[amoghchaphalkar]

First of all ... I would like to thank all of you for your overwhelming response and good wishes !! This really means a lot to me !!

Originally Posted by shantyrocks

congratz amogh!

booked a car with out test drive.thats amazing man
that shows the passion you must have felt on just seeing the car.

Yes !! I was WOWed the moment I saw it .. and then the car just kept on amazing me .. The Skoda like key (looks damn solid and neat), the dual tone dashboard, blaupunkt system, the seating position (the indica was a big turn off in this aspect), the intelligent micro processor driven displays on the dashboard, USB drive, Blue & Me technology developed by Fiat and Microsoft ... I can go on and on and on ... I mean you can clearly see Fiat putting in a lot of thought into this product !! + you add the ABS and the Airbags ... and all this for a price tag of close to 7.00 lacs .. there were very few reasons for me to not buy it !!

Originally Posted by Dine

Congrats Amogh.
How does the blue appear ? It seems to be a different color on the website ? Red & Blue are short listed.

Let me tell you .. Blue rocks !! That is all I can say .. the first Punto I saw was the blue one and I said to myself "This is it. This is the colour I am getting" After seeing the brochure, the red also caught my eye. In fact, I also saw the red colour in real. But the blue appears far more fresh and vibrant. And yes .. it does look a little dark / dull on the website. But blue and red are the colours to go.

Originally Posted by nishant_kingpin

Thousand congrats Amogh to be the first on the forum on the booking. You booked the car just by the looks seems to suggest its a great looking machine to say the least.

Post some pictures of the test drive if you can and what your opinion is about the diesel experience.

Yes .. will surely do that !! It is a great looking machine. Sporty, Muscular and solid !! An eye-catcher for sure

Originally Posted by dude131

Since you were the first to book, push so that your car is the first one to be delivered from the showroom.
Might get a few pics of the delivery in the local newspapers. Maybe you can wear a team-bhp t-shirt & promote the website to the un-enlighten general public.

Yes !! That is a great idea. How can I quickly lay my hands on a Team BHP t-shirt ? I have been promised delivery of the car next week. So need to get one soon. Could someone help me out please ?

Originally Posted by raj.barcode

Congrats and awesome color you have gone for but i guess you should have had a test drive before you plunge into it (too much passion or haste i dunno but personally i would have test driven it, no offense meant )

Frankly speaking, Test drive wasn't very high on my priority list. What mattered to me were the features, looks and driver seating position (I did not care about the rear seat legspace. I will be the only one driving this car. (We have a Safari and an Innova, so the Punto is not exactly going to be a family car for me) I was planning to go for an India Vista Quadrajet Aura earlier. But was hesitant because of the lack of ABS and Airbags. So these two factors were the minimum I was looking for in the Punto over and above the ones present in Vista (I conveniently assumed that Punto would have all the vista features + a bit more). But as it turned out, Punto has a "lot" of extra features than the vista.

Let me tell you why the Test Drive was not too high on my priority list
1. I genuinely believe in European designs and European Diesel engine technology. Having owned a Skoda and driven 90,000+ kms on it, there was little space for doubt in my mind about the european technology.
2. Few of my friends in the UK already own the Fiat UK Punto and they gave me a thumbs up.
3. My dad had got the 5 dr Punto as a rental car when he was in UK. Although he drove it for only 40 miles, he was extremely impressed with its performance.
4. On the business side, with the success of Linea, Fiat India could only better it with the Punto. It was pretty obvious that Fiat would put a lot behind this car to consolidate the good reputation they have built with the success of Linea. Pricing was the key issue, and I think they have done a fabulous job of it !!

But neverthless, I would be taking a test drive today. But I won't be surprised if the test drive just re-emphaises my decision of going for the Punto

[EatMyDust]

Congrats on the blue GP!

What? No reviews yet and already 3 pages full? :-) Am waiting eagerly for the TD review and fotos, pls post asap..

Guys can you believe it? Fiat-India website is down now, I wonder if its because of so many hits for checking out the Punto.

[amoghchaphalkar]

Originally Posted by Palio_2005

Congrats Amogh. That color looks brilliant in that colour. I guess your car is already at the dealership and these guys are just waiting for the final prices from Fiat which should be Saturday.

Pune dealerships are yet to get the demo cars :( so am waiting for a TD myself.

Yes .. you are absolutely right. The car is already at the dealership. In fact, I have already seen it

Final prices are coming in today.

[pradster]

Congrats on your forthcoming acquisition Amogh!
Do share your experiences with us.

[Speed-Freak]

Congrats Amogh, Am waiting to see some reviews on the first TD's in India.

The GP is a stunner, however its high time that the manufacturers give us a lot more than the same old 75ps engine. Am sure Fiat has quite a few engine options and the current 1.3L is already present in 4 cars in the country.

I saw quite a few in Zurich few months back, the cars had awesome finish quality, which has been missing in Fiat India cars, hope Fiat improves on the fit and finish on all their cars in India, Linea though was comparitively much better finished.

Finally Fiat has put the GP in a price bracket much lower than the Jazz & I20, its a great price for a good car.

Note - Heard from a very reliable source in Hyundai, i20 diesel is about to be launched really soon.

[harry10]

Congrats Buddy!
As the passion is apparent am sure the moment you are back from TD you will update it here so we all are waiting in anticipation.
Cheers!

[sandeep.mishra]

Hi Amogh,

Hearty congratulations! List of FIAT owners has grown. You would perhaps be the first Bhpian to own a Punto. Please do post the pics at the PDI and final delivery stage.

[PatienceWins]

Congrats!!

I am eagerly waiting for the detailed review and pictures.

[Ramsagar]

congrats!!!Blue looks more sportier than other color.Is white available in punto,similar to the one in Linea.
waiting for the snaps especially the interiors.

[swift8847]

Congrats buddy. Eagerly waiting for the initial reviews. Dint you take pictures of the car at the showroom??

[100BHP]

Congratulations Amogh,
Pls post some pictures of interiors .

[rajakumar]

Congrats Amogh. Eagerly waiting to read your test drive report and the initial impressions of owning.

[Ramsagar]

just compared between Punto Dynamic+Gets CRDI+swift VDI(ABS)+Dezire VDI(though not a hatch back)
Fiat Grande Punto 1.3 Dynamic vs Hyundai Getz Prime 1.5 GVS CRDi vs Maruti Suzuki Swift VDi ABS (Diesel) vs Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire VDi | Car Comparisons - CarWale.com.

[throttleking]

Congratulations Amogh, good choice, i am sure you will not be disappointed after the TD. you will love Punto (more than, Swift, Vista or anything) for sure. 2 years warranty with unlimited mileage is really good. Apparently Fiat has great faith in punto. Congrates again!!!

[shantyrocks]

congratz once again amogh..

iam really impressed with your reasoning of not taking a test drive and your clear thought process also amazes me. guys like you with a clear mind are really far few in between.most of us are really confused for days together when buying a car is concerned
do post your test drive experiance with some pics of your beauty.