My Punto is here to stay in Gurgaon for a month. Been driving it for a few days now. Car seems to be aging well with no major issues to report, just some minor niggles which will be taken care of by next week.

My first concern was vibrations on steering wheel, i knew it was either deformed tire(s) or bent rims. Got Alignment and Balancing done, 2 of the rims are bent and one of the hand me down tires from Laura has lost its shape. Each rim costs upwards of 16k at the Authorised service center, so i will try to source them from open market, most probably replacement ones.

Aging issues on Goodyear OE tires are well known, well these NCT 5 tires from Laura are much better than GT3 ones which my Punto came shod with. Time to start looking for new tires.

Having spoilt by the unending power reserves of Laura, i now find myself revving the Punto real hard, FE is effected hard (13.5kpl for last 2 days as per MID). Withing 2 days i have adapted well to the narrow torque band, weird ratios.

Suspension remains tight and good, awesome ride and handling with well good heavy HPS, make me beg for some real horses.

Stuff to be fixed this week:

• All of the wipers have gone bad, will be replaced this week.
• Parcel tray hooks broken again, Should i get a MDF tray fabricated?
• Some minor squeaks to be fixed.
• Cigarette lighter socket is loose and i blew the fuse while fixing it.
• And some good quality fresh photos to be clicked

Anshuman, Punto's OEM alloy costs 10k a piece and not 16k. Check the prices at Fiat's website and question the dealer. Even the turbine blade 16 inch alloys of the T Jet plus and the 2012 Lineas cost only 11K.

Why is the alignment done on the sidewalk? Shouldn't the rear wheels be on some wheel alignment contraption? Please also check the right and left turning radius of the front wheels while they are propped up on the alignment dial. Sometimes you'd see a skewed reading.

Looks like the wheel issue is common in Punto. 2 of my wheels are bent too and hence the tyre loosing air issue. The tyres were loosing air frequently and i thought its because it is punctured so i replaced the tyre as it was old already. But it never occured to me this could be because of the bent rims.

You do not have to buy new ones, you can allways get it fixed. There are some shops who fixes the rims by removing all the bents. I got one fixed and second one to be fixed this week. i am from bangalore and i know a place here but check out in your area.

hi anshuman,
alloys are available for a little over 4.5k at kawa motors, mumbai. shipping ofcourse will be extra.
saw the pic of the alloy and it doesnt look like a serious bend. taking it to a decent lathe shop and getting it trued would be one alternative, not costing more than 750 bucks a piece.
shifting both the bent alloys to the rear would also help if the repairing/replacing can wait.
i had all the four of my alloys bent and got them done up at AWRS, Thane. The car has crossed the 147000 mark yesterday while returning back from a good road trip during the diwali holidays and is still behaving good. Suspension otherwise is stock, except for the struts being replaced under warranty a couple of times along with the elastic pads.
About tires, i have tried the Yokohama V550s, the C Drives, the S Drives (on a different car though) and am currently running A Drives and what i feel is that the tires that best suit the Punto in both city and highway driving are the V550s. If you are more of a city guy, C drives would be one tire to opt for.
About the other problems, i wouldnt be able to comment as i havent encountered those till now.
Just my tubbits.
Drive safe, always wear a seatbelt!

[quote=gemi_kk;2951307][quote=rageshbhaskar;2951100]

Thanks Mate!! My main concern was "Fiat is trying to go by the Aam Junta way" They are concentrating more for common people rather than what they are good

I agree with you Gemi. But at the same time I do believe there are faults on us as customers , we were late to realize the value of GTX and like cars and once the MJDS were launched in palios , we all shouted for more power , but when they launched the T-jet there are not many takers. Most of us compromise even though we want , and buy non enthusiast cars . we are long planners , If we Indians lived every day like the europeans ..

btb , any news on ur next car?

A word of caution, a gentleman from another dedicated Fiat forum had been to Kawa motors and was shocked to see that they sell scrapped parts from accidental and test drive Fiat cars and hence the low cost.

I would not go there.

I could sense that considering the prices and the state in which parts are shipped. I had ordered timing belt tensioner and adjuster pulleys for my uno from them, they seem to work fine. I feel i was lucky.

