Fiat Grande Punto : Test Drive & Review

[sukrit7]

Originally Posted by headers

B&M has no connection with the ODO flashing - Odo flashes tells you that the ECU has some incorrect inputs! In your case, it appeared to be the faulty B&M.

B&M box is prone to failure / errors due to the dust which comes in. A simple air blow at the connectors solve the issue.

That makes sense. However,my blue&me unit is unfortunately beyond repair.
Is there any other way to fix the flashing odometer then?

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

@All:

Sorry for the late reply. Odo shows ~4000 kms now, and its been 25 days since it joined the family. Had yet another fantastic drive yesterday - From Trivandrum to Chennai. Mile crunching ability was astounding. Can do 120 -130 kmph all day on the expressways, and you dont feel the speeds at all! In-fact, I was the only driver for the 800 km long drive and yet - was fresh enough to go out for dinner after reaching chennai.

Now, coming to the dislikes -

• Felt that its struggling above 140 kmph. 150 sounded strained - I guess the high rpm is to be blaimed for this? Will things get better after 1st service?
• Below 2500rpm (And thats a bit high for a diesel), 90HP is just as fast as any other competing diesel hatchbacks. Had to put in effort to get away from the Swifts and Micras (Surprisingly good acceleration) and i20s.
• Rattles from some corners. Did not expect this. However - its nothing compared to the ones I got used to in the WagonR.

Originally Posted by nkg77

Hope your only hiccup till now was the loose "Link Rod" issue.

Yes. Only 'issue' was that link rod.

Originally Posted by DRIV3R

Nice pics, Crazy Driver. I have a question for you, how are the sunfilms behaving? Since they were fitted by the dealer, I beleive they are from Weurth/Wurth, which is OE for Fiat.

They mentioned some other brand. I didnt note it down since I wasn't happy with the fact that they put them in the first place. Its very dark when viewed from outside, but has surprisingly good visibility from the inside.

Originally Posted by deetjohn

Superb photos CrAzY dRiVeR. But then, I think you had it very easy. After all, its the Punto and Munnar.

Originally Posted by Ricci

@Crazy Driver :
great pics , wallpaper material in fill resolution !

Originally Posted by autocrat

Thats one fantastic pic! The location matches the beauty of the car. The Punto never appears out of place whether the setting is an urban jungle or beautiful countryside. Wallpaper stuff

Thanks guys! Wanted some good pics for my ownership thread - that i plan to open in a few days - thats all.

[raj_5004]

I dont know if this has been shared before.

The driver's machine -

BSM FTD Test - Honda Brio vs Maruti Suzuki Swift vs Fiat Punto 90 vs Skoda Fabia - Down the hatch

[DRIV3R]

Originally Posted by DRIV3R

Just heard from a dealer that the Fox Trot Azure color for the Punto is now discontinued. Linea however will continue to be available in that shade.

Just as I said, refer to the screenshot below. FIAT now calls Minimal Grey, Hip Hop Black and Medium Grey too as premium colors for the Punto!

[headers]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

@All:

Felt that its struggling above 140 kmph. 150 sounded strained - I guess the high rpm is to be blaimed for this? Will things get better after 1st service?

It does not get better in top speed, but becomes quieter at the same RPM. I have managed 155 [by using the speed limit warning] and by the meter but have not been able to do 160 kph yet. Mine has done 45K kms and is due for service anytime now!!

Cruising at 140 - one is pleased to get amazing FE which puts competition to shame!

[rameshnanda]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

[*]Felt that its struggling above 140 kmph. 150 sounded strained - I guess the high rpm is to be blaimed for this? Will things get better after 1st service?

Above 140 will be very noisy but definitely there won't be any struggle at 140. Things will get better after 10k for you. I know people who have managed to do 180-185 in 90HP. However I managed to do till 170 in the 90HP. But, have done 180 in my Linea MJD. Surprisingly, Linea MJD is more fun to drive than the GP 90.

Originally Posted by headers

It does not get better in top speed, but becomes quieter at the same RPM. I have managed 155 [by using the speed limit warning] and by the meter but have not been able to do 160 kph yet. Mine has done 45K kms and is due for service anytime now!!

Cruising at 140 - one is pleased to get amazing FE which puts competition to shame!

Is yours 76 or 90HP? I am asking this because, 76 HP struggles beyond 140. It takes some time to reach speeds beyond this limit. However, 90HP is different thought. It becomes aggressive only after 120 KMPH.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by rameshnanda

Above 140 will be very noisy but definitely there won't be any struggle at 140. Things will get better after 10k for you. I know people who have managed to do 180-185 in 90HP. However I managed to do till 170 in the 90HP. But, have done 180 in my Linea MJD. Surprisingly, Linea MJD is more fun to drive than the GP 90.

IFRC - 120 was 3000 rpm. 140 was 3500rpm. 150 was around 3700. The sound was getting real harsh - so didn't push it beyond that.

Top speed does not really matter in daily drive, but still - just wanted to check out what this baby could do!

[rameshnanda]

Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR

IFRC - 120 was 3000 rpm. 140 was 3500rpm. 150 was around 3700. The sound was getting real harsh - so didn't push it beyond that.

