker cover, mostly on cars used for short runs where the 1.4 T-Jet turbo never gets fully up to temperature. Others on the same forum argue it's down to driving style rather than a design fault, and there's no agreed mileage or repair figure attached to it. Worth a look under the cap at a viewing regardless of which side of the argument you land on.

Reported on short-journey cars · sources: FIAT Forum

Missed cambelt and water pump changes

Emerging

The 1.4 T-Jet is an interference engine, so a snapped cambelt takes the valves and pistons with it, turning a service item into a repair running into thousands rather than hundreds. EVO's buying advice for the model stresses checking the belt and water pump have been "studiously adhered to", and the Abarth forum has its own recurring thread on the timing belt and water pump change, suggesting it's a live concern for owners rather than a one-off gripe. There's no recall, it's routine maintenance, but a missed change is expensive.

Risk rises with age and patchy history · sources: EVO, FIAT Forum

What to check on this car

Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.

Saveable checklist

From this model’s MOT record

The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.

Bushes and ball jointsRuns high on this model Drive slowly over broken tarmac with the windows down and listen for clonks from either end. Back at the car, have someone rock the steering wheel while you rest a hand on each front wheel; play you can feel through the tyre is a worn joint.Recorded on 11.4% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 5.9%
DampersRuns high on this model Look for oil misting on the damper body behind each wheel, then push down hard on each corner of the car. It should settle in one bounce. A floaty or crashy ride on the test drive is the same fault felt from the driver's seat.Recorded on 8.7% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 2.3%
Coil springsRuns high on this model Look through the wheel spokes at the bottom coil of each spring; when springs snap it is usually there, and the break is visible. Step back and check the car sits level too. A dropped corner is often a broken spring.Recorded on 4.1% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.3%
ExhaustRuns high on this model Listen along the exhaust at cold idle for blowing or chuffing, and give the tailpipe a push to check nothing hangs loose. Small blows only get louder.Recorded on 2.1% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.6%
Underneath, with a torchRuns high on this model Get down and look at the sills, the subframes and the rear suspension mounting points. Flaking scale and bubbling matter; light surface rust does not. On older cars this is the one check that finds the fault that scraps them.Recorded on 1.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.6%
WheelsRuns high on this model Look at each rim for kerb damage and check no wheel nuts are missing. A steering wheel that shimmies between 50 and 60 on the test drive often turns out to be a buckled or badly balanced wheel.Recorded on 1.4% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.6%
Warning lights on ignitionRuns high on this model Turn the ignition on without starting the engine and watch the dash. Every warning light should appear, then go out once it is running. Be more suspicious of a light that never comes on at all than of one that stays on; warning bulbs have been known to vanish before a sale.Recorded on 1.3% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.5%

Worth doing on any used car

These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.

Tyres, all four Check the tread across the full width of each tyre, inner edge included, and look for cracking and mismatched brands. A set of decent tyres is £500 or more on most cars, which makes this the easiest money to take off a price. If the pressure warning light is on, budget for sensors too.Recorded on 23.6% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 20.1%
Pads and discsRuns high on this model Look through the wheel spokes at the brake disc. A pronounced lip on its outer edge, or a rusty and scored face, means discs and pads are due all round, a few hundred pounds on most cars. A haggling point rather than a reason to walk away.Recorded on 23.3% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 10.1%
Windscreen and wipersRuns high on this model Scan the glass in daylight for chips, especially in the driver's line of sight where even a small one can fail the MOT. Run the washers and check the wipers clear without smearing.Recorded on 1.6% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.8%

Because of what owners report

Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.

Drive it in stop-start traffic if it's an MTA/Dualogic automated car. Jerky, hesitant take-up or harsh, delayed changes means the clutch actuator is wearing out.
Listen for creaks or knocks from the rear over speed bumps and look under the car at the torsion beam. Noise plus surface corrosion or flaking underseal points at the suspension wear showing up in this model's MOT data.
Open and shut the tailgate a few times with the ignition on, watching the dash. A flickering speedo, indicators or brake lights means the tailgate wiring loom is on its way out.
Ask for the full service history and confirm the cambelt and water pump were changed on schedule. No proof of a belt change on a car this age is a real risk, this engine bends its valves if the belt lets go.
Start it cold and pull away, watching for hesitation, limp mode or a flickering check-engine light. Matches this model's recurring sudden power loss complaints, some of which have ended in a full engine replacement.
Pull the oil filler cap and check for sludge or a mayonnaise-like residue. Points to short-journey use and possible oil starvation wear, disputed but worth checking.
Try the infotainment: pair a phone over Bluetooth, plug in a USB, watch the screen for freezing. A dead or unresponsive Blue&Me/Uconnect unit is a common complaint that usually needs a dealer reset.

Open the saveable checklist, tick it off at the car

The MOT data

Measured

Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.

How this model wears

Abarth 595 / 695Class average, all tracked models

What testers flag

Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.

Faults with the car itself

The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 13,210 tests in this band.

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
Advisory
18.1%class 6.9%
A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage
Advisory
8.7%class 2.3%
A shock absorber bush excessively worn
Advisory
4.6%class 0.2%
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Advisory
4.1%class 1.3%
A shock absorber bush excessively worn
Fail
2.9%class 0.1%
Exhaust system leaking or insecure
Advisory
2.1%class 0.6%
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Fail
2.0%class 1.4%
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
Fail
1.9%class 0.9%
Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
Advisory
1.6%class 1.9%
A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded
Advisory
1.5%class 0.6%

Wear, upkeep and luck

Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Advisory
26.5%class 22.9%
Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured
Advisory
23.3%class 10.1%
A tyre seriously damaged
Advisory
8.8%class 12.7%
A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
Advisory
7.7%class 8.7%
Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn
Advisory
4.2%class 3.4%
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Fail
2.7%class 2.3%
A tyre cords visible or damaged
Fail
1.8%class 1.2%
Nail in tyre
Advisory
1.6%class 1.6%

Others in its class

Same segment (City cars), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.

Toyota Aygo15.3%Suzuki Celerio15.8%Mitsubishi Mirage16.4%Peugeot 10817.0%Volkswagen up!17.2%Citroen C118.3%See all City carsreliability ranked