Fiat Punto [2011-2014] User Reviews

 

Before I start with the actual review, a few words on the so badly spoke about Fiat dealership.

I bought my Punto 1.4 Emotion Pack from 'ABS Motors' Gurgaon, and I was totally IMPRESSED by  the way the dealer handled my case.

The way they provided the Test Drive at myDoor Step by a single call, providing me with the best possible discount (I got 1st year free insurance, extended 1+2 year warranty, corporate discount of 8K, free 50 months roadside assistance and few small accessories, all put together comes close to a discount of 45K), smooth documentation for my company lease, support with all additional paperworks, in short it was nothing less than a Maruti Dealer, and speaking about my recent Maruti experience, I approached Apra Motors (One of the reputed Maruti dealer in Gurgaon) in Gurgaon as my other option was Ritz Zxi and when I asked them for some freebies/discount, their answer was not so poliet, and told me that 'NO DISCOUNT FOR RITZ, Take it or Leave it'. Well I can understand the reputation of Maruti in the small car market, but such attitude is not going to do any Good for Maruti.

 

Exterior:

Undoubtdly it is a Style Icon. Even close to an year after its launch in India, I can still see people turn their head when I drive past them or stop at the signals.

BTW, i bought a medium grey color, since i tot that the small scratchs in NCR driving conditions wont be so prominant in medium grey.

I personally feel the White Colour looks best in Punto, especially if you put medium black tint on the glass.

 

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort):

Features are Simply amazing, and the list is very long. For sure any one will love to drive such a car which can read out your SMS, make call from the steering wheel or by just telling the name of the person in address book, has a factory fitted Blaupunkt system with 6 Speakers, Automatic AC and Defogger which can clear your front and side glasses just by press of a button. Which can tell you that you are over speeding, that your are due for servicing, that you have to wear ur seat belt, that you are running out of fuel and which can also show you light in darkness even after you lock your car.

 

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox:

Engine is really peppy, and Gearbox is very responsive.It is well balanced for city as well as highway drives.

Fuel Economy:

I have driven 1300 km in past 2.5 months, and my average consumption is 9.8 km/l. I drive in Gurgaon city limits.

I am not a technical person when it come to speak on mileage and performance, but onething I noticed (since I have instant consumption displayed in my dash) that I get better mileage (13-15 kmpl) if I drive in 3rd gear, and it falls (6-7 kmpl) when I drive in 5th gear. This is irrespective of driving condition (in highway and in city traffic limits).

It will be great if someone can guide me how to get a better mileage out of this amazing vechile, because otherwise I feel this is really a masterpiece from Fiat.

 

Ride Quality & Handling:

Goes without saying 10/10, afterall its fiat. You take it to any speed and take a sharp turn, it will head to where you are pointing without any problem. Also drive it on the worst possible indian road, you will still feel it is gliding tru it without any problem, wheras other cars in the segment will take some time to come out of each pothole.

 

Final Words:

For me, i wanted a pure family car which is feature rich, has good looks, comfortable and without a second tought I chose The Grande Punto.

Mileage was secondary, and 2-3 kmpl low wont make much of a difference for me compared to the comfort and safty it provides to my family.

 

Areas of improvement  :

As of now nothing, after all she is just 3 months old for me (Bought it on December 2009)

 

 

Good Style, Performance, VFM, Comfort, Saftey, Handling, Ride QualityFuel Economy