Top speed does not really matter in daily drive, but still - just wanted to check out what this baby could do!

Yes. I know the noise becomes extremely high. But, it will slowly reduce after 10k kms on Odo. I never went beyond 140 till 10k. My achievement of 170 happened when the odo read 12500+.

[headers]

Originally Posted by rameshnanda

Is yours 76 or 90HP? I am asking this because, 76 HP struggles beyond 140. It takes some time to reach speeds beyond this limit. However, 90HP is different thought. It becomes aggressive only after 120 KMPH.

76 BHP 05-2010 Emotion Pack

[live2dream]

Punto V-kooled.

Finally went ahead with vkool films in my punto today. It was economy series k37 model. Light shade. Costed me 8500 rs. Must say the particular shade suits very well on white punto. Attaching Pics. It has 5 years warranty and the installation was done very neatly. Heat rejection of 50%.

shop : sandhya cars, alwarpet.,chennai

Other updates. : Completed 3000km on my punto today in 21 days courtesy to and fro trip to trivandrum. The car is much more responsive now than when i took delivery. Cant feel the turbo lag now, even though its still very much there, altered my driving style to suit the punto.

-ves :

1.Light steering wobble at 100km/hr, not existent before and after that.
2.Very rarely I hear a faint mechanical sound from front wheel well. Dont know what it is?
3.Rear wiper blade loose. if i lift the wiper the blade comes off.

Other accessories planned

1.3d kagu mats cost 4500/-
2.Stanley leather seats ( in due course of time, dont have the moolah now) cost 36000 as quoted by Sandhya cars. Is there any stanley leather direct dealer in Chennai.

[autocrat]

Team,

Although I have a Linea MJD, I am posting this query here as there are far more people with MJD in Punto than Linea.

Today, in my 2 week old Linea, I noticed that there are some strong vibrations from the engine between 1150 and 1300 rpm (neutral, car stationary). Its strong enough to gently shake the car. The vibes die out as soon as the revs fall or increase beyond the above mentioned band.

Has anyone noticed this in their MJD? What could be the cause for this? Should I be worried? The car runs fine, and the vibes are not felt as much when the car is moving.

[nkg77]

Originally Posted by autocrat

Has anyone noticed this in their MJD? What could be the cause for this? Should I be worried? The car runs fine, and the vibes are not felt as much when the car is moving.

I have never felt any vibrations at that range, in fact Figo vibrated more, one reason could be Punto's engine mounts are hydraulic ones. Any ways will check my car tomorrow and confirm.

[DRIV3R]

Guys, need your help.

Booked a Punto Emotion, paid the full OTR amount to the dealer. Long story short, I specifically ask the moron salesperson not to fiddle with the car, and NOT reset the ODO. I go to have a look before registration and delivery, was shocked to see the ODO reset. It read '0' without the 'H'.

Also, there were few scratches on the fender, headlamp. The front tyres were not having the new tyre look, and the engine was surrounded by fresh oil.

Got frustrated, asked the moron dealer to invoice another car for me and he did, after a lot of drama.

Again, car has arrived. I call up and ask if everything is okay, moron says yes, I ask how many kms have been clocked, moron says '16 only saar'. Next day evening, I receive a call saying 'Sorry saar, your ODO is reset in your new car also, now it reads 29km without the 'H''. I blasted him and repented for booking a Fiat, and thought of cancelling the booking.

When I questioned him as to why within a day my brand new car has run 13 kms as per his info, he says they did a PDI and hence. Freaking impossible for me to believe that FIAT encourages people at the dealership to take brand new cars out on their will and pleasure in the name of PDI.

All these while those morons knew that I rejected the earlier car just because the ODO was reset.

Irony is, when I first went to the yard, there was a car that had completed PDI, and it had only 13 Km on the ODO with the ODO intact with the 'H'.

But then, am confused now. Same moron dealer has a few Dynamic trim Lineas lying around. He says that the 'H' is present, etc. Should I just forget this incident and take delivery the Punto itself or should I look at the Linea?

I also have the option of transferring my booking to another dealer in another city, which is assured to me by the territory sales manager. But, I will have to buy the car with the new price tag.

I am frustrated dealing with FIAT and it's lousy customer care. Every time those executives promise you a freaking call-back, not even once, I have ever got it.

FIAT, if you are reading this, you suck. You lose the very few customers you have just because of your nasty dealerships providing sub-par experience.

[headers]

Originally Posted by DRIV3R

Guys, need your help.

FIAT, if you are reading this, you suck. You lose the very few customers you have just because of your nasty dealerships providing sub-par experience.

Actually, the H, odo reset etc mean nothing..The guys, almost ALL dealers have fun screwing BRAND NEW CARS. There is not much one can do, but the manufacturers also are aware of the same.

FIAT and the dealers have fun playing ball with the customers

[rameshnanda]

DRIV3R, every dealer resets the odo once before the registration. I think this is also an item in their pdi checklist. Also do note that the dealer cannot reset n number of times. The car allows reset only once when in H mode. But, even after the reset the H should remain to my knowledge. I am not sure if this is something new with the 2012 models. Discuss with your dealer to get this clarirified. There is nothing to worry about.