[spindoc]

@binaiks, congrats on your new car. Looks gorgeous!

Great to know you had a wonderful service experience too. Looks like Tata-Fiat are finally working on fixing the biggest chink in their armour.

Originally Posted by binaiks

He promised delivery at 1730 - I called him a 1700, and the car was ready! At 1725, I got a message from "TATA" saying that the car was ready for delivery. I took delivery at 1800 - was shining clean, and ride was silent - truly silent.

Given the horror stories here, TATA-FIAT has gone a long long long way in improving service. The overall feel was similar to the ones that I experienced last at Millennium Toyota, Thane (where I used to get my old Qualis serviced). Very professional indeed.

[Amartya]

That sounds really good, if they carry on like this, they will soon leave their bad reputation behind.
Enjoy your Punto experience.

[Palio_2005]

Congrats. Good to know that you had a "pleasent" experience at at a TATA dealership. Hope your ownership experience is "pleasent" as well.

[.sushilkumar]

Originally Posted by binaiks

The bill came out to a hefty Rs 3600. (The engine oil alone cost me Rs 2800) - Rs. 400 was charged towards wheel alignment.

IMO , it should have been included in first free service and done free of charge ..

Originally Posted by binaiks

The service quality was mind-boggling. I had booked an appointment the previous day - the time given was 10 AM. Heavy traffic blocks meant I reached there only past 1020. The executive came around only around 1040 - too many cars that morning. The executive took me around for a test drive before the car was taken in - to check for abnormal sounds, and alignment/braking problems.

He promised delivery at 1730 - I called him a 1700, and the car was ready! At 1725, I got a message from "TATA" saying that the car was ready for delivery. I took delivery at 1800 - was shining clean, and ride was silent - truly silent.

Given the horror stories here, TATA-FIAT has gone a long long long way in improving service. The overall feel was similar to the ones that I experienced last at Millennium Toyota, Thane (where I used to get my old Qualis serviced). Very professional indeed.

Took the car out on a highway ride today - she briefly touched a top speed of 150 kmph. Felt well planted and the was well under control. The tyre noise has reduced a bit - perhaps I got acquainted to it!

Total Reading on the ODO as of today: 3700 kms.

Good, Atlast The Tata / Fiat are improving and are serious about quality of service, I am too planning for a Punto some where in Middle of year ,But again QOS is something, i am Concerned about.

[binaiks]

Thought this is the right time to dig out this thread! Its been 4 months and 11 months since this baby came home - the silver darling has been serving me day in and day out since then - she's pretty young still - let this pic do some talking about her age:


(I missed clicking the magical 9999 mark during an overtake)

In the past four months - she's done one long trip (to Bangalore and back). She's visited the Workshop 6 times (once for some miscellaneous works, once for the free service, once for the FIAT Check up, and thrice for warranty claims).

The car has already received some major organ transplants - door latches of both the doors on the right have been replaced on warranty. The rear door was the first to fail - it took about a week, two mails and a dozen phone calls to get the part. The second to fail was the front driver door latch - this part was, thankfully, available ready stock with my dealer.

The overall experience with the car has been amazing. Although the plastics in the interiors looked cheap, they seem to be holding well enough... more updates on her in the coming days..

[binaiks]

Guess its time to pick up this thread again. Its been one full year and 16 days since the silver cutie came home. She's clocked close to 25,500 kms now. The third (and final) free service is just about 4.5k away now.

The ownership experience has been amazing (w.r.t the car alone). She's a pleasure to drive on the highways.

Offlate, I've been getting a lot of rattles - thanks to the horrible roads of Kerala. The front brake pads wore out, and had to get them replaced earlier this week. I started getting an awful noise from the brake pads all of a sudden, and took the car to the workshop the very next morning. The front right brake pad was completely worn out, and the brake disc too was damaged (right side). Had to get them replaced (the bill came out to Rs 5740-odd).

In the one year of ownership, the car has been to a workshop 9 times (not a great figure, IMHO). Out of the 10 visits, 4 visits were for warranty claims, 1 for the FIAT check up, two for service, one for the brake issue, one for refixing a broken mirror, one for replacing a bulb (front right direction indicator) and one due to an accident (front left door was dented. Got it repaired and repainted).

Non-availability of parts has been a major sore point in owning this car - but I still recommend FIAT to my friends.

Some Positive points: (just a few...)
1. Looks: I just can't take my eye off a Punto! I stand ogling one every time a Punto comes around. My office parking lot sees three of them (other than mine).
2. Safe-feeling: I feel really safe in the car. The body seems really rock solid, and the "thud" from the doors give that much needed confidence.
3. Handling: The Punto takes curves really well. I've taken curves at high speeds, and never felt unsafe. My old WagonR used to fly off the road!