I was as stunned by the looks of this car as most others are. But seeds of doubt have begun sprouting. Issue 1 - mileage: with auto mag Zigwheels having quoted the mileage of the 1.3 diesel as low as 12 kmpl and the petrol 1.4 as 9kmpl, I'm downright sceptical about the value of this car. Issue 2 - interiors : the grande punto has been in use abroad and you can easily find many reviews on the net. While most expert reviews hail the punto as a VFM car, there are innumerable user reviews that agonize over badly fitted interiors like glove box lid, door handles that come off or stop working, and power windows that get jammed. Nagging little problems that take away the pleasure of driving. Add to it Fiat's poor service network and you begin wondering if you'll be holding a broken trophy in your hand sometime later. Issue 3 - power of the engine : i'm looking out for the 1.2 Active model which gives 68 bhp of power. Considering the Grande weighs 1140 kgs, this will most likely make for a not so swishy ride. But i'm not a very spirited driver and i prefer the luxurious feel of an easy drive. More so the other car in the same budget and comparable space is the Getz prime 1.1 option, which gives 67 bhp, albeit for a lighter frame. I can say that the low power doesn't bother me much as of now. In fact i like that the max torque is peaked at 2500 rpm, and the pick up wouldn't feel that bad unless i'm trying to overtake a sports car! But nevertheless, i will be a little complexed on a high way. Issue 4 - lack of buyer enthusiasm (?) : well its been almost two weeks since the launch of the grande and the dealer tells me that he's only today handed out the first punto to a buyer. They're quick to add that there's a great response and they're booking almost three everyday, but frankly, i've already spotted a couple of Honda Jazz 's in Delhi. And not a single Punto! The reviews on this site just refuse to grow though i check them out everyday. I thought we could get some first hand mileage figures here but that seems a long way coming. Could it be that barring the trickle few of us, there are hardly any takers for this car? I do hope my doubts are rested with time and this car turns out to be a winner like it purports. But only time will tell if it will be so! Update: tomorrow is 1st july and most new cars will start being delivered tomorrow. please please guys, come on and give us the mileage figures on this car. I know it can and will give good mileage but i just want to hear it confirmed!!! UPDATE AGAIN (18/07/09): GUYS THE VERDICTS ARE FINALLY OUT! THE GP IS A WINNER! ISSUE 1 - mileage problem resolved. the 1.2 fire is giving over 14 kpl. This is confirmed by a few friends who have already taken it and few reviews on sites like www.team-bhp.com ISSUE 2: Again, the hypnosis of the GP is such that these things really take a backseat. The envy of other road mates will make you feel at the top of the world. ISSUE 3: People who have bought any of the models are quite happy with it. In fact, its soon becoming a rage! I hope it will soon leave the Swift biting dust. ISSUE 4: I was probably too hasty to come to this conclusion. From what i am seeing the number of posts on this site has shot up to 30(AS ON 17 JULY) and the discussions have heated up. Lots of replies and queries are popping up. Way to go Punto!

I own Fiat Linea Fire Emotion Pack but I find it difficult to use in the city because of its big size.

Thus, thought of purchasing a Punto petrol for city driving.
Test drove both 1.2 and 1.4 petrol.
The top end performance of 1.4 was good whereas the low end response of 1.2 was good. Being confused, I thought I would rarely cross 3000 rpm mark in city, thus narrowed down my choice to 1.2 Fire active. Features are acceptable for the price at which they come.

Now coming to the car:
I turned on the ignition and the initial impressions were good. It felt silent than even my Linea petrol.
I switched the first gear and the car moved nicely. It was a breeze to drive within the 2000-3000 rpm range. Since my test drive was confined to city driving, I kept the car till 300 rpm. It was very silent.
Then thought for checking out the performance of car on open roads. Took it to an open road and revved each gear (except 5th) to the limit of 5500 rpm. Above 4000 rpm, the roar from the engine was so damn sporty. But the progress above 4000 rpm was not as pleasing as the initial performance.Top speed touched was 125 kmph. Then I said to myself that I need a car for city driving and yes, the punto 1.2 fire did tht job PERFECTLY....I took out my cheque book and booked the 1.2 Fire Exotica Red....At 425000 Rs on road, it is a steal. Waiting for the delivery. It is promised to be after 2 weeks.

Overall, a great car for city driving.


Good pick up, Good style, Good price, Good spaceDifficult to find with this car....

Fiat did provide us with a good car provided but as drove this car more and more I realised that not only the rear view visibility but also the interiors need to be looked into ny Fiat.

I have to confess though that I never faced any problem with the after sales service as most seem to be complain. 

The Rear seat comfort has been good. As drove the car more and more the feeling in me grew that the interiros of this great car could be looked into by Fiat and they should try and give a upmarket feel to it.

The fuel economy was never a worry my diesel car has been a great perfomer on that front. I would love to buy the 90 HP now. But I keep my decision on hold as I am really concerned about the interiors of this car.

The car easily rides over the bumbs and pot holes with ease and the car gives a tank like feel. What I really love about this car is the build quality of it. Safety on this car is just "A Grade" which one of the most important requirement for me when I think of buying a car. Its a strong and a well built body, the powerful headlights and followme home headlights that are just great.

