[adneo]

Originally Posted by PatchyBoy

The Linea T-Jet runs VL37. AFAIK, VL37<VL38<VL36. That said, the VL38 & VL37 have the same size housing but the VL36 is slightly bigger. So, swapping out the VL37 to a VL38 should be easy in the Linea T-Jet. Of course, it will also need swapping out the exhaust manifold and the wastegate actuator.

As per my research, the VL37 & VL36 share the same housings and are of the same dimensions, the only difference being the turbine, where the VL36 outshines the VL37.
So technically if the Indian Linea TJet comes in with a VL37 an upgrade to the VL36 should not pose any space constraints. Ofcourse it would require some work related to the manifolds,wastegate etc.
The VL38 is actually a compact turbo designed for smaller cars like the Abarth.

[nkrishnap]

Originally Posted by drive2eternity

Back to office after a long weekend. Yawning, I check my official mails, find nothing interesting and then as my daily ritual, come to TBhp and find this review. What a car and what a review ! Thanks a ton guys, you have brightened my Monday morning. Rated 5 Stars.

The car is a masterpiece. My close friend had bought a Punto 1.3 MJD [75hp] a few years ago (primarily on my suggestions), and since then, both of us have drooled over the Abarth. The chassis of the Punto always demanded more power and its handling can at times raise the hair at the back of your neck.

I would be going for a test drive of this car soon, though I am not in the market for a car, but it would be an experience which I cannot afford to miss.
And more than Fiat; I pray, hope and desire this car succeeds in India, because only then will people realize, what a performance hatch is, and what is the Abarth Legacy.

If you want to experience the true Abarth, go to Fiat Caffe and ask for the 595 test drive. Not that Punto Abarth is bad, but the 595 is the true Abarth.

[thesilentone]

Lovely and crisp review, nkrishnap & CD . The positives surely outweigh the negatives.

The ergonomics, the drive position, the gearbox issues were all present right from the first time the Punto was launched but despite everyone crying hoarse, there has been no change on these fronts. Come on Fiat, you should have done better than that and all your fans and prospective buyers definitely would have been better satisfied, but congrats for launching such a powerful car for a reasonable price.

I think that Fiat has deliberately not provided some accessories like Abarth branded pedals, etc., to keep the ex-showroom price within 10 lakhs. Good thinking.

[hemanth.anand]

Originally Posted by flipsyde

I think everyone has covered most of the points I had observed on my test drive.

Agree with all the points but, be it people or a product, you should always list the positives first and then the negatives.

Originally Posted by Vik0728

I have a strong feeling that a 'Real Abarth EVO' ownership is just round the corner.

I'd be more than happy if your feeling turns into reality. But if after that, GTI is made in India, I'd be kicking myself

Oh and by the way, IMO your Stead looks more upmarket & probably a lot more sporty than the overtly vinyled/styled Abarth EVO.

In fact, after the test drive, Some situations panned out in a way that the Sales guy got my car out from the basement parking while I was inside the showroom. When I saw the car came beside the Real abarth, I felt that the 17" whells was a perfect fit for the wheel well than those 16 inchers. I again fell in love with my car's looks

[Argan365]

What a wonderful review of probably the most awaited enthusiast's car. FIAT: Kudos for a job well done and take it a step further by offering the same in the Linea as well. Now that would be asking for too much eh ?

I wonder if a 6th gear would have been most optimal to handle the loads of power/torque on offer.

Rating the thread a very well deserved 5 stars.

Thanks

[avishar]

Originally Posted by adneo

Finally visited the Fiat Caffe at Domlur today along with Kedar who happens to drive a Wolfmoto remapped Linea Tjet.
The first thing that struck us was the engine note when idle.

Sorry for the off-topic post, but i think we bumped into you while waiting for the TD. We were the ones who were bombarding you with questions, since i distinctly remember the other gentlemen talking about his Wolfmoto remapped Linea.

[adneo]

Originally Posted by avishar

Sorry for the off-topic post, but i think we bumped into you while waiting for the TD. We were the ones who were bombarding you with questions, since i distinctly remember the other gentlemen talking about his Wolfmoto remapped Linea.

Ok i remember an enthusiast group raring to go for a spin as i was checking the turbo under the hood.
So did the punto have the hood open when u guys were there?
If u saw the hood open then indeed it was us, and the gentleman in question was Kedar.Great guy he is, very few people will actually take their car to accompany an enthusiast to do a comparo!
Gem of a guy, car fanatic to the core.

Thanks again Kedar sir, for accompanying me on this one .

[KiloAlpha]

Landed up in Aadya Motors, Mekhri Circle, Bangalore, for a test drive on 23rd October. Here are a few observations from my end:

1. I had no problems finding a comfortable driving position initially - I am 6'1" tall and have a "normal" physique.
2. Initial 2-3 kms, I took it easy and drove sedately through traffic. I wasn't uncomfortable, though the long travel clutch did take some getting used to. Apart from that, it was OK. As an everyday car in peak hour B2B traffic, it won't wear you down. Note: I kept the engine below 2000rpm
3. At the end of 3 kms, I started slotting the car into gaps in traffic and flooring the pedal. No lack of power or torque, so in flowing traffic, you can weave through gaps easily and make smooth & swift progress. Diesel-like pull in all gears above 2000rpm.

That brought me to a red light. Cop controlled pedestrian crossing on the highway. I was the first at the stop line (hurrah!). Cop had us stopped for over 1 minute. I knew that, when the light went green, I would have a clean run. So I floored it as soon as I saw green.
4. Torque steer in 1st, 2nd, 3rd.
5. It is easier to read the tacho than it is to read the speedo. I don't know what speed I was doing.
6. Moving up the gears is OK. But when shifting down 5-4-3-2, it is easy to miss a shift.

I did not get a chance to test handling, this test drive was on multi-lane highway.

My gripes:
1. Lack of variable intermittent wipers.
2. Lack of lane-change indicators. No one-tap-blink-thrice feature.

On the gearbox:
Enough has been said, over and over again, about the rubbery vague-shifting nature of the gearbox. Couple of people who own Fiats told me that the gearbox shift quality gets better as it ages. I also trawled the UK Abarth forums on the net. My conclusion is that shift quality varies from one gearbox to the next, and does indeed get better as the car ages. So if you ever buy a Abarth Punto, and are unhappy with the shift quality even after 6 months, gearbox swap could be the solution?

[Whiplash7]

Originally Posted by nkrishnap

• Apollo tyres give up much before the mechanical grip gives up around a corner. An upgrade to better rubber is necessity.

Please excuse me if this post does not belong here. But I thought the tyres are part of the car's mechanical grip. It would be interesting for me to know what one should observe to conclude that the tyres are giving up before the mechanical grip gives up.

[hemanth.anand]

I think I have a small bad news for Prospective buyers in Bangalore!

I just saw that the Bangalore ex-showroom price for this car is 10,14,056 on the Fiat website.
I'm was surprised how they could keep the OTR price at 11.96 lakhs
I guess there is a wrong calculation on the part of the dealers

If Ex-showroom was same across India(9.95L), As per Karnataka RTO taxation, the Life time Tax (LTT) will be 14% and the OTR price will be 11.74L

If the Ex-showroom is 10.14L as per the website, then the LTT will be 17% and the OTR will be 12.26L

But both the dealers gave me an OTR quote of 11.96L. This is achieved only if the LTT is taken aa 14% for the Ex showroom price of 10.14L.
I guess this is where the dealers have made a small error resulting in a difference of 30K rupees

I would be happy to be proved wrong but otherwise, its going to be 12.26L OTR Bangalore


Calculation

Karnataka LTT.

Source:http://rto.kar.nic.in/

Insurance: Base premium 2.75 percent of IDV (95% of Ex-showroom) plus Education cess of 12.36 of Base premium
Handling and Extended warranty: It is approximate of what I've seen (+ or - 2k)

[GKMahajan]

Rated a full 5 star!

I am not sure if I will but it - but your review made me curious enough to at least take a test drive. I will update here after I do that.

Just a curiosity - any estimates on the maintenance schedule and the costs involved in that?

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by hemanth.anand

I just saw that the Bangalore ex-showroom price for this car is 10,14,056 on the Fiat website.

Spot on Hemanth and I think you have unwrapped the mysterious twists/confusions of the Bangalore dealers assumptions

So, considering the real FTD cars in the market today, here is how the numbers pan out:

FIAT Abarth Punto

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 12,26,000 ~


Polo GT TDI (1.5)

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 10,48,656


Polo GT TSI

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 10,48,656


Ford FIGO Aspire TCDI (1.5)

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 10,10,294


Ford FIGO TCDI (1.5)

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 9,14,644


P.S - Though Abarth EVO seems quite expensive on Bangalore road, I think this car is a pure 'Heart Over Mind', 'Live to Drive', 'One Life', etc sort of decision buy

[Lij]

Thanks nkrishnap and crazy driver for this wonderful, short and crisp review.

As I thought the racing pedals are being offered as accessory which will add to the final cost of the car.

Booked for a test drive online on the Fiat website on Friday and I am yet to recieve a call from the dealer here in Mumbai (Torrid Motors). Fiat had assigned an automated ticket with the closure set for the same day.

As most of the Team-BHPians have mentioned, atleast from the pictures I would want the stickers on the bonnet and the rear hatch door to go and also those red fog lamp bezels. Compared to the red, the orginal chrome bezels looked better which was shown at the BIC. Waiting for a test drive and to see it in person for a final opinion.

[driveanddrive]

Originally Posted by Lij

Booked for a test drive online on the Fiat website on Friday and I am yet to recieve a call from the dealer here in Mumbai (Torrid Motors). Fiat had assigned an automated ticket with the closure set for the same day.

Hi Lij, I had called up Torrid for a test drive and got the response "The Abarth Punto has not yet been launched in Mumbai, not sure when it will be available for a test drive". Had called up their number which I found on google as the one mentioned on Fiat India's website was not reachable.

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Originally Posted by Vik0728

FIAT Abarth Punto

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 12,26,000 ~
Rs 8340.14/- per hp.

Polo GT TDI (1.5)

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 10,48,656
Rs 9987.2/- per hp.

Polo GT TSI

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 10,48,656
Rs 9987.2/- per hp

Ford FIGO Aspire TCDI (1.5)

On-Road Price (Bangalore) 10,10,294
Rs 10102.94/- per hp

Ford FIGO TCDI (1.5)

On-Road Price (Bangalore)
9,14,644
Rs 9146.44 per hp

P.S - Though Abarth EVO seems quite expensive on Bangalore road, I think this car is a pure 'Heart Over Mind', 'Live to Drive', 'One Life', etc sort of decision buy

Thanks for the numbers. And I totally agree with you. Abarth Punto delivers more bang for your buck compared to the other warm hatches we had in the market. Or Bhp per rupee as we bhp'ians like it.

Quoted figures inline above. With Rs 8340/- per horsepower, Abarth offers maximum power for minimum money.