Negatives: (I Think this deserves more attention.. the positives are already known)
1. Quality of plastics: They look too cheap. Theres a lot of rattling already. One plastic panel has already jumped out of its place - tried a lot of tricks to get it back to position, but it just doesn't budge.)
2. Turbolag: The car just struggles at times, especially with four people on board. I hate having to downshift every now and then.
3. A-S-S: The experience at the SC is mixed. They are really good at times, but turn horrible now-and-then. There are three dealers around my place (actually, all are 30+ kms away). I never took my car to the guy from where I took my car for service - they messed up every time, I took my car there for small niggles. They had me waiting an entire day to get a door lock changed (a warranty claim). They never issued me bills (and blamed it on network issues). On the other hand, my experience at Corcorde has been too good every time.
4. Cost of ownership: Owning this car has cost me a bomb - really! Although the services are far apart, the cost of owning is almost the same as any other 'expensive' car. The last service (second service) cost me some 7.5K, replacing the brake pad cost me some 5.4K, the mirror made me poorer by about 2.8K (the assembly comes for 1.8K, cover for Rs. 200, and Painting another Rs. 800) and so on.

A word on my service experience with Concorde: Concorde doesn't have a "quick service" bay. Hence every time I had a small issue, I ended up spending no less than 4 hours at the workshop! Another sore point is that they have just two SAs for Fiat (one is actually a trainee). Hence, finding out the guy is a pain. He is always overloaded.

I've not been able to extract great mileage from the car - mainly due to my style of driving and the road that I drive through. The average has been in the range of 16.5~17.5kmpl. This is with AC all the time.

I plan to change the tyres soon - suggestions please!

The rear tyres look worn out already (the ones in the front are okay). The car is still in stock condition - no accessories added (except the floor mat). I was planning to get the windows tinted - but decided against it later. Without the tints, I manage to get past security checks very quickly.

Have a few questions for other punters here:

1. What is the condition of the wipers? My wipers seem to have worn out. They leave a lot of mark after being used.
2. What is the condition of the tyres (Stock ones)? How long do they typically last?
3. What is that black dust getting coated on the front wheel caps? Is it from the brake pads?
4. How long did your brake pads last? Is my replacement (at 24882 kms) premature?

Please share your views (no pics now... but promise to upload a few very soon).

Note to Mods: Can you please shift this to the Long Term Ownership thread, and perhaps modify the title of the thread?

[amit_mechengg]

^^ can you please confirm the brake pads cost again?
did they change brake calipers or brake pads? the kbx set costs just 700 rs.

1. What is the condition of the wipers? My wipers seem to have worn out. They leave a lot of mark after being used.
Yes probably - try cleaning the face once. if issue still persists change them

2. What is the condition of the tyres (Stock ones)? How long do they typically last?
Depending on use/abuse they should last between 35000-40000

3. What is that black dust getting coated on the front wheel caps? Is it from the brake pads?
Brake dust - clean it regularly. coat the alloy with good carnauba polish. the brake dust comes off easily then

4. How long did your brake pads last? Is my replacement (at 24882 kms) premature?
i think they should have lasted more but again it depends on how you brake.

[binaiks]

Originally Posted by amit_mechengg

^^ can you please confirm the brake pads cost again?
did they change brake calipers or brake pads? the kbx set costs just 700 rs.

The bill read:
"Brake Pad Set" Qty: 1 Rate (Rs): 2654.83
"Brake Disc" Qty: 2 Rate (Rs): 990.01 (x2=1,980.02)
Labour: Rs. 448.50.

Total bill was Rs. 5715.00

The SA claimed the brake pads usually last only 20K - I was seriously shocked at that. I feel this is too small a distance.

[.anshuman]

Hi Binaiks, Good job with the ownership thread, i read the whole thread again.

My Punto sees the Sun daily yet after 1.5 years the wipers are. I am the kind of person who changes wipers every season still i have the wiper that came as OE on the Punto. The wipers are good quality and last really long. I am not happy with the windshield washer nozzles, they get clogged and misaligned frequently.

Tires in my car have about 10k kms left until they touch the TWI mark. The car has done 32k.

[Soccerfan]

Have seen brake pads getting replaced@15K kms in my friends Puntoi. But he drives fast!!!. Mine looks good to last for 10k kms more (Now @ 22.5K KMS)

[Klub Class]

Originally Posted by binaiks

1. What is the condition of the wipers? My wipers seem to have worn out. They leave a lot of mark after being used.

Religiously, we replace the wipers after each season. Now, we're on the 2nd set.

2. What is the condition of the tyres (Stock ones)? How long do they typically last?

They should last for more than 35k+ kms. Ideally once should change the tyres somewhere between 35k-45k kms.

Does your car run Goodyear or Bridgestone?

3. What is that black dust getting coated on the front wheel caps? Is it from the brake pads?

Don't worry. It's brake dust.

4. How long did your brake pads last? Is my replacement (at 24882 kms) premature?

It seems that you had much fun around the twisties.

Jokes apart. Our Fiat Punto has 29k+ kms in the odometer. We've not yet replaced the brake pads and I feel that it will last for another good 10K kms.

