[theEnd]

Hi Folks,

I wanted to see if I'm not the only one who thinks Fiat is making a big mistake launching a diesel Punto Sport, as per the company's announcement at AutoExpo. So, I thought it best to put it to a vote. Which one would you chose?

Punto T-Jet
- 1.4 Turbocharged petrol
- Rated at 108 BHP (110 PS)
- 0 to 100km/h in approx 8.9 seconds (as reported for the UK 118bhp version)

Punto Sport (as shown at Auto-Expo 2010)
- 1.3 Turbocharged diesel (Variable geometry turbo)
- Rated at 85 BHP (86PS)
- 0 to 100km/h in approx 11.9 seconds (as reported for Australian 90bhp version)

Expect that the 0-100km/h times for both cars to be slightly more in India due to de-tuning (as can be seen in the bhp figures). However, do note that the difference is very close to 3 seconds!

I expect that both engines would cost almost the same. You can come up with guesses as to what the price difference will be: If you look at other Indian cars, or even Fiat's other cars, diesel engines are typically more expensive than their similarly sized petrol brethren. A large part of that price difference can be attributed to the turbo which most diesels have, and in this case since the petrol also has a turbo there will be a smaller differential. Also consider the Skoda Laura and Octavia, where the 1.8TSI is cheaper than the 1.9TDI, and the 1.8TPI is cheaper than the 1.9TDI. Finally, consider that the diesel will be eligible for 8% excise duty (less than 1.5L), while the petrol will not (as its more than 1.2L).

Finally, I hope somebody at Fiat has a look at this poll, once substantial results have come in. They can either pat themselves on the back for sucessfully predicting demand, or quickly change course and give us the T-Jet.

[xPK]

T-Jet for me!

I don't why FIAT hasn't came up with it yet!
(Oops Linea has to feature it first )

[rpmx1000]

Enthusiasts will vote for the T-jet undoubtedly.

There is a lot of sense in having a fast practical sedan.Practical is the word for diesel here. I can bet my morning's toothpaste that Fiat is probably doing the right thing in the interest of sales. There are a lot more people with practical needs than enthusiasts out there.So the mango man's vote will
go for the diesel and that's what Fiat is doing. I know this poll will succeed
on T-Bhp but not the real world.

Now Fiat, please don't overprice it along the lines of Hyundai i20 CRDi and
create another sales dud. Keep it below the base linea and watch your sales charts go northward! It can - and should - kill the Swift/Ritz D.You better get this right!

[finneyp]

I am a petrolhead, so it is Punto T-jet for me!

[abhibh]

Originally Posted by theEnd

- 0 to 100km/h in approx 11.9 seconds (as reported for Australian 90bhp version)

Punto 1.3 75 BHP is claimed to do 0-100 in 13.xx secs all over Europe. But in India it does it in 17 secs, so i really doubt it will do 11.9 secs for the Indian version.

[myavu]

Any day Punto Sport (1.3 MJD - diesel with VGT, 90bhp). Waiting since mid 2009!

Cheers!

[hiren959]

For me it will be surely Punto T-Jet as MJD is very noisy in Punto.

[gomzi]

A high revving raucous turbo petrol is what a "Sports" version deserves. But I do not think Fiat will plonk that engine into the Punto any time soon.

or maybe they might launch this in response to the VW Polo 1.6

C'mon Fiat, the Sports will appeal to a few enthusiasts only, why not go all the way an release a really powerful petrol car?

[theEnd]

Originally Posted by rpmx1000

Enthusiasts will vote for the T-jet undoubtedly.

There is a lot of sense in having a fast practical sedan.

We're looking at the hatchback here. The sedan (Linea) will have both these engines available very soon.

Originally Posted by rpmx1000

Practical is the word for diesel here. I can bet my morning's toothpaste that Fiat is probably doing the right thing in the interest of sales. There are a lot more people with practical needs than enthusiasts out there.So the mango man's vote will go for the diesel and that's what Fiat is doing. I know this poll will succeed on T-Bhp but not the real world.

I think your 'mango man' would rather vote for the existing 75bhp 1.3 diesel. Its more practical than either of these options, and much cheaper to boot.

Sports variants are made for enthusiasts, not for 'mango men'.

But I guess we should be glad that this proposed 'Sports' variant at least features a faster engine, unlike the scams perpetrated by Honda (Civic Sports), Toyota (Altis Sports) and Mitsubishi (Cedia Sports). The highlight of all of those models was a body-kit! And Ford was decent enough to modify the suspension on the Fiesta 1.6S (and add the mandatory body-kit).

[asr245]

T-Jet all the way. A diesel can be made fast but cant sound nice, can it?

[rpmx1000]

Originally Posted by theEnd

We're looking at the hatchback here. The sedan (Linea) will have both these engines available very soon.

(at myself)
Sorry about the sedan remark. some sleep deprivation at work.Of course I meant hatch. Just that my mind hatch-ed a plot and out came Se(a)d(t)an

Mango men.
Well there are the Punto 1.3 MJD mango men, the intermediate mango men like me who like performance but still care about how much money we spend on our commute (to be brutally frank), and the real performance-lovers who I will call the the orange-men (no reference to South Africa intended here). Now we're comparing oranges to mangoes. There are many layers of grey (or yellow if you please) between the mango man in your imagination and in mine. Till the average GDP of India is well over the $2500 limit, car manufacturers will cater more to the mango men and less to the orange man (or apple man).

So, well the orange-men go for the T-jet
The ripe mango-men (or the intermediate mango-men go for the
Diesel Sport (which Fiat will be launching).
The orange men (I put you in this category after seeing the passion and righteous indignation in your reply) will wait for (and hopefully get) a T-jet.A toast to that

In all fairness to my choice, I dare say that the intermediate mango man's choice will have more torque than the orangeman's choice.

[ImmortalZ]

Do they want to sell cars and survive? The diesel is the correct choice. Enthusiasts don't really keep a car company in business.

[neoonwheels]

Would prefer Punto TJet any day but as It gonna take ages for her to get here. As my running gonna increase in couple of months (Company is shifting), m soon gonna upgrading to Punto MJD.

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by ImmortalZ

Do they want to sell cars and survive? The diesel is the correct choice. Enthusiasts don't really keep a car company in business.

+1

They would sell what will bring volumes & not something which will keep only enthusiasts happy.

[rpmx1000]

Originally Posted by theEnd

But I guess we should be glad that this proposed 'Sports' variant at least features a faster engine, unlike the scams perpetrated by Honda (Civic Sports), Toyota (Altis Sports) and Mitsubishi (Cedia Sports)

I do agree on the Altis and the Civic but not the Cedia Sports. The cedia was a natural enthusiast car. I don't see why they needed to mod anything mechanically except jazz up the looks. What did you really expect here? A stiffer suspension a la fiesta? Taking the same tone - the Fiesta S is also a scam for the price differential we pay.They could have thrown in a lot more
for a lakh rupees difference. Any mechanic can fit bigger rims. A lot more
is probably expected from the manufacturer.

Anyways, my vote goes to practical sporty cars rather than esoteric ones that spend more time in the garage than being driven. I know this is probably stirring a hornet's nest, but that's the truth. The T-jet would fall short on fuel consumption, and not be an everyday car for those on a budget and probably end up like that. For the well-heeled enthusiast, that is another story...

BTW, I don't think the T-jet Linea is out as yet. Of course I agree that the 90 bhp Linea is'nt a scorcher. But the Punto probably would because of it's lighter weight.