Review on Fiat Punto Evo

The Delhi AutoExpo has been the entry point for many companies to bring their product for sale, especially for Fiat.The reason is the company has launched 4 upcoming models at the Auto Expo. Yes you got it.Nearly two of the cars are so familiar,that is Linea and the Punto. When you consider the demand for Punto,it has drastically gone down, that was so embarrassing .Then, it turns to be the turning point at which the idea of giving a new lease of life to it comes into reality. Thus the Punto comes as an enlightened model that gets rechristened as "Punto Evo".

EXTERIOR STYLING:

The styling concept has been borrowed from that of the Avventura that is being showcased at 2014 Auto Expo.To give the car a completely fresh look from that of its predecessor, changes have been done at the front and rear part, while the profile remains to be the same. Let’s have a deep look on to its exterior styling cues. The redesigned bumper now gets the chrome fittings that is well dwelled to bear the fog lamps. The swept back headlamps, bonnet and extended sides received changes in a way that gives the car a premium and up market feel. Led taillights further adds a charming appeal to it. The petrol and diesel variant gets different alloy wheels that the diesel variant possess alloy wheels a lighter shade rim, for which the size also been increased to 16-inch,while for petrol variant,alloy wheels are found to have diamond-cut with size measuring 15”.

Interior Design:

The interior design looks quite impressive, credit goes to the Linea’s dashboard that makes a difference between the two variants, central console and the instrumentation console. As mentioned earlier, it is the dashboard that distinguish the diesel and petrol variants,ie)petrol variant gets the rounded shaped and dual-toned dashboard,while the Punto Evo 90 gets the dashboard that is all-blackened. Next comes with the central console that tends to receive the piano black finish. Seats are arranged with comfort that assures great thigh support and is wider too to provide ample space at both front as well as at the back.Despite with the provision of all such fascinating features,there lacks in quality of steering mounted controls,and glove compartment.

Instrument Console:

The instrument console comprises of facilities such as climatic control, Blue and Me technology,CD/MP3,USB,Aux-in,Bluetooth and voice recognition. The car gets loaded with features like automatic headlights,auto-sense rain wipers and rear air con vents. For safety concerns, two front airbags have been added. Absence of rear-view camera or parking sensors make us feel a little tasteless.

Engine&Performance:

The mechanical parts remains untouched.Punto Evo comes with two distinct options-one in petrol 1.2 litre and 1.4 litre petrol and the other one is the 1.3 Multijet diesel engine.When probing into the diesel variant it comes in two states of tune-75 PS and 95 PS of power.Though the diesel mill cranks upto maximum torque of 209 Nm at 35,000 rpm,it suffer from the turbo lag that it comes only up to 2000rpm,yet it doesn’t fail to support smooth and better drive.The fuel efficiency has increased upto 5%,thus the mileage comes up to 21.2km/l,whereas the previous model delivers only up to 20km/l. In case of petrol variant,similar to that of its diesel variant,there found to be a sluggier rpm,however churns out the maximum power of 90 PS of power and 115 Nm of torque at 4,500-6000 rpm,thus proving to be more powerful.But both the engine produces a large amount of noise,when it was given a hard push.

Riding & Handling:

The seat is positioned right well to give a distant vision. The handling of steering gives a confident while turning corners at high speeds.though it seems to be heavier to tackle while maneuvering,once you gain high speed,you will find it quite easier. Further, while riding quality on road with humps and bumps is at ease, so that you can cross it without having the need to bear any inconveniences.The feel in handling the clutch is light especially in case of diesel variant.More shifts are required while driving amidst city conditions.Thus there establishes a good balance between handling and comfort.Braking efforts with ventilated discs up front and drum brakes at the back is strong and stable.

Verdict:

The Punto Evo that comes as an evolution with all such loaded features is really a hard thing to ignore.It will be better if the quality has been enriched.Let see how it will be going to revive in this competitive hatchback segment.