The Fiat Punto - An ideal First car!

Advantages: Cheap to run and Fun to Drive, Excellent Value for Money
Disadvantages: Safety, Style

...I began driving this time last year and my first car was and still is a Fiat Punto 1.2 S, T-reg 1999, 3 doors. For a student such as myself, I would say that it is an ideal first car to have and I have thoroughly enjoyed driving it. It is not lightning quick and insurance is cheap! Obviously because of the age of my car, it is not going to set the world on fire, but I have been very pleased with it so far. I paid £750 for it from an auction and two years previously it had been bought for £4,200! Luckily for me, it has so far been very reliable and I hope that it will last me until next year when I will sell it before I go to University. Ride Quality Obviously, the car's ride quality is not awesome compared to most modern cars around today. But if you can't afford to spend loads on a set of wheels, the Punto offers a very good...

sbutler1 02.11.2006 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Living and driving with Fiat Punto

Advantages: Economical and spacious
Disadvantages: Heavy steering and noisy at speed

...Why, of all the cars on the market did I choose to buy a Fiat Punto? I have to admit that I only considered this car because I had been driving one on hire for a few months. When I looked at the vehicles available, Fiat seemed to offer good value. Have I come to regret this decision? I bought an ?98 registered vehicle in early 2000, and have driven about 16,000 miles since that time. So what are the pros and cons of this vehicle? This isn't the current model, but the immediately previous one wnich is very commonly available second hand. Firstly, I should say that I am married but have no children and virtually all my mileage is from my daily 50-mile round trip to work. Most of my driving is on the motorway with a few intervals of stationary urban traffic. Pros ? Decent fuel economy, not the best in class but I return about 43...

pauljm 16.03.2001 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

1998 Fiat Punto 55 sx

Advantages: Parts are cheap, fuel efficent, drives well (when running)
Disadvantages: Car suffers mid life crisis after 40,000 miles.

...I bought this car for £500. It was a 1997 (R) reg Punto 1.1sx. It had 50,000 miles on the clock with full service history. I thought the car would be OK as the milage was quite low and there was only two previous owners. After a month of owning the car the heater matrix went. These cost £60 from fiat and about £300 to fit as the whole dashboard has to come out. When the matrix goes you know about it as steam starts coming through the heater vents inside the car. I fitted the matrix myself, the job wasnt hard but it was time consuming. The car lasted another 2 months when the engine started overheating, this was a blown head gasket. apparently punto's are known for this problem, they fail around 30 to 60 thousand miles. A month and half later the clutch went. two months later there was a water leak from the bottom of engine...

masterm1nd 29.10.2008 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

THE DEFINITIVE REPORT ON THE FIAT PUNTO

Advantages: Cheap and Cheerful
Disadvantages: Very little boot space, not built to last.

...THE PRICE This has to be what attracts people to buy the Fiat Punto. It is very reasonablly priced and is ideal for a first time driver. If you shop around you can get a perfectly good Fiat Punto second hand. I strongly suggest you do this. THE LOOK The Fiat Punto comes in many different colours. They are all perfectly fine apart from white. It gets dirty very quickly and will have you cleaning it once a week. The Fiat Punto is a very european car, it is small but elegant. Perfect for a small family. The overall look of the car is excellent. No bits stand out or look out of place. HOW DOES IT RUN? Unfortunately this is what lets the car down. It isn`t exactly made to last. I usually only get around five years out of one before it plays up. I have been to the garage several times with the car to fix repairs. Is it just...

spartacus_kev 10.06.2003 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Fiat Punto Active Sport 1.2i 8v

Advantages: Great Looks, Low Tax, Cheap Insurance
Disadvantages: Ride Hieght, Slight Roll On Cornering

...Having recently handed my little Saxo over to my little sister for her lessons and run around. Its time to look for a new car, So I came accross a really nice "Fiat Punto Active Sport 1.2i 8v". Read below to find my opinion of this car so far....... Performance~ This car is awesome on petrol, Obviously depending on the way its driven its averagin about 48ish MPG. ALthough not as responsive as the saxo was and requires higher revs in lower gears to do this, Another slight downside is the ride height and suspension set up as the car feels very high, and also as if it is going to roll when taking corners at speed. Exterior~ The Active Sport variant of the Punto is in one word "sexy", Its got curves, and straight lines in all the right place. Again a slight draw back is the gap between the top of the wheels and the botton...

caz1145 30.12.2008 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 8v

Fiat Punto 1.2, to buy or not to buy!?

