[drmessiah]

Hello all,

I had a 2008 FIAT Palio Stile SDX which was sold last week for a resonably good value. I wanted a car to replace the Palio, so I spoke to the TATA-FIAT dealer in my region and enquired about the availabilty of FIAT Punto Sport. I had a good rapport with this dealer because I had bought a TATA Grande last January and it was a smooth process. The sales executive was in charge of TATA, so he asked his friend in another dealership who was the sales person of FIAT to give me details. He was friendly and gave me all the details of the Grande Punto Sport. He introduced me to the Sales Manager who was nice and very courteous and promised to get the car to the dealership as soon as I am ready with the bank formalities. I paid a booking amount of Rs. 10K, so the order can be placed and punched from the factory.

The sales executive kept me informed about the discounts and benefits for the car during this season, and was happy that whatever he quoted was reasonable though I pressed him for more discounts.
Once during the conversation he mentioned about a 2010 manufactured Linea Tjet in their stocks that was not sold. So I asked him more about the details and he said if I am interested he could talk to the manager and get a good deal for me for the Linea Tjet. I was obviously interested and the price the quoted was a lakh lesser than the purchasing cost of the GP 90 sport
. Now i was caught between my heart and mind and my heart was taking the decision that i go for the Linea Tjet. I went to the dealership, Marina Motors at Calicut.The car was washed before I took a look and seemed fine. The color was Sunbeam Beige and was the emotion series. I took permission before I started the car and I really loved the exhaust note and really fell for this car. I open the bonnet checked for any tell-tale signs of misuse or accident repairs, it seemed fine. The body line was good and everything looked in order ,the rubber beadings and the carpeting looked fine. The front seats were a little dirty, the rear seats still had the plastic covers on. The odo showed H400 km on it. I enquired and the sales executive said it was driven from Kochi to Calicut and hence the kms on it. So i asked whether it was a test drive vehicle or demo vehicle for which he said a Tjet + was allotted to them as the test drive vehicle.
The on-road cost of this car was 10 lac. But because this car was not sold and was a 2010 model the were willing to give me with a 3 lac discount + insurance free. so the car will only cost 6.8 lac on road for me. I feel this is a very good and mouth-watering deal at this cost.The car did not come with the 16" alloy and leather seats as the Tjet +, whereas came with fabric seat cover and 15" steel disc.

Friends, Please help me I am caught between my brain and heart. This is a one of a kind offer and very hard to resist. One thing is the dealer is not pushing me hard to sell this one. they are ok with whether i take the GP Sport or this. If I take this one it will be ready in a day whereas the the Punto will Take about 10 days to be delivered.

dmessiah

[skm1967]

Hi,

I think you are getting a good deal and need to give it a serious thought. I myself bought a 2011 T-Jet + recently and am really happy having done so. Mine was from the Fiat plant so perhaps in a better condition. The vehicles lying with the dealers were available at greater discounts as there are concerns as expressed by you. So please do a thorough check up before taking a final decision. Please check if extended warranty of 2 years is applicable. If it is and you are satisfied with condition of car and convinced car has not been misused, I think you should go ahead with this SBB T-Jet. You will not regret. Only very few with dealers only are available.

[spider77]

If I have to make a decision on this , I'll go for it. I have driven tjet few times , for me this car has everything a driver demands ,superb handeling ,good space, build quality. Absolute value for money at this price.

[thoma]

It is you who have to decide, whether you want the experience of buying a brand new car or can settle for a car whose history for 2 years is not much known, though a class above and at lesser cost. Whether you want a diesel hatch or a petrol sedan. It is not that great for a car to sit idle for long, especially when it has been braving the weather. Parts have a shelf life as much they have a service life. I am not saying that 2 years is a long time for parts to get replaced. Was the car serviced per the time schedule? Is this vehicle alone driven from Kochi to Calicut or all their vehicles? I don't believe that. Further, what is the warranty conditions the dealer is giving on the T-Jet? Will Fiat serve you the full warranty? I guess they should be. carwale.com valuations show a value of 6.43 lacs for a used 2010 T-Jet, from the dealer. So, the offer of 7 lacs should not be that mouth watering.

I am not advising against buying the T-Jet. But, do consider the minor risks too. And if they can bring down the price, better. Because there won't be much takers for the car. That's all. My two cents.

[Biraj]

There would be enough rationale to not go for the T-jet but I am not sure how much they would appeal to you, if the T-jet bug has bitten you. Being a T-jet+ owner, I can tell you that the car is a steal at 6.8 OTR. Please do a thorough PDI and get all fluids and battery changed. 15" wheel is more suitable for Indian roads, it will offer better ride. The cost of running it will be high but the pleasure that the ride offers will compensate for it. I have a Punto MJD and Linea T-jet, no matter how much I try I always end up logging more miles on T-jet than Punto. Only word of caution will be the detailed PDI. Dealer should allow you a small test drive before you take the decision. All the best and keep us posted!

