P P P Pick up a Punto !! (Fiat Punto 1.2 3dr)

Member Name: Averilla

Product:	Fiat Punto 1.2 3dr
Date:	09/08/05 (7200 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Economic, nippy and reliable

Disadvantages: Thin skin

Being a short person (5ft nothing), when I look for a car I like to be able to see over the steering wheel....it is also quite handy to be able to see the back end !!! I have driven some tanks in my time and, after 20 years of driving, I wanted something small, sexy and comfortable....like me !!!

Luckily the company I work for offer substantial discounts on all new Fiats. So off I went to my local Fiat dealer, to see what they could offer me in the small hatchback range. They were extremely helpful and I finally settled on a 1.2 Fiat Punto.I will also say at this point that their after sales service was also excellent.(I had to call them regarding my immobiliser warning light, it wasn't a problem with the car it was something I was doing, but they were lovely and helpful, probably laughing at me after I was off the phone though) .I even got a bunch of flowers when they delivered the car to my door.

That was 6 years ago, I purchased my first Punto for £4,800, that was with a total discount of £1,200, a bargain. Then when it was 3 years old I decided to trade it in for another new Punto. The price for this new was £6,300, the discounted price was £5,500 minus the trade in of my old 3 year old car £3,500.....do the math....this meant to buy another brand new Punto all I had to pay was..£2,000 !!! I think that was an excellent deal. Plus with all new fiats you get 3 year warranty and 3yrs Fiat AA assistance, the breakdown assistance alone is a saving of £300.

THE LOOK

Mmmmm, nice body ! Not to everyone's taste, but in my opinion, cute and dinky. The tail is almost flat, with high up , mounted, brake and rear lights. This is excellent for me expecially when it comes to reverse parking, I can see exactly how close I am to the car behind. The front, nose, is stylish and cheeky looking, very plain (the newer shape has a visible front grill but I think it is quite ugly looking compared to the old shape) with the small inconspicuous Fiat badge. I chose black for mine, but other basic colours are Blue, red, silver. Expect to pay more if you want other colours or a metallic paint finish, there are several more metallic finishes including Orange (pretty disgusting).The interior is a neat grey cloth, comfortable but not anything special. They do have a choice of interior trim colour, including blue and dove grey, I chose a simple dark grey ! You have to pay extra for body coloured bumpers and wing mirrors as the standard is black...of course having purchased a black one this didn't apply to me.

STANDARD FEATURES

Standard features on my 3 door version (the 5 door version is approx £500 extra) include:

Dual front airbags, which can be turned on or off, particularly handy if you want to transport a small child in the front (this is because you should never have a child under a certain size in the front of a car with airbags on )

ABS (Anti Lock Braking System)

Electric front windows....these are not one touch, meaning you have to keep your finger on the trigger !

Air conditioning.....not in mine but in the latest version.

Electric power steering with additional 'City' function....The City function is basically a button on the dash, when you press this it makes the steering even lighter, this is for use during town driving and parking..wow...when you use this function to park, you can pop this little baby in the tightest of parking spaces...this is one of my favourite features. If you press it accidentally it will turn itself off after a short while, also it will not work if you are driving over 5 mph.

Height adjustable steering wheel.

Height adjustable front driver's seat, with additional lumbar adjustment. You pump a handle next to the seat to get the desired height...perfect again for me being short...this means, that not only can I see over the wheel but people can also see me...which helps !

Remote central locking with code immobiliser.

5 Speed manual gearbox

Built in bluepoint radio/ cassette with 6 speakers ! Suprisingly good sound...especially when I have my Clash tape in..oooh !

14in Steel wheels, 165/70 R14 tyres.

The latest version has found room to put a full size spare wheel in (mine only has a spacesaver).

PERFORMANCE AND DRIVEABILITY

This car is extremely economical, so is the perfect car if, like me, your main driving is local around town and short journeys. Fuel consumption if driven sensibly (Hee Hee) is 35-40 MPG. It costs approx £38 to fill this little baby's tank.

It is a smooth drive, and corners nicely if driven at a sensible speed. I will say that if you try to take a corner a little fast then there is some body roll on this. My one gripe whilst driving this, is it does not seen to hold the road too well in icy or wet conditions, you can sometimes feel the wheels slipping..but so far I have not had any mishaps !

0 - 60 in 11.40 seconds..apparently ! Accelleration on roundabouts etc, is satisfactory, that is to say, it is nippy but doesn't quite have anough ooomph for me, that said , when driving on the motorway it does have that ooomph factor !! Surprisingly for such a small engine, I can keep up with the best of them whilst still enjoying a smooth comfotable drive, the steering does start to suffer with rattle when you reach about 115 mph....but I have only done this the once...Honest !! So top speed is about 115 mph, but I would not reccommend it,also when reaching speeds above 90 mph I was surprised at the lack of noise.

Engine oil consumption usually about 400 grams every 1000km

Engine capacity 1242

Unleaded fuel

Reserve in fuel tank is normally 5-7 litres


OTHER POINTS

The boot size is normally important for me, considering I am a shopaholic !! And the Punto does not let me down here. I can comfortably fit 14 bags of shopping in here. It also accomodates my partner's golf bag and clubs. And I can fit my 9yr old Son's pushbike in easily ! For any larger items , the rear parcel shelf is easily removed, just unclip and lift out.

You can easily fit 2 adults or 3 children in the back with ample leg room..so comfortably roomy for a small hatch.

Okay the dashboard is smooth, rounded, functional and easy to navigate. Obviously being so basic there are no fancy features to mention. The display is large and clear and the controls are all within easy reach with out having to take you eyes of the road....which is good ! All standard displays including a digital clock.

The 3 door version is ideal for me , as I normally only transport small children in the back, however if you are tall, you might want the 5 door version as with this, it is very difficult to get in and out of (that is according to my 6ft partner)

Follow me home headlights !!! Oooh this is my favourite bit. When you turn off the engine having driven home late at night in the dark and parked in front of your garage, flick the indicator stalk towards you and it will turn on your headlights for a minimum time (the headlights automatically turn themselves off when the engine stops running, therefore preventing flat batteries), You can determine how long you want your lights on by the amount of times you flick your stalk *oooerrr*...i.e 1 flick is 5 seconds, so if you want to be able to see to open your garage door, flick 6 times and your lights will stay on for 30 seconds ! Neat !

The insurance group for this car is 2, so cheap insurance, I paid £190 fully comprehensive, and I think this is excellent.

Low tax...being a small car you only pay the basic tax rate.

OVERALL

Overall i would personally give this car 8 out of 10. There are only a couple of gripes, one, as I have mentioned is the slight glitch in hadling on icy roads and another is that the body skin does seem a little on the thin side. I have a couple of minor dents, hardly noticeable, but I believe this is where people have opened their door and hit mine...Grrrrr, also this would make me wonder about the safety aspect during an accident, however, Fiat again assure us that it is one of the safer Hatchbacks. Also, I will probably upgrade to the next version soon but I will NOT be getting a black one again, I am a kerb hogger, therefore I keep scraping along hedges....ooops...and every scratch shows, so does every tiny bit of mud etc. I have had this car for almost 3 years now and it has proved to be extremely reliable. I have not had any problems at all !

Hmm I think I shall go for red hot red next time, that is so much more me !!!!

One more point...Fiat assure us that every single component of the Fiat Punto is recyclable !! And Fiat will make the neccessary arrangements, if required, at the end of your car's life, to recycle it for you !

Happy motoring.

Summary: Ideal first car, economic to run and very nippy

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