[Divya Sharan]

Originally Posted by sandeepmohan

The Fiat Evo is not a car that you see all that often. A 1.4l Evo is probably the rarest on our roads. The engine may not excite nor is it very efficient when pitched with the competition. However; it scores high on reliability and refinement.

Congratulations on your new ride. This car in red is a looker and matched to a really nice set of alloys.

Thanks a lot! Yes 1.4 is rare. My manager took details from me post my purchase and even took test drives very enthusiastically. But in the end, he bought an i10. I guess this happens with many people here. Add to that horror stories about FIAT after sales.

Originally Posted by vamsi2390

Hearty congratulations on your car mate!
Got to admit, one of drastic changes in buying decisions that I have heard in a while.

What i do not seem to understand is if the diesel and 1.4 EMOTION are costing the same, why did you not choose the diesel variant? Also, i am amazed that you weren't offered any discounts on the same.

Last month in Hyderabad i was offered a base trim AVVENTURA diesel for 7.2 flat but declined it as I wasnt ready to get a new vehicle until next year.

Ha ha thanks. Yes, this time I took a decision that surprised me as well. But my bike is closing 90000 km and I plan on an upgrade once I hit that magical 6 figure mark, most probably by year end.
The choice on petrol vs diesel was not easy. But looking at maintenance bills of both and the petrol's high revving character, I made my choice.
Few consumables cost 2x for the diesel variant.

Originally Posted by Vinodh_Gowda

Congratulations on gifting yourself a Punto Evo. Bellissa was one of the names shortlisted for my Linea TJet as well. However, I went ahead with the name ELSA for my acquire.

Looks like you were handled by the same bunch of people at Aadya: Roopa and Deepak. Roopa, I would rate her good but then Deepak is one of those individuals contributing to FIAT's downfall in India. He might as well rank as the biggest idiot I have ever known.

Coming back to your purchase, I find the final price a bit too high. Weren't you offered any discounts? With a June make you should have been given a substantial discount in my opinion.

That needs a correction. It's 185mm and not 185cm.

Thanks a lot. I shall report to the mods to make the correction to GC in my post.
I interacted only with Roopa. Deepak was involved only during the haggling process and yes, I didn't give them a 10/10 just due to him. But he was not arrogant with me, just stubborn.
Sadly, they said I could no way get a June car. I even got in touch with FIAT customer care but they repeated the same story.
I tried pushing for discounts stating that this model has no sales, but they said they could give me the 1.3 MJD for 1.4's price, but didn't budge on the 1.4.

I therefore went to the other dealership who gave me a nightmare in 10 min. So, I stuck to Aadya.
I feel I paid 30-40k extra, but in the end I feel that was worth peace of mind. That extra amount only adds a few 100s to my EMIs anyways.

[Gosu]

Congratulations on your new ride! Your Punto looks gorgeous in red and that matte black cover for all the chrome bits makes the car look even more alluring . Wish you many happy miles in it and hope the grin remains plastered in your face every time you drive.

[Divya Sharan]

Originally Posted by Gosu

Congratulations on your new ride! Your Punto looks gorgeous in red and that matte black cover for all the chrome bits makes the car look even more alluring . Wish you many happy miles in it and hope the grin remains plastered in your face every time you drive.

Thanks a lot for the good wishes!

I shall have more stuff to share once the weekend arrives. Highway beckons!

[aditya.bhardwaj]

Congratulations ! and welcome to the Punto club . I am sure you are loving the car at each and every moment.

PS: I also own the very same car with same colour and trim level though its a 1.3 MJD.

Drive Safe

[blackwasp]

Welcome to the Punto club. Italians do have a quirky charm to them. Excellent write up. It's heartening to see people buying Puntos and going heart over head. We've been happy with our 7 yr old Punto 1.2 and I expect that you too will have a niggle free ownership with your Bellissa.

[Divya Sharan]

The car has done ~8200 km. 11 months over.
I visited Pondicherry during the weekend and the car performed flawlessly.

Full AC usage (at 24-26 degrees) with 3 people on-board and luggage yielded 17.4 kmpl over the 800+ km travelled.

Now, I have to get the car serviced in under 30 days (2nd service - 12 months or 15k km whichever is earlier) as well as get the insurance renewed.

Policy Bazaar is my friend for insurance, but I'm in a dilemma for the service bit.

Ebony Automobiles, near Elements Mall (nearest to me) is closed due to renovation. What a bummer! Is this the beginning of the end for me?