[pganapathy]

It is a decent deal. The first thing you need to do is change all fluids and get them to check and change anything that may well have suffered hardening and hence damage from a long period if inactivity. Rubber is the first thing to suffer from this.

Additionally I am sure they would be willing to sweeten the deal a bit more because the longer this goes on, the harder the car will be to sell.

Please do a detailed PDI and check further on this site for tips on the sorts of things that can go in a car that has been sitting for a long time.

[differential]

is it possible to drive a new car with out a temp insurance or a temp reg and road tax (car had 400 km on the odo). i am not too sure about the rules. just that that point stood out. kindly clarify if that is a valid point or disregard if it is an ok issue.

if you are going for the T-JET get all tyes new. (> 2 years unused tyres + great engine + entusiastic heart) not a good combination is it. and the battery tooo like someone else suggested.

happy hunting!

[drmessiah]

Originally Posted by differential

is it possible to drive a new car with out a temp insurance or a temp reg and road tax (car had 400 km on the odo). i am not too sure about the rules. just that that point stood out. kindly clarify if that is a valid point or disregard if it is an ok issue.

if you are going for the T-JET get all tyes new. (> 2 years unused tyres + great engine + entusiastic heart) not a good combination is it. and the battery tooo like someone else suggested.

happy hunting!

Thanks all for giving me valuable inputs and help me think.I am not sure if they had changed any of the fluids in the car at all. I have few pictures which i had taken during my visit to the dealer on friday, will be posting them shortly. They promised with all the warranties that will come with the a new car. the 2+2 year extended warranty,The insurance for one year will be borne by them, etc. I will have to ask them about the temp reg process and how the 400 km was done. I have asked them to put the OE alloys on this car. Tyres i will have to change according to my choice. I will press them for more on a car like this, battery will be included in my next negotiations with the sales personnel.

Thanks once again friends and continue to help me with the decision.

[Blow Horn Ok]

I think you are getting a decent deal. Soon the Tjets would turn classics (In a good sense ). For a lakh less, you will enjoy a petrol turbo and presence of a sedan. Also the SB Beige is my favorite color in linea. It simply looks majestic. I would suggest to upgrade to better tyres as soon as you drive her out. Lying Idle for 2 years is not good for a tyre. Also check the fluids and other bits before finalizing!

Best of luck

[F150]

Originally Posted by drmessiah

The on-road cost of this car was 10 lac. But because this car was not sold and was a 2010 model the were willing to give me with a 3 lac discount + insurance free. so the car will only cost 6.8 lac on road for me. I feel this is a very good and mouth-watering deal at this cost.The car did not come with the 16" alloy and leather seats as the Tjet +, whereas came with fabric seat cover and 15" steel disc.

Friends, Please help me I am caught between my brain and heart.

dmessiah

Tjet never came with steel wheels, I am pretty sure the dealer sold the alloy wheels off to another customer. Try to get a good deal on the tyres too, if the dealer is willing to replace them with new ones.

The deal is very sweet, but ask them to do a free service with the liquids replaced. Check for rust, check for paint mismatch.

Good luck

[nkrishnap]

Originally Posted by F150

Tjet never came with steel wheels, I am pretty sure the dealer sold the alloy wheels off to another customer. Try to get a good deal on the tyres too, if the dealer is willing to replace them with new ones.

The deal is very sweet, but ask them to do a free service with the liquids replaced. Check for rust, check for paint mismatch.

Good luck

The Tjet engined Lineas came in 2 versions.

Tjet - The regular emotion version (but with blue and me) without alloy wheels and ground clearance of 165 mm.

Tjet+ came with the all the emotion pack features + Leather Seats + 16 inch alloys and the ground clearance 170 mm.

The dealer is no way cheating here by selling of the alloys

For the query poster - If you intend to buy the Tjet and can bear the fuel costs, the car is simply a joy to drive. But do a thorough PDI with all the fluids and battery changed.

Do keep the thread updated.

[F150]

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

The Tjet engined Lineas came in 2 versions.

Tjet - The regular emotion version (but with blue and me) without alloy wheels and ground clearance of 165 mm.

Tjet+ came with the all the emotion pack features + Leather Seats + 16 inch alloys and the ground clearance 170 mm.
But do a thorough PDI with all the fluids and battery changed.

Do keep the thread updated.

I stand corrected. I only remember seeing TJets with those sweet alloys. Thank you.

[DRIV3R]

H400 is a fishy number. AFAIK, the H disappears after 200km. Please re-check.

[nkrishnap]

Originally Posted by DRIV3R

H400 is a fishy number. AFAIK, the H disappears after 200km. Please re-check.

The H disappears after the odo reaches 200 kms. I guess this might be a typo. 400H instead of 40H.

40H Seems reasonable.

[revintup]

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

The H disappears after the odo reaches 200 kms. I guess this might be a typo. 400H instead of 40H.

40H Seems reasonable.

Sorry, but what does H stand for or signify?