Hi folks !.

First time poster here, so hopefully someone can help me out.

So, I bought a brand new 70 plate 595 Competizione in November and I absolutely love the car. As someone who has owned everything from an Intergra Type R to V6 Audi Quattro's it nicely fits into my current lifestyle of having an economical, but fun little pocket rocket.

However, I've noticed over the last few weeks as the weather has become much colder that I'm getting what I think is gearbox chatter from a cold start. I'm pretty sure the car has done it since I first got it, but I've only really noticed it when I need to get out and scrape the ice off the windows.

Basically, when I first start the car there is a slight rattle coming from the gearbox. If I push in the clutch, it vanishes. If I engage first gear and drive off, it vanishes. If I allow the car to remain in neutral and get up to full temperature, it vanishes. I also think it gets slightly louder when you engage the air con to defrost the windscreen. I found a number of threads about EXACTLY this issue on Volkswagon UP GTI's and VW has said it's nothing to worried about.  I also spoken to a couple of Fiat/Abarth technicians and they don't think it's anything to be concerned over, however I was wondering if anyone else with a 595 has this "issue", just to put my mind at ease. Oh, and the car has only done about 908 very gentle miles so far.

(It can be tough to hear it over the Record Monza exhaust though !. )

Thanks in advance to anyone who responds.

Thanks for the reply, mate.

Aye, the car is still under it's 3 years warranty, so if there is an issue I SHOULD be able to get it fixed.

The problem I have though is that by the time I drive to the dealership, the car is up to full engine temp and there is no noise. So I'd have to leave the car there for a few hours, then return and try to point out the noise to them. It's a pain in the backside if there is no real problem, which is why I wondering if any other 595 owners have noticed a slight bit of gearbox chatter. To be fair though, it's pretty easy to miss if you don't know what you are listening to.

Another update.

So, it turns out that I AM really unlucky. The garage has told me that when they drained the gearbox oil this morning, it was full of metal fillings and basically the gearbox has had it. 

They are offering to replace the gearbox, but on a new car with less than a thousand miles, I want a replacement vehicle. However, they are saying that it's over the 30 days, so tough. Never mind the fact that I've been in level 4 Covid restrictions for the first month of owning the car and hard lockdown since, which legally requires me not to make journeys of more than 5 miles and no unnecessary trips. So how could I tell there was something wrong ?!!.

I've raised complaints with Abarth and the dealers head office. I don't expect to get very far though. 

Update.

The dealer are absolutely refusing to even entertain the idea of rejecting the car regardless of the circumstances. I have contacted my MSP regarding the issues with Covid legislation affecting my consumer rights and my inability to determine an issue within the 30 day constraint spelt out in the Consumer rights act 2015. When I am LEGALLY obliged not to make non essential trips, I don't know how I am supposed to determine there is an issue with a car when I CAN'T DRIVE IT !.

Regardless, it looks like I should be getting a gearbox replacement, although after a week this has still not been confirmed.

I've had numerous issues around poor communication and just a generally appalling attitude from the dealer. Dismissive, unsympathetic and frankly just typical of Arnold Clark. If you live in the UK, just don't buy anything from them. Just don't...

Aye, I bought mine from Arnold Clark Fiat/Abarth Kirkcaldy.

I swore I would NEVER buy another car from Arnold Clark after I bought an Integra Type-R from Arnold Clark Honda in Kirkcaldy a few years ago. Not only did they fit the air filter the wrong way around during a routine service and took the better part of a week to fix it (I kid you not), they dinged the front bumper and tried to hide it by painting it with a touch up stick (badly). Keep in mind the damage was about the size of your hand...

Sadly, Arnold Clark has a monopoly on Abarth in Scotland so you don't have a lot of choice if you want a new Abarth.

It gets even better though, Arnold Clark Fiat/Abarth Kirkcaldy didn't even bother to fit the BMC Air Filter or machined Aluminium fuel filler cap before I got the car. They didn't even know that there was a a kit tied to the cars chassis number. It took me until January the 5th (I bought the car November 3rd) to get the parts fitted and I had to locate the box myself. Seemingly there were another 30 boxes lying in the warehouse for other cars that had already been sold.

They really know how to shine when it comes to customer service...

Yup, I spoke to them on Thursday.

At first they tried to suggest that the issue was to do with the gear linkages needing replaced because they had recently had a couple of similar complaints or rather complaints with similar symptoms, and Abarth had decided that it was the gear linkages that were faulty.

However, when I pointed out to the gentleman from Abarth (really nice bloke, clearly English but phoning from Italy) that gear linkages would not cause the car to jump out of reverse or explain the amount of metal contamination in the gearbox oil (unless it was causing the gears not to mesh correctly in which case it was irrelevant) he agreed that it was clearly a much more terminal problem.

I can't speak highly enough about how helpful the Abarth representative was. He said that as I was determined to to try and reject the car, he couldn't really help me out as my dispute was with Arnold Clark. However, he sympathised and said that he would call me again on Wednesday to discuss a possible warranty extension if I was unsuccessful in my rejection.

I'm expecting a call tomorrow from the Arnold Clark General Manager I had the "discussion" with on Tuesday and we will see what he has to say for himself. When I spoke to Arnold Clark's complaint department yesterday they suggested that a goodwill gesture could be a tank of fuel and a valet. I told the guy that a quarter of  a tank and washing the car wasn't really going to cut it, but we will see tomorrow.
 

I bought the car on November 3rd and took it back to the garage with a "mystery rattle" on November 5th. They looked around the car and declared it was the rear number plate being incorrectly fitted. I only noticed it then because the weather was still quite nice and I'd had the windows open when driving. That visit is documented, but the gearbox isn't specifically mentioned.

I next asked about the gearbox when I was having the BMC air filter and aluminium fuel cap fitted. The car had jumped out of reverse a couple of times and I asked the service manager for his opinion. He suggested it could just be because the car was so new and the gearbox was needing run in, but I should keep an eye on it. That was in late December/ early January. Sadly I didn't document that conversation.

And then the main conversation was on February 22nd when I left that car at the garage so that they could hear the noise from a cold start.

Today's update from the general manager is that they still can't tell me what's going on. They can't say if the whole gearbox is going to be replaced or if Fiat/Abarth want them to strip and repair it. They can't even give me a time scale. I of course need to know what's going on so I can decide if I'm going to go through the Motor Ombudsman.

The whole thing is just a car crash (pardon the pun).

My rejection of the car is still being refused.

I've been told today that Abarth want the garage to order new 3rd and 4th gears as a precaution, because they identified problems with these gears and it will take 7 - 10 days for them to arrive from Italy. The factory still haven't made up their mind about what they want the dealer to do and I'm now over a week on from dropping the car off at the garage.

At this rate I'll be lucky to see my car again this month.

I despair...