My Bold New Punto 1.2 Petrol

arpanjha · 12th October 2010, 23:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by Newpunter

Sad to hear about this happening.Hope you get it fixed back to new soon.

Thnx buddy, have got a lot of stuff fixed:

Update:

All body work has been done on my Punto, the fender is now at proper position, the bumper scars and the paint from the other car removed(thanks to 3m Finnese it rubbing compound), bumper in proper position, lines matched. Total expense: Rs. 100/-
yes, Rs. 100/- only

Now, coming to the headlight, the reflector inside had smashed. I spoke to various Fiat dealers in kolkata, but no one had the assembly in stock and all refused to even take a look at it bcos the Druga Puja holidays are beginning from Thursday 14th.

So I went ahead and ordered for an assembly of the left headlight from a genuine spares shop. I shall be getting the delivery of the headlamp tomorrow. Now I have some doubts in mind which need to be cleared:

How to adjust and sync the headlight beam leveller along with the other side headlight, does it automatically adjust? Which position is it in, in stock condition? Should I make the postion to 1 and then plug in the new assembly? I shall be getting it done from a local workshop as the Fiat dealers have refused to take booking of my car for 10 to 12 days due to Puja holidays etc etc. I am sure the warranty will not get void as no wires need to be cut. But I am worried about the headlight leveller being synchronised and calibrated properly.
Can anyone advise me in this regard?

PaddleShifter · 12th October 2010, 23:33

Hi Arpan- I think you can get it fixed at position "0"(zero), if you want to fix it while it is in stock location. (I've never seen any new car that has headlight in any position other than 0).

Otherwise, you can get it fixed it in any position (0, 1, 2 or 3) as they will be doing headlight leveling after installing the headlamp assembly for that particular position(be it 0, 1 or 2 or 3). The stock position won't be disturbed as long as they do not touch the right headlamp assembly. Allow them to fiddle with the left headlamp(the one to be changed) only and then they can level it with as per the right headlamp so that left one will also attain the stock position for that particular height.

arpanjha · 13th October 2010, 07:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaddleShifter

Hi Arpan- I think you can get it fixed at position "0"(zero), if you want to fix it while it is in stock location. (I've never seen any new car that has headlight in any position other than 0).

Otherwise, you can get it fixed it in any position (0, 1, 2 or 3) as they will be doing headlight leveling after installing the headlamp assembly for that particular position(be it 0, 1 or 2 or 3). The stock position won't be disturbed as long as they do not touch the right headlamp assembly. Allow them to fiddle with the left headlamp(the one to be changed) only and then they can level it with as per the right headlamp so that left one will also attain the stock position for that particular height.

Thnx for the info, lets see wot happens. I shall post the experience probably by night if I get it fixed today.

arpanjha · 15th October 2010, 09:07

My car is back to its original glory. What I did was, took the car and the newly procured headlight set to a good workshop, i.e., Merlin Motors, they work on imported cars and mercs and normal cars too. So, I was sure they would work well on the car. I took the new headlamps to them, and they did the job in 15 to 20 mins flat. And guess what did they charge?

Rs. 100/-

All scratches removed, all paint damage removed, all lines are straight, all systems working, headlamp working, beam leveller automatically levelled itself. My beauty is back to its original glory.

Total cost:

Headlamp assembly: Rs. 4000/- (including shipping from Delhi to Kol)
Body work: Rs. 100/-
Headlight installation:Rs. 100/-
Total cost: Rs. 4200/-

PaddleShifter · 15th October 2010, 09:20

Good to know that everything was fixed well Arpan. Also, from where did you get the headlamp assembly? I think you got it from the after market. Is it genuine Fiat accessory or locally made?

nkrishnap · 15th October 2010, 09:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by arpanjha

Total cost:

Headlamp assembly: Rs. 4000/- (including shipping from Delhi to Kol)
Body work: Rs. 100/-
Headlight installation:Rs. 100/-
Total cost: Rs. 4200/-

I believe the cost of the headlamp assembly cost about Rs. 2700/-. But 4000 is on the higher side.

