Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD Emo

After a few hiccups and fights with Concorde Motors,I finally got my Grande Punto BNW MJD Emotion last week.

My first car was the cute Chevy Spark. My running kept increasing month on month with frequent trips to Visakhapatnam and it was time I thought about a Diesel car. My list had Indica Vista Aura ABS and Ford Figo. I read all the ownership reviews on the Figo and Vista. It was really a close call between the two cars for me. Since stability on the highway was my major requirement, I took both the cars on the highway, and that's where the Vista was out of my list. The steering was vague at higher speeds, and quick lane changes were not so confidence inspiring due to the body roll. Figo won on the handling with it's super responsive steering and nice highway manners. When the decision was almost made, I got a call from Concorde who wanted to know my decision. I told them my decision points, and they said the Punto would fit in. I was skeptical about the price as I wanted ABS in my next car. I thought I wouldn't lose anything over a test drive and asked the guy to come down to my place. I was waiting in the balcony directing the guy to my place. As soon as the car took a turn into my street, I bought it. I was sold on the looks. It was a Bossa Nova white GP Emotion with the FIAT stickering on it. Test drive was just a formality. The Punto won my heart once again when I took her out on the highway, precise and perfectly weighted steering, was like a train on track at triple digit speeds. Suspension was so good, that after sometime I stopped slowing down for the bad patches on the road. The decision was instantaneous. I was Punto'ed.

The Dynamic fit into my budget, and I booked one. I went around to have a look at the ICE options, seat covers and a few more accessories which I wanted from Day 1. After a few calculations the budget came to around 50k for the ICE and accessories, which again put a question in my mind. Why don't I put in the same money on the Punto and get myself an Emotion. I would get a Stock ICE (at least to listen to something, though I would rate it as 2/10), fog lamps, Keyless entry, Rear defogger + wash and wipe and above all ABS. I rushed to the showroom the next morning and changed my booking to the Punto Emotion.

I got my car after a lot of fuss, but the pain was all gone once I got my hands on the steering. I couldn't wait to drive this beauty on the highway to Vizag to show it to my parents. Any long drive is boring without nice audio. I had ordered a Blaupunkt THA 555 PnP amp for my Punto from Autosonics Mumbai. All I needed was a nice pair of speakers and the installation of the amp. Prices for the upgrade were as below.

Blaupunkt THA 555 PnP - 12.5k
Wiring 2.5 mtr - 2.5k
Polk db 6501 components - 6.5k
Polk db651 co axials - 3k
Installation - 1k
Sub - Pending for next month. Need suggestions here!

Now was the I love the most. DRIVE - on the highway! I ensured that I was under the 3k rpm rev range, by using the programmable speed limit at 120 kph. With so much information on the MID I was simply blown away. Considering I upgraded from Spark, I was so happy that the IC was right where it belonged - In front of me!

What I loved about this car -
1. Solid and heavy car in all aspects, right from the weight of the foldable key to the steering.
2. Meaty steering to hold, which responds to you at all speeds.
3. Confidence inspiring braking.
4. The Sweet turbo whistle (I love it)
5. Responsive engine in spite of the turbo lag, thanks to the low end torque. The kick of the turbo is a different story all together.
6. Excellent suspension setup which eats up anything to everything on the road.
7. Information on the MID.
8. Autodown on all windows. Auto Up on drivers window.

Things which I didn't like much -
1. Front Power window switches and the switches for fog lamps and headlight adjustment are too far to reach for me.
2. The stock lighting was poor. I upgraded to Philips extreme power and along with the fog lamps, the lighting was great in the dark nights.
3. Awkward high/low beam mechanism.
4. Stock ICE speakers.
5. Awful 165/80 R14 tyres even for an Emotion variant (cost cutting I think, It was 175/70 R14 rubber earlier).

The FE I got overall was 16.6 kmpl for the round trip from HYD-VIZAG.

Absolutely no parts falling off, no rattles, no issues with the plastics, but for the steering console cover. Overall a completely VFM car!

No Grande Punto post is complete without pics, so here are a few!

Re: Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD

Thanks Paddleshifter!

Re: Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD

Congrats buddy
When are better rubber and alloys coming.
How would you rate the PnP amp from the scale of 10.

Re: Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD

nice to see you finally got your hands on your car.Did you book your car at Concorde in Khairatabad ? Was your SA named Sanjeev by any chance?

Re: Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD

Congratulations and best wishes, eagle_bush, on becoming a possessor of a precious Punto. Enjoy your Punto.

Re: Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD

Awesome baby... BNW looks very nice man...

Re: Tu sei una stella...la mia stella - BNW Grande Punto MJD

Better rubber and alloys would have to wait. Low on Vitamin M ::V
The PnP amp does the job well. I would rate it 8/10

I did book my car at Concorde Khairtabad. SA was Kiran.

Thanks Ravi!

Thanks much Andy!

Thanks VahanPujari!
Nice screen name that :drinks

I had a question on PCD for Punto. The service manual says "The distance between the stud centre lines is 100 mm, use only the wheels specified for this vehicle.". Does this mean the PCD is 100 and not 98?

[attachment=0:kzio7zac]PCD.PNG[/attachment:kzio7zac]