Fiat Punto = Fiat Premier Padmini?

Fiat Punto = Fiat Premier Padmini?

How is this possible? Can a 2012 car really be compared to a 1970 car? Unfortunately, Fiat has made this resemblance very, very real.

Last year, I decided to buy a new car to celebrate my birthday on 10 September. Being an Engineer, I tried all the diesel hatchbacks, and was delighted with Fiat Punto’s lovely, powerful engine and unbelievably affordable price.

Sadly, I did not know that this lower price came with a corresponding slump in quality. I still cannot get over the shock.

How can a huge, intelligent, international company like Fiat re-enterIndia with this shockingly disappointing product? They dare to advertise it, expecting all Indians to be as stupid as me? How long can the smart Indian consumers not discover the truth?

When I first drove my new Punto home, the left-hand side sun-visor was found to be broken. Two days later, I found that the turning indicator would not switch off automatically after the turn. And I found that the plastic parts inside were as light as a child’s toy. Sometime later, the left-hand side front passenger window fell down. Then the car started pulling to the left even on a flat road. Then my friend following me in his car told me that my Punto’s wheel caps were rotating lopsidedly, and the wheels looked like drunk Jackie Chan. The car was giving me 12.5 km/litre of Diesel. (with AC), much less than the promised figure.

I reported the matters to them and requested repairs against their warranty.

When the car came back, it seemed fine, faulty parts replaced, and I was relieved. This relief lasted only 10 days.

The front left-hand side window fell down again. The car is started pulling to the left again. The radio antenna got faulty and stopped catching stations. And there was no spare antenna available for my car. The car’s fuel gauge would sometimes show empty even when the fuel tank was nice and full. The rear bottom right-hand side light was not working. The front wiper had a clamp missing, which would have scratched the windscreen beyond repair if I had not noticed it.

The car went back to the workshop for repairs again. Today, the front left-hand side window doesn't fall down, but the door makes a horrible noise of the glass rattling against metal whenever we close the door. The fuel gauge misbehaves at least twice a month. The rear bottom right-hand side light is still not working. The front wiper still has a clamp missing. The car still gives me between 11.9 and 12.8 Km/ltr. The car’s front left tubeless tyre has developed a crack on its sidewall that cannot be repaired (It shouldn’t happen!). I was advised to buy a new tyre or install a tube in the faulty ‘tubeless’ tyre!

Despite my calls, I haven’t got a satisfactory answer. I also asked for a complete refund of my money for the car. No answer.

But the Punto has a lovely powerful engine that I still love.

Maybe you should buy just this engine from Fiat, and install it in a Fiat Premier Padmini from Mumbai. It could be a good compromise.