Anyways, the beauty is back to shape and that is what matters at the end.

arpanjha · 15th October 2010, 23:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by PaddleShifter

Good to know that everything was fixed well Arpan. Also, from where did you get the headlamp assembly? I think you got it from the after market. Is it genuine Fiat accessory or locally made?

It was bought from a shop who is a certified dealer for Tata Passenger Car spares. He ordered for me the Fiat left hand side Headlight assembly from Delhi.

It is 100% original and genuine FIAT. I have recheked it myself.

@nkrishnap:
Ya I know they have charged me extra, but that is fine as long as the car got back to its original glory. Because the FIAT A.S.S. had asked me to wait for at least 10-12 days for replacing the assembly as they didnt have any with them in stock. It is utter crap. Fiat falls flat on its face in terms of A.S.S.. I have already lodged a strong complaint with FIAT, and I intend to do some more.

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team: Please use the "edit" button if posting within 20 minutes of the first post, instead of creating another back-to-back post.

blueblooded · 23rd October 2010, 15:19

congrats hemant and arpan for owning white beauty ,i too own the diesel variant fully agree with you guys that suspension and ride plus high speed dynamics are really awesome .

arpanjha · 23rd October 2010, 23:10

@blueblooded:
Thnx friend for ur wishes. I too would like to wish you best for you and your lovely car. Let us all live Puntolly ever after

Anyways, in the mean time I havent found much time to drive around with my Punto hence no updates, but I am planning to buy a Com-Paint value pack, as it is available for Bossa Nova White for the Punto. It will help me remove and touch up the minor imperfections on the paint repair on the bumper. Any other friends can ceom up with some experiences with the Com Paints package?
And regarding FIAT A.S.S. I think they are trying to improve a lot, atleast if not on hands, at least on paper. After they have given the responsibility of boosting sales and ownership experience to Accenture, things seem to be moving. As the FIAT brand is now appearing more and more in news papers and appearing pretty nicely too. They have this FIAT FIRST now, I havent experienced it as of now, but hope to do so soon. As of now the A.S.S. experience for me has been bad, lets hope this improves significantly.

The Fiat guys are planning to come up with Fiat hang outs, have anyone of you guys any info about it? Please share.

I have 1 more question/doubt: I am going in for a Central Lock + Keyless entry fitment on my Active Punto. Initially I was planning for a xenos system which would have costed me around 3000/-, but lot and lot of people are advising me against it and all are telling me to go for the OE Fiat C/L with keyless entry which comes for around 10k. Since they have to fix actuators etc etc. What should I do? Will it be helpful for me in future so that atleast I wont give chances to the FIAT A.S.S. fellows to say : you got it done from outside, so you have spoiled this and that? This is an area of concern although the price too is of prime concern. I am in two minds, with my mind slightly getting tilted towards the FIat system. What should I do?

PaddleShifter · 24th October 2010, 12:51

@Arpan- The after market CLs are pathetic. I've a Xenos CL in our old M800. It auto locks all doors after 10secs. By the time, I've taken the car out of our home, the doors are locked and others have to bang at the doors to remind me to open the doors.

It starts malfunctioning after every rainfall. Though it repairs itself automatically after a few days. Moron piece of electronic from Xenos.

I would suggest you to stick with the Fiat Central locking for peace of mind. It will also show door open warning for all four doors and theater dimming lights will work for all four doors.

Things it does not offer as compared to after market CLs:
- Alarm sound (It does not give that chirping sound while locking-unlocking which I personally believe is not required. It also does not sound an alarm if anyone tries to start it with duplicate key. But Punto already has got engine immobilizer with rolling code)
- Reverse parking sound (Not required IMO. It is irritating for others at night)
- Immobilizer (Punto Active already has got company fitted immobilizer with rolling code security).

If you want after-market central locking, better opt for Autocop. Xenos is crap.
But do keep warranty issues in mind.

arpanjha · 24th October 2010, 23:28

@paddleshifter:

Ok, so I am now pretty much determined to get the Fiat CL installed on my punto, or if seriously my wallet doesnt allow, then I can go for AutoCop.

