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-   -   Fiat Grande Punto : Test Drive & Review (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/official-new-car-reviews/60626-fiat-grande-punto-test-drive-review-441.html)

There are no nuts/bolts inside the steering wheel that can pop the way your pictures indicate.

You can see a reference image of the punto steering wheel here : http://www.99rpm.com/fiat/steering-wheel-punto.html

The airbag unit is contained in the horn pad so that has no influence over the bulged part of your steering wheel.

If your car is within warranty period, get the wheel replaced.

Thank you for the info. I have followed it up with Vecto Fiat, will update the thread.

Noticed this very thoughtful feature in the Punto yesterday. My RHS rear indicator bulb conked off after 97k kms of usage. I was worried about the vehicles following my car being caught unaware of my intentions of turning right (unless they notice the side blinkers), however, it turns out - the CANBUS system does try to compensate for the conked off indicator bulbs by flashing the tail lamps instead.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5idv...ature=youtu.be

How does this system act during other scenarios (for example when brakes are applied etc)? Not really sure yet, as I replaced the conked off lamps. Will be doing a pro-active replacement of the LHS indicator lamps next weekend. Will try to monitor the system then.

Useful indeed CD!

I wonder why FIAT INDIA fails to market these small yet significant safety features. I also wonder if they know at all.

It was something new that we found CD. Replacing the bulb and checking before replacing the bulb got this.

On a lighter note, time to experiment more on your car to unhide such features. lol:

Spotted the first ever Punto Taxi at Mahabaleshwar!

Great development, now we will have safer and more comfortable taxis :thumbs up

I've encountered the Punto/Linea Active/Classic mjd as taxi in several cities, from Kolkata to Gurgaon to Bambaii. Not common, but still: a good development, imo.

Even saw an Avventura inter-state cab, recently, heading off to Rajasthan on nh8 in Gurgaon: cannot think of a better (safer and more comfy yet inexpensive) national and state highway+district road touring cab, for say 4 with luggage, including on the roof. Hope to see many more on the Himachal+Uttaranchal routes: just the terrain for these cars, esp given safety concerns for both car and passengers.

Hey Guys,

I have been in the market for a premium hatchback for about two months now. My requirements are something like this:

• The car will be used by me and my family.
• Monthly running about 1200 KMs-70% City and 30% Highway.
• Should have enough space in the back and the boot. ( Most important)
• Should be reliable.
• The car would be in a for a long haul. 7 Years or more. So resale value is not being considered.
• We are mileage conscious
• Budget constraint up to 8 Lakhs on road.

Some things to consider:

• Test driven Punto 75/90, Elite i20, Jazz.
• I fell in love the first time I drove Punto 75 HP. And then drove 90 HP and fell in love some more.
• Found i20 to be a neutral drive. Neither too eager nor too sluggish. Same with Jazz minus the lag at bottom end.
• Researched about Hyundai's, Honda's, Fiat's reliability and after sales service. Found the content pretty skewed
• Hyderabad has 2 Fiat, 4 Hyundai, and 4 (unique) Honda ASCs.

Now, looking at the requirements one might jump to a quick conclusion that Jazz Petrol is the best for me. Even I was in the same boat until Jazz revealed it's prices. I was disappointed. First, the petrol SV variant is priced at 7.80 Lac on road, 13k more than Hyundai Elite i20 petrol Sportz variant which offers much more premium features. Just as I was about to jump the i20 wagon, FIAT Sales guy called up and said that he's willing to offer me Punto EVO Emotion 75HP for 8 lakhs on road. I had enquired about Dynamic version before, but I never thought they'd be willing to offer Emotion for 8 lakhs. This got me into serious confusion. The Punto Evo Emotion being diesel and top version is only 20k more than Petrol Jazz SV and 33k more than Petrol i20 Sportz. It's very tempting to go for Punto EVO now since it has decent space, decent engine, and great driving dynamics. But there are a couple of things I want to be clear of before take a plunge.

