Fiat Punto – the best-kept secret on the road
The Fiat Grande Punto is one of the top sellers in Europe, yet in South Africa, very few people are aware that this little hatch was a finalist in the World Car of the Year competition last year, as well as winning the coveted Autocar Design Award in 2005.
Fiat Auto SA launched the latest version of the Grande Punto, which is said to push out 66kW instead of its predecessor’s 56kW. This new 1.3 Multijet diesel engine features a variable geometry turbocharger and has lots of torque available to make it the perfect way of commuting in town or long-distance.
The 1.4l 16v Starjet petrol engine has also been introduced and this one is said to give 70kW of power. Both engines are smooth and quiet and purrs along in almost any conditions.
The diesel engine is equipped with a five-speed manual gearbox and the petrol version gets a six-speed box.
Fiat has added 11 exterior colours to choose from, which can be combined with various interior trim packages. It looks a little like the Ford Focus, which is not really a bad thing, taken into consideration that the Focus is one of the world’s biggest sellers and has received quite a few design awards. The Fiat Grande Punto has an uncluttered appearance and the inside is now black and aluminium.
With a 5-star EuroNCAP rating and a total of six airbags, the Grande Punto certainly is ahead of its class when it comes to safety features.
The new Fiat Grande Punto comes with a service plan and at R141 900 for the 1.4l and R150 900 for the 1.3l diesel, we recon its good value for money. It is even said that the famous actor Daniel Radcliffe, who plays the role of Harry Potter in the Harry Potter movies plans to buy one of these when he turns 18, which is a huge compliment for Fiat, considering he can probably afford any other car on the market.
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