I took up the issue of wallet not allowing because I still have to get the audio system up and running and I have some more small knick knack plans more, lets see what happens.

arpanjha · 31st October 2010, 21:39

Friends its time again to update this thread, and this time with some real driving done.
I made a trip today with family. It was a Kolkata-Durgapur-Kolkata trip. We were 5 adults, settled in very easily and very very comfortably. The morning drive was just fantastic. The round trip was a total of 345 killometers. I had filled my Punto up with 30.12 litres of petrol for the trip, I could not calculate manually how much fuel has been consumed, as the tank is pretty much high on confidence even now

The MID has shown a more or less constant Average Fuel Consumption of 14.1 km/l with 100% A/C for the whole trip which had 98% highway driving. The return leg being a bit heavy traffic driving, which really tested and sharpened my driving skills as I am a pretty new driver.

I shall update the thread with a few pics of the trip. I thoroughly enjoyed the ride in the morning, it took us about 3 hours to reach Durgapur (171km from Kolkata) with a few breaks totalling 30 mins. The drive was awesome, felt a solid ride, almost zero tiredness in the morning, am a bit tired now, because of heavy traffic in the evening. Although it is not considerable.

Now, I want to discuss about an important thing, I had a headlight assembly change a few days back, and while fitting in the new assembly, I was concerned about the headlight beam positioning of the new headlamp assembly. "Paddleshifter" had advised me to set the other proper working headlight at 0 and fit in the new one as they usually are at stock position at position 0. I had followed exactly that. But I found out in the morning today(when it was dark at 5am), that the new headlight was looking far lower than the old one, and both of them had a clear angle difference of 3 positions. Now I realised it should have been the other way round, I should have set the beam settings to 3 and then fit the stock new headlights. As 3 is the most dipped position. Anyways, I realised this and myself tried to rectify this mistake. What I did is, I put the headlight level to 0, both the headlights. Now, I opened the bonnet, and disconnected the new assembly chord. Now, with headlight switched on, and the lower angled reflector disconnected, I now brought the position of the old one to 3. And plugged in the new one, now both were at same angle and synced up together. This was very essential as I was going to drive back in dark highways. This was slightly off topic, but it was neccessary to be discussed.

I shall put up some pics soon, in the mean time, friends, any thoughts, suggestion, help, advise are welcome and desired.

PaddleShifter · 31st October 2010, 22:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by arpanjha

What I did is, I put the headlight level to 0, both the headlights. Now, I opened the bonnet, and disconnected the new assembly chord. Now, with headlight switched on, and the lower angled reflector disconnected, I now brought the position of the old one to 3. And plugged in the new one, now both were at same angle and synced up together.

Good to know that it's easy to align them at home. But as I had said, one can get them installed them in any position IMO. Even position 2. The installer just has to make sure that both the headlamps are aligned in that corresponding position after the install is complete.

In this case, the installer installed it in the most dipped position while he should have actually installed it in the highest most position and checked the headlight beam alignment.

Installing it in position 3 should be the rule only if the new headlamp can only be installed in the most dipped position initially.

Well, anyways, now we know that it is better to install it in position 3.

arpanjha · 1st November 2010, 10:31

Ya, its aligned perfectly now. and i am feeling proud I did my DIY job perfectly

cheers.
@ paddleshiftr, what about the FEa? Am I getting a decent FE? My ccar is just 500 km old.

Newpunter · 1st November 2010, 11:16

I think the fuel efficiency is decent for a car that has run only 500 Kms. On my first long trip ( the one where i finally completed 1000 Kms on my car ) , I got around 15 Kms/ L too. Yesterday, when i did my second long trip, I got an FE of 16 Kms/ L and i had to drive around 70 Kms on bad roads out a total of 360 Kms.

