FIAT Grande Punto 1.4 FIRE

[Zinam]

NOTE: This is NOT The Automotive India's Official Road Test Report.


The Grande Punto :

This is the most anticipated car of the year from the day we saw the spy shots! The Punto definitely speaks for its extreme build quality & has got tough looks.
Do you believe falling in love at first sight? If not, have look at the black colored Top End Punto with sparkiling 15” Alloys and I can guarantee that you will definitely fall in love with it at first sight.

Exteriors & Styling

Fiat's new war horse has a typical Italian looks, Starting from the clear lens head lamps, The Audi like split rectangular grill especially made for placing your number plates in between.

Fiat could have concentrated more on the detailing aspect of the car because I couldn’t find any lines in the side which makes the car plain & un-matched with its total bold look it has got.

Coming to the rear, High mount Rear Tail lamps is really catchy and resembles to the one we see on Ford Focus.

Also, The punto gets the biggest rear glass which increases the visibility during reversing so that you don't have to pay extra for Parking Sensors, But most surprisingly there is no handle provided to open the boot. Once you release the remote boot lock, FIAT expects the door to come up slightly from its position. But this doesn’t happen in rainy days & you have to struggle to open the boot.

Interiors & Comfort :

Sit Inside and you notice the typical Dual Tone interior combination [Black & Grey] all over running from the dash to the doors. The quality & build of plastics are on par with Skoda.

You will not get dis-appointed once you find a comfortable driving position in the car. The centre console seems to be ripped of from the FIAT Linea but however, It goes well with Punto. The Driver’s seat is height adjustable & finding a comfortable position is just as easy.

The steering wheel has the best ergonomics which helps you to never slips out off your hands. There are plenty of buttons everywhere in the car which may result you getting confused.

Press the pedals and you might go in confusion again, As the clutch is really deep & releasing clutch up to 70% didn’t even move the car!
That is quite surprising for me & when I asked about it, Punto is designed this way & Linea will be good.

Gear shift is well placed & the car comes with front armrest which makes your highway driving much more comfortable.
The car has steering controls for your handling your calls, muting & reading out messages. The Unique Blue & Me concept and Blaupunkt stereo is warm welcome in India.

There are enough spaces to keep things such as your wallet, Cell phone & bottles and the luggage space is quite impressive as well.

The comfort level is really good, leg room & shoulder room is adequate enough for 3 adults. The leg room is excellent when compared to its rivals.

Automatic Climate System is bonus in Punto & cabin cools down very easily & fast indeed, but when kept lesser than 18, it makes huge noise which we hear from turbines!


Handling & Performance :

Under the hood of Grande Punto, A 1368cc DOHC Engine producing 90Horse Power is powering it wheels.

But 1368cc Engine misses the grunt due to its weight of 1145Kilo grams and makes somewhat sluggish with just 115 Newton Meters of torque which could have been tweaked better. I managed to reach 0 -100 in 14+ Seconds which makes Punto a decent family car rather than saying it’s a sporty hatchback for singles.

Turning on the car doesn’t make much noise inside the cabin & I couldn’t feel vibration which we can find it easily in Ritz. The gearing ratios are really awesome which makes the city driving much more comfortable. Surprisingly this car can cruise at 30Kmph @ 5th Gear with NIL vibration & Jerks which proves it a great city driven car.

The gear shifts are super silent are engage properly without any trouble. The max speed of the car is claimed to be 170kmph. I managed to drive at 130+ KM/H in highways & All I can say is great speed handler, because of the broader tyres which make Punto the best handling car in this segment.

Moving on to behind seat for travelling comfort, Punto has independent suspension with McPherson struts, helical springs, double acting telescopic dampers and a stabilizer bar in Front while the rear comes with a torsion beam apart from the helical springs, double acting telescopic dampers and a stabilizer bar.

In short, Punto has a good suspension setup & feels great in city driving. The suspension is placed well away from rear seats which take up small path holes & bad roads easily with no deal.


Safety & Fuel Efficiency :

Speaking on Safety, FIAT has provided ABS, EBD & Dual Air Bags. 100-0 halt in ABS version gives a neat 3.5 seconds stop which is quite impressive.

Fuel Efficiency is the place where Punto loses the competition. 1.4 FIRE Engine manages to give 10 KPL in city driving & 14KPL on Highway drives.


Advantages :

• Responsive steering
• Blue & Me technology & Blaupunkt music system
• Rear space comfort
• Extreme handling & best gearing ratios

Disadvantages :

• Engine misses the grunt & torque
• After Sales Service (Quite less number of service centers across India)
• Pricing on higher side.

