[v_safari]

Originally Posted by rav11stars

Are you referring to the front dashboard? If yes, then it's a straight lift from the new Linea. See this :
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/attach...d-intlight.jpg

No, I'm talking about the center arm rest + console between the front seats.

[pdma]

I did miss this thread and just bumped into it today. The wonderful pictures complemented the writeup and it was a treat to read through.

Originally Posted by rav11stars

Fiat cars aren't sold but purchased with heart This line sums it up. Initially I thought it's the new car craze. But off late I'm realizing that I'm getting obsessed. I'm looking for excuses to just sit in the car or just wander about it.

This rings a bell somewhere, although many factors influenced me buying a FIAT I do admit that the obsession bug has certainly bitten me and Iam in immense love with my machine .

Originally Posted by v_safari

No, I'm talking about the center arm rest + console between the front seats.

Hello There,

The center arm rest in the new Linea is too short and it was sized this way to accommodate a 1 L bottle at the rear of the arm rest. I did see many accessories available at FASS and Iam sure we would be able to find an arm rest something similar or even better for the evo too.

Cheers,
pdma.

[rav11stars]

Originally Posted by v_safari

No, I'm talking about the center arm rest + console between the front seats.

When I called up the service center some time back, I was told that the armrest from Linea is a direct fit and they have to order it.

Originally Posted by pdma

I did miss this thread and just bumped into it today. The wonderful pictures complemented the writeup and it was a treat to read through. This rings a bell somewhere, although many factors influenced me buying a FIAT I do admit that the obsession bug has certainly bitten me and Iam in immense love with my machine .

Thanks pdma; glad you liked it

[v_safari]

Originally Posted by rav11stars

When I called up the service center some time back, I was told that the armrest from Linea is a direct fit and they have to order it.)

Thanks . I'll check with the nearest fiat sale and servise. Previous gen punto was also compatible with Linea's arm rest.

I'll be deciding on the car very soon. I'm in a mood to sell my swift and use the money to buy a pre owned super bike or a new car(family pressure )

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by v_safari

Thanks . I'll check with the nearest fiat sale and servise. Previous gen punto was also compatible with Linea's arm rest.

Check these links which talk about Linea's arm rest installed for Punto.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...o-armrest.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...t-punto-3.html

[v_safari]

Dear rav11stars,

Whats your view/review on the headlight throw and performance of the Evo? Also did you check if the projector headlights, which were showcased on the auto expo avventura are available as an accessory ?

[rav11stars]

Originally Posted by v_safari

Dear rav11stars,

Whats your view/review on the headlight throw and performance of the Evo? Also did you check if the projector headlights, which were showcased on the auto expo avventura are available as an accessory ?

Now that you mentioned it, I was actually thinking of recompiling my impressions of the Evo. In two months it would be one year of ownership and will hopefully touch 10,000km.

The projectors were only showcased in the Avventura concept; so I don't think they'll be available as an accessory. The headlight throw is pretty decent. I had a chance to drive on a highway with heavy rain and they were sufficient. I'll try taking some snaps of the throw and will post them.

Coming from a Karizma I'm no big fan of super-duper starts or 0-100kmph details. I just like leisurely cruising with less gear shifts. The Evo is pretty comfortable to drive in the city and can glide along in 2nd gear in bumper-to-bumper traffic. There's no need to explain how it is on the highway
I've done two 1100km to-and-fro trips to my hometown even when the engine was opening up. It was bliss.
Note that I was not a FIAT fanboy or anything before finalizing on the Evo. I'm not well-versed with the tech figures, but am a big fan of design details and am very appreciative of the attention to details. I've seen other cars interiors too after getting the Evo and I'm sort of proud of it's interiors. They're premium in their segment.

[rav11stars]

Anyone has the wheel arch covers or tried them? I see them on 99rpm. I was actually looking for them and was asking everywhere before I found them today. I think they'll protect the mud from splashing all over the wheel well.

http://www.99rpm.com/fiat/wheel-arch...ons-punto.html

[sooraj.naik]

Originally Posted by rav11stars

Anyone has the wheel arch covers or tried them? I see them on 99rpm.[/url]

AFAIK, the stock punto comes with wheel arch covers. I'm out of the country, else would verify it personally.

[rav11stars]

Originally Posted by sooraj.naik

AFAIK, the stock punto comes with wheel arch covers. I'm out of the country, else would verify it personally.

Well, I don't think so; I see them everyday

[amvj]

That is one great looking car.
Please let me know the service bills, fuel efficiency and niggles (if any) of your Punto.

[rav11stars]

Here I am again : The lazy mango_man who joined an enthusiasts' forum, got addicted and bought a Punto. Wife says I've gone mad; colleagues think I'm an auto enthusiast; Younger bro advises there's more to life than a car.
Every time I say I'm busy, I'm found reading threads on t-bhp. If only there's a job that'd pay for reading threads, watching TV and writing stuff

Lately I've also got this reputation at home/work that I'm caring more about the car. I just interrupt conversations with vague questions about detailing or how a scratch appeared on my car. Wife starts discussing about gold/clothes and I interrupt "we should get fabric seats, isn't it?". Silence.