12th October 2010, 23:33	#47
PaddleShifter Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: CHD Posts: 1,121 Thanked: 2,708 Times	Hi Arpan- I think you can get it fixed at position "0"(zero), if you want to fix it while it is in stock location. (I've never seen any new car that has headlight in any position other than 0). Otherwise, you can get it fixed it in any position (0, 1, 2 or 3) as they will be doing headlight leveling after installing the headlamp assembly for that particular position(be it 0, 1 or 2 or 3). The stock position won't be disturbed as long as they do not touch the right headlamp assembly. Allow them to fiddle with the left headlamp(the one to be changed) only and then they can level it with as per the right headlamp so that left one will also attain the stock position for that particular height.
	() Thanks

15th October 2010, 09:07	#49
arpanjha BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 362 Thanked: 505 Times	CAR back to its original glory My car is back to its original glory. What I did was, took the car and the newly procured headlight set to a good workshop, i.e., Merlin Motors, they work on imported cars and mercs and normal cars too. So, I was sure they would work well on the car. I took the new headlamps to them, and they did the job in 15 to 20 mins flat. And guess what did they charge? Rs. 100/- All scratches removed, all paint damage removed, all lines are straight, all systems working, headlamp working, beam leveller automatically levelled itself. My beauty is back to its original glory. Total cost: Headlamp assembly: Rs. 4000/- (including shipping from Delhi to Kol) Body work: Rs. 100/- Headlight installation:Rs. 100/- Total cost: Rs. 4200/-
	() Thanks

15th October 2010, 09:20	#50
PaddleShifter Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: CHD Posts: 1,121 Thanked: 2,708 Times	Good to know that everything was fixed well Arpan. Also, from where did you get the headlamp assembly? I think you got it from the after market. Is it genuine Fiat accessory or locally made?
	() Thanks

23rd October 2010, 15:19	#53
blueblooded BHPian Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Varanasi Posts: 369 Thanked: 68 Times	congrats hemant and arpan for owning white beauty ,i too own the diesel variant fully agree with you guys that suspension and ride plus high speed dynamics are really awesome .
	() Thanks

23rd October 2010, 23:10	#54
arpanjha BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 362 Thanked: 505 Times	@blueblooded: Thnx friend for ur wishes. I too would like to wish you best for you and your lovely car. Let us all live Puntolly ever after Anyways, in the mean time I havent found much time to drive around with my Punto hence no updates, but I am planning to buy a Com-Paint value pack, as it is available for Bossa Nova White for the Punto. It will help me remove and touch up the minor imperfections on the paint repair on the bumper. Any other friends can ceom up with some experiences with the Com Paints package? And regarding FIAT A.S.S. I think they are trying to improve a lot, atleast if not on hands, at least on paper. After they have given the responsibility of boosting sales and ownership experience to Accenture, things seem to be moving. As the FIAT brand is now appearing more and more in news papers and appearing pretty nicely too. They have this FIAT FIRST now, I havent experienced it as of now, but hope to do so soon. As of now the A.S.S. experience for me has been bad, lets hope this improves significantly. The Fiat guys are planning to come up with Fiat hang outs, have anyone of you guys any info about it? Please share. I have 1 more question/doubt: I am going in for a Central Lock + Keyless entry fitment on my Active Punto. Initially I was planning for a xenos system which would have costed me around 3000/-, but lot and lot of people are advising me against it and all are telling me to go for the OE Fiat C/L with keyless entry which comes for around 10k. Since they have to fix actuators etc etc. What should I do? Will it be helpful for me in future so that atleast I wont give chances to the FIAT A.S.S. fellows to say : you got it done from outside, so you have spoiled this and that? This is an area of concern although the price too is of prime concern. I am in two minds, with my mind slightly getting tilted towards the FIat system. What should I do? Last edited by arpanjha : 23rd October 2010 at 23:22.
	() Thanks

24th October 2010, 12:51	#55
PaddleShifter Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: CHD Posts: 1,121 Thanked: 2,708 Times	@Arpan- The after market CLs are pathetic. I've a Xenos CL in our old M800. It auto locks all doors after 10secs. By the time, I've taken the car out of our home, the doors are locked and others have to bang at the doors to remind me to open the doors. It starts malfunctioning after every rainfall. Though it repairs itself automatically after a few days. Moron piece of electronic from Xenos. I would suggest you to stick with the Fiat Central locking for peace of mind. It will also show door open warning for all four doors and theater dimming lights will work for all four doors. Things it does not offer as compared to after market CLs: - Alarm sound (It does not give that chirping sound while locking-unlocking which I personally believe is not required. It also does not sound an alarm if anyone tries to start it with duplicate key. But Punto already has got engine immobilizer with rolling code) - Reverse parking sound (Not required IMO. It is irritating for others at night) - Immobilizer (Punto Active already has got company fitted immobilizer with rolling code security). If you want after-market central locking, better opt for Autocop. Xenos is crap. But do keep warranty issues in mind.
	() Thanks

