Quote:
Originally Posted by aseem They sure would be happy and Punto sales will surely sore if Fiat gets the following right:
1) Dated Interiors
2) Tata like Fit and Finish of the plastics that would even make a Maruti owner proud (Maruti are not that great to begin with)
3) Sad state of tune of the engine (where is the power going?)
4) Sad gear ratios (Even then 90 PS Punto is not feeling quick)
5) Quality issues from what I have heard, read, seen, like tyres getting uneven tread ware, plastics falling off, chrome glue, driver seat going down, and what not |
I was curious as to how many Puntos you have driven/owned etc to have reached this judgement.
1.Dated Interiors : Agreed that the Palio had dated interiors, and they have stopped selling it.
Punto and Linea have one of the best interiors in its category. The only car to come with steering mounted call facility of all bluetooth enabled units in its category.
For my 7+ lacs, I got ABS, Airbags and all the bells and whistles in a diesel, which, unfortunately Maruti did not think important in its product line. So, my choice was obvious.
Please show me one diesel hatchback which has all the features and is equally involving to drive.(i20 has turbo lag issues: No I have not driven it, but all the major reviewers/mags/owners have said that and its 1lac more on road). I would like to know what part of the interior is actually dated?
2) Tata like Fit and Finish of the plastics
Yes.Agreed again. Some of the plastics are not of the best quality. But oh well, nothing has fallen off in my ride nor do I have any rattles after 15000 kms of aggresive driving.
3) Sad state of tune of the engine (where is the power going?)
What is the service interval of the Swift DDIS again?
How many Fiats have you seen with a broken engine? If my car goes long without giving me high service bills, I am happy. I am sure I dont want my car to be a Drag-spec diesel. Well, think of it, I have not heard of too many drag spec diesels either,have you?
It takes me nicely from point A to point B, masks speed very well and definitely not a slug (please drive one).
The 1.4 FIRE isnt a slow coach either. But yeah, it doesnt
FEEL fast.
4) Sad gear ratios (Even then 90 PS Punto is not feeling quick)
So, How was your test drive feeling from the 90PS Punto?
Did the TD car have > 5k on the ODO? Have you read the feedback of the other Punto owners on the 5k change?
Feeling quick is different from going quick. If you really want to feel quick, get on a open tired car, you will know what it means (go-karts, formula maruti ??)
5) Quality issues from what I have heard, read, seen,
like tyres getting uneven tread ware : it was a camber issue.Fiat did the wrong thing. Not expected from a reputed manufacturer. But, the owner could have fixed it himself at a much lower cost than what he has already spent on new tires. This would have happened due to a mistake by the QC person before delivery. Manual error by individual costing Fiat a lot. But, this is not a brake failure or gas pedal getting stuck and was a one off case.
plastics falling off, : which piece of plastic from whose car? lets forget the TD cars since they are more abused than all the cars on road.
I havent heard any owner complain about parts falling off.
chrome glue :I guess this issue was identified by Fiat and fixed.
driver seat going down : same as above
and what not : what not?
Fiat had proactively fixed quite a few issues in the car as and when reports came up.
I dont want to sound like a Fiat fanboy, but, yeah, it does hurt a little when you are called a lunatic for buying a product which I chose after i did deep research based on my requirements. All products have their pros and cons. I had some requirements and a budget and only Fiat offered a product in that bracket. Must be the same for quite a few people.
I found the Fabia's interior quality a class apart, but it did not have quite a few gizmos. i.e. no USB etc..
Its easy to make cavaliar comments based on others' views. It takes some effort and some time to actually go down to Ground Zero and verify the same.
Swift is a really potent car and thats why its still the best seller. i20 doesnt wow anyone with its handling and still sells in very good numbers.
I do not intend to hurt anyone's feelings here. However, I feel that its justfied that we see a product for what it is.
We had a Dzire with a broken camshaft in this forum. This was due to oil leakage when the car underbody hit a rock. Well, it wont happen in a Ford or a Fiat because they have a engine guard plate below the engine bay.
I guess I have spoken enough.
Mods: I dont intend to flame. Please delete this post if it seems so.