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Old 12th July 2019, 12:40   #811
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

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Originally Posted by gopikb View Post
Like your Keerthi Car care, the Pride Cars near my home also gives wonderful service.
Had tried them for 1.7L service. Neat, clean space - where you can spend time with the vehicle and get the work done properly. Was my first attempt outside of authorized service network.

Only minor issue for me was that they didn't arrange brake pads in spite of me informing in advance, and I had to drive down to Vecto Motors the same day post getting the general service done at Pride. Secondly, its totally on the other end of town, for me.

My 2L milestone is looking far away, with my current reduced usage. Let's celebrate your 1L milestone on the Punto before that.
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Old 25th July 2019, 12:30   #812
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

So my 1.4 FIRE is now coming up on 1.5 lakhs kms and 10 years of ownership. The engine still doesnt show too many wear and tear signs and pulls pretty cleanly. Of course, my ride has gone through her share of part replacements over these 10 years. I have always gone to the authorized service centers. Started off with Prerana, then KHT, then Aadya and back to KHT. Wanted your advice on whether you would recommend going outside the authorized service centers now that you have tried it. Do you know of any good non Fiat service centers in this part of town (Whitefield)?
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Old 12th August 2019, 11:40   #813
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

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Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR View Post
Just to clarify - I meant 2.5L is way unrealistic on the higher side, not lower.

Their online estimates only have one option - greated than 1L kms, but the mental barrier between 1L kms and 1.75L kms is huge. And like you said, the news of FIAT's future isn't going to help either.

Can only explore the Cars24 option only when I'm ready to handover the vehicle - but just wanted to get a couple of suggestions on what's a realistic price before that.
Hi, do not mean to disappoint you (or for that matter all long time Punto owners) but here's something funny happened with me. I own a Punto, 1.2 FIRE Emotion (2011) with low mileage ~37K and decently maintained. Two days ago, I went to the nearest Ford dealer because I was eyeing an Ecosport for a long time. After the quotes, he offered to evaluate my Punto and I obliged. He said Puntos do not have any resale values, even the good old 90HPs and MJDs do not fetch much and yours is a 1.2 Petrol after all. He did a thorough evaluation and yesterday he called me and said the offer would stand at Rs. 75000!

Guess what, we both burst into laughter and then I thanked him for his sincere evaluation.

I have decided to hold on to the dear Punto and would only sell it to the Ordinance factory so that they can salvage it and use up the parts when they decide to build a Tank
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Old 12th August 2019, 15:39   #814
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Hi All,

Can anyone help me understand , how much would be the cost to repaint a Punto 90 HP Hiphop Balck.
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Old 12th August 2019, 17:57   #815
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Quote:
Originally Posted by Trooprex View Post
Hi, do not mean to disappoint you (or for that matter all long time Punto owners) but here's something funny happened with me. I own a Punto, 1.2 FIRE Emotion (2011) with low mileage ~37K and decently maintained. Two days ago, I went to the nearest Ford dealer because I was eyeing an Ecosport for a long time. After the quotes, he offered to evaluate my Punto and I obliged. He said Puntos do not have any resale values, even the good old 90HPs and MJDs do not fetch much and yours is a 1.2 Petrol after all. He did a thorough evaluation and yesterday he called me and said the offer would stand at Rs. 75000!

Guess what, we both burst into laughter and then I thanked him for his sincere evaluation.

I have decided to hold on to the dear Punto and would only sell it to the Ordinance factory so that they can salvage it and use up the parts when they decide to build a Tank
I think it's a price they can get for salvage and take a small hit on their margins while moving inventory. 75k to a lakh is all you can expect, there isn't a sales or service operation in place and parts will be unavailable going forward. I can't imagine why anyone would be interested in a used fiat. I'm expecting my car to last another 2 years before I get rid of it, actually I have to.
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Old 16th October 2019, 21:01   #816
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

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Originally Posted by nishkamm View Post
Hi All,

Can anyone help me understand , how much would be the cost to repaint a Punto 90 HP Hiphop Balck.
A good quality full body paint should cost you around 50K. However, there a lot of places which do it for 25 to 30K bucks. If the surface preparation is poor, the new coat of paint wont last long. So choose wisely.
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Old 17th November 2019, 00:06   #817
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

No major updates these days. Nearing 187k kms on the odo now and the usage has surely reduced.

