Fiat Grande Punto – Review in a nutshell

Here comes the super hatch killer in India. The Fiat Grande Punto. Since its release, I have seen a few on the roads and envied it. I thought I have waited a lot and yesterday just took off for a test drive of this Diesel beast. I’d like to share a few experiences.

Looks exterior: One word describes it. Awesomeness. Fiat’s allround design beats the ugly Ritz and A-star. The front grille, the rear finishing and the side doors all give this car a superb touch. You’ll surely fall in love at first sight.

Looks interior: Not very much impressed. I’ve always tought Fiat has to hire interior designers from Hyundai or Honda. They have always been giving the customers crappy interiors and still have’nt learnt their lessons. I drove the top end Emotion Model which had an inbuilt  Music system whose contols seem like an old transistor. The Air Con vents and the sliding controls are just too primitive. Its all black-black inside. The door side handles are’nt eye pleasing either. Fiat, its time. Change your inner wear. It matters. x|

Comfort: Great. You go inside and feel you are in a super big sedan. There is no way that 5 big sized adults could feel even the slightest of the cramps. With Steering level controls and seat height adjustments provided, a 6 foot guy need not worry about his comfort inside. Same with a guy who weighs a 100 Kilos. You’l fit inside with utmost ease.

Engine: The Fiat 1.3 MultiJet Diesel is a gem. Its Gold. I need not speak about it. Its a proven champion.

Acceleration: Here’s something you have to worry. Fireup the first gear, a slight push on the Gas would kick start the Punto. Then, you move on to the second and third, the car does not move until you push the Gas Pedal fully. An unpleasant surprise, but that’s the fact. I do not know whether it was a problem with the test drive vehicle, but if its not this is a serious issue. Press the Gas fully and leave the rest for the engine? I felt like a moped.

Braking: Its time that Indian car makes start giving us ABS as a compulsion and not as an option. With roads these days wider and better, and with a masterpiece Diesel Engine, you tend to zoom in fast and brakes are your life savers. Aren’t they? If thats not possible atleast give us all four Discs. That said, Punto’s brakes are not bad either. They show good response at speeds of 100kmph but never tested with 5 adults and luggage fully loaded.

Power Steering: The motor driven power steering responds well for a fairly bulky body like the Punto.

Air Conditioning: 1.3 Diesel does not bow down to an Air Con. You feel instant chill and it reaches out the rear passengers as well.

Dashboard: Ugly. What Fiat thought by placing the fuel and the temperature indicators at the center is still a mystery. Who on earth, while driving needs to keep looking at the Fuel Indicator going down all the time? I was very dissapointed. People are used to see the speeds and RPMs while driving, so put them at places right in front of the eye. Placing them where the edges of the steering cover them is foolishness. And next time, please change that italic font on the speedometer. It sucks.

Mileage: Punto gives you a highway mileage of 20 kmpl and a 17 kmpl in city conditions. I would accept this any day.

Gear Box: The new improved Fiat Gear Box is good. No complaints. All gears fall just right in place.

Top Speed: I always test drive Fiat vehicles at the Mysore Road, Concorde Motors so that I can zoom away in the Highway. Punto accelerated within no time and reached 100 – 120 kmph and stayed as stable as ever. Punto’s Aerodynamics and Geometry are the best available today. Go, press that accelerator and feel the rush

Tyres and Suspension: Tubeless tyres and Good suspension. Fiat won here.

Boot Space: Ample boot space to accomodate enough luggage for a family of four for a week long tour. No complaints here.

All in all, the Grande Punto is another step forward towards Fiat second innings in India. Given a chance to choose, I would rate the Punto over the Swift. Anybody now buying a Skoda Fabia is nothing less than a fool. Its very interesting to see how the 4 different cars – Punto, Indica Vista, Swift and Ritz fare at the market with the same 1.3 Multijet inside.

Find more pictures of the Punto Here. All the best Fiat.