Note to Mods: Can you please shift this to the Long Term Ownership thread, and perhaps modify the title of the thread?

Since the chances for the moderators for not reading these kind of 'notes' are relatively very high, I would recommend you to use the 'report post to the moderators' option for title changes, moving the thread to another section, spelling corrections etc.

Originally Posted by .anshuman

I am not happy with the windshield washer nozzles, they get clogged and misaligned frequently.

I agree. Do you have any DIY solution for this?

[Sathya_sc]

Originally Posted by binaiks

The SA claimed the brake pads usually last only 20K - I was seriously shocked at that. I feel this is too small a distance.

In my Linea MJD.. I had to change the Brake pads at 17k kms. I believe it completely depends on the driving style. I have had friends of mine who actually have the out of factory ones for close to 30k kms!!

[binaiks]

Our Miss.Punto has finally done 30303 kms. Got my third free service done last week - and the bill turned out to a sum of Rs. 8177. (I had to replace my left ORVM - a pedestrian fell on to the mirror, breaking the entire assembly).

During the third service, Engine Oil, Oil Filter, Air Filters, and some other stuff were changed. I got the interiors shampooed - they did a real bad job here - the windshields and window glasses were horribly dirtied. The exterior washing too wasn't great - pointed this out during the FIAT feedback call. The dealer did call me for "Remedy" - I don't plan drive 40+ kms just to get the car washed again.

At the end of the third service, my SA said the next service would be paid - what more will I pay for! Already, the "Free" services end up with bills upto 7K each time! Between services, the car did make umpteen visits to the service centre - for brake pad replacement, replacement of front grille (that was broken after a cat ran into the grille!), plus some other miscellaneous works.

I got the left ORVM replaced, and decided not to get the mirror cover painted. I plan to get my Right ORVM cover also replaced with a black one. I couldn't get one from my dealer - since it was out of stock (like every FIAT part!) It actually looks good!

Is the "Thermometer" located inside the left ORVM? The temperature display went blank after the mirror broke. I was seriously disappointed to see the mirror break after a person fell on it - are these parts so fragile? The right ORVM has tonnes of scratches - for some reason, I feel the mirror projects out a lot.

What I feel at the end of 30303 on road?
The car is dead silent now. The AC felt a bit underpowered off late - I pointed out this during service, and the filter was replaced. I feel its still a bit underpowered - plan to take the car to the service centre again. Also, the SC did not reset the service reminder - it now keeps showing "Service coupon expired". I need to get this thing too reset.

The underbody keeps hitting humps every now and then. The SA checked under, and said there is no major damage - thanks to Kerala's roads, the body too was rattling badly. A plastic panel on the left side at the rear (The one near the rear door) broke off - this was replaced under warranty. Tyres are due for replacement very soon.

The car feels well-planted even at 150kmph! This is one big plus that I love in this car. The tyre noise is a bit on the higher side on highways, though.

Sad facts:
A guy banged behind my car yesterday. I had to brake suddenly at a junction yesterday - a biker (they were three on the bike), banged onto the car. The saddest part was that they started abusing me after banging on to my back, for braking without "warning them"! That blew the lid off, and I dragged them to the Police Station. I was adamant to not let them off - literally threatened them with dire consequences if they tried to run off.

The Police guys (Err! "Civil Police Officers") at the PS made them undergo an alcohol test, and seized the drivers' DL. The guys were daily wage workers, and they almost fell at my feet - I finally let them go with a stern warning. I hope the cops did not extract money to let their DL off. The guys behaved very arrogantly after banging on to my car, and I was seriously irritated.

The damage - the boot gate has suffered damage - nothing serious, just a dent. The lower portion of the rear bumper is badly scratched.

Winding up,
I've been getting mixed mileage - ranging from 15.9 to 19.1 kmpl. Had two trips to Bangalore (around 1100 kms round trip) - The mileage I got the first time was a meagre 16.1 kmpl, and in the second one the average was just around 17.1kmpl. I guess I've been driving the wrong way. I get 18~19 for local driving, but poor mileage on the highway! (I did get around 19.1 for the Perundurai-Kodungallur run on the last leg of my return from Bangalore).

Some suggestion to improve mileage would be appreciated - please help out.

Leaving all with a pic for now... a few more updates on the way:

[neil.jericho]

Hey Binaiks,

Very interesting thread. Was surprised to see how expensive Fiat's services are. The mileage is no great shakes either. A good informative thread for prospective Punto owners. Looking forward to further updates.

[akhilesh]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

Hey Binaiks,

Very interesting thread. Was surprised to see how expensive Fiat's services are. The mileage is no great shakes either. A good informative thread for prospective Punto owners. Looking forward to further updates.

Well you have to keep in mind that there were a few replacements. If we take the latest one, the amount 81xx also includes the entire LHS rear view mirror assembly and that the service needs to be carried out once every 15k kms. I would say its very reasonable.