• Is FIAT worth going for after all the things it has been through (Keeping in mind the price)?
• I heard there were some updates done to the engine parts post 2012 upgrade which supposedly made it more "reliable". Is this any true?
• On a scale of 1 to 10 how would you rate Punto EVO on the reliability factor? And how would you rate the other two cars?
• Has there been any improvement in the spare part availability post 2014 announcement that they will stock up spare parts to improve customer experience?
• How about the cost of spares of all the cars? Who's the cheapest to maintain?
• What is probability of it giving me hard surprises like breaking down on the road? And what about the other two cars? (Given that I maintain them enthusiastically)
• Is FIAT is bad as it is made out to be on the forum when it comes to it's niggles with car or aftersales? Or is it just that the issues are blown out of proportions? Could it be because of the greater number of FIAT owners being on the forum or smaller portion of the actual Honda or Hyundai owners being on the forum?

Clearly I have a lot of doubts. :D Kindly bear with me. It would be great if I get this points cleared. And I kindly request you to be as factual as possible keeping out your love/hate for all things FIAT.

Thank you in advance!!

Regards,
Ryuu

If I have to buy synthetic oil for a Fiat Punto 1.2 Active petrol, I would need to buy synthetic 5w40 grade oil suitable for gasoline engines if I am not wrong.

Here is a confusion I have regarding this, I have found oil online meeting the same requirement: (Amazon Link 2 )

Please advise on this as I need to make a buying decision soon for a Fiat Punto 1.2 Active.
The question that's hovering in mind is, anything additional that needs to be taken care while buying online? The item is non-returnable.

Mobil1 oil is available even cheaper online and I am not sure of the authenticity.

The grade of oil is specified in the owner's manual. Check there before buying.

To ensure authenticity buy the pack that is "Amazon Fulfilled" even if you have to buy 1L x 4 rather than a single 1L pack.

Yes the qty. required should be 3.5+ litres, again refer to the owner's manual for exact figures

Thanks khoj for the timely response!
The amazon fulfilled item is a 1litre item at 1000/- rs each with exactly the same specification and the item description clarifies it is for use in cars.
The 4L cans that I am getting are turning out slightly cheaper than 1Lx4 cans, but they are not Amazon fulfilled (link shared earlier).

I guess 4 cans of this oil would suffice my need along with additional buffer that would be consumed in replacing oil filter (300 ml).

If I am correct, Fiat Punto would need 3.5 liters of oil only?

Have you factored in resale price of car in 3 or 5 years. I know you are keeping it for longer but just keep economic perspective in place. Check current prices of a year or two old model that you are choosing.

Absolutely. You yourselves said you loved the 75HP and the 90HP even more.

Fiat engines have been made much more refined in the new offing the Avventura. For Evo and the earlier, the engine is pretty much the same.

I would rate it 9. I cant comment on the rest two since I have not driven them extensively. They may look loaded with gadgets but how reliable, only owners can answer.

Spares availability has never been an issue IMO particularly with fast moving one. Slow moving ones, yes may not be readily available. But then you have 99rpm.com website which caters to Fiat spares.

I would say Fiat spares cost are at par with other brands. I would not term then costly.

Regular maintenance would mean no breakdowns but then if the car is abused then it would give away which is the case with pretty much every car brand. In my two years on Punto ownership till date no breakdown.

Less said the better. There will be people who will be biased for and against Fiat, it depends on the owner whether he enjoys driving the car.

Sudev, no we didn't. Roughly, the Hyundai seems to have the upper hand here. But since there is no question of selling the car for another 7 or more years, I don't think it matters much.

Thanks, ghodlur!

Okay. It's just that one quick search on the forum opens a can of worms, I'm little apprehensive. What about the smaller niggles like HVAC conked off and stuff? I understand that mechanical issues are bound to be there, but what must be taken into consideration is the level of competency of FASS which handles the issue. If it takes 2-3 days to handle an AC issue, then it's a concern.

I couldn't find much information about AV motors? They seem to be the better one in Hyderabad. Hyd guys, please comment.

Alright. I have checked that website and they seem to be well stocked. But it's always better to have it ready the workshop itself. Less headache. I presume there isn't a concern with spares for Hyundai and Honda?

I'm not the abuser type. I take it slow. That's the reason Punto appealed to me. However, I'm talking about instances reported on the forum. So far there have been two major issues which lead to engine seizure- Engine oil drinking and metal parts in oil. And there is no RCA for it. That's kind of worrisome isn't it? Another major one I keep hearing about is the suspension issue. I'm not sure if I'm being paranoid about all this!please: