[puchoo]

Seats look absolutely fantastic and you are right , the red border takes it up a notch without over killing it!! Exteriors looking as great as ever!

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by vibbs

Just one word KarthikK, 'Awesome'. Since forum rules wont allow me to post a one worder I ll add some more


However




Some bad finish there, specifically where the plastic meets the leather?

Thanks a lot vibbs! That finish has to be blamed on Fiat for giving the 'bathroom grade' grey plastic material, that's how I refer to it. There are quite a few crude, unfinished edges sticking out in a few spaces like these. Sad that they don't do a QC check on such things before rolling out the cars from the factory.

Apart from that all looks absolutely spotless. Would love to get something like that to the interiors of my Punto too

And yeah a brilliant ownership review thread running. Went through it comprehensively before I bought my Punto.

Thanks once again, glad to know if this thread was helpful to you in some way. Congrats on the Punto and wish you many happy miles with it. I'm closely tracking your ownership experiences on your thread.

Originally Posted by shashank.nk

Will wait for your feedback on this. In Octy, the contact areas are sweaty after a long drive even after the AC is turned on.

That's strange, I've been using these karlsson seats for 4-5 hours everyday in the hot sun, never had any instance of sweating as long as the AC was on. Ditto with the T-Jet. Could it be possible that Stanley gave you an art-leather-genuine leather combo inducing this effect?? Just a random thought, hehe.

Originally Posted by puchoo

Seats look absolutely fantastic and you are right , the red border takes it up a notch without over killing it!! Exteriors looking as great as ever!

Thanks a lot puchoo! glad to know you liked the final finish. I'm about to order the seat belt pouches you suggested for me long back. Many thanks for the idea and the link!

[shashank.nk]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

That's strange, I've been using these karlsson seats for 4-5 hours everyday in the hot sun, never had any instance of sweating as long as the AC was on. Ditto with the T-Jet. Could it be possible that Stanley gave you an art-leather-genuine leather combo inducing this effect?? Just a random thought, hehe.

We went for all leather so combo can be ruled out but I've read about this issue elsewhere in the forum too. But if its not troubling you its great !

[sidindica]

Brilliantly penned review and transformations done to your abarth esseesse. Saw it from start to finish, looks like a totally different specie out there. Any plans for a kickass audio setup?

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by sidindica

Brilliantly penned review and transformations done to your abarth esseesse. Saw it from start to finish, looks like a totally different specie out there. Any plans for a kickass audio setup?

Thanks a lot for the kind words, sidindica! glad you liked the makeover . I am not too much of an audiophile and so had put off ICE makeover plans until I reach the very end of the modifications backlog. I'll probably get something basic to upgrade the audio quality for my city commute journey duration, but nothing over the top. I don't want to lose the steering controls and Blue&Me, so I'll retain the stock HU for sure.

[ampere]

Originally Posted by KarthikK

Thanks a lot for the kind words, sidindica! glad you liked the makeover . I am not too much of an audiophile and so had put off ICE makeover plans until I reach the very end of the modifications backlog. I'll probably get something basic to upgrade the audio quality for my city commute journey duration, but nothing over the top. I don't want to lose the steering controls and Blue&Me, so I'll retain the stock HU for sure.

A basic speaker upgrade would take it up by a few notches. If the stocks are bad, this alone would satisfy almost 80-90% of the sample space. (The rest being audiophile class! )

[sidindica]

Rainbow EL series should suffice. I had thrown away my GP dynamic's stock HU after 3 months because it was just too primitive for me. BTW i am interested in ordering some European embellishments (Italian flag badge; "P" logo with red top etc). Partsworld dot UK does not deliver it in India. Where can I get them?

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by sidindica

Rainbow EL series should suffice. I had thrown away my GP dynamic's stock HU after 3 months because it was just too primitive for me. BTW i am interested in ordering some European embellishments (Italian flag badge; "P" logo with red top etc). Partsworld dot UK does not deliver it in India. Where can I get them?

I'll take a look at the series you suggested. Thanks a ton!

Partsworld uk is perhaps the only site which has these OEM badges for online purchase (referring to the Punto logo with red top). There are some sellers on eBay UK and eBay US too. Unfortunately most of them do not deliver to India or even Asia for that matter, but for a few exceptions. You have to try your luck and see who is ready to ship them for you. Some sellers will be willing to oblige if you PM them on eBay and offer to pay extra for the shipment to India, etc.

A better idea would be to use some friend/contact of yours who might be staying in UK. You could get partsworld UK to deliver to your friend/relative's place and then ask that person to ship it to you via Royal AirMail.

[sandeepmdas]

KarthikK, Awesome thread!

You see, I exchanged my Punto EP for a 2013 Punto Sport 90HP today. There was only one car available in Mohandas Fiat, Trivandrum. Exotica Red!

It came with a INR 1L discount and a MapMyIndia navigator as freebies from Fiat plus a reverse sensor thrown in as a dealer freebie.

I paid for the sport kit but it was not available at the time of delivery I will get it by next week. The new car sports far better interiors, better plastics and a lower NVH factor when compared to older one.

The SA in Mohandas Fiat is a TBHPian: stylishtsaurav is his handle here. The overall experience went very well. Sadly (for Fiat), we were the only customers but let us hope things go well for them. The dealership is very optimistic and cheerful, if you ask me.

[theexperthand]

Hey Karthik, it was nice meeting you yesterday. I am amazed at the fact that you remember my car name

--Anoop

[Sheel]

And I am surprised to see no updates since quite some time. Its the longest hiatus I believe.

[ank.nsit]

Hi Kartikk,

I read your thread & you have done some excellent modifications to your car.
Have you upgraded your suspension/brakes or still running on stock?

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by Sheel

And I am surprised to see no updates since quite some time. Its the longest hiatus I believe.

Trust me Sheel, I was really thinking the same all this while until last weekend when I actually spotted Mr. K with his Punto A , in my neighbourhood. Our man was playing a Chauffer for some of his family folks.

I think that says it. He has probably been busy with Family chores of late.

Originally Posted by ank.nsit

Hi Kartikk,

I read your thread & you have done some excellent modifications to your car.
Have you upgraded your suspension/brakes or still running on stock?

Hey ank.nsit, from what I know Karthik has not yet touched the suspensions or breaks part of his Abarth and it still rides on OEM's, unless there has been some changes that have happened offline.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by ank.nsit

Hi Kartikk,

I read your thread & you have done some excellent modifications to your car.
Have you upgraded your suspension/brakes or still running on stock?

Thanks for the kind comments ank.nsit .

Like Vik0728 says, I am yet to upgrade the brakes and suspension on the Punto. I do ensure timely replacements of the brake pads though. The braking power of the stock brakes is adequate for my kind of usage of this car (it is almost never used on highways, 95% usage is on urban roads for office commute or city duty)

That said, I would love to put these mods on the anvil for the future.

Originally Posted by Sheel

And I am surprised to see no updates since quite some time. Its the longest hiatus I believe.

Originally Posted by Vik0728

Trust me Sheel, I was really thinking the same all this while until last weekend when I actually spotted Mr. K with his Punto A , in my neighbourhood. Our man was playing a Chauffer for some of his family folks.

I think that says it. He has probably been busy with Family chores of late.

I was a bit caught up with hectic work schedules and timelines at office over the past few months, so I wasn't able to get as involved in modifications as I would have liked to. Fortunately, I am back to the Red rocket mod scene again after a 4 month hiatus.

Time to get this thread alive and kicking again. On the anvil for this month and the next :

- OSRAM LED DRLs on the front to mimic the Abarth Punto Evo look
- CF vinyl wrap (faux Evo look) on front and rear stripped and replaced with matt wrap to give a more authentic look
- Renewed coating of Red paint on the brake calipers and rear drums
- Tyre switch to Michelin Primacy 3ST 195/60R15.

Probably sometime in August :

- FXR Stage IV Projector headlamps with Amber coronas.
- The long pending ICE upgrade.

I visited the service centre this past Saturday and got a routine checkup done with some trivial parts replaced. More to come in my update tonight.

[SR71-Blackbird]

Awesome ownership review and awesome mods as well!
I have almost made up my mind to buy the punto (the facelifted one! ) and this thread is one of the reasons for that!

BTW, do you drive through borewell road in Whitefield? I think, I saw your red rocket(or a copy of it!) a couple of times on that road!