 

FUEL ECONOMY, DRIVING PLEASUREREAR VIEW VISIBILTY

There are a lot of reviews on the internet and non of them can actually describe the feel of this car. Its like trying to describe the sound of the color blue!!!........But let me try.
I test drove the car 3 times at different showrooms and all i can say is it has a great ride quality, feels like driving some big sedan (thanks to the largest wheel base which is even more than fiesta!!)...

Performance was great and had a very different feel; lot of people and some sites say it is not powerful or responsive; Its not true. It does feel slower than swift....but its not...The funny thing in this car is, "you never feel quick, rather others cars on the road looks slower!!!!"...
I was driving normally as i drive swift; never felt the speed, felt like i was driving at 60km/h, but when i looked at the speedo, i was actually driving at 100km/h!!!.......This car is so damn smooth and has such a good handling and much more linear power output than other 1.3 diesels in the market;  as a result of which it doesnt feel fast but feels much SAFER!!!

Value for money for higher models is good but i felt for 1.3 mjt "active", its a bit expensive, around 5-10 thousand extra!

Sound and vibration::....All i can say is that sounds in the cabin is very low and there are no vibrations at all at any rpm reading!!....People are saying it rattles and vibrates and sounds level are high......Fact is, either they are jealous because they own some other car, or they are comparing it with some merc or audi and hence idiots.....All i can say is, its less than any other hatch including i20, swift, fabia etc etc...

Space is less than what it seems (but this doesn't mean its smaller than say indica or swift. Relative to what looks on papers, its quite small). On papers its the biggest hatch; but in reality its not. This is because this car has a very long bonnet and a big boot, hence leg space is compromised. When seats are all the way back; its leg space is like alto; but practically speaking, when its all the way back, my foot didnt reach the clutch!! (i am 5'11'')....so the situation is kind of hypothetical.

Fuel economy..... Other 1.3's are giving more than 17/litre; it should also give similer results (and its definetly not less than 14 as said by zigwheels!)

But as i said in the starting, this review is going to be "just another review" for you....here it sounds good, you will read other reviews and you will again get confused; you are the best judge; just switch of your comp and go get a test drive!!

And yeah; i booked Grey Grande Punto 1.3 MJT Active. (Though i went to book Vista, but punto hypnotised me!)
Ride Quality, Build Quality, Handling, Boot spaceTurning Radius

in my last review when i had just bought the car, i would just not stop praising the car. But having said al the good things for the Punto theirs more tothe story . First of al the after sales is PATHETIC, at the dealership the left hand does not know wat the right hand is doing.. meaning.....my car wiper went kaput within 2 weeks, so i called the dealership n i was booked for a appointment d vry nxt  day...after traveling 30 kms to n fro...i'm told they dont have the spares...spares....gosh they cal the simplest item on the car...the most vital during monsoons...a spare they dont have...this is aftr claimin the punto is on the Linea platform....Also no mud guards in the market neither with the company......The dealership FORTUNE cars in this case is so pathetic that they wont even giv a 800Rs teflon coating as addition when delivering d car....the car didnt even hav mats in it.....so my vedict wud b go for the car if u want something different.....or else...get urself the good old Maruti. U make a decision.
LOOKS GOOD ON THE ROADPATHETIC AFTER SALES

I bought Grande Punto DI Emotion on 15th July'09 & till date drove more than 1000 Km, both in local & higway. Its very comfortable, very effective AC, great pickup even in 5th gear also, very less noise inside. If i talk about mileage its gives me more than 16.5 kmpl(with AC & top speed 80 kmph) in local & same at highway with AC & top speed 125 kmpl.May be engine is in its initial stage so i think after servicing its mileage will increase... Things which i dint like abt this car are less leg space at rear seat, poor quality of rear tray & sometime leg touches steering axle (this dint affect ur driving but these are my observations). Friends if i compare this car to swift, dezire, Ikon & Fabia I found this car ahead dats y i bought it.....Style, Performance, Brilliant AC,No noise inside, Great pickup,Fuel economy, Structural stabilityLess rear leg space, Rear tray quality poor