However, battery died as if its scheduled. 64, 124 and 187 - I just seem to be getting an identical 6x k kms battery life every time. Anyways, picked up yet another Amaron 55 Din battery.

A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold-20191116_133913.jpg

Yep, the cap for windshield washer is missing. Need to find a workaround for it temporarily. And the engine bay begs to be cleaned.

Been neglecting the car recently due to personal and travel commitments - so took some time to clean and detail it (DIY) this weekend. Interior and engine bay pending for the coming days. However, the shinings logos do bring a smile on my face.


A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold-20191115_101722.jpg

A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold-20191115_100840.jpg

Last edited by CrAzY dRiVeR : 17th November 2019 at 00:08.
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Old 26th November 2019, 00:54   #818
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Quote:
Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR View Post
No major updates these days. Nearing 187k kms on the odo now and the usage has surely reduced.

However, battery died as if its scheduled. 64, 124 and 187 - I just seem to be getting an identical 6x k kms battery life every time. Anyways, picked up yet another Amaron 55 Din battery.


Yep, the cap for windshield washer is missing. Need to find a workaround for it temporarily. And the engine bay begs to be cleaned.

Been neglecting the car recently due to personal and travel commitments - so took some time to clean and detail it (DIY) this weekend. Interior and engine bay pending for the coming days. However, the shinings logos do bring a smile on my face.

Your ownership thread has been impeccable, CD. I have a 90HP Tuscan Wine Punto (2011 make) and I plan to keep her for a few more years. I've never felt as connected to any car in my family like the Punto.

I don't have a FASS in my hometown, Mangalore. So I drive down annually to the nearest FASS i.e URS Kar, Mysore which is a good 240 kms away from my place

Absolutely love the way she drives even after 8 years and never fails to plaster a smile on my face
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Old 3rd December 2019, 00:14   #819
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

I have a question to fellow Punto owners. I recently bought a pre-worshipped 75k run 2011 90hp Punto Emotion pack. The car had a few minor leaky issues (gearbox/Steering rack and driveshaft) which I got rectified at World of Service in Chennai.

I have driven the car a bit over 600kms in the 3 weeks I have had her and currently am noticing a few weird noises.
1. There is a springy/creaky noise while engaging/disengaging the clutch. If I let go of the accelerator or get back on the gas this sound comes momentarily. I pumped the clutch pedal when the car was stationary and changed gears but there is no noise, so the clutch bearing and spring do not seem to be the culprit. I suspect some interior panel to be making the noise.Can the source of noise be the suspension since the car moves about when we let go or get back on the gas. When the transmission was removed to attend the leak the clutch was checked and is in good shape for at least another 30-50k kms.

2. When driving on uneven surfaces I hear this irritating squeaking noise (imagine a mouse/rat) from the rear.

3. I noticed that when braking for the first time in the day the brake pedal makes a weird noise. Is this because of the rust getting cleared of the discs?

I loved the Punto 90hp ever since I drove her way back in 2015(Evo) and also the great threads by Karthik and Crazy driver. Hence I knew it had to be my first car when the time came. I very well stepped into the Fiat knowing that it is not going to be a walk in the park with respect to maintenance.

My driving, owning and maintaining experience before and currently other than the Punto has only been my dad's Innova for the past 7+ years and never having experienced a single rattle or squeak in the 10+ years has really got me riled up while driving my Punto.

Other than the above my car feels tight. The pickup is good and there is no black smoke. The gears shift smoothly.

Make no mistake I love my Punto but I feel worried when I hear suck noises since I love for my cars to be in top shape mechanically.

Answers to my questions would be a great stress-buster!

Last edited by Shanksta : 3rd December 2019 at 00:16.
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Old 8th December 2019, 20:27   #820
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Quote:
Originally Posted by Shanksta View Post
I have driven the car a bit over 600kms in the 3 weeks I have had her and currently am noticing a few weird noises.
1. I'd check the engine mounts as well. The engine tends to move back and forth during gearshifts.