Hyundai i10 – 5000km – Detailed review

Suggested Reading: Hyundai i10 – Review in a nutshell

It was about the same time a year ago, my table was flooded with brochures, quotations, price lists and pictures of various cars. Believe me, there is so much of choice available here, deciding on a car to buy is a real task. Maruti Swift, Hyundai Getz, Hyundai i10, Renault Logan, Fiat Palio Stile, Chevy Aveo Uva, Tata Indigo CS and the list continues. Finally, its Hyundai i10 which was the family choice as against my love Fiat Palio Multijet.

The stylish i10 magna cost 4.12 lacs ex showroom. Since we paid annual road tax of Rs. 800, we saved big bucks there. The car has been rather used less and has completed just 5000km in one full year. This included one long trip of 600km and other small trips to Mysore. Having said that, i10 has not been free of problems. There were about 4-5 ocassions where I have made all the way to the service centre to get things fixed up which is a high rate for a new vehicle. Some key points I would stress upon – firstly the negative ones.

Clutch – Clutch and clutch plates are the most vulnerable to wear and tear. i10 surprisingly has a point clutch system which is a bit difficult to adjust for somebody like me who had been driving the old sturdy Premier Padmini for some years. There is no range in which you can release the clutch and it has to be released at the exact point to get maximum pickup and rev. One way its better and its only until you get used to it. Lady drivers and newbies would stall the engine without doubt. Do not use the i10 to learn car driving.

Electronic Power Steering – i10 has one of the best power steerings of all vehicles I have Test driven. The motor driven power steering [MDPS] gives you the ultimate handling experience esp. in crowded city traffic. But then, all of a sudden MDPS ceased to work. It started to feel like I’m driving the old Premier. How on earth can the MDPS stop working within 8 months? The service manager shook his shoulders off by saying that its a  small loose connection but then he actually had to replace the whole system. MDPS cost a whopping 25 thousand INR but was covered under warranty. My sincere advice to all – Do buy the 2 year extended warranty, so effectively you get 2+2=4 years of tension free driving. Hyundai has promised to give monetary benefit as compensation. I will let you know once i get it.

Braking – No car will come to a sudden standstill once you hit the brakes and so is i10. Braking in i10 is not a concern in city limits and slow speeds. But, once you zip into the highway and cruising at over a 100kmph, that is when your heart starts pumping more than normal. With the weight of 4 adults and 100kmph i10′s brakes are a drawback. Perhaps the ABS version would be more secure. Its high time that Indian car makers make think that ABS and airbags are no more a comfort/luxury feature, its a necessity. i10′s braking like most recent cars is Power brakes which would mean that the brakes are ineffective when the engine is off. So, when you are in a slope, do not let the car to move without starting the engine or else you might end up bashing someone on the road!

Engine - 1.1L with 63ps? Just not enough. Load it up with four adults and whatever little luggage that fits in the small boot of the i10, this car struggles to climb the slopes. Seriously underpowered is what I can say. Switch on the AC to level 2 and the car barely moves up the slope. Hyundai, give me 1.3 atleast. Wonder how a 600cc Tata Nano would react to such hardships As far as average is concerned, I get 15 in city and 19 in highways with AC off most of the times.

Seating and Comfort – Hyundai wins here. The front seats are very comfortable with the side arm rests at the correct position. The small little gear just below the Dashboard is just at the right place. The rear is pretty spacious too and three medium sized people can easily sit back and enjoy. But, what was Hyundai thinking when they put the Pushback knob to the left of the Driver’s seat? Any child/infant sitting at the back has easy access to the knob and if by any chance the child plays a prank and pulls the knob, the driver is gonna sleep and sleep forever.

Handling and Speeds – Hit Plain roads and i10 is a gem. Smooth as butter is what I can say. The MDPS responds superbly even at high speeds negiotiating curves with atmost ease. MDPS is also handy in city condidtions where steep curves are needed to sneek in between buses With its small but spacious design handling in i10 is not at all a concern. I have reached a maximum of 140kmph and i10 has stayed rock stable. i10 has a pretty good ground clearance. So don’t slow down and jump off small hitches on the road

Finally, Wear the Seat belt. Happy and Safe driving