Then without even realizing, the time for the second service is upon us. As with all things with FIAT, what's the fun if it's routine. Pandit Auto, one of the most trusted names when it comes to FIAT service has severed ties with FIAT. Probably they're tired of waiting for newer models and better business. If at all there's an award for waiting and faith, it should go to the existing FIAT dealers

So not wanting to risk anything I called up Pandit and they promptly obliged to service my car as it's a regular service. Here's the service report. But first, a pic. (Excuse the number plates, I've yet to change them to something decent).



The service report



I've also got the WA/WB and wheels rotated as per the recommendation. WA/WB report



I can't help but appreciate a signature I remember reading once; not sure whose. "It's not buying a car that's costly, the parking slot is". Full credit to you bro; It's as if you quoted the essence of life in one line.

I do not have a covered parking and it's only then it dawned on me what you meant. If I'm at home and I hear a sound, I run into the balcony to look down if the car is okay.
It was a pleasant evening on a weekend; we're in our balcony, sipping on hot coffee marveling at the beauty of nature, gazing off into the setting sunset. Dhaad. A sound. This time my wife stood up, looked down and said a kid fell off from his bicycle near our car, recovered and ran off.
The time to marvel at the stupidity of kids has arrived. I stood up, recognized that brat. I've previously told him he has a good future in gymnastics, but shouldn't practice it while cycling and that too near cars. I thought we had an agreement then. I went down to inspect and was heart-broken.

The handle of the cycle left a dent and two deep scars on the left rear door. It's not just the kids; A couple of college-going guys play cricket and they don't care if the ball's going to hit any car. I tried applying those things we read in books, communication skills; that's the word. But it just doesn't work. I doubt if their cerebral matter is either made of diamond or is non-existent.
The problem with people here is, they just look upon a car as a A<->B commute vehicle; almost like the State Transport bus, except that we own this one and the watchman cleans it.



I knew dark colours are hard to maintain. But off late I've found that birds have taken a liking to it. No, they were not posing for selfies with it. No matter wherever I park, they make sure that they excrete on my car. Yeah, it's disgusting. Google referred me to many amateur studies that concluded that birds prefer dark colours for their droppings. Maybe they show up nicely on them. So I started covering my car religiously, even if it's for a 15-min break.

Now what? Even the feline has taken a liking to it. I moved closer to get a snap and it gave me a warning stare. Like the African bushman in "The Gods must be crazy", I tried talking to see If it'd understand. I explained that it can cause scratches on the roof and I've got it detailed recently. A lady who's in her evening walk gave us a stare and moved on, rather hurriedly.
Finally (she/he)? gave in; either it got bored of my sermon or has got more brains than that kid on the cycle.



My relief was short-lived. The monsoon arrived. The Recaro brand cover that I had is not water-proof and it clung onto the car in those rains. So the search for a water-proof cover started. I ended up buying a canvas_cloth cover from covert.in only to realize later that it's a tarpaulin cover! It arrived by India Post and I got a call from the post office to collect it. It weighs close to 5 kilos!!
I wipe with the duster, put it on and wait; The forecast says it's a weak monsoon this year. So in between we drove off into Tamhini ghat on a weekend. It's a fun drive and the way it clung onto the road, I was able to take corners in 4th gear.

Here are some snaps.









After spending 3k and managing to put on a 5 kilo cover, it was relief finally to notice that it was effective in being water-proof. It might have caused some swirls, but then it's better than having to deal with a wet car cover and dust seeping in through it onto the body.

~ Ergonomics ~

We've sometimes done more than 1100km at a stretch with only two to three breaks. With a disclaimer that I'm not fanatically obsessed with FIAT or am overlooking anything : my mango_thought (common man's thought ) is they're comfy. I'm 5'7" and the riding position is also good.

I thought I'd see if I could find some info if the ergonomics are really that bad. After some googling I found that back in 1995, at the behest of FIAT CEO studies were conducted to make the Punto's seat more comfortable.

Here are the extracts from google docs. All the content is copyright of their respective owners and is mentioned here only for reference. No wonder the research and time poured in to make sure the seats are comfortable shows.
They were conducted in Europe considering their body proportions, but then they made sure that extremes (height and weight) were also considered in the tests.
This redesign led to the Punto being voted the "Car of the Year 1995" in it's segment. During the tests it's seats were compared to that of the Civic. It was considered the leader in terms of comfort.







~ DASHCAM ~

The only additional accessory I've got. Not wanting to waste any disk space, here's a link to my post in the dashcam thread

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/car-en...ml#post3877863

The customary parting shot:

[anand.shankar]

Originally Posted by rav11stars

Here I am again : The lazy mango_man who joined an enthusiasts' forum, got addicted and bought a Punto. Wife says I've gone mad; colleagues think sory I've got. Not wanting to waste any disk space, here's a link to my post in the dashcam thread

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/car-en...ml#post3877863

The customary parting shot:

I can relate to almost every line of your post, running to the balcony, kids playing cricket, dogs tearing up my car cover, security fellows kid who converts my bonnet into a race track for his hot wheels, bird poop, flying highway pebbles etc. I have a dedicated, covered parking, still same issues

OTOH, I have completed around 12K happy kms, in 4 months of ownership.

[Shiv_1984]

Which one looks better ? To me it's Punto, the hot Italian super model.

Source : Motorbeam.com

[ghodlur]

Superb narration rav11stars, you have way with words. The pics in the post have come equally great esp the parting shot.

So was the scratch attended to or left for another day?

Whatever the feline or the birds might want to say, but Red attracts more than the required.