I have been in a 2007 Punto 1.2 for a week....
Discussion
My Alfa 156 us currently in at the body shop for some remedial work - as a result I was handed the keys to a 1.2 Punto. This particular model was in orange with matching seats and dash and was sporting alloys, cd player, electric windows and air conditioning!!!
From the off the car felt strange next to the Alfa, the driving position was high, it felt like a people carrier, the clutch was light, the box was notchy and it must have had kangaroo juice in it, I just couldn't drive it smoothly at all! The steering wheel is leather clad and nice and chunky, the PAS is light, yet some comedian has added a city button, this really isn't necessary. The sound system is fantastic and works more often than my 156 CD player :P. The dash clocks remind me of the Fiat Uno days which I thought was a nice touch and the switch gear felt better than the 156. I like the aero style wipers too. The on board computer is far too fiddly, not that well thought out, you use the stork on the end of the wipers and another menu button on the dash - again not necessary to have all these buttons.
Once on the move it was pretty steady, you wouldn't buy this engine unless you were young and wanted cheapest insurance possible, or you really really never need power. It sat at motorway speeds well though. The handling is superb, considering it isn't a hot version, and it wears 175 tyres it felt good around the twisties, confidence inspiring! The brakes are a let down though, seriously over servo'd, if you fart hard enough it would lift the back wheels up - I know how SLR drivers must feel now
Conclusively I would say it is a reasonable city car - the quality of materials has come on, as has the fit and finish - the 3 door's, door's are too big and unless you are literally 7 feet tall you will get annoyed by having to turn your body around to get your seatbelt every time as you cannot reach with your left arm - get a 5 door! I would either get the top petrol [diesel will ruin the great balance] or the base petrol as a second car.
Modern cars have come on a long way - better than the choice I had 10 years ago
From the off the car felt strange next to the Alfa, the driving position was high, it felt like a people carrier, the clutch was light, the box was notchy and it must have had kangaroo juice in it, I just couldn't drive it smoothly at all! The steering wheel is leather clad and nice and chunky, the PAS is light, yet some comedian has added a city button, this really isn't necessary. The sound system is fantastic and works more often than my 156 CD player :P. The dash clocks remind me of the Fiat Uno days which I thought was a nice touch and the switch gear felt better than the 156. I like the aero style wipers too. The on board computer is far too fiddly, not that well thought out, you use the stork on the end of the wipers and another menu button on the dash - again not necessary to have all these buttons.
Once on the move it was pretty steady, you wouldn't buy this engine unless you were young and wanted cheapest insurance possible, or you really really never need power. It sat at motorway speeds well though. The handling is superb, considering it isn't a hot version, and it wears 175 tyres it felt good around the twisties, confidence inspiring! The brakes are a let down though, seriously over servo'd, if you fart hard enough it would lift the back wheels up - I know how SLR drivers must feel now
Conclusively I would say it is a reasonable city car - the quality of materials has come on, as has the fit and finish - the 3 door's, door's are too big and unless you are literally 7 feet tall you will get annoyed by having to turn your body around to get your seatbelt every time as you cannot reach with your left arm - get a 5 door! I would either get the top petrol [diesel will ruin the great balance] or the base petrol as a second car.
Modern cars have come on a long way - better than the choice I had 10 years ago
Nice review.
The new Punto does look excellent!
You can now retro fit flat wiper blades to your 156 if you are interested. It seems a popular mod and prevents a lot of the juddering and skipping that the standard wipers seem to do.
Go here, fill in your car details and it should bring up what is available for "flat wiper upgrades".
http://www.wiperblades.co.uk/product_display.php
The new Punto does look excellent!
You can now retro fit flat wiper blades to your 156 if you are interested. It seems a popular mod and prevents a lot of the juddering and skipping that the standard wipers seem to do.
Go here, fill in your car details and it should bring up what is available for "flat wiper upgrades".
http://www.wiperblades.co.uk/product_display.php
MonkeyMatt said:
My 1.9 multijet Sporting is a great car though I really am tempted to trade it for the Abarth SS
quite tempted by the little abarth as well - used to love my old uno turbo all those years ago - everyone else had golf gtis and rs turbos - the uno was sooooo much better (well better at being more of a hooligan anyhow) - might just get one for the 'other half' ;-)any ideas of what sort of weight they are going to be?
sounds as if they have got the suspension sorted on it as well - still retains its comfort (yep getting old)
http://www.autocar.co.uk/CarReviews/FirstDrives/Fi...
1150kg! 180bhp - tidy - only slightly heavier than my old uno! but 50bhp up
price stings though..... i was expecting £14k - not £16-20k - thats vw gti figures...
think fiat wont sell many at that rate ?
1150kg! 180bhp - tidy - only slightly heavier than my old uno! but 50bhp up
price stings though..... i was expecting £14k - not £16-20k - thats vw gti figures...
think fiat wont sell many at that rate ?
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