Advantages: Cheap to run, looks, practicality.
Disadvantages: performance not fantastic

...Many of us know that the Italians have produced many wonderful cars, often decribed in term of their sole and passion. However, does this statement remain true with the Fiat Punto, I believe it does. Being one of the most unoffensive vehicles on the road, it is a car which simply blends in to all surroundings, and will often go unoticed (unless bright yellow and pimped!). This in my opinion is a good thing, as it allows you to get by from day to day without having complete strangers stare at you; this also prevents embarassment on the odd occasion when you have to pick your nose for example! Looks: you gotta love the design of this car, its funky, smart, and just looks a nice piece of work. Inside is rather basic, but everything that is needed is there, so I give it a thumbs up. Performance: With this car, you're not gonna be...

howser17 15.05.2009 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Fiat Punto 1.2 3DR

Advantages: Nippy, cheap to run, ideal first car!
Disadvantages: Body can dent easily

...The model i am describing is shown in the title. I have a X reg 2000 manufactured model. It is light blue and does not have colour coded bumpers, unlike the 2002+ models. I started with a mk1 punto when i began driving over a year ago, the mk1 has its problems which i will not go into now as it is not what i am reviewing. However when i upgraded to the mk2 i was much more inpressed. When i first entered the mk2 it felt alot more roomier and the interior design in my opinion is alot more stylish and modern, which is what i expected. The interiour colour scheme is similar to the colour on the exterior. For example my punto is light blue on the exterior and thus dark blue interior. When i started the engine i didnt think it had actually started, it had but it was so quiet compared to the mk1 i didnt realise the engine was running...

dale2424 06.09.2005 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Pedalling the Punto

Advantages: Fairly inexpensive to buy
Disadvantages: Parts are expensive, insurance grouping is high

.... The Punto has a drivers airbag, a passenger airbag is available on more expensive models, and the GT model has side airbags. Running costs / Insurance groupings ***************************************** Being a basic, small engined model, the Punto gives in excess of 40 miles per gallon which is great when you consider UK petrol prices. FIAT parts are notoriously expensive though so be warned !!! Main dealer prices for parts can be 2 or 3 times higher than non-approved parts which can be just as good. The insurance group for this car is group 6, which I think is pretty high when you compare it against similar cars in its class. Again, this could be influenced by the cost of parts and how much it would cost to repair in the event of an accident. Security ********* Being the basic model, this car did not have a stereo, so no need...

Buenosdias 21.04.2004 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Bye Bye Punto

Advantages: good all rounder
Disadvantages: -

...needed to undertake an MOT until the third year. The Punto Active Sport that I have is a Mark 3, just after the change from the Mark 2 to include a little bit more shape to the vehicle and also the grill on the front which I thought it gave it more style to the previous version. With any vehicle when upgrading it some manufacturers do better than others and do actually improve the vehicle and its styling to ake it look better, however I do feel some companies fail to improve, i.e Renault when they changed the Megane, fair enough it was supposed to be more stylish but I much more preferred the Megane with its rounded shape to it. The Active Sport is a 3 door, you can't obtain this particular model as a 5 door purely because the 3 door give it that much more sportier look. Also Fiat only manufactured this particular model in two colours...

blondgem 26.01.2008 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Punto 1.2 

Fiat Grande Punto 1.2 dynamic

Advantages: Cheap, good looks, equipement, running costs, spacious
Disadvantages: underpowered, build quality not up there with the class best, Fiat dealers

...Price is good, and can be many thousands of pounds cheaper than a clio, corsa e.t.c. The new punto is also cheap to run, and with long 18.000 mile service intervals servicing is cheaper than some rivals as well. Economy of 40 MPG for my 1.2 petrol aint bad either. Although the engine is underpwered for a car of the size and weight, so needs revving a bit, but at home on the motorway at decent speeds. A slightly more powerful engine would improve economy as there would be more power to shift the bulk of the car, but as it is thats my only complaint about the engine. Safety - Full 5 star NCAP rating with 6 airbags accross the range, so if im driving it i feel safe and secure. Comfort - Very comfortable to be in, with controls mounted on the wheel. Seats could be more supportive, but other than that the fiat is a nice place to be in...

andreweddy 11.02.2008 · Read review
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Review of Fiat Grande Punto