FIAT PUNTO 2001

Just drove one ----------------- should of driven one last week would not of bought sentra, will need to revisit!

bcarfully they got electric steering i think and i got one offerd with faulty steering on my wanted add. Do some research of problems first.

OR ---------------------366110091

na forget renault no parts in this country . or better say parts that you could afford the price off. I rang renault Nz for a tierod rackend they wanted 240$ for one lol. i got em for 48 euro from germany my self . Fiat are cheap as for parts, unless it is a non service part like electronic steering till 99 will be simple mechanical i got a 94 punto no airbags nothing.

here is the knowen problems of the older punto. internal radiator heater core blowes and can destroy the computers ecu if the ecu is directly under the heater as it was on my punto.balljoints are a whole suspension arm costs 160$ each.I also seen a few with blowen headgasket but i dont know the cause my guess would be lack of maintainace.other then that parts are cheap windo winder mechanismus for my tipo was 56$for a example. toyota caldina will be almost 600$ there was a mk1 punto for 1800$ on here green like my one but its no longer active listed.

If I was you I would be getting my but down to tonights Turners Auction, you can always sell the Sentra quickly again. The one at Turners is absolutely perfect for what you are doing and they don't come up in that combination and price range very often.

Especially in Christchurch.

http://www.turners.co.nz/Vehicles/Pages/Car.aspx!RefId=877197

Don't be scared of the electric power steering, mostly it was only a problem on 2000 models, its pretty rare to have trouble and if you do just throw a secondhand unit on. No big deal.

The other problems intrade is mentioning relate to the previous model Punto and are generally a result of abuse. A well looked after MK2 Punto is a very reliable car, if you have problems its usually minor easy stuff that won't leave you stranded on the side of the road.

I would be sticking to the Fiat for what you are doing and specifically a MK2 with the 1200cc 80HP in manual.

Don't muck about on that Fiat if you are serious about changing, if it goes around what they are expecting you won't match that again in a hurry. It will be much easier to quit the Sentra than mucking around trying to ship one from somewhere else, paying freight etc.

Hey Jazz, out of curiosity, what do the Puntos weigh in their different forms!

unfortunately they get more and more heavy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_Punto http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiat_Uno

So the 1.2L would be around 850Kg dry!

Cnn;t get there tonite will hope it doesnot sell give me time to look at it in weekend when its a fixed price maybe

OPINIONS PLEASE ------------------358339032
NISSAN MARCH

I think a little bit more for your typical 80HP ELX like is most common over here around 930KG.

Bear in mind the economy dosn't just come from the weight, they have managed to keep it as light as possible for the amount of kit in the car but there are other measures as well. For example using electric power steering gives you a lack of parasitic loss to a power steeing pump thats the equivilent of a 50KG weight reduction.

Not even close to being as good as the Punto in terms of economy, safety, road holding, features etc etc.
For what you are doing you need a proper car not a cut down shopping basket.

Youl be lucky, if it was me I would be sending someone down to check it out, find out if there has been a mechanical check on it etc and trying for tonight.

I watch these things on a daily basis and there hasn't been one that suitable in your area for that money for the last 12 months.

It will be a LOT more hassle to find and transport another one that suitable than to try and organise bidding on that one locally tonight.

Its the only one in the whole country right now that is actually the right combination of specification to be best suited to what you are doing. and its low km's, looks to be in nice condition, potentially a great price and right on your doorstep!

You were lucky you were even able to get a price from Renault for a tie rod end, I'm dealing with one of these POS Clio (or should it be Clito!) things at the moment, both tie rod ends shagged and the agents tell us there are 5 (yes thats five) different steering racks fitted to this crap and their parts system can't tell us which part fits what, and yes they are about $200 ea.None of our usual suppliers even have listings so are having some custom made locally as we speak, which ironically is going to work out a bit cheaper than the genuine parts, without the delay in getting the damn things from froggyland.Naturally they use an odd thread size and pitch which means its hard to even match another part up that might do the job.If you own a Sentra the local Repco or other parts outlet will have them on the shelf for $30 a side and you will get the car back the same day.What would you rather drive!

just order em from europe even with fraight it be cheaper.make model all can be entered . my renault only has 1 steering rack and no other van has that part lol apart from the opel and a nissan that are both the same renault with different badge.
http://seekpart24.com/renault/clio pick model it will be all there here one i just picked out of the blue http://seekpart24.com/renault/clio-ii-bb0-1-2-cb0-1-2-98/1-0-1/tie-rod-assembly-100197

the differentce is the european car handles in corners and the japamese woobles round the corners.

Just got home from another drive. As to above question the PUNTO seemed to have style and character, not seen in Sentra. Having said that I have just driven 520ks on 34 liters gas ----$75-00 --------- thats about 6.5 liters per 100k.
Jazz told me the other day that my weekly commute would cost me this. I still have another 150k to do tomorrow. is this REALLY poss! out of a Punto , Guy with the wee Nissan March claims same as punto as well

Yes its entirely possible in a manual Punto and the Nissan March should be right on its heels. But I think you miss the point. All these much older cars you are looking at don't come close to being as safe or well appointed as the Punto.

