2001 Fiat Punto ELX 16v from UK and Ireland - Comments

Nothing, but the car was delivered with some minor faults:

1. Small blemishes in the paint work.

2. Paint chipped from the front edges of the bonnet.

3. Bonnet not adjusted correctly so could not be opened easily.

4. Boot light hanging on wires (clip broken).

Apart from the minor quality control problems, this is a superb car. It is very well-equipped with electric sun roof, trip computer and an excellent Blaupunkt stereo with six speakers and a boot-mounted 100W sub-woofer.

The interior is comfortable and roomy, well put together and of good quality materials. All the controls are conveniently located and work well, but the pedals are a little close together for larger drivers and there is no left foot rest.

Fuel economy is outstanding. The computer regularly shows over 50 miles per gallon (currently indicating 57 mpg on the existing tankful).

The power steering is excellent. The City ratio provides extra assistance giving very light steering when parking.

The ride over uneven surfaces could be better and the very quiet turn indicator needs to be louder. I have been flashed on a couple of occasions by other drivers after leaving the indicators on - they do not always self-cancel.

Performance is very good for such a small engined car. It is both a practical long-distance tourer and a city car.

Since posting my original review 5 years ago, my Punto car has covered 50,000 miles and has been mechanically totally reliable and it has averaged around 43-45 miles per gallon.

Apart from routine service items such as oil, filters, plugs, wiper blades and tyres I have only had to replace the following items:

Rear portion of exhaust at 43,000 miles

Battery at 4 years

Front brake pads at 48,000 miles.

The things that have really irritated me about this car though have been a number of squeaks and rattles from the bodywork and suspension.

After about two years I began to notice a very annoying squeaking from the rear suspension which I traced to the sub frame bushes. These are not covered in the Hayes manual, but I have been told that they can only be replaced a part of a complete new sub frame. A temporary cure to this noise (that has the power to drive you mad) is to squirt rubber lubricant all around the bushes every two months or so. This should not be necessary!

There is a rattling (like a bunch of keys) from the steering column, but only when the wheels are straight ahead. I have so far been unable to trace this problem.

Recently there is another loud squawk from the rear of the car when travelling over bumps. At first I thought it was the spare wheel moving in its recess, but later traced it to the rear seat. To date I have not been able to rectify this fault.

The driver's seat is now beginning to look a little 'tired' where the fabric has rubbed during access/egress. The fabric is very easy to catch and pulls into loops.

I still like my Punto very much. It drives well, it is very reliable, it is very economical and it still looks smart. It is a pity that poor build quality lets the whole package down so badly.

Have owned previously 125 sedan and 850 Spyder with removable hard top. Love our Punto 1.2 ELX 5spd 2001 had since Nov 2006 at 65925km now 72000km, but now wiper drive link balljoint failed and power steering. Lucky we have insurance from dealer when purchased. Fiat said can only sell complete wiper motor assy, NZ$434.00, I fixed by drilling hole in link and bent wire to hold together. The power steering is being looked at today hopefully so will see what happens?

Gary, New Zealand.