2002 Fiat Punto Active Sport review from UK and Ireland

Car has generally been fine so far, however drivers door lock occasionally refuses to turn, passenger side woofer had a loose connection (seems to have resolved itself!) and a piece of foam bonnet insulation keeps falling off.

These are all little things that will get sorted in its next service.

I purchased my car from a neighbour a few weeks ago when it was about 18 months old. So far very impressed.

A very neat little package. My car came specified with metallic black paint, alloys and an uprated sony CD stereo. One strange thing is that it did not come with a boot light, this cost me an extra £8 from the dealers!

The car seems very solid and is well equipped. Looks very purposeful from the outside.

The interior is very smart with very nice sports seats. Even has a lumbar support on the drivers-side. Only some harsh shiny plastics on top of the dash let it down.

Has some very neat features like follow me home headlights and 1 minute delay on the electric windows, all very useful. The 6 speaker sound system also sounds very good.

Car drives very well, the engine is extremely perky for 60bhp, not fast, but enjoyably responsive. Is rare to get a car this size that will do 60mph in second gear! It also stop and steers well too. The dualdrive power steering is a brilliant idea, so much so I use it all the time.

Having owned two Fiat-based cars in previous years (Lancia Y10, Fiat Uno) and vowing never to own another, this car has totally changed my opinion of the Fiat brand. A very refreshing alternative to a new Corsa/Clio.