2005 Fiat Punto Active 1.8 diesel

Summary:

Smart car, only with STYLE

Faults:

Has anyone ever heard of the bonnet catch seizing up and the bonnet flying up??? My husband was out early in the morning of last week, and doing between 65-70 miles an hour on the middle lane of the M60; his catch failed on the bonnet and the bonnet flew up in a second and completely blanked out his vision, almost killing him.

We have had two Puntos and this has never happened before. Is this a manufacturer fault???

General Comments:

A1 little runner, and gets into the tightest spaces, so cheap and economical.

Down side. Aren't any except for this bonnet catch, was very nearly deadly.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 5th February, 2011

2005 Fiat Punto Active

Summary:

Unreliable, develops major faults

Faults:

Fault in gear box.

General Comments:

This is second Punto I have had. The first developed a cracked cylinder head after 4 years, and this one gearbox failure. Nice to drive, but doesn't last more than 4 years.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 8th June, 2009

17th Jun 2021, 15:20

100% agree. I don't know anyone that had a Punto trouble free for more than a few years; they really do fall apart quicker than most other cars. What I don't get is why Fiat have such a big following.

Not to say they are the worst manufacturer or anything; a family member of mine rather enjoyed her Coupe Turbo. Was not exactly reliable either, but Fiat can make decent cars, just a shame the build/reliability is usually below average.

2005 Fiat Punto Active 1.2

Summary:

Good small city car, economical to a tee, but lacks refinement

Faults:

Nothing seriously wrong with this car; noisy front brakes, even though they have been replaced. No major faults.

General Comments:

Comfort is a big issue, very uncomfortable on long journeys, and lacks a lot of refinement.

The vehicle is very high sided, and suffers a lot from cross winds on the motorway.

Load space is good, we do a lot of camping and I was surprised how much you can load into the car, especially when coming down to a Punto from a Peugeot 406 estate.

The car is also let down by its top speed and acceleration, and feels really out of place in the outside lane of the motorway.

We've had the car for 6 months, and we are now looking to change it for something a little more refined.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 17th June, 2007

2005 Fiat Punto 1.2 8v Active Sport 1.2 8v

Summary:

Great car only build quality lets it down

Faults:

Passenger door has seized twice.

Reverse gear sometimes hard to get.

Rattles and squeaks aplenty!

Paint stone chips very easily.

General Comments:

The Punto is very nippy for a 1.2 and cruises on the motorway easily.

Generally I am very happy with the car, I just wish that the dealer would sort out the few niggly problems with it. I am about to return the car for a second time concerning the door.

It's still a great looking car, in my opinion more practical than a Vauxhall Corsa or Peugeot 206 due to the shape of the car and the large boot space.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 25th November, 2005

14th Dec 2005, 04:17

UPDATE BY ORIGINAL AUTHOR.

Door still not 100% fixed on second visit, expect another soon. Also I forgot to mention the windscreen wipers juddered when I first took delivery of the car, although this problem was fixed by the dealer.

7th Feb 2006, 05:33

UPDATE BY THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR (2)

Booked Punto into the garage again due to door dropped again plus noises coming from the rear suspension and rear brakes. Had to book two weeks in advance to get a courtesy car. Can't say I'm over the moon about it, but surprisingly I still love the car.

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