Ok, I want members' help with other FIAT service centers' contact numbers so that I can get my car's appointment for the annual service.

I'd like to get it serviced in the next 10 days, so any help would be appreciated.

[jvm_1986]

Originally Posted by Divya Sharan

Full AC usage (at 24-26 degrees) with 3 people on-board and luggage yielded 17.4 kmpl over the 800+ km travelled.

Wow, I was under the impression that fuel efficiency is not one of the strong points of the 1.4 FIRE engine. 17.4 is awesome

[Divya Sharan]

Originally Posted by jvm_1986

Wow, I was under the impression that fuel efficiency is not one of the strong points of the 1.4 FIRE engine. 17.4 is awesome

You are right, mileage isn't a strong point for the Punto 1.4, if it is driven the way it is meant to be!
But neither do I see roads for that kind of stuff, nor do I see any decent road sense in folk around, so I driver sedately.

It delivers the best figures between 2.5-3.5k RPM.

I usually stick between 2.5k RPM (80 kmph) and 3k RPM (95 kmph) in top gear.

Please excuse the poor shaky pics taken from mobile cam.
P.S - these were not taken in traffic.

Distance covered - 800+ km. 833 as per the car and 836 as per gMaps.



Surprise surprise.

[Divya Sharan]

**Service update**

Bellissa got serviced today - 2nd free service (15k km or 12 months).
ODO reading - 8250 km.

Since Ebony motors was closed, I took it all the way to Vecto Motors, Hosur road from new BEL road. NICE ring road to the rescue.

Stuff carried out:

1. Oil change - Rs 1980
2. Oil filter change - Rs 215
3. Air filter change - Rs 232
4. Fuel filter - Rs 540
5. Pollen (AC) filter - Rs 422
6. Wheel rotation, alignment and balancing - Rs 1116
7. Misc (windshield cleaning, shampoo for glass cleaning etc) - Rs 339

Total - Rs 4845.

The car runs like new again, not that I had any complaints in the first place. But it has become so very smooth now.

Next service - 15000 km (from the current ODO) or 12 more months, whichever is earlier.

[SKavuri]

Did you feel any improvement in peppiness over time, especially after second service?

[Divya Sharan]

*** Milestone#1 - 10,000 km completed. Bought the car earlier this month last year.***

Work was keeping me busy lately and I got a chance to visit Hyderabad over the weekend.
Rains + KA bandh was the best excuse to hit the highway with Bellissa.

I decided to start at 2 AM to avoid VOLVO multi axle buses and reach Hyderabad by 10 or 11.

Got a tank fill done the previous day and air pressure set to 32 psi.

It was raining like crazy outside and my tap ran out of water while I was soaped up at 1 AM at night. So, I put a towel on and ran to the ground floor to access the water pump.

Eventually I could start only at 2:20 AM. ODO read 9,170 km.
The highway was deserted save for a few local taxis who were racing each other in the wet. It stopped once I hit AP border.

It was a cool morning so I didn't even bother to switch on the AC till I reached Lepakshi. It was after I crossed Lepakshi that I put the AC on to match the ambient temperature outside at 23 degrees. It was raining heavily too.

At around 6:45 AM, I decided to take a small pee break and binge on the parathas I was carrying.

I had covered a distance of exactly 300 km and I decided to check what mileage I was getting so far and I was shocked to see what I saw.



This was diesel car category mileage. Needless to say, I went bonkers. Getting such read outs from a 1.4 petrol is crazy to say the least.

Clicked a few pics of the car and it's surroundings with the only cam I had in the trip - my Asus Zenfone 5.





After taking a good 20 min break, I hit the road again and kept paying tolls every now and then. Took the next break about 130 km from Hyderabad at Kottakota. I had met with an accident on my bike at this very place on 12th July 2014 with multiple fractures after colliding with a dog.

I parked the car at the same spot (there is a dhaba just 50 m away where I was seated after the accident and it still exists. Name is Meena dhaba).

Clicked a few pics and checked the mileage again. I maintained speeds between 80-95 kmph throughout my onward journey to Hyderabad and the AC was kept matching with the ambient temperature until it crossed 26 degrees when I left it at that value).







The next stop was supposed to be in Hyderabad. Sadly, I missed taking the slight turn to elevated PV Narasimha Rao expressway and had to drive through the city to reach Nampally, where my hotel was booked. My heart was literally in my mouth while travelling through dense market streets at 11 AM, especially Begum bazaar.

