[wind_rider]

Originally Posted by sdp1975

The engine is noisy, although the noise will go down as you run-in the vehicle.

For a highway hatch, Punto is the best choice. I've driven it at 120+ on the highways - the noise for me is manageable - but have a TD and take your call. Don't think you can do 150+ on indian highways apart from short occasional bursts.

have done 160 ~ 165 @ 3700 ~ 4000 RPM, the car can take another 15 ~ 20 kmph more didnt want to push it tough .

Did this on NICE expressway road with Light traffic , amazing handling .

[k!ng_@thur]

Reliability? It says the 24x7 roadside is valid only within a 100 km radius of a service center. Versus a tata vehicle (vista for eg), how would you rate?

[somebodystopme]

So many pages in a thread when clear winner is Punto, Now i get your point Amog. I was also punto based while making my decision. Sadly the thread has been deleted. It would have recalled some memories.

[TusharPrabhu]

Originally Posted by akshay4587

What about i20 Crdi,now with 6 gears

It is way too expensive a proposition isn't it? If we are talking of cars under 7 lakh, the i20 pushes itself out on the price count alone.

Originally Posted by wind_rider

have done 160 ~ 165 @ 3700 ~ 4000 RPM, the car can take another 15 ~ 20 kmph more didnt want to push it tough .

Did this on NICE expressway road with Light traffic , amazing handling .

Car for car, I don't think there is much doubt about the Punto being head and shoulder above the rest, especially for its highway handling. I have heard horror stories about Concorde and Prerna. Whether it is indifference towards potential buyers or after sales. Wonder what the experiences of other Bangalore based Punto owners has been in this respect.

Originally Posted by somebodystopme

So many pages in a thread when clear winner is Punto, Now i get your point Amog. I was also punto based while making my decision. Sadly the thread has been deleted. It would have recalled some memories.

Kinda flattering isn't it
On this thread, as on others that I have been following, the Punto emerges the clear winner car-for-car. The only deterrent being it's TATA connection and the indifference of the dealers, at least in Bangalore.

Originally Posted by keyurshah

Hi Tushar,

I had recently driven from Mumbai to Udaipur last month in friend's Punto E+.
We were 3 ppl in the car plus luggage.

My views:
1. Very good road grip, even on high speeds.
2. Great Aircon, even in the heat of Rajasthan.
3. Could easily do about 150+ on the Vadodara-Ahmedabad express way. Never once felt the car is grunting
4. Extremely good suspension, made the difference on NH8 while going on the Mumbai-Manor section which is not well carpeted.
5. Very good pickup. Came real handy on the patches near Surat where road work is going on and there are lot of diversions. Could easily overtake trucks.
6. On highways, gives you the feeling of being in a safe car.

I would put this experience on rating of 4/5. If you are looking for car for long drives esp on highways, blindly go for Punto.

-KS

Quite an experience. I bet you enjoyed every minute of it. And oh, as pretty as the car is, I will keep my eyes WIDE open, oggling the beauty

Originally Posted by amoghchaphalkar

Since safety is also a consideration here (and for a "highway hatchback" it should be the prime consideration), after reading Sidindica's post : my respect for the Punto has grown ten fold.

Yes Amogh, point well made and taken. My cousin in Bangalore used to own a Palio that toppled 3 times over before coming to rest. The car was history but my cousin and her husband (who was driving) walked out of the wreck with just minor bruises. And it was her birthday too. I don't think one can stress enough the value of a car that can save lives in a crash. It is when it happens to you or someone close that you really respect the "tank like build" of a Fiat...and I do.

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team : Please use "Multi Quote" option for quoting Multiple posts, instead of creating another back-to-back post.

[keyurshah]

Originally Posted by TusharPrabhu

Quite an experience. I bet you enjoyed every minute of it. And oh, as pretty as the car is, I will keep my eyes WIDE open, oggling the beauty

You said it!!!

Well to be honest, I have done this journey also in my Indigo and Safari. However, I would say the experience with Punto was second only to Safari.

Would also share with all something that happened on our way back. Just before the Gujarat border, the road on Rajasthan side is very curvy. There was a tractor trailer on the road ahead (relatively empty road). I asked for side which he gave and I began to accelerate to pass him from his right. However just as i was a little ahead than his last set of wheels, he suddenly without any warning came full speed into my lane. I must be around 60 kmph (perhaps more) than and slammed the breaks. To my surprise the car responded magnificently and I was dead stop in almost 2-3 secs, well safe of the truck.

I seriously think the brakes on Punto saved us that day.

Later when I again got ahead and checked on the driver, I realized the guy driving was a cleaner and the driver was seated next to him (probably teaching him). Till that day, I always felt that these tractor trailer drivers were amongst the most responsible ones on the road.