24th October 2010, 23:28	#56
arpanjha BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 362 Thanked: 505 Times	@paddleshifter: Ok, so I am now pretty much determined to get the Fiat CL installed on my punto, or if seriously my wallet doesnt allow, then I can go for AutoCop. I took up the issue of wallet not allowing because I still have to get the audio system up and running and I have some more small knick knack plans more, lets see what happens.
	() Thanks

31st October 2010, 21:39	#57
arpanjha BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 362 Thanked: 505 Times	Friends its time again to update this thread, and this time with some real driving done. I made a trip today with family. It was a Kolkata-Durgapur-Kolkata trip. We were 5 adults, settled in very easily and very very comfortably. The morning drive was just fantastic. The round trip was a total of 345 killometers. I had filled my Punto up with 30.12 litres of petrol for the trip, I could not calculate manually how much fuel has been consumed, as the tank is pretty much high on confidence even now The MID has shown a more or less constant Average Fuel Consumption of 14.1 km/l with 100% A/C for the whole trip which had 98% highway driving. The return leg being a bit heavy traffic driving, which really tested and sharpened my driving skills as I am a pretty new driver. I shall update the thread with a few pics of the trip. I thoroughly enjoyed the ride in the morning, it took us about 3 hours to reach Durgapur (171km from Kolkata) with a few breaks totalling 30 mins. The drive was awesome, felt a solid ride, almost zero tiredness in the morning, am a bit tired now, because of heavy traffic in the evening. Although it is not considerable. Now, I want to discuss about an important thing, I had a headlight assembly change a few days back, and while fitting in the new assembly, I was concerned about the headlight beam positioning of the new headlamp assembly. "Paddleshifter" had advised me to set the other proper working headlight at 0 and fit in the new one as they usually are at stock position at position 0. I had followed exactly that. But I found out in the morning today(when it was dark at 5am), that the new headlight was looking far lower than the old one, and both of them had a clear angle difference of 3 positions. Now I realised it should have been the other way round, I should have set the beam settings to 3 and then fit the stock new headlights. As 3 is the most dipped position. Anyways, I realised this and myself tried to rectify this mistake. What I did is, I put the headlight level to 0, both the headlights. Now, I opened the bonnet, and disconnected the new assembly chord. Now, with headlight switched on, and the lower angled reflector disconnected, I now brought the position of the old one to 3. And plugged in the new one, now both were at same angle and synced up together. This was very essential as I was going to drive back in dark highways. This was slightly off topic, but it was neccessary to be discussed. I shall put up some pics soon, in the mean time, friends, any thoughts, suggestion, help, advise are welcome and desired. Last edited by arpanjha : 31st October 2010 at 21:43.
	() Thanks

1st November 2010, 10:31	#59
arpanjha BHPian Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Kolkata Posts: 362 Thanked: 505 Times	Ya, its aligned perfectly now. and i am feeling proud I did my DIY job perfectly cheers. @ paddleshiftr, what about the FEa? Am I getting a decent FE? My ccar is just 500 km old.
	() Thanks

1st November 2010, 11:16	#60
Newpunter BHPian Join Date: May 2010 Location: Bangalore Posts: 744 Thanked: 336 Times	I think the fuel efficiency is decent for a car that has run only 500 Kms. On my first long trip ( the one where i finally completed 1000 Kms on my car ) , I got around 15 Kms/ L too. Yesterday, when i did my second long trip, I got an FE of 16 Kms/ L and i had to drive around 70 Kms on bad roads out a total of 360 Kms.
	() Thanks