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FIAT IS BACK AND REDEFINING SMALL CARS FOR AUSTRALIA
Fiat, the company that has produced some of the most famous and influential small cars, is back in Australiaon 1 July 2006 and it has brought the new Punto to redefine what small cars should be in Australia.
“The Fiat Punto will be as influential as all the Fiat small cars before it, such as the Topolino and the Fiat 500, and for the same reasons,” explains David Stone, General Manager for Fiat cars in Australia.
“The new Punto combines space, style, performance, technology and value for money like no other car on the Australian market. For a start, it has been described as looking like the sort of car Maserati would build, if they were making small cars, which is not surprising as it has been styled by the same people! Fiat set the benchmark for design when it comes to space utilisation – getting the most space inside the smallest exterior size – and the Punto is no exception, it has big car space inside, but will fit in small car parking spaces!”
“The Punto is awash with technology, lead by three advanced diesel engines that will, quite simply, change Australian buyers minds on what is the ideal engine for a small car,” says Mr Stone. “The fact that they all mated to six speed gearboxes just confirms Fiat’s technological advantage.”
“Value for money? All versions have cruise control, AirCon, ABS brakes, front electric windows, central locking, power steering and a quality audio system as standard and prices start from $19,990. And, of course it is fun to drive. Nothing less would be expected of a car from Italy!”
The new Punto is just the start for Fiat in Australia. During the next 18 months the Italian car maker plans to add a full range of brand new models to its Australian line-up. Initially they will be sold through the dealers that are already handling Alfa Romeo cars, but as sales build Fiat plans to start appoint Fiat-specific dealers. Fiat commercial vehicles, which have built an enviable reputation in Australia for durability and reliability, will continue to be handled through their own specialist dealer group that focuses on the specific demands of the van user.
For the Australian importer, Ateco Automotive, the launch of Fiat cars represents the third phase of its launch programme for products from the Fiat Group, with Sydney-based importer launching Alfa Romeo into the Australian car market in 1998 and Fiat commercial vehicles in 2000. The company is also the importer for Ferrari and Maserati and, in addition, runs the New Zealand distribution for all these brands, providing it with a wealth of experience and expertise to ensure the success of Fiat in Australia.
“There is no doubt that this is the ideal time for the launch of Fiat in Australia,” says Mr Stone. “The market is clearly moving into smaller cars, as fuel prices rise, but car buyers do not want to give up the performance, style and features that they are accustomed to in larger cars. The new Fiat Punto meets these requirements exactly and we are in no doubt that it will be warmly welcomed in Australia.”
Fiat’sattractive new supermini is the largest car in the highly competitive small car segment, combining class-leading accommodation with high quality build, flexible and practical interiors, comprehensive equipment levels, state-of-the-art technology and the superior driving dynamics of larger, higher segment vehicles.
As a result of top quality construction, research and development, Punto, which has undergone a gruelling testing regime comprising more than 5,000,000 kilometres, also meets the highest safety standards. Benefiting from the company’s unrivalled expertise in the field of small cars, new Punto has been awarded a maximum 5-star safety rating in the gruelling Euro NCAP crash test programme.
Achieving 5 stars for passenger safety, 3 stars for child protection and a further 3 for pedestrian protection, the new Fiat recorded a total of 33 points out of a possible 37 – the highest overall score yet recorded in its market category.
Five versions of the new Punto, priced from a remarkably competitive $19,990 to $27,990, will be available from launch, embracing three and five door versions with three trim levels –Dynamic, Emotion and Sport. Augmenting an interior design founded on the fundamental pre-requisites of class-leading space, high quality build, and visual and tactile sophistication, the new Fiat’s equipment specification has been carefully considered to simplify and enhance life on board.
Standard equipment on all versions includes ABS anti-lock braking, cruise control,remote central locking, front, side and curtain airbags, electric front windows, Air Conditioning, a CD player with steering wheel controls, electric operated and heated door mirrors, Dualdrive electric power steering and Follow Me Home headlamps.
This comprehensive equipment package means a very limited options list, with just two items, the glass SkyDome electric sunroof and paint options.
The all-new Punto has already picked up some notable international media awards, including The Golden Steering Wheel (Germany); Auto Europa (Italy), and Best City Car (France).