[TusharPrabhu]

Originally Posted by keyurshah

I must be around 60 kmph (perhaps more) than and slammed the breaks. To my surprise the car responded magnificently and I was dead stop in almost 2-3 secs, well safe of the truck.

Sounds like the ABS kicking in.

[spindoc]

@keyurshah, i read on another thread that under-thigh support isn't great with the Punto and that this can be a problem on long drives. Was this an issue for you?

Your posts suggest you didn't have any problems but it'd still be great if you can share your views.

[Amartya]

Originally Posted by spindoc

@keyurshah, i read on another thread that under-thigh support isn't great with the Punto and that this can be a problem on long drives. Was this an issue for you?

Your posts suggest you didn't have any problems but it'd still be great if you can share your views.

I hope you wouldn't mind my jumping in, it's just that I've driven the Punto quite extensively, over reasonably long distances. I think the driver's seat is fantastic and it doesn't lack thigh support at all. I found the driving position to be brilliant as well.

However, these things do differ a bit from person to person, again I'd stress the fact that a test-drive will always clear this(driving position). One thing is for sure, the front seat has enough under-thigh support.

[keyurshah]

Originally Posted by TusharPrabhu

Sounds like the ABS kicking in.

I am not sure that I will attribute this to ABS. IMO, ABS is more to do with stability and prevent the wheels from locking up and your car from swirling out of control. As the patch where this happened was straighter, I dont think ABS played a great part in it.

Again, the Gurus may correct this if I am wrong!!!

Originally Posted by spindoc

@keyurshah, i read on another thread that under-thigh support isn't great with the Punto and that this can be a problem on long drives. Was this an issue for you?

Your posts suggest you didn't have any problems but it'd still be great if you can share your views.

No, I found the seat to be very comfortable. It did take me time initially to find my comfortable position, but that was it. No problem from there on.

[Cartman]

Hey buddy. This isn't much of a question.. As far as a highway hatch goes, by far the Punto beats everything. Smooth, silent and sexy.


You're other option is a Figo. Now, there are quite a few Figo owners on the forum. You can check their reviews. By far,this review should explain you all aspects of owning a Figo.

Whatever people say, make sure you take a test-drive. See what appeals to you..


Happy choosing..

See you around!!

Cartman.

[somebodystopme]

@keyurshah
Even i feel you were saved because of ABS I am not much technical in this but I have always found brakes of cars with ABS (my punto, my friends Merc) to be better than brakes of non ABS cars (my i10, my esteem, my friends zen). So ABS has definately something to do with good braking other than preventing the car from loosing control. Anyway nice to hear such good things about Punto and that i made a right decision. My only grudge being its so less FE in city condition for a very short drive.

[aarenes]

Ok. I just completed 5000kms on the Punto, 50% of these are Bombay - Pune Expressway miles. The car rocks on the highway. I have driven at an 140 on the expressway stretch barring the loopy Lonavala stretch and the FE is 17. Car will not roll and maintains its amazing stability. The car can easily stretch futher. Safe to say, I chicken out.

Noise is on the high side at 100+ kmph but with music on, you it should not bother you.

When I drive in the city, I use the Instantaneous Consumption feature. My max FE has been 22 kmpl with an overall avg of 17.

[keyurshah]

Originally Posted by aarenes

My max FE has been 22 kmpl with an overall avg of 17.

FE of 22 IMO is superb considering you would not even have had your second service done.

Is your Punto a Diesel?

[sbkumar]

hi Tushar,

I think I saw you mention that half the time the car would be in the city. Do try Figo TDCI in that case. I recently did a test drive of Punto MJD and Figo TDCI. I come with only prior experience on petrol cars and not an expert in any sense. But I did find Figo much better than punto in the city conditions (couldn't agree more with GTOs review). Frankly i found punto 1.2 much more easier to drive than 1.3 MJD in the city conditions. I almost zeroed on Punto MJD based on the reviews here, but was a little underwhelmed after I did the test drive. Yes, I do know going against Punto is a terrible thing to do on this forum

[clevermax]

Originally Posted by aarenes

When I drive in the city, I use the Instantaneous Consumption feature. My max FE has been 22 kmpl with an overall avg of 17.

But what's the point? It drastically varies in city driving conditions - if you're accelerating in 2nd gear it shows around 8 Kmpl and when you're slowing down on 5th, it shows 50 Kmpl. (For an MJD)

I don't like to use the instantaneous consumption display because I'll be focusing more on it than on road

7000+ Kms on my odo and the average FE stands at 17.7 Kmpl.