General Suggested upgrades for a 1.4 8v Punto?

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General Suggested upgrades for a 1.4 8v Punto?

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Told to ask here as I would get a bigger response

I'm recently the new owner of a 1.4 8v Punto Evo. Drives beautifully and if driven correctly does have some good acceleration etc. Just wondering if there are any beneficial upgrades I can perform? Such as an upgrade air filter or exhaust system...

Also any do's and dont's i should know about?

Thanks :)
 
Short of engine conversions and adding turbo's there's not a lot you can do.
Personally, save up and buy a more powerful version, then it's cheaper insurance to as you won't have mods, and an unmodified car shifts quicker than a modified once, especially with a loud exhaust on a non-performance car.
 
Thanks for the reply! I suppose that is the better option, my insurance company nearly **** on themselves when I mentioned I had my windows tinted.

Wasn't going to do anything drastic to it, maybe add a different backbox and air filter.. but just for thought, what would an air filter do to this engine anyway?
 
Thanks for the reply! I suppose that is the better option, my insurance company nearly **** on themselves when I mentioned I had my windows tinted.

Wasn't going to do anything drastic to it, maybe add a different backbox and air filter.. but just for thought, what would an air filter do to this engine anyway?

I wouldn't bother with and induction kit, maybe a panel filter from BMC?

Again, on an N/A car, exhaust won't give any benefits, potential losses even.
 
Higher airflow and slight noise benefit but stays in the standard air box so won't suffer the heat soak that induction kits do.

And like the K&N, they're cotton so can be cleaned but it won't save you any money unless you have your car for the next decade - the filters are about 30/30 quid but the cleaning solution is about 15/20 which will last 2/3 cleans. Standard air filters are about £5-10 to replace.
 
Depends what you're after?

The induction kit will likely lose you some power and increase fuel consumption but will sound good if you like that sort of thing.

Panel filter will add a little sound potentially and increase airflow slightly but there won't be a noticeable power gain.

Personally I'd do neither on a 1.4 and just replace with nice clean standard filters of good quality (Maan or similar), but if you really wanted to, I'd go down the panel filter rather than induction kit route.
 
Pump some more air in the tires, less rolling resistance will be more noticeable than the effect of any so called performance filters or exhaust...

haha ok, so ive learnt there's not much to do to a 1.4 8v besides making it worse.. so forget the exhaust, wasnt really going to do that anyway...

Shall I consider purchasing a replacement panel filter for cleaner air intake?
 
Just buy any inexpensive good quality brand ( f.i. Bosch, Mann, UFI or Fiat Original) paper filter, and you'll be fine.
As for the exhaust, a twin end pipe "sport" back box, just for the looks and a slightly darker sound, isn't bad at all, just don't pay to much for it.
Good quality, and inexpensive ( no shipping costs..!!) is www.ultersport.de, click on the British flag.


http://new.ulter.com.pl/en/offer/dedicated/78/fiat_grande-punto/108#433
Choice of stainless steel endpipes.


About GBP 150 incl. shipping, can't beat that price anywhere...
 
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Pump some more air in the tires, less rolling resistance will be more noticeable than the effect of any so called performance filters or exhaust...

Don't do that.

Yes there will be less rolling resistance due to a smaller contact patch between the tyres and ground, but less rolling resistance is the same as saying less grip.

So unless you don't mind having less grip through the corners or under braking then sure go for it.

I'd say keep them at the manufacturers recommended psi.
 
Don't do that.

Yes there will be less rolling resistance due to a smaller contact patch between the tyres and ground, but less rolling resistance is the same as saying less grip.

So unless you don't mind having less grip through the corners or under braking then sure go for it.

I'd say keep them at the manufacturers recommended psi.

haha I wasn't gonna attempt it :nerner:
 
All a K&N type filter is going to do is make it sound a little better when you give it a boot full.
It will do nothing for performance, and do nothing towards potential savings down the line.
It will cost about 4 times the price of a standard air filter.
Consider you might only replace the air filter every two years, it's going to take 8 years before you start to break even.

My suggestion, would be to save any money you were thinking of spending on the car other than maintenance, save like mad and buy something special in a few years once your insurance comes down.
 
Well that maybe true when OVER inflating a tire.
It doesn't harm a bit to keep the heavy load/ highway recommended pressure all the time
Remember the factory recommendation is for all over Europe, even former East Europe with bad roads..( unpaved, or brick with lot's of putholes...)
In Holland and England roads are very good and even, so a higher tire pressure will result in lower fuel consumption and better roadholding.
I use 3 bar in the tires on my Alfa GT, and that's about 20% more than recommended...and I use my car to the very max on German" no speed limit" autobahns, I can assure you...!!
 
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