I completed my work by evening and came back to click the mileage including Hyderabad traffic and still had a big grin on my face.



Heavy rain later in the evening kept me indoors watching TV.

I planned leaving by 7 AM the next morning, but I got up early and left by 6:20 AM itself.

I tanked up after getting down from the expressway (didn't miss it the 2nd time) and almost got cheated by IOCL pump attendants.
Asked them for 1000 worth of fuel and he stopped at 300. I told him I asked for 1000 and he went to set the pump for an additional 700 when another chap came asking for my card and I saw that the meter was not reset.

I got pissed and said I want a print out from the machine for whatever fuel they put in. They realized I was aware and continued filling from 300 all the way till 1000.

Here is a crumpled piece of the card swipe receipt. Guys, you may want to avoid this pump. Fuel meter showed correct readings (tankfull), so I didn't bother with the receipt from the fuel machine.



Roads were empty with lush greenery all around.







Thereafter I kept driving and paying tolls. I was driving a bit faster than usual, between 90 to 110 kmph and I had AC running throughout.

Soon, the car hit it's first milestone.





I was only carrying biscuits and water on the return journey and hunger pangs were getting worse. But I didn't spot any worthwhile eateries that were open. Maybe I missed them.

I stopped at random places and clicked the insides and outsides of the car all the way to Devanahalli.











Since Bangalore was near, I ordered for a Dominos pizza and headed straight for home.

Reached at around 2:55 PM and took the vital stats.









I stopped 16 times at toll booths (8 each side) and paid a sum of Rs 1,298 for the same overall. Spent Rs 4,500 on petrol.



All in all, I'm a happy Bellissa owner.

------------------

Originally Posted by SKavuri

Did you feel any improvement in peppiness over time, especially after second service?

Yes, the car revs better and mileage has improved.

[Waspune]

Well those are some stellar FE numbers you are getting bro , in fact better than my 90 HP. Great going Bellissa.

[Divya Sharan]

Originally Posted by Waspune

Well those are some stellar FE numbers you are getting bro , in fact better than my 90 HP. Great going Bellissa.

Ha ha, nice to know!
So this is better than diesel category. And I believe that's the max I can get, not that I am looking for such figures regularly. I was happy with 17-18 type figures but this is a revelation post 2nd service.

Next time I'll have more people on board and will keep the AC at lower than 25 degree temps.

Interesting things happen to Fiat owners.

[Divya Sharan]

Bellissa visits Maharashtra.

Just like most of us out there, I had plans for the long weekend. I and my friend planned to visit Tarkarli, Malvan (MH) for the extended weekend.

The plan was to leave Bangalore early morning on Saturday and reach Malvan by evening. Explore around and leave back on Monday.
We could not even accomplish 50% of our plans because my companion fell ill after reaching Malvan and we mainly stayed indoors watching movies.

I did venture out to a few places and clicked some pics.
Due to this fact, I won't be able to compile a full blown Trip log.

Booking was done at Sai Mauli Homestay via booking dot com and 2500 for 2 nights was a good deal. However, be advised - food at the homestay is VERY VERY costly. You can eat outside at 1/3rd the price.

Toll charges are ridiculous. I paid almost 1200 as toll in total from Bangalore to Belgaum and back.
Amboli ghats are very beautiful in rain but we saw the negative side of the same while returning back with stones blocking the road. Yes, there were small landslides in a couple of places and they delayed us by a few hours.

There was constant downpour in the ghats after 500 km of highway driving and I had to be very attentive. In fact, my head pained and eyes watered with the amount of attention needed. I may say, I didn't enjoy the trip very much.

The only good takeaway is that Bellissa has racked up 2500+ km in the last 2.5 weeks.

A customary pic at the MH-KA border.



Few pics that I took in the foggy ghats.

















Few more from the beaches I visited.

















The car was kept at a constant boil between 3-4k RPM in the ghats (2nd, 3rd gears) and between 100-110 on the highways with AC on. So, I think I got a predictably-decent mileage too. With a sick passenger, reaching home was top priority and the snail paced traffic from Chitradurga to Bangalore was helping much.

[Waspune]

I guess you have learned the art of getting good FE from your 1.4. I am sure you would have listened to some 1.4's music while keeping her on boil on the ghats

On the same weekend I did a Pune-Hampi-Pune trip on my Evo 90 HP and covered 1200+ kms. I too got a similar FE, but yes I was driving with a heavier foot for most part, thanks to the brilliant NH4.