Technical How Reliable Are Puntos

[George1991]

I've just bought a punto, i dont pick it up till friday. I keep reading on the internet of people having problems with their puntos, i got it from a dealer, luckily i have a 12 month warranty, but my cars only done 22k and i heard clutches fail at around 40k is this really a common issue or do the problems just hit the top of the forums?

Thanks.
George

 

[MikeSalt]

Clutch wear has much more to do with driver control than reliability. There is only a finite layer of friction material on any clutch, which will eventually wear.

And yes, forums do give a skewed view of reliability. I find that the Punto gets from A to B with excellent reliabilty. They just seem to be plagued by small niggles, such as rattles, squeaks, electrical abnormalities etc...

 

[T14086]

80K without a issue

 

[hannahspanner]

Ive had three and they are great! Never had a problem with the first 2 although the hgt is a right royal pain in ass! IMO i think they are a reliable car and, for what they are in engine size, quite nippy.

 

[Decron]

The overall quality is up there with any other manufacturer really as is the overall reliability however a lot of it is subjective as it will only be reliable if looked after. When they start to get up in the miles (70-80k+) they do sprout problems as will anything else.

I wouldn't put them up there with anything VAG for their longevity but if you look after it it will look after you!

 

[BrumBrum]

I have an mk1 but the engines are similar I think
My cars 14 years old and it runs surprisingly well, No major problems, or minor problems for that matter, just gone over 78000

 

[raton_laveur]

I've just bought a punto, i dont pick it up till friday. I keep reading on the internet of people having problems with their puntos, i got it from a dealer, luckily i have a 12 month warranty, but my cars only done 22k and i heard clutches fail at around 40k is this really a common issue or do the problems just hit the top of the forums?

Thanks.
George

WHICH? Punto?

Year, series, engine, options, etc., etc., etc?

It's hard to give you any specific answers when we don't have any specific information about your car.

Mine has passed 170,000 miles, still runs strong and passed it's last CT (MOT) with no defects. No road failures. All kinds of squeaks and other disagreeable noises, but irritating as they are, they don't keep it from starting every morning or getting me home every evening.

 

[richie.guy]

As with most cars it depends how it's treated.

Punto's may have a bad reputation because they're not expensive, people buy them and as they're naturally a little tight with the purse strings they don't maintain the car correctly due to cost. Hence when they get bought second hand people have problems.

I think they're as reliable as the next car.

Clutches rarely 'fail' they just wear quicker/slower than normal. They are a consumable item. Expect to change it after a few years.

 

[smokeyjoe03]

You read horror stories on forums for one simple reason, people come here when they have problems.

Not many people join and post becasue they love their car and its running smoothly, most join becasue they need help. The forum would be packed if EVERY fiat driver was here instead of just the ones with problems lol.

As for reliabilty, this is my second one. My mk1 was bought with 60k on the clock, ran it for 10k, sold it and made a profit and the only repair was a pair of rear shock absorbers which was my own fault (long story involving a bump in a road lol)

My mk2 so far......the slave cylinder went not long ago, bout 40k on the clock. wasn't a fault, was down to the road again. Hit a bump too hard and was changing gear, the rod moved and as I released the clutch the rod split the cylinder (very messy lol)

So basically they are good reliable cars as long as you maintain them properly. And if anything does go wrong they are fairly simple machines and can be fixed for a lot less than other cars.

Take a look around next time your out and count the punto's you see, there are hundreds of them. And there is a reason for that

 

[Ricardo Silva]

My clutch lasted 156000km and i just changed it when i bought the car from a friend of mine because i wanted to be sure it wouldn't fail in a near future. Now it has 182000km (its from 2001) and never refused to run and starts at the first time always. Still i take good care of it with year revisions, good driving (and fast driving sometimes ). The only problems are the noises resulted from the bad quality plastics and the even worst assembly! Today the only problem i see is a tickle strange noise coming from the engine more perceptible when its cold and beetween 2000-2600rpm. Hope that's nothing to worry about...