2. This is quite common in Puntos that I know of. If the noise comes from the inside, then the rear seat is usually the cause. FASS may or may not be able to fix these rattles. I usually let them take a look at it( if they are common issues FASS people know what causes it and will fix it in a matter of minutes) and if it takes too long to figure out, I'd usually tell them to skip it and get them fixed on my own.

3. Don't worry about the brake noise in the morning as long as it goes away after driving for a while. If the noise sustains, get the brake pads checked.

There are a lot of things in the car that would start rattling over time. If both FASS and yourself can't fix them, just turn up the music. If the speakers start jarring then head straight to the ICE section and take a look at the Punto ICE upgrade threads

Drive Safe!
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Old 8th December 2019, 20:30   #821
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Quote:
Originally Posted by --gKrish-- View Post
1. I'd check the engine mounts as well. The engine tends to move back and forth during gearshifts.

2. This is quite common in Puntos that I know of. If the noise comes from the inside, then the rear seat is usually the cause. FASS may or may not be able to fix these rattles. I usually let them take a look at it( if they are common issues FASS people know what causes it and will fix it in a matter of minutes) and if it takes too long to figure out, I'd usually tell them to skip it and get them fixed on my own.

3. Don't worry about the brake noise in the morning as long as it goes away after driving for a while. If the noise sustains, get the brake pads checked.

There are a lot of things in the car that would start rattling over time. If both FASS and yourself can't fix them, just turn up the music. If the speakers start jarring then head straight to the ICE section and take a look at the Punto ICE upgrade threads

Drive Safe!
Funny enough the noise mentioned in point number 1 has reduced on its own.

I have already started turning up the music and just enjoying driving this beauty.
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Old 21st December 2019, 22:13   #822
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Quote:
Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR View Post
Couldn't check this today. Will update during the weekend. Thank you.
Hi Sujai, just wanted to check how was the low beam issue resolved?

I seem to have developed the same issue for my Punto, checked the fuses, bulbs, relay and the combination switches and everything seems to be fine. The FIAT service center checked and have advised this is a BCM issue and needs to be replaced to resolve the issue (which costs approx 21K excluding labour).
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Old 30th December 2019, 07:07   #823
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

After 188k kms, the stock shock absorber seems to have given up. Will be going in for a replacement by mid-Jan.

Quote:
Originally Posted by sabby View Post
Hi Sujai, just wanted to check how was the low beam issue resolved?
Not sure. Reverted to Osram Nightbreaker Laser from my earlier 100/90 setup, and just about to complete 9k kms since the change. Would be too early to tell if the downgrade was able to resolve the issue.
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Old 12th January 2020, 10:07   #824
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Back from another 1600 km Bangalore - Trivandrum round trip, and the car performed well just as always!

An interesting aspect this time around was that I could also drive the Xcent for a 900kms Trivandrum - Dhanushkodi round trip. And driving the Punto afterwards felt like such a renewed experience. Xcent scores brilliantly in a couple of parameters - practicality, space management, convenience, interior touch and feel quality and refinement, but is no match for the suspension, build and driving dynamics of the Punto. And that too - with a suspension that is completely shot!

Quote:
Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR View Post
400 kms of highway run mentioned in the last sentence was on the two lane highways in Kerala, however, the warning lamp showed up again while driving from Kerala to Karnataka post another 400kms of continuous running - so it really has to be the EGR at fault I believe.
Well, Madurai is haunted.

The 'Check Engine' light is back on after another 400kms of highway running, and the car made it back home without any issues for another 1200 kms.

Looks like the EGR is the culprit once again, and the solenoid could be showing its age. To be addressed during the upcoming 190k kms service.
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Old 12th January 2020, 10:19   #825
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re: A thin line between genius and insanity - Fiat Grande Punto 90HP - 2,00,000 km up! Edit: Sold

Quote:
Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR View Post
but is no match for the suspension, build and driving dynamics of the Punto. And that too - with a suspension that is completely shot!

This makes it tough to find a good upgrade as well.

Quote:
Originally Posted by CrAzY dRiVeR View Post
Well, Madurai is haunted.

So, you have reason to take a longer route next time.
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