2012 Fiat 500 Exterior lighting Problems
- Complaints
- 12about this part
- Share
- 3%of 396 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 52,125miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 12 complaints about the exterior lighting of the 2012 Fiat 500, 3% of the 396 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 52,125 miles.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“On three separate occasions, while driving at highway speeds at night, I have had the headlights fail! Suddenly just go dark! Each time, it happened when I operated a window switch. The outage each time was short, the headlights would come back on within seconds [though it seemed longer]. The service guys at the dealership haven't been able to solve it, no idea why it happened.”
NHTSA complaint #10583721, filed 2014-04, 60,000 miles“I took my car for inspection. Dealer informed me that license plate light failed. Bulb could not be replaced. I had to replace whole tailgate assembly for $500 just for the new bulb. New assembly they put in now has a replaceable bulb.”
NHTSA complaint #11221722, filed 2019-06, 50,000 miles“The car was purchased on april 15, 2016. Since then, I have had to take the car in for service several times. The first issue was a problem with the brake light. The second issue was that the gears would not move and I had to use a screw driver to change the car from park to drive and vice versa, drive to reverse and vice versa, etc... The third issue was that the car rolled backwards. The recent issue was for a recall on the powertrain control. In addition, the car while driving on the freeway and local streets drifts to the right side. …”
NHTSA complaint #10875746, filed 2016-06, 27,800 miles“Intermittent exterior marker light failure. Front passenger marker light and rear driver's side brake light fail to operate on occasion. The light sensor in the gauge cluster alerts to failure. When later investigating, all lights appear to function properly.”
NHTSA complaint #11323042, filed 2020-05, 67,000 miles“The rear high brake light wiring on the convertible wears and breaks in the driver's side c pillar due to use of the convertible top rendering the brake light non-operative. This seems to be a common problem with the Fiat 500 convertible.”
NHTSA complaint #11390052, filed 2021-01, 53,250 milesRelated service bulletins
- 10217404Oct 13, 2015Flash: 1.4L Diagnostic And System Improvements This bulletin involves selectively erasing and reprogramming the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) with new software. Customers may…
Exterior lighting: other model years
Other parts of the 2012 Fiat 500
201 complaintsElectrical system
63 complaintsEngine
51 complaintsOther or unknown
37 complaintsAir bags
32 complaintsFuel system
23 complaintsSuspension
21 complaintsSteering
19 complaintsBrakes
13 complaintsVehicle speed control
12 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
11 complaintsBody and structure
9 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2012 Fiat 500
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 30, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology