MY red italian beauty! Now delivered (Grande Punto MJD)

amulu10 · 30th June 2009, 01:39

So finally we have booked a car and it happens to be the first in my family .! Man i took so long and was it a exhaustive search or what !more than 6 months! i bet i would have spent more than 2-3 hours a day reading teambhp in these months!(read it secretly during sem exams as well )
I had a budget of 10 lakhs courtesy my dad! i was in market for a decently powered car but it had to be really really good looking and a real head turner at that! , a decent boot to pick and drop my dad in airport every 4-6 months as he lives in the gulf.
down below are few of the cars i considered in the exact timeline and the reasons why i rejected them
(i hadn't even learned to drive until may 2009 as i turned 18 only in April!

)
note(+ means why i considered it and - means why it was rejected)
1)Honda city(December)
+ i was looking forward to this car even before the launch. i was in love when i saw the spy pics.
- nil other than the lack of some gizmos for the price u pay. it was considered till punto launch!
2)skoda Octavia 1.8 tpi(January)
+ no car comes with such a powerful engine at this price!
- SKODA all the horror stories and also a lil bit over the budget. This was rejected in march!
3)fiat Linea MJD(February)
+ drop dead gorgeous in black ! nince gizmos available and true VFM,(power was a issue but was ready to add a petes box or RD ECU)
- fell for PUNTO and saving cash for buying a certain LIME green colored bike that will be launched soon.!( no other reasons).
i considered the linea infact till the launch of punto.
3)chevy optra 2.0 diesel(late entry in may!)
+ torque and loads of it! superbly powerful car.! also was hopping to get some huge discounts since it was a chevy .!
- same as linea and also fear factor in it being a Chevy!. considered it till punto launch!
so till the launch of punto i had Honda city, linea,and optra in my list with LINEA being the more preferred one.But on June 17 th a red wind swept me away from all these cars ! I fell in love with red punto!.But i was waiting till GTO's test drive to make a decision.Me being more of a 0-100 dash guy i was a bit disappointed with the 17 sec n 14 secs the mjd and fire took respectively! But i knew its nothing a petes or a rd ecu cant change

and so hence decided upon the mjd.!Finally dad came on 20th june and i had the driving test for the 29 th june .On the 22 nd the semester exams got over so the time was right for approaching my dad with the decision.
(22nd)
me: dad i have decided that we buy the grande punto .( i show him the pics and also the boot pics which was important for him.)
him: what brand is it.
me: fiat
dad: give me 1 day .
23rd morning
dad: are u sure about buying a fiat.? why not a Maruti or Hyundai.? Fiat doesn't have a good image in India and the service is a problem without many service centers.(he asks me about all the models in Maruti and Hyundai and i patiently tell that they suck(i lied).sorry Maruti and Hyundai fans no offense meant!)
me: dad its the best VFM and i like the looks also its sold through tata showrooms . Even the car is assembled in a tata-fiat JV factory.(just to add spice i tell him that fiat owns Ferrari and is looking to buy Chrysler)
23rd evening
dad: OK we will have a look at the showroom tomorrow.(It seems the TATA jv is the only reason he agreed as he held Tata in high regard!)
me: (yippy! over the moon!)
btw people team bhp member and my class mate vigneshram who happens to be a die hard fiat fan was part of the reason why i had faith in fiat service and he got me aquainted with a sales representative in VST motors chennai.
24th
we go to the showroom and MR Kadhar Basha who was a friend of Vignesh came forward and showed us the car( he was knowledgeable enough to show and explain the features)but by then i already knew lots about the car thanks to the forum! Annoyingly there was no red color punto or the emotion pack! so had to see linea for the blue&me and have a look at a black emotion punto. I wont do a review as already plently have been said about the car in the forum but i have a few points to add.
1)i am 5'11 and so when i adjusted the seat for my height there was enough legroom for my dad (5'8") and mom . i guess the legroom wont be a problem as only my mom or dad will sit in the rear seats .( i guess its the same for others . This is a segment of car which is chaffeur driven only in less nos and for most people with only children or parents or wifey siting at the back i guess the legroom wont be a problem.)

Due to RTO issues there was no test drive car so had to test drive Linea. BTW i didn't drive it. My uncle who came along with us drove it and he was impressed with the handling ,steering . He was satisfied with the power (btw he drives a infiniti G35 in US) so i guess he knows what is enough for city use and he thinks the punto should be decent to drive in city (punto and linea have nearly same power to weight ratio).we didn't book the car that day as it wasnt auspicious.
25th
finally booked the car . we booked a red mjd (was ready to change the color if we didn't like it when we see it in person).Mr kadhar promised that the RTO issue will be solved by 26th and we can take delivery by 30th.
26,27th
Mr kadhar didn't have a good idea on how long it will take for the issues to be solved.
28th
me went for driving test so didn't have time to call the guy. BTW got the license. yippy!
so ill be calling him today ! WISH ME LUCK!

the reason i choose the punto even though it was way below my budget and down a segment was as it had all the gizmos the linea had and also met my requirements
1)decently powered car- CHECK!(with tunning box it would be more than that)
2) had to be really really good looking and a real head turner at that- CHECK a million times!
3) a decent boot to pick and drop my dad in airport- CHECK( the folding rear seats fits the airport role perfectly!)
4) spare cash of 2 lakhs to buy the Lime green bike from not buying the linea CHECK AGAIN!

PICS will follow once the car is delivered!

PS: sorry for the long post.! my love for cars just poured through and increased the length!

aks_karthik · 30th June 2009, 08:56

Congrats Man.
Finally a Chennai guy booked a Small Italian Beauty.
Me too got my car delivered from VST,Anna Nagar,Chennai helped by Basha bai.
He is very good friend of mine.
Happy Driving

vigneshram · 30th June 2009, 11:39

Quote:

btw people team bhp member and my class mate vigneshram who happens to be a die hard fiat fan was part of the reason why i had faith in fiat service and he got me aquainted with a sales representative in VST motors chennai.

Thanks for that Ravi(amulu)

.Yaa we both are doing our Mechanical Engineering together.I have a Siena and am a die hard FIAT fan.So i took a lot of time convincing Ravi.But finally i did it.
for me it is
FIAT or nothing buddy.

Vignesh
1.2 SIENA ELX/K&N Stock/Magna Flow FFE next week.

vigneshram · 30th June 2009, 11:40

I ll team up with Ravi in writing the initial review and for the pics as we stay close by in Chennai.

Vignesh
1.2 SIENA ELX/Magnaflow on it way

n.devdath · 30th June 2009, 12:26

Congrats on the booking of your Grande Punto amulu10...Eagerly looking forward to the first pics of your Italian beauty soon....Happy Motoring...

somebodystopme · 30th June 2009, 14:30

WOW congrats. Even I love Red Punto and have been contemplating getting one for myself. Just waiting for initial ownership exp and reviews.. Keep posting.. Waiting for pics..when are you getting the delivery??

amulu10 · 30th June 2009, 22:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by somebodystopme

WOW congrats. Even I love Red Punto and have been contemplating getting one for myself. Just waiting for initial ownership exp and reviews.. Keep posting.. Waiting for pics..when are you getting the delivery??

the dealership has no idea when the rto issues will be solved

but they have promised the delivery by this week

amit · 30th June 2009, 22:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by amulu10

the dealership has no idea when the rto issues will be solved

but they have promised the delivery by this week

If they have no idea when the RTO issue will be solved then how are they promising delivery by this week?!

I am really intrigued by this RTO issue and I want to know how it works. Since this RTO issue is in all cities, I am guessing that it's a national level RTO approval and not city wise. Is that correct? Who get's the approval? Is it the manufacturer or dealers? I am guessing the RTO guys aren't getting the moolah they are asking for and hence the delay

.

Also, what is the approval that the RTO has to give? It's a 5 door hatchback with 4 tyres, an engine and seating for 5 for God's sake! How difficult is it to approve the car?!

sridharp77 · 30th June 2009, 23:14

We also have the same RTO problem here in Bangalore as well. But then they are delivering the car with the temporary number and will get the car registered when the problem is resolved. I will be taking the delivery of my car on Thursday evening (diesel emotion pack electric blue color). The car will arrive tomorrow evening and will be going on Thursday morning for the PDI. Will start a new thread after the delivery is over.

amit · 1st July 2009, 11:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by sridharp77

We also have the same RTO problem here in Bangalore as well. But then they are delivering the car with the temporary number and will get the car registered when the problem is resolved.

Without the registeration and RTO approval, wouldn't driving the car on the roads be illegal?

Palio_2005 · 1st July 2009, 11:48

Congrats. About the RTO issue, I just read a thread where one of the members has exchanged a Swift for Punto. His pics show the car with a number plate which means it's RTO registered. How is this possible.

deepakhon · 1st July 2009, 11:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by amit

Without the registeration and RTO approval, wouldn't driving the car on the roads be illegal?