The old March does manage about 2 stars NCAP from memory but thats no 4 1/2 stars for the Punto. The March achieves its economy through making sacrifices everywhere to be built on budget and achieve the economy etc that it does. It was never designed to do the sort of running you have in mind its simply a supermarket commute puddle jumper.

The Punto on the other hand while also designed for commuting has had some thought put into people flying down Europe's Autobahn's etc as well. Surprisingly the Punto is actually quite stable and sure footed at 160km/h and happy to do that all day with some power left in reserve. You may not think that matters at the legal limit, but it translates into better suspension, roadholding etc which makes for a more pleasant and safer drive.

The Punto achieves its economy through better design rather than just throwing away anything that adds weight and cost. A little more efficiency from the engine, a bit more care with aerodynamic design, electric power steering, innovative design of the panels etc. This means you get safety and comfort items like intrusion beams, 400% more airbags, quality speakers and a little subwoofer, some actual interior trim and console without compromising economy.

Even if you didn't care about safety, handling and comfort the March shouldn't be a contender anyway for your use given the massive km's you do as it is running a very old and primitive CVT. Chances of it at 15 years of age with that design giving trouble in the next 200'000km are quite good. When it does give trouble the car is pretty much a sell and start again proposition.

The CVT in the March has two major design flaws, firstly it has no oil filter which accelerates wear. Honda made that mistake later on in spectacular fashion with their Jazz CVT which is legendary for failure among those doing big milage like yourself. Fill the CVT on the march drive down the road and back and the oil goes from a nice red to a filthy brown. Drain the fluid on a Fiat CVT after 40'000km and its usually still a nice red colour.

The other problem is it dosn't use a torque converter, its still using old Powder clutch technology from 1980. This technology is not terrible but Fiat and others went away from it for a reason. Pretty much the powder deteriorates with use and even when operating 100% its not as effective as a torque converter. The torque converter does waste a bit of energy but overall its a better and more reliable system.

Lastly with regard to economy, yes a Fiat 80HP 1200 manual will easily do 5l/100km on open road runs. Thats what its tested and rated to do. Your results may vary slightly either way depending on driving style, conditions and how recently you have serviced the engine. Regardless of variations you are always going to be well ahead of the Sentra. Its also possible to get slightly better economy again out of the 60HP version but it becomes even slower to get out and pass than the Nissan March you are considering. Not worth the sacrifice to save an extra 200ml of fuel per 100km.

In short all these cars that you are looking at that are designed 8 or so years before the Punto will never come close to being as good. Most of the little cars that were designed at the same time as the Punto wern't even as good

You;re a legend!
Where do you get all this knowledge from!
And time to help guys like me on here!
Its a great social service.

Just one thing Fiat cam belt replacement how much! be better to buy one at 130ks with belt done, than 80,000 without it done!

well its always best when you do things your self. you cant trust no onethat a belt was done . More then one of my cars has had no cambelt changed when i was told by the seller it was done.

+1 and MOST important of all timing belt changes are always a function of km's AND time. So its always X amount of km's or X amount of years whichever comes FIRST.

In the case of the Punto its 120'000km or 5 years (from memory) for the 1.2 16 valve motor but personally I would do it every 100'000km on that engine. Its absolutely imperative that you use a cambelt kit and change the tensioners/pully's that come with it.

Its not usually the belt that will snap in this engine, normally the pully's/tensioners will go first. Likewise only use a genuine timing belt kit. I would also strongly advise doing the waterpump at the same time.

So, cost wise. Hmm havn't paid someone to do one ever so get some quotes. I can give you a very rough idea though. Timing belt kit should be around $170 and waterpump I will take a shot in the dark at $150, its been a long time so these won't be very accurate. Its a fairly easy one to do for a twin cam so all up including parts perhaps $600! Get a quote though as this is pretty rough.

What is very important is that the cams are locked properly and this should really be done with the proper tool. Be wary that some general mechanics will just want to fudge it and mark where the pulleys are sitting with twink. Chances are doing this you will never get 100% of the performance and economy the engine should be doing.

Thanks for that, its nice to be appreciated.
I have been a car nutter for years. Got my first restoration project at 13.
Unfortunately these days I have chronic fatigue syndrome which means that I spend a lot of time lying down and I am not a big T.V fan in the day so this gives me something to do.

Back when I was well and running a business I used Punto's as work cars for my and my staff. so I know a bit about them. That and they are about the best value small car you can buy, nothing comes close on price, features, safety, economy in NZ so I harp on about them a lot on here. BTW, I have time to look at a lot of cars for sale so thats a very well researched conclusion.

With regard to which Punto you should buy forget worrying about km's and cambelts, you should buy the one down at Turners if it checks out O.K.

Seriously, if you don't buy that one you are more than likely going to have to buy one from the North Island or settle for one that is no where near as good. Even in the North island you will struggle to get one that good.

Like I said that one is exactly the combination you need of engine, year, spec, km's, price range etc. I can't even think of when the last time one of that combination was for sale down your way.

Remember you are after, 2001 or newer in manual but with the 1.2 16 valve not the 1.2 8 valve. Have a look on trademe and you will see how hard that is to find.

That belongs to a message-boarder, small world!
I wouldn't go there though, you don't get the safety of the Punto and its dearer to run than the Punto.

The one in chch did not sell i,ve just found.
Its Airbag and ABS lights wonn;t go off