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5-Door Fiat 500 to Replace Punto in 2015.

A replacement for the Punto is on the way for 2015 and this car will drop its current name and become a 5-door 500.

I replaced the 2 rear shocks in my Punto - the RR shock was making a squealing noise after passing over bumps and potholes and that's gone now.

The labor charge was 750/- per shock at the ASC + taxes, and I thought that was rather high. I got a 10% discount on the labor+parts from the coupon I got in the recently held service camp.

How much would a private garage in Bangalore typically charge for replacing a shocker ?

Do I need to get an alignment done as well ?

Guys, noticed something while driving today. The km reading on the odo screen started blinking and didnt stop at all even after I stopped and restarted. Since I do not have the manual with me now, can someone help on what could be the issue?
Is it to do with weak battery or service due? It cannot be a service due issue since there is still some time for that.

Yes. Its probably due to weak battery. I too had a similar thing and after the battery replacement, there is NO Blinking.

Get your battery checked.


Also guys, my Punter is due for its 40k kms service in next 400 kms. What all is needed? My last service happened in Jan 2013. I have driven around 13k kms since then. Any pointers?


Regards,

Is yours the Emotion trim? With Blue & Me?

If yes, check if it is working. Most probably it won't, you would need a proxi alignment procedure to correct this.

That is my suspicion - also got the Airbags Failure message a few times.

Hmm, I didn't check the Blue&me - and yes, mine is the Emotion Pk. I will check this when I drive back home later today. Else, will head to Aadhya on the way back.

Hi ALL, Has anyone faced a dead battery situation in their Punto ever.

Yesterday at 8 p.m while restarting at a signal, the car failed to start, no electricals worked and also steering got locked, with so much traffic I couldn't push it off hosur road. I opened the bonnet and fiddled with battery wires. They seemed perfect thou After about 15 mins it started on its own after a few tries.

I had a service coupon expired warning since last few months, as the service centers failed to reset it, could it be due to that it reset something. Or could it be loose wires or something.

Punto is 4 years 3 months old, battery replaced just 7 months back.last service was done in Nov 2013.

Any pointers please,
Thanks in advance.

I doubt that the same is to do with loose wires. Typically when the battery is in it's last stages, one faces this issue of battery just going dead / car not starting when the engine is warm / hot and has run for more than 15 minutes in one go.

When you let the engine cool off for 10 to 15 mins, the battery is able to crank up the car again. I do not know the logical reasoning behind this but, it has happened to me twice. One was a recent incident with my Palio MJD and the other about 5 years back on Indigo Diesel.

On both occasions, a break of 10 to 15 mins did the trick and finally when I changed the battery, the problem vanished.

Cheers

PS - Oh, I missed the fact that you replaced the battery 7 months back. Please do get the battery checked for a weak cell or not having enough distilled water.

It should not be the cause, as I had ran my car many months without resetting the service reminder alarm

Hello,
After some deliberations have gathered enough courage to decide on a Fiat Punto. But before making the final splash deemed is sensible to ask here about a few things?

Hows the serviceability of Fiat cars? Have they improved over the years?
Are there issues with spare parts availability?
Any review of Fiat dealer in Kochi, Hyson ?

Anyone who can help, please !!!

Not because I am an owner, even if I was not : I would say TAKE IT NOW!

Spares can still be a problem, but critical parts normally do not fail, and for the slow moving, non critical parts, you may need to wait 2 weeks! FIAT exclusives are better. Running spares are normally stocked.
You will find enough info here to maintain your car in top shape, and the positives will FAR FAR outweigh the niggles and ASS experience. (I must say it has become better over the years.) Niggles and issues are there in all cars, and service is OK: nothing mind-blowing, just that, use your judgement to find the right place for you!


PS:
I own a 1.2, am a very happy owner, and it has saved me and my family members when it was needed. It gives very good mileage too, (touch-wood) contrary to bad reputation!clap:

Go for it or rather "Make the Move" and you won't repent your decision at all.
I have a Linea MJD Emotion 2011 June (44000 odo) and Punto MJD Emotion pack since 2009 sept (49000 odo) with no major issues till date. Spares are not a problem in this part of country now, thanks to independent dealership. Moreover you also have 99rpm.com from where you can source the parts.
Running parts are readily available in dealerships.

