What breaks most · 2017 to 2020 model years
Fiat 124 Spider problems by year
Owners have filed 65 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Fiat 124 Spider across model years 2017 to 2020. Three years stand out: 2017 for air bags complaints, 2018 for air bags complaints and 2019 for seat belts complaints.
- Years to check closely: 2017, 2018, 2019
- Complaints on file
- 652017 to 2020, all trims
- Worst year
- 201732 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 11 fires · 0 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 6kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 8Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 32 | 1 | 2 | Air bags (14) | |
| 16 | 0 | 2 | Air bags (8) | |
| 9 | 0 | 3 | Seat belts (3) | |
| 8 | 0 | 1 | Air bags (8) |
What fails on the 2017 Fiat 124 Spider
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Air bags | 44% |
14 | 0 | Check recalls for air bags on NHTSA.gov |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 19% |
6 | 1 | Shop electrical system parts for the 2017 Fiat 124 Spider |
| Unknown or other | 16% |
5 | 0 | — |
| EngineEngine gaskets and seals | 13% |
4 | 0 | Shop engine parts for the 2017 Fiat 124 Spider |
| Wipers and visibilityWiper motors and blades | 6% |
2 | 0 | Shop all wipers and visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Seat belts | 6% |
2 | 0 | Check recalls for seat belts on NHTSA.gov |
| Fuel systemFuel pumps and injectors | 6% |
2 | 0 | Shop all fuel system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 3% |
1 | 0 | Shop all body and structure parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Alarm keeps randomly going off, doesn't matter how fast you are going, what gear, what type of road, went off 15 times one day, 5 times the next day
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Fiat 124 Spider years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2017, 2018, 2019 carry the most filings on the Fiat 124 Spider. The 2017 alone has 32 complaints, led by air bags.
What is the most common Fiat 124 Spider problem?
On the 2017 model year, the most-reported component is air bags with 14 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Fiat 124 Spider problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Fiat 124 Spider complaints that include mileage is about 6,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.