Indian Autos blog

Fiat, in spring 2013 is all set to unveil the all new next generation Fiat Punto hatchback. The Punto is a very significant and important model for Fiat as it is the car that single handedly rescued Fiat from a mountain of losses and brought it back in green.

Come 2013, and the current generation Fiat Punto would have been in the market for seven years, surely the right time then for Fiat to be bringing in the next generation all new Punto. The next generation Punto like the current Punto, will continue to be offered in 3 and 5 door versions, but with an all new, fully renovated platform and chassis.

The next generation Punto will not just be a restyling of the current car, but will be a completely new car developed from the ground up. The project designers of the next generation Punto, should have working on the car at the Fiat style centre in Italy.

The engines for the next generation Punto will consist of some engines borrowed from the current Punto’s range of engines while the new range of Multijet engines could also power the car.

The news that we’re breaking here on Indian Autos Blog is not on the 90hp Fiat Punto launching on the first week of July, but it not being called “Punto Sports” as we believed earlier.

Indian Autos Blog contacted Fiat India, and this is their reply to our query on the powerful Punto -

The 90hp Fiat Punto will not be called Sports. It will be launched during the first week of July.

When we asked them about the Fiat Linea T-Jet which comes with a turbocharged 1.4-liter petrol engine, this was their reply -

The Fiat Linea T-Jet will be launched in India a month later.

Fiat’s sales numbers isn’t calling for celebrations. The company launched the Linea and Punto last year, and the sales have not been extremely good. But one thing has to be agreed on – Fiat has entered people’s choice list prepared before going in for a car. Could the powerful Fiats help in grabbing more numbers?

The Toyota SAI is based on the Lexus HS250h. It is meant only for Japan.

167bhp engine for Fiat Punto

For a minute you must have related the 167bhp to the higher spec Punto which Fiat is developing for India. Sadly, I’m not talking about the Indian Punto or customer. This totally pertains to the Abarth version of the Punto Evo which was shown at the Frankfurt show last month. The Abarth version of the Punto Evo will receive a 167bhp version of the Multiair engine, which is only applicable to the petrol unit. Abarth is the tuning arm of Fiat, for those in the dark.

Toyota Sai

Toyota has unveiled a new hybrid sedan christened “Sai” for the Japanese market. Toyota intends to sell 3,000 Sais monthly. It uses a 2.4-liter petrol engine producing just below 150 horsepower and 187 Nm of torque. Mated to an electric motor, powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery, an additional 140 hp and up to 270 Nm of torque is available to the wheels.

AuSTARlia – A-Star going to Africa, i20 to Australia

With the curtains coming down on the scrappage scheme in European countries, production levels in Indian manufacturing plants are not where they were before. To keep the plants operating in full swing, Suzuki is looking at exporting the A-Star to Africa, while Hyundai is looking to push the i20 down under. The companies hope both these markets will create enough demand and the production levels will be maintained higher.

A house full Geneva Motor Show 2010

Authorities charges with managing next year’s Geneva Motor Show have issued a statement that all auto manufacturers will take part in the 2010 edition of the show. This year’s shows saw a lot of absentees, and even the Japanese Motor Show that’s happening as you read this, has only two foreign brands participating. Let’s not forget Geneva is where Nissan will show the all-important next generation Micra.

Skoda’s 178bhp Fabia vRS is coming early next year

In early 2010, Skoda could introduce a 178bhp Skoda Fabia in UK. Wearing the vRS badge, this Skoda will boast of a maximum speed of 140mph. It will go from a standstill to 60mph in less than 7 seconds! Powered by a 1.4-liter ‘Twincharger’ unit, this Skoda will take its position as one of the insane variants, second only to the rally-bred Fabia S2000.

With minor exterior revisions in the form of new front and rear bumpers, the Fiat Grande Punto Evo’s biggest change comes under the hood and inside the cabin. With a more stylish dashboard, improved seats and larger storage compartment, the Punto Evo is getting better where it should.

Typical of a Fiat, the Evo is loaded with gadgets and the new kid on the block – Blue&Me-TomTom – combines telephone, navigation and other functions into a touch screen.

This car will play host to the second generation Multijet engine and Multiair petrol engine. The Multiair petrol offers ten percent more power, fifteen percent more torque but consumes ten percent less fuel. Won’t Indians love such an invention? They would, if the end-product is priced correctly.

Further, the Punto Evo is installed with a start-stop system which the Bravo and 500 recently welcomed.

Fiat Punto Evo Image Gallery

If your browser cannot display the above slideshow, view the images directly at the Fiat Grande Punto Evo Image Gallery

With the Frankfurt Show coming up in a couple of weeks, it is apt to name this a season of teasers. The latest – an image of the upcoming Fiat Grande Punto Evo, which already has been revealed unofficially by the “bhp paparazzi.”

Wicked.

The Punto Evo is expected to come with Fiat’s Multiair engine. The dashboard is a bit more creative and the bumpers and lights have been altered.

In India, it would be a good idea to offer more powerful engines in the form of the Punto Evo, since it serves as a distinct car and inline with the international model scheme.

We could be wrong.

If they really wanted to improve the Punto’s drivability in the dark, why didn’t they offer extra lights as part of accessories with the existing car, or source lamps from a better supplier?

That’s what I thought until I learned this car will come with Fiat’s new Multiair technology which was their key exhibit (apart from the Fiat 500 pink Barbie edition, if you were a girl) at Geneva earlier this year. The new Fiat Grande Punto Evo might not please the Japanese in Mitsubishi’s HQ, but with its bar raising gas mileage and lower emissions, this could beautifully compliment the present Grande Punto in markets where taxes and fees are levied based on what’s coming out of your tailpipe.

One of our favorite Fiats, the Grande Punto, has got an adorable face lift, an almost different front end and a few more changes on the rear (visible in the images). We have been having a watchful eye on the face lifted model for the last few months.

This model is not yet reached the production, it will come only after its debut at the Frankfurt show in September.

The hugely successful Grande Punto was launched almost four years go in 2005 in Europe and has proved to be one of the best in the segment. It was launched very recently in India with petrol and diesel engines.

The earlier design was also admired and appreciated a lot, so changing it would have been a bit of a challenge.

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