Hold on your Horses. Wait !!

You are the best person, to decide on whether you should buy one or not.
- Are you a Son of Tata or Birla? If yes, then go and Buy one.
- Do you have ~3-4X times of cash in bank, then Go and buy one.
- Are you doing some job and going to pay hard earned money/EMI to buy this, then Don't buy one.

Why on earth you wanna buy a Punto?
A chap in my company has been trying to sell a Linea Emotion Top end vehicle for 3.3L (He Still Mentions *negotiable*). He has been trying to sell it from the past 6 months or so. Still, It hasn't sold. I am sure that he would have plonked in some 9+ Lakh when he bought new. Fiats depreciate more than D segment Sedans. And there wont be any takers.

When was Punto Launched? When is it going to be sacked?
It was launched around 7-8 years ago. Life of a product in Today's auto industry is ~10 years. Punto is nearing its dead line and it could be sacked anytime in 2015/16. Then the Resale vale shoots down & Maintenance costs shoot up.

Some facts:
Palio/Siena Lower arms cost 4K. And the front/rear Suspension costs 4.6 K+.
Vento's Lower arm costs 1600 or so (without taxes). Same is the case with suspension. The sole reason being, these cars aren't manufactured in India anymore and the parts get imported. So the high cost.
The case will be the same with Punto. Because it hardly sells 10K a year. And it doesn't make any sense for Fiat to manufacture parts here down the line.
Head light of Palio stile costs 9-11K :Shockked: But it was sold for 3.7Lakh as some stock clearance offer.
Do you wanna go in this mode?

How difficult is to procure spares for Fiats?
Ideally, you will have to follow up with the service center guys everyday.
As soon as you have lunch, you will have to call them and talk politely (Like a Lover). This should go on for couple of days.
Sometimes, you will have to talk to their parents (Managers) and you should request for a speedy processing. Still,
They will say, Today/tomorrow, and they have numerous reasons to keep you waiting. And a couple of holidays will come in between as you will be a Lucky Fiat owner.
Your car will be relaxing @ a service station or at your Home. Car is happy because it is resting. You are walking, So good for you.
If you are short tempered (like me), Then there would be a significant improvement in your anger management. Very Good for you.
Do you like it ? Do you wanna take it ?

How difficult is to get it repaired?
Hmm.. This is a bit easy. Because of the numerous Multi-jet engines in Swift's Ertiga's, i think, this is a bit easy if you take a Multi-Jet.
But, If you are planning for a petrol one. Then you are going to loose couple of more Kilo's & it is very good for you.
If you are planning for a TJet or some other rare model, then you will definitely get a 6 pack.

All i can say is,
- She will save your Life in case of an accident.
- She drives like a Tank. (So Strong & still complacent)
- You can depend on her. (But this is a lot doubtful with the current lot of cars.)
- You are going to loose all your money & car down the line. Just in couple of years. Oops, you will get ~5X(Metal cost), if you use it for ~5 years.

Now, Do you wanna Buy one?

Its a vicious circle indeed.
Fiat won't manufacture parts due to low volume and car sells in low volume as the long lead time and high cost of non-routine spare parts is one of the factor affecting sales.
I own a T-Jet but still sometimes get jittery after reading the recent experiences of other owners regarding the long waiting period of parts. One thing which I really hate and wonder about Fiat is that in its entire organisation setup and 100s of dealerships, is only Mr. Mangesh Kakodkar is working sincerely and all others are incompetent or what, atleast this is the public perception.
I fully agree with gemi_kk's post.
I am writing this post after having completed the third free servicing of my T-Jet last week and was welcomed by the board displaying 'Car washing is NOT available' on enquiring I was informed that this board is kinda permanent and was there since more than a month. I asked them that is this a right way to treat a customer who is supposed to visit the service centre once a year.

It can become a virtuous circle if Fiat owners gloss over the problems. Just like the network effect in technology firms. More people praise the car, more interest, perhaps more sales, and perhaps more effort by FIAT to really make a difference.

Nice, praiseworthy, and refreshing of FIAT owners to be honest.