FIRE (Petrol) Engine Options & Prices:

Fiat Grande Punto 1.2 Active Rs. 4,13,506
Fiat Grande Punto 1.4 Dynamic Rs. 4,82,462
Fiat Grande Punto 1.4 Emotion Rs. 5,23,634
Fiat Grande Punto 1.4 Emotion Pack Rs. 5,80,240

MultiJet (Diesel) Engine Options & Prices:

Fiat Grande Punto 1.3 Active Rs.5,02,019
Fiat Grande Punto 1.3 Dynamic Rs.5,33,925
Fiat Grande Punto 1.3 Emotion Rs.5,75,092
Fiat Grande Punto 1.3 Emotion Pack Rs.6,31,700

 

[Crazy cat]

Another nice review zinam. Pricing is attractive, other than the 1.4 petrol tested here.

What about the gearing of the car? Short(like all Fiats) or tall?

How is the sound quality of Blaupunkt music system?

Did you drive the 1.3 mjd?

 

[Zinam]

Thanks CC!

Gearing is comfortable, its not very short like i10 neither long like Estilo.

It is pretty neutral & was fun to drive!

Sound Quality of the system is good than the stock i10 system.

It sounds great. But at high volumes speakers do produce noise! If an amp is added & stock speakers are replaced, it will be the best!

No, When i went yesterday, All MJDs went for some car mela & i couldn't drive any MJD

 

[RSM]

Excellent Review once again Zinam.

 

[Zinam]

Excellent Review once again Zinam.

Hey RSM,

Thanks!

So how do you feel my review?

Did you find anything wrong in my findings or any bias ?

Feel frank to tell me, so that i can correct if its wrong

 

[RSM]

So how do you feel my review?

Did you find anything wrong in my findings or any bias ?

Feel frank to tell me, so that i can correct if its wrong

I agree most of your findings. But i just test drove 1.4 Punto for few kilometers.

I think, FE wise, people are getting around ~12 KMPL in city traffic and i find that to be good. As even small cars, i10 or Santro, gives ~13 KMPL.

Also the service coverage is not bad, as Tata is 3rd largest coverage after Maruti & Hyundai. Quality is still questionable though

One more point related to ratings, Looks you have to give more. I have not found even a single person, who doesn't agree Punto is best looking hatchback available in India.

 

[raj_5004]

excellent review buddy. if this punto FIRE wasnt a fiat and instead a hyundai or honda, it would set the sales charts on "fire"!

 

[Arun]

Zinam! With those skills you might as well write for an auto mag.
Precise review buddy!

 

[350Z]

Well done Zinam.

Zinam! With those skills you might as well write for an auto mag.
Precise review buddy!

Actually he is going to.Wait and watch.

Drive Safe!
350Z

 

[Ichimaru]

nice review!

a few things-->
1. i find its price to be quite competitive.
2. a 15000km or 1 year service interval is a big plus.
3. blue and me also offers a usb slot, steering mounted audio controls, added advantage.
4. in case you guys have not noticed the wipers of punto [also linea for that matter] do check them out. it should be a good surprise.
5. European built and designing-->something to die for!

 

[Crazy cat]

2. a 15000km or 1 year service interval is a big plus.

4. in case you guys have not noticed the wipers of punto [also linea for that matter] do check them out. it should be a good surprise.

2. 15000km interval would bring big cost owing to the mandatory use of synthetic oil.

4. I checked it. Each one is of different length and when lifted up they bend. Are they doing a good job as well?

 

[vroom]

Zinam,

Very very well written review.

But shockingly there is no handle / provision to open the boot. Once you release the remote boot lock, FIAT expects the door to come up slightly from its position. But this doesn’t happen in rainy days & you have to fight to open the boot.

Excellent find. I have not read about this anywhere and you have brought out something very interesting.

Cheers,
Vroom

 

[RSM]

2. 15000km interval would bring big cost owing to the mandatory use of synthetic oil.

For MJD Engine
Synthetic Oil - Selenia 5W-40,Cost - Rs. 650 per litre.
Is it costly.

4. I checked it. Each one is of different length and when lifted up they bend. Are they doing a good job as well?

Wipers works well during rain. I am not sure how other works

 

[Ichimaru]

what i was told during my training for linea was that these wipers have a longer life and my owner has a merc which had similar wipers!

someone told me oil change for punto is at 30k while regular service at 15k. can anyone confirm this?
650 is not costly IMO.

 

[Interceptor]

@Zinam:"The quality & build of plastics are on par with Skoda" i think you need to test drive a fabia and then make this statement. I agree that Punto's plastics are better than Tata but it is not even closer to Hyundai's plastic and only then it can reach skoda. I have a personal experience where the bonnet release lever(Plastic) was in my hand when i tried to open it. :). It cannot be compared with skoda's plastics is my opinion.

Overall well written review with lot of time spent on revealing the facts.