I needed a car for my work which involves a lot of city driving. Being a huge Fiat fan I could not possibly think of buying another car. To tell you the truth even after a month of buying my car, I still get these crazy and jealous stares from people in other cars. Maybe its the color ( electric blue ) or maybe its the car. Whatever it may be trust me it feels soooooooo good. This is the value for money fiat has given me. Coming to the car, for a city car the 1.2 is great. Above average fuel mileage and absolutely to-die-for looks. The plastics do tend to give a little trouble and the driver seat has already started creaking but I guess these are minor flaws in an amazing car. I would really recommend this car to anyone who wants a jaw dropping car with decent performance. Agreed Fiat could have had better engines but the the mileage would have suffered. One thing though the 1.2 does not give great top end performance, so if anyone is looking for a car with excellent top end performance they should try the 1.4 or even the 1.3 diesel. In my opinion this car is a real winner. Its different as well as useful. Regards SunnyAmazing style, Great performance for a city car, good fuel economyRelatively low quality plastic, lack of high end performance

 

This is one best car on the Indian roads. I was in love with this car when i saw it on the internet on its launch. I booked a test drive and i was highly convinced with the ride quality. In fact i was following this car from last one year and the user reviews on Car Wale.com. I find most of the people like this car. In the end i zeroed myself on Swift Zxi and Punto Emotion Pack. For a time i was bit confused between the two. Then i decide to take a look again on both the vehicle on same day. Zxi couldn't convince me as it look to me like Jugar kind of things in the car. (like the Auto AC Music System and Audio control on the steering wheels) and reverse to it seems like Punto is designed  for perfection. Each and everything in the car is well placed that u won't stop ur self saying "wow i want to own this"  

 

Exterior

  I must say highly aerodynamic good looking car. I like the way it looks from behind when its zipping on the highway. Electrically controlled ORVM are excellent when u look from out side. Actually when u see the car from behind i feel like this is the grace of the car. Alloys are the one which will make u to fall in love with the car. I read even from the expert from Car wale that they don't like the back of the car. I think they are just use to see the usual look from Suzuki or Hyundai. I feel car back is as good as the front.

Interior (Features, Space & Comfort)

Interiors are mind blowing. Everything is just one click away. Thanks to Blue and ME feature. It made everything so easy that just push the microsoft button on the steering wheel and say what u want. Auto AC is very good. The music system is one which is from one of the best company. Seats are designed in such an efficient way that if u drive the car for 7 hrs u wont be feeling tired. Everything inside the car is designed for maximum comfort.    

Engine Performance, Fuel Economy and Gearbox

Engine is like you will feel in sports car. I promise you if u ride the car u will feel like u r dominating the road. I read from the expert from car wale in Road test segment that engine is little sluggish in less that 3000 rpm. I tell you there nothing like that. u simply switch on the car push the liver and u can touch 40 in first gear. Even if u r driving on 5 gear and speed comes less that 30 even then the ride is quite smooth, I never reported any jerks.

Ride Quality & Handling

Ride quality is excellent. Handling the car is very good. Its nice to drive in the city traffic as well as on the highways.

Final Words

Nice car to own.

Areas of improvement  

Nothing i can right now hope I will explore more of the car then I can say some thing on this segment.

After driving 4000 kms.

Guys car is really good. i have drove it 4000 kms and i am loving the ride quality. overall i am getting 15+ average on highway. the people who are actually feeling the power lag i have answer for them. guys drove the car for at least 1000 kms and seriously u won't again feel this prob if u feel so. i live in the state of himachal and i have gone to remote places in hp. i never felt the prob of power lagging. 

the stereo is quite good and amber light ( i have read that few people having prob with the amber color light)  is seriously very smooth for ur eyes.........like if u drove for whole night u won't feel any tickling in ur eyes ( this is tested fact). 

car picks the speed very smoothly and if u drive on the hill road u will get maximum accuracy with the steering wheel.

i have one suggestion for new buyers..............keep the air in the wheels properly.

read the user manual seriously or ask ur dealer for maximum input. u need to learn a lot abt he car's new interphase.

 

i welcome all the quires.    

 

 

 

Style, comfort, very high ride quality, highly aerodynamic and specially blue and me.bit less leg room for rear seat, no seat cover even on top model.( i think fiat should think)