Fiat dashboard lighting

[sandalwood]

Contacted fiat as my dashboard does not light properly, 9 months ago! Said it was a fault and they would send me advice how to get it fixed. Still waiting! Has anyone any ideas how I get this fixed.

 

Thanks

 

Ian >:-(

[Derek Uzzell]

Ian

 

I’ve looked through your earlier postings (Why should I need to do this (?) >:-) >:-) ) and I’m guessing that you are referring to a Rapido 776FF motorhome. But what I don’t know (because I don’t think you’ve ever said) is when the Fiat Ducato on which the motorhome is based was manufactured.

 

It’s well recognised that the instrument-cluster of Ducato Euro 5 X290 models is not easy to read in certain daylight conditions and that Fiat (if asked) can provide a software revision to cause the instrument lighting to come on with the ignition. But this is not a ‘fault’ as such and the revision cannot be applied to preceding Ducato X250 vehicles.

 

I THINK the Rapido 776FF model was only built on a Ducato X250 base, so if the ’fault’ you mention relates to poor instrument-cluster visibility and your motorhome is based on a Ducato X250, Fiat cannot do anything about this.

 

If the “does not light properly” issue is something else, you’ll need to provide specific details and someone here may be able to advise.

[ellen]

Our 2015 x250 as been into our local fiat dealer this week to have a couple of issues sorted.

 

We mentioned that we were getting dim lights coming on the instrument panel when we used cruise control they changed our instrument panel. The dash light now comes on with the ignition so as made

reading the panel much easier.

[sandalwood]

Tks will research

[sandalwood]

Tks for info

[Derek Uzzell]

ellen - 2017-08-04 9:21 PM

 

Our 2015 x250 as been into our local fiat dealer this week to have a couple of issues sorted.

 

We mentioned that we were getting dim lights coming on the instrument panel when we used cruise control they changed our instrument panel. The dash light now comes on with the ignition so as made

reading the panel much easier.

 

Ellen

 

The problem of spurious/dim dashboard warning-lights illuminating spontaneously on recent Fiat Ducatos has been widely reported, as has the difficulty in reading the speedometer during daylight.

 

Rectifying the first issue involves the vehicle’s owner demonstrating the fault (and Fiat acknowledges this as a fault) to a Fiat Professional agent who will obtain authorisation from Fiat to replace the complete instrument-cluster. The replacement is (normally) carried out free-of-charge.

 

The second issue is not considered by Fiat as a ‘fault’ but, if a Ducato owner wishes it, a software revision can be installed that causes the instrument-cluster to be illuminated when the vehicle’s ignition is switched on.

 

However (as I said above) the software revision can only be installed on Ducato X290 models (built from mid-2014 onwards) not on preceding X250 models (built from 2006 to mid-2014).

 

The fault involving spurious/dim dashboard warning-lights illuminating spontaneously usually occurs on X290 Fiat Ducato, Peugeot Boxer or Citroen Relay vehicles, and I’m not certain what the attitude is of Fiat /Peugeot/Citroen regarding instrument-cluster replacement if the problem happens to an X250.

 

I would have thought your Campereve Magellan 542 is based on an X290 Ducato - not an X250 - a) because you say it’s a “2015” and b) because it has had the instrument lighting software revision.

 

Campereve produced the Magellan 542 model on X250 and X290 Ducato chassis. The 1st attached photo shows an X250-based 542 and the 2nd photo shows the more recent X290 version. As the two versions can be identified fairly easily from the different frontal appearance (particularly the different headlamps) perhaps you could say which version (X250 or X290) you own.

 

[monique.hubrechtsgm]

x290 is the facelift and technical improvements. But the type approval is stiill x250, Have a look at your Fiat COC document and you see x250 their. Do you have to pay for a software update to read the eyebrow headed speedometer? At daylight running W/O headlights on.

[Derek Uzzell]

The Type Approval factor is irrelevant as it’s the changes present on the X290 Ducato models introduced in 2014 that mainly affect ‘dashboard lighting’ discussions.

 

The X290 changes are summarised here

 

http://www.fiatprofessionalpress.co.uk/press/article/the-2014-fiat-ducato-more-technology-more-efficiency-more-value

 

Dashboard warning lights illuminating incorrectly (or dimly) - often when cruise-control is selected - has been widely reported and discussed on motrhome forums (examples here)

 

http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Fiat-Ducato-Cruise-Control-additional-warning-lights/46318/

 

http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Autotrail-Apache700-Dim-Warning-Light-Problem/45806/

 

It would appear from the above that this problem has affected X250 vehicles as well as X290s, and that the vehicle’s manufacturer may be prepared to replace an X250’s instrument-cluster free-of-charge to rectify the fault.

 

Difficulties with X290 speedometer visibility have also been discussed (at great length) in UK motorhome magazines and forums. These are a couple of O&AL examples

 

http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/fiat-dashboard-lighting-/45838/

 

http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/old-thread-dashboards/46477/

 

A software revision that causes the instrument-cluster’s illumination to come on with the ignition can be applied, BUT ONLY TO X290 FIAT DUCATOS. The software revision is ‘on demand’ and (at least in the UK) free-of-charge. I think Euro 6 Ducatos have the revised software as standard.

 

I’ve no idea what is wrong with sandalwood’s dashboard lighting, because he has not said...