2002 NZ NEW Fiat Punto

looking at one coz theyre reasonably priced when you do the maths (year, kms, price, etc). However I'm not really familiar with their reliablity. I've visited 'car survey' and all I can see are terrible feedback from previous owners telling me to keep away. However, those are mostly pre-2002 puntos. I was thinking, have they sorted out the minor problems on the 2002-2003 ones even though they're technically the same cars! Also would it make any difference that its NZ NEW, not a jap import! what are your thoughts!

till 99 is the mk1 and i personally dont like crap like abs airbags etc they all cost you money one day .i do know of electric steering problems of early mk2 punto.most parts are cheap for fiat when you can do things your self. we got good contacts for new parts if you need that.

the only difference from nz new as to import is usually you can check better if the odometer was wound back and servicing history could be available as where jap imports dont have any of that and you cant be sure if the odometer was tempered or not.

Do a search using the search facility on the left of the page. Type in "Punto" as the keyword and you will find LOADS of posts about Puntos. Especially from a poster called thejazzpianoma.

aahh sweet will do that

Reliability is fine, car survey is not really a useful tool as there is no scientific measurement of reliability. It just becomes a forum for people to moan and whine. The actual picture of reliability gets skewed by the general attitude of the target market for that vehicle, the attitude of the local dealer network etc.

In the U.K Fiats dealer garages are famously unhelpful so people tend to get angry. Case and point is feedback from the different years, the Punto of 2002 is no different from 2001.

Have a look at reliabilityindex.com and you will get a much more reliable picture of what they are like, which is actually quite good for reliability given the sophistication of the vehicle.

Also, the big expensive parts like engine and transmission are pretty bomb proof, if you do have trouble its usually niggly stuff thats cheap to fix and won't leave you stranded on the side of the road.

The only key things to remember are:
1. If you want that extra bit of assurance buy 2001 or newer not the 2000 being first year of production.
2. If buying a CVT one it MUST have been serviced properly on time every time. If you can't find evidence of the 40'000km transmission service buy one with say 50'000 or less km's on the clock or one that you know has been serviced. Don't forget to service it properly yourself too, and that mean trans fluid from the likes of Dino enterprises NOT some cheesy lube franchise.

They are a fantastic car, great choice! Good luck!