Rajesh, you are blaming the customers. So do you mean, there is no problem from FIAT side?

When i bought the car, i am sure that the car will be reliable. Yes, i was proved correct. The car has no problem till date. But do you think i have any service centre to which i could go and get my car serviced?

I have been waiting to see FIAT Authorized service station from 2006. Till date i havent seen any. Why would again i buy a FIAT again?

Instead of launching fiat CAFFE's if they could have launched 2 authorized service stations, i would have felt much better. i am ready to take my car to pune for service. but they havent launched service but they want to sell coffe now made in their ranjangaon plant.

my reason for buying another car is mileage. i am running a minimum of 2000+ KM a month from the past 8 months. I could pay my new car EMI + fuel expenses with the amount of petrol being purchased for my 1.6. Thanks to our government.

Regarding my next purchase, its a nightmare
Wanna buy a duster, they are not ready to give me one.
Loved Vento, afraid of their service
Fine with Rapid, however i am really afraid Skoda service after reading so many horror stories.

Now running out of options

Etios. Good package, but my friends are shouting on me not to buy ETIOS. they feel it as a cheap car. Some are even threatening me and some are doing Emotional Atyachar saying "yeh cab driver ban ne wala hai. Taxi chahiye kya?"

FORD Fiesta classic, Verna. I dont like american & Korean cars, some how i dont trust them. It has to be a Japanese or European.
Dzire, Boot is not big, price is toooo much for that car and its a tin can.

No hopes on Ecosport. Honda Amaze sounds good. Dont know what i am going to buy. May god bless me with a Duster.




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Hi Anshuman,

I see that you recently got your wheels balanced/aligned. Where is this place in Gurgaon? Do you think the alignment centers have data for the 2012 punto, considering they have enhanced GC and all? I have a 195mm version, i.e. the petrol 2012 Punto and is due for an alignment check. And what do you do to maintain the near new look on the Punto? Awesome, really!

When i bought the car, i am sure that the car will be reliable. Yes, i was proved correct. The car has no problem till date. But do you think i have any service centre to which i could go and get my car serviced?



Gemi , In my earlier post i had started by 'Agree Also' In my 7 plus years of ownership I have had 'n' number of visits to the garage just for the same issue , example the heating problem , even i was stranded on the high way late night with my 3 months old son . A fan took 3 weeks to come and that too when i was visiting Trivandrum , i had to put her meanwhile.Service is the worst , there is no doubt on that , Inspite of not having a single rust i sold her just because i didnt have the peace of mind to carry my family


Having said that 2k per month , its not wise to have a petrol car , also for that exhaustive driving i would suggest you go for a safer car .

IMO , if you are looking for a diesel option , Skodas , dont even think due to service and spares , after a 1.6 Fiat you cant drive a Hyundai . Ford if you plan to use for 2-3 years ok , else no, Another option in case you dont have issues with the non linear delivery of the 1.3 MJD , the Swift ZDI .

Etios is ok but if a Volvo go pasts , she will shiver .

Duster i have heard gives you the best ride , i have nt driven but I wish they had a better service network and reputation iin India.

Vento Tdi is a good car . VW may be slightly costly but its worth it and being a new car , i dont think it will give u trouble .

This place is in Hisar, not in Gurgaon. I recommend Star Wheels on Kataria Chowk for Alignment and Balancing.

I am not sure about this, are there changes to camber and castor specs? The owner of Star wheels is a pretty well informed guy.

Just some Defensive driving and frequent wash + wax.

Gemi.

Fiesta classic is by character European than American. The downside is the left hand-in-the-gear lever mode of driving(for the diesel).

And the problems with my Punto continues. Since 4th service (45k) i have been facing several issues with my car (now at 58k) and yesterday morning suddenly the engine noise changed, i could feel there is some extra noise and when the turbo goes 1500 to 200 and there is some other noise. All in all i felt there is something serious problem about the car. it has not gone down yet and i am planning to go to service station to check.

but because of some situations at home i am not able to and i cannot leave car for a day too. Any comments on this? why this could be coming? I am a little concerned because its a never ending problem in my car now...