If I remember correctly, you can drive the car with temporary registration for a stipulated amount of time, after which you need to get it registered permanently. That is what the car dealers are doing I suppose.

amit · 1st July 2009, 12:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by deepakhon

If I remember correctly, you can drive the car with temporary registration for a stipulated amount of time, after which you need to get it registered permanently. That is what the car dealers are doing I suppose.

That is if the particular model has the RTO approval. Since the Punto is not RTO approved, the cops can compound your car if they see it being driven on the roads. That is my understanding, maybe I am wrong.

CliffHanger · 1st July 2009, 12:42

@amulu10

Dude,even I have booked the GP red MJD, but unlike you I would be driving the 'Active' variant with alloys and music system based on my preference..

amulu10 · 1st July 2009, 17:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by CliffHanger

@amulu10

Dude,even I have booked the GP red MJD, but unlike you I would be driving the 'Active' variant with alloys and music system based on my preference..

congrats man. where did u book it.? when are u getting the delivery and do u have any problems with the delivery as well.?

30th June 2009, 01:39	#1
amulu10 BHPian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: detroit Posts: 243 Thanked: 19 Times	MY red italian beauty! Now delivered (Grande Punto MJD) So finally we have booked a car and it happens to be the first in my family .! Man i took so long and was it a exhaustive search or what !more than 6 months! i bet i would have spent more than 2-3 hours a day reading teambhp in these months!(read it secretly during sem exams as well ) I had a budget of 10 lakhs courtesy my dad! i was in market for a decently powered car but it had to be really really good looking and a real head turner at that! , a decent boot to pick and drop my dad in airport every 4-6 months as he lives in the gulf. down below are few of the cars i considered in the exact timeline and the reasons why i rejected them (i hadn't even learned to drive until may 2009 as i turned 18 only in April!) note(+ means why i considered it and - means why it was rejected) 1)Honda city(December) + i was looking forward to this car even before the launch. i was in love when i saw the spy pics. - nil other than the lack of some gizmos for the price u pay. it was considered till punto launch! 2)skoda Octavia 1.8 tpi(January) + no car comes with such a powerful engine at this price! - SKODA all the horror stories and also a lil bit over the budget. This was rejected in march! 3)fiat Linea MJD(February) + drop dead gorgeous in black ! nince gizmos available and true VFM,(power was a issue but was ready to add a petes box or RD ECU) - fell for PUNTO and saving cash for buying a certain LIME green colored bike that will be launched soon.!( no other reasons). i considered the linea infact till the launch of punto. 3)chevy optra 2.0 diesel(late entry in may!) + torque and loads of it! superbly powerful car.! also was hopping to get some huge discounts since it was a chevy .! - same as linea and also fear factor in it being a Chevy!. considered it till punto launch! so till the launch of punto i had Honda city, linea,and optra in my list with LINEA being the more preferred one.But on June 17 th a red wind swept me away from all these cars ! I fell in love with red punto!.But i was waiting till GTO's test drive to make a decision.Me being more of a 0-100 dash guy i was a bit disappointed with the 17 sec n 14 secs the mjd and fire took respectively! But i knew its nothing a petes or a rd ecu cant change and so hence decided upon the mjd.!Finally dad came on 20th june and i had the driving test for the 29 th june .On the 22 nd the semester exams got over so the time was right for approaching my dad with the decision. (22nd) me: dad i have decided that we buy the grande punto .( i show him the pics and also the boot pics which was important for him.) him: what brand is it. me: fiat dad: give me 1 day . 23rd morning dad: are u sure about buying a fiat.? why not a Maruti or Hyundai.? Fiat doesn't have a good image in India and the service is a problem without many service centers.(he asks me about all the models in Maruti and Hyundai and i patiently tell that they suck(i lied).sorry Maruti and Hyundai fans no offense meant!) me: dad its the best VFM and i like the looks also its sold through tata showrooms . Even the car is assembled in a tata-fiat JV factory.(just to add spice i tell him that fiat owns Ferrari and is looking to buy Chrysler) 23rd evening dad: OK we will have a look at the showroom tomorrow.(It seems the TATA jv is the only reason he agreed as he held Tata in high regard!) me: (yippy! over the moon!) btw people team bhp member and my class mate vigneshram who happens to be a die hard fiat fan was part of the reason why i had faith in fiat service and he got me aquainted with a sales representative in VST motors chennai. 24th we go to the showroom and MR Kadhar Basha who was a friend of Vignesh came forward and showed us the car( he was knowledgeable enough to show and explain the features)but by then i already knew lots about the car thanks to the forum! Annoyingly there was no red color punto or the emotion pack! so had to see linea for the blue&me and have a look at a black emotion punto. I wont do a review as already plently have been said about the car in the forum but i have a few points to add. 1)i am 5'11 and so when i adjusted the seat for my height there was enough legroom for my dad (5'8") and mom . i guess the legroom wont be a problem as only my mom or dad will sit in the rear seats .( i guess its the same for others . This is a segment of car which is chaffeur driven only in less nos and for most people with only children or parents or wifey siting at the back i guess the legroom wont be a problem.) Due to RTO issues there was no test drive car so had to test drive Linea. BTW i didn't drive it. My uncle who came along with us drove it and he was impressed with the handling ,steering . He was satisfied with the power (btw he drives a infiniti G35 in US) so i guess he knows what is enough for city use and he thinks the punto should be decent to drive in city (punto and linea have nearly same power to weight ratio).we didn't book the car that day as it wasnt auspicious. 25th finally booked the car . we booked a red mjd (was ready to change the color if we didn't like it when we see it in person).Mr kadhar promised that the RTO issue will be solved by 26th and we can take delivery by 30th. 26,27th Mr kadhar didn't have a good idea on how long it will take for the issues to be solved. 28th me went for driving test so didn't have time to call the guy. BTW got the license. yippy! so ill be calling him today ! WISH ME LUCK! the reason i choose the punto even though it was way below my budget and down a segment was as it had all the gizmos the linea had and also met my requirements 1)decently powered car- CHECK!(with tunning box it would be more than that) 2) had to be really really good looking and a real head turner at that- CHECK a million times! 3) a decent boot to pick and drop my dad in airport- CHECK( the folding rear seats fits the airport role perfectly!) 4) spare cash of 2 lakhs to buy the Lime green bike from not buying the linea CHECK AGAIN! PICS will follow once the car is delivered! PS: sorry for the long post.! my love for cars just poured through and increased the length! Last edited by amulu10 : 30th June 2009 at 01:49.
	() Thanks

