Sep 22, 2010 06:58 AM
9730 Views
(Updated Sep 22, 2010 07:51 AM)
I was about to give "4" star rating to this beautiful car but stepped short of it since I decided not to go for it. This decision is purely applicable on me and still I would recommend it for prospective buyers, as I would explain my experience with the European beauty as it lasted for 15-20 minutes. Now looks are subjective and as per saying " beauty lies in the eyes of beholder" this can be debatable if Punto is the best looking hatchbacks in country and perception matters. For me, I find its looks "muscular" and not "feminine" or bit more elegant as of i20. For me, Punto scores over i20 on overall looks. ( please read my review about i20, which disappointed me heavily )
I kept my eyes on Linea first and when I learnt about the price tag excessive of Manza ( petrol linea vs Diesel Manza, actually ) I decided to have a look at the young Punto and went for test drivce. It was in chandigarh Industrial area and I was interested in petrol model. So we all sat in a top model of Punto and drove on highway to check the offerings from Fiat/Tata stable,
I would list down pointwise here in order to make it a better read
- Looks and feel of car: I liked the muscular rear side and front. Overall I would rate it higher than any other hatchback in indian market. More so since it appears " built for some purpose" and implies a compact, strong car feel
The horn sounds very good and give " Pom Pom " sound unlike other cars which are relatively meek in roaring. it has also very less intrusion of external sounds, including its own horn.
The doors close with good reassuring sound. The black dashboard isnt the best one around and plastics are okay, but just that
- Engine: The petrol 1.2 L doesnt look that powerful to pull your car in the way you would like to. Part of it can be blamed to the heavy built of car ( it is 1250 kg approx ). One wouldnt feel the rush of Adrenaline on driving a Punto. Its strength, however can be realized in traffic situations. You can pull the car on higher gears even on low speeds, and it wouldnt ask you to shift gears as a Swift/Ritz will do. The torque distribution seems pretty even and you have plenty of horses available on low RPMs a thing much liked by my father, who isnt much concerned about the " pull feel " of the car
One bad thing which I want to highlight here is : when the car was " on " I went on the backside and the exhaust sounded like that of an AUTO! At that time I guess AC was on but still the sound wasnt coming from front, rather from exhaust and it was surprising for me and father. I discussed this with dealer who wasnt able to convince me
1.4 L engine is also an option available in petrol but it was clearly told by the dealer to avoid it due to its poor average
Suspension/comfort : Very comfortable with good handling. The elegance is clearly playing an important role when you are cruising with family and hit a bad road but sail through it unruffled. I deliberately took it to one and was satisfied with its ride. Only negative factor is the space available for rear passengers. If you are a Napoleon it should be ok for you but for 6 footers like me it is annoying. One more aspect here : I test drove Manza before that and was impressed by Acres of space there, making me compare it with punto. Still it is feels less
Built/Safety : Punto appears a solid car - pretty heavy with thick metal sheet. From rear it appears like built for a purpose, like a tank. Sturdy like much costlier cars
Overall buying experience - I decided not to buy Punto due to 1. Poor availability of spares as compared to other vendors ( costly too )2. Fiat's bad reputation ( although it is still far better, with Tata's support )
Petrol Engine isnt the best part of the chassis and the bad noise from its exhaust wasnt exactly convincing. 4. apprehension of poor resale value. ( my hometown is a small town in haryana, hence local support is hard to expect other than dealer ) 5. poor rear seat space
I found this vehicle okay for family overall. No excitement involved, that is another factor in saying so
