General Thinking of buying a Grande Punto

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General Thinking of buying a Grande Punto

The 500 isn't mine it's a driving school one. The punto I am looking at is a 2009 1.4 GP with 6 speed gearbox. I don't have a clue what to do as I can't find anything as nice but the reviews are so so mixed!

The only advice I can give is based on my ex's ownership, but steer clear of the 1.2 engined GP's, it's just too big of a car for such a small engine. The T-Jet is a very nice engine, but is likely to be quite expensive to insure for a new driver. If it's the Starjet then that is a good choice, with plenty enough power. @RuSZ used to own one. They're also not a bad car to cut your teeth on if you fancy doing your own servicing as they're simple enough to do most jobs on your own drive with a decent tool set.
 
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Yes it is starjet not sure why I said T! Has anyone tried the 6 speed gearbox as read online it's "fragile"

They use a 6 speed M32 gearbox which can be problematic.

Its a Vauxhall gearbox used in loads of Vauxhalls, Saabs etc as well as the 1.9 mjet, 1.4 16v and Abarth Grande Puntos.

It has a plastic 6th gear that doesnt cope well with higher torque engines or accelerating in 6th.

Its a lot less likely to break in a starjet but it has happened.

There are uprated parts available that solve the issue, usually sold as Astra/Corsa VXR upgrades.
 
The Starjet is a good car. the engine is a varient of that used in the Panda 100hp. I had one for a year with no problems at all.

The Starjet is the only 1.4l 16v in the Grande's and i think they're all 6 speeds.

If you want a 5 speed, look at the 1.4l 8v, but it can be astmatic sometimes. or the 1.3 or 1.9 diesels.

I'll be honest. the gearbox wasnt something that would be make or break (excuse the pun) in getting one of these.
 
When the rear windscreen falls out and the guys at AutoGlass tell you that they've seen loads of Punto's do this.
Or the heater motor catches fire.
Rear lights stop working, then work, then don't again.
Bulk head Servo plate falls apart.
Alternator packs up, because it's being flooded every time it rains.
Power steering stops working, or steering column locks up.
Rear brake calipers sieze.
Vacuum hoses disintegrate causing noxious fumes in the cabin.

blah, blah, blah.

These things shouldn't happen on a 5 year old car with average mileage.

But it looks good though.
 
One thing I think worth pointing out.

There is a rubber strip which sits along the bottom of the scuttle panel under the bonnet, right at the back. This stops water ingress into the top of the engine bay, quite often where the ECU sits.

It's worth checking every week that this is sealed in place as they do come loose quite easily.
 
Completely agree

I'd go for Honda Civic if you can afford it or Ford Fiesta.

The Civic I have now is amazing, no faults nothing, same for the Fiesta, it's easy to maintain, but go for Zetec / Titanium / ST versions as the Style and basic versions are poor interior quality.

My GP had endless amounts of problems, if anyone ever sees her for sale then I'd advise against it!
 
Rant over, sorry about that :D I'd regard the opinions of those who are satisfied with their cars in better light myself, although don't ignore the others of course - just learn from them :) Make absolutely sure you buy a good car though, as the lemons can be bad (like, really bad, as we've seen). Look after it and it'll look after you :D


Not sure I understand that comment? This forum has always been a balance of people who love their GP's and people here to seek advice on problems - problems that they are not making up as they actually exist otherwise they wouldn't be asking.

You can hold someone in better light because they haven't moaned about their cars - I've noticed people also say on here I've had no problems but....

Also increasingly members who enjoyed their cars now starting to get problems.

I brought mine in 2007 with 2k on the clock ran it for over 5years upto 60k.

It was terrible for reliability with something failing or breaking on a regular basis. I loved it when I first got it, couldn't wait to get rid of it at the end.

These were items that should simply not of failed. After the 3 year warranty ran out I had a warranty direct warranty. This paid nearly £3k in repairs in a year. This was for a car that was looked after, serviced accordingly.

I couldn't recommend them as they are getting on a bit now as well faults will come thick and fast.

Such a shame as the design looks wise is spot on and the interior looked nice.
 
Not sure I understand that comment? This forum has always been a balance of people who love their GP's and people here to seek advice on problems - problems that they are not making up as they actually exist otherwise they wouldn't be asking.

You can hold someone in better light because they haven't moaned about their cars - I've noticed people also say on here I've had no problems but....

Also increasingly members who enjoyed their cars now starting to get problems.

I brought mine in 2007 with 2k on the clock ran it for over 5years upto 60k.

It was terrible for reliability with something failing or breaking on a regular basis. I loved it when I first got it, couldn't wait to get rid of it at the end.

These were items that should simply not of failed. After the 3 year warranty ran out I had a warranty direct warranty. This paid nearly £3k in repairs in a year. This was for a car that was looked after, serviced accordingly.

I couldn't recommend them as they are getting on a bit now as well faults will come thick and fast.

Such a shame as the design looks wise is spot on and the interior looked nice.

My sentiments exactly.
A 5 year old car shouldn't suffer the problems that we encountered with ours.
I gave Fiat the benefit of the doubt after a 30 year lapse.
I'd never have another one.
#fingersburnt
 
I had never brought a Fiat before, it was my first and I simply thought that a newly designed car and it being years since Fiat had a reputation they would of moved on.

I think the GP was poorly designed/engineered from the start and rushed into the dealers. So many design flaws on them.

I have not known another make of car in my friends/family so many faults.

I don't think it's reflective of the whole Fiat range though at all - and I get the whole emotional attachment people have with the brand.
 
I have a 2010 Grande Punto 1.4 Active Sport 8v 3 dr, with factory fitted bluetooth,MP3 etc. I live in the Irish Republic but bought mine new in Northern Ireland so its come from Fiat UK. 43000 miles.

Ive had no major issues, been very pleased overall, maybe Ive just been lucky so far (touch wood) It looks great, in New Orleans blue, turns a few heads and gets plenty of compliments, even though Ive not modified it in any way.

Im a self employed driving instructor so as you can imagine its been through a few clumsy beginners in its time (no offence intended, everyone has to start somewhere) So its been worked quite hard.

All electrics have worked fine (again maybe Im just lucky) Steering, suspension etc all fine. Ditto for mirror, wiper and window motors etc. Rear window etc all intact Im happy to report.

No issues with warning lights, strange noises, water leakage etc and its been 4 and a half years now.

Fuel consumption on mine is about 44MPG on country and town roads mixed 50/50. The car has started first time every time for me even though as a driving school car its no stranger to stalls, so no complaints from here regarding starter motors, and started fine for me through 2 severe winters when it got down to minus 17 in this area.

Only issue Ive had is the old chestnut of the heater vent panel just under the windscreen (interior) lifts slightly in one corner (from almost new),However its barely even noticeable and it subsides by itself when the car is left to sit for a while. Probably a good idea just to only use the 1 setting on the heater controls if at all possible in cold weather anyway. In hot weather its fine to use 2 etc but I divert the air to the dash vents and to my feet anyway in hot weather so its just a case of not getting carried away with the settings.

Yes, the manual is a bit funny to understand but just a case of using some common sense!

Overall I would reccomend to anyone as a first car,probably a case of buying as new as you can afford.
 
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I love my Fiat Bravo .. (but i also have a Dacia Sandero - the older version)...
I have to say my Bravo is driving me crazy... new shocks, new bushes, new gearbox oil, new clutch...
I still like the Bravo better, but if you just want a car that will not brake down.. get something else. i would recommend the Sandero 1.5 dci.. or the new turbo petrol engines..
 
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