30th June 2009, 08:56	#2
aks_karthik Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Chennai Posts: 1,947 Thanked: 341 Times View My Garage	Congrats Man. Finally a Chennai guy booked a Small Italian Beauty. Me too got my car delivered from VST,Anna Nagar,Chennai helped by Basha bai. He is very good friend of mine. Happy Driving
	() Thanks

30th June 2009, 11:40	#4
vigneshram BHPian Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Stuttgart,DE Posts: 356 Thanked: 48 Times View My Garage	I ll team up with Ravi in writing the initial review and for the pics as we stay close by in Chennai. Vignesh 1.2 SIENA ELX/Magnaflow on it way
	() Thanks

30th June 2009, 12:26	#5
n.devdath BANNED Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 4,287 Thanked: 2,811 Times	Congrats Buddy.... Congrats on the booking of your Grande Punto amulu10...Eagerly looking forward to the first pics of your Italian beauty soon....Happy Motoring...
	() Thanks

30th June 2009, 14:30	#6
somebodystopme BHPian Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Delhi Posts: 519 Thanked: 43 Times View My Garage	WOW congrats. Even I love Red Punto and have been contemplating getting one for myself. Just waiting for initial ownership exp and reviews.. Keep posting.. Waiting for pics..when are you getting the delivery??
	() Thanks

30th June 2009, 23:14	#9
sridharp77 BHPian Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Bangalore Posts: 111 Thanked: 40 Times	We also have the same RTO problem here in Bangalore as well. But then they are delivering the car with the temporary number and will get the car registered when the problem is resolved. I will be taking the delivery of my car on Thursday evening (diesel emotion pack electric blue color). The car will arrive tomorrow evening and will be going on Thursday morning for the PDI. Will start a new thread after the delivery is over.
	() Thanks

1st July 2009, 11:48	#11
Palio_2005 BHPian Join Date: May 2006 Location: Pune Posts: 991 Thanked: 878 Times	Congrats. About the RTO issue, I just read a thread where one of the members has exchanged a Swift for Punto. His pics show the car with a number plate which means it's RTO registered. How is this possible.
	() Thanks

1st July 2009, 12:42	#14
CliffHanger BHPian Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chennai Posts: 756 Thanked: 1,597 Times	@amulu10 Dude,even I have booked the GP red MJD, but unlike you I would be driving the 'Active' variant with alloys and music system based on my preference..
	() Thanks