It goes on sale in Australia with a choice of four powerplants, including the widest diesel engine range in its category, opening with a 1.4 litre 57 kW petrol engine. The range then continues with three of the most sophisticated diesel engines in the market place, all using the Fiat patented Multijet system, with a 1.3 unit offering 66 kW and two 1.9 units, the 88 kW version for the five door and a 96 kW power unit for the range-topping Punto Sport 3 door. All diesel versions have six speed gearboxes to fully maximise the potential of these highly efficient power units.
Future additions to the engine range include a new StarJet 67kw 1.4 litre 16-valve petrol engine, which, along with the option of Dualogic – a sophisticated, clutchless, five or six speed speed sequential manual shift with a selectable, fully automatic mode – will be available later in the year. Further, more powerful engine options are ‘in the pipeline’.
These developments will equip the all-new Punto with the widest, most advanced range of engines and transmissions available in small car sector.
With a 5-star Euro NCAP safety rating to its name, the new Punto builds on an already impressive safety portfolio with the full range of braking, traction control and stability systems available on the market. Along with standard equipment ABS anti-lock brakes, complete with electronic brakeforce distribution, Punto Multijet 1.9 diesel versions are equipped with ASR to limit wheelspin during acceleration, MSR to modulate brake torque whilst changing down, and a sophisticated ESP to control stability through bends. Vehicles fitted with ESP also benefit from hydraulic brake assistance and a unique Hill Holder function to facilitate smooth hill starts.
With 15,000 orders placed and 100,000 test-drives booked within just five days of the new Punto going on sale in Europe, Fiat expects to better initial global sales predictions of 360,000 cars per annum. Over 150,000 versions of the all-new Punto have been sold since its launch in late September last year.
The original Punto was introduced in 1993 and immediately became a hugely successful product throughout Europe. By its second year in production, it had already been voted European Car of the Year, and became Europe’s best selling small car, ahead of the Ford Fiesta, Peugeot 206 and Renault Clio. In 1997, it was the best selling car in Europe, outright.
So the new Punto is one of the most important vehicles in Fiat’s 107 year history, because it is the latest in a long line of advanced, stylish small cars that has created and built Fiat’s legendary heritage.
These advanced small cars started with the original Fiat 500, launched in 1936 as the world’s smallest mass production car and nicknamed Topolino, or Mickey Mouse.
The price of the original Fiat 500 made it accessible to people who had hitherto never been able to afford one, and it did it with the style and panache of much larger, more expensive cars.
In 1955 the Fiat 600 was launched, followed by a new 500 in 1957. Another classic small car, the 600 was also the basis for the Fiat 600 Multipla, launched in 1956. With its revolutionary six seat layout in a small car, it laid the foundations for the millions of people movers that followed more than 40 years later.
These classic small cars, which provided real value for their customers, have been followed by generations of world-beating designs, such as the Fiat 127 in 1971, fore-runner of the modern front-wheel drive hatchback, the first and second generation Pandas, the Fiat Uno, and the first generations of the Fiat Punto, a car that has been purchased by more than six million people, and is still in production.
The all-new Punto, therefore, has a hefty reputation to maintain. So it’s not surprising that it sets safety and quality standards that are particularly high for its category. It boasts the widest range of diesel engines, has a very competitive price/content ratio, and offers conspicuous value to customers. As a result, Punto meets the fundamental requirements of this class, and then it adds a new level of styling, along with a driving experience that befits a country that produces the world’s best sports cars, and does it all in a highly original way.
Developed by Italdesign, together with the Fiat Styling Centre, Punto stands out in the current automotive scene for its appearance, which is modern, elegant and distinctly Italian, with a Mediterranean stylistic ‘language’ inspired by the sports cars of the 1950s and 1960s.
Like the exterior, the interior of Punto represents the most evolved expression of Italian styling, thanks to the quality of the materials and the care that has gone into detailing. The result is a bright, welcoming, yet still functional environment.
This is a car created to ‘excite’, but also to express the solidity that comes from high quality standards. This is borne out by extremely high safety standards; attention to detail that is unusual in this market bracket, and exceptional comfort.
This impression is confirmed by the car’s external dimensions, which put it at the top of its category: it is 4030mm long, 1687mm wide, 1490mm high and has a wheelbase of 2510mm, measurements which translate into an extraordinary amount of interior space and comfort, and which are also significant in terms of the car’s crash safety performance.
Punto is clearly a car of superior quality: from the very first stages of the project, the team working on it pursued very high standards, drawing on a stringent engineering process, based on a very strong all-new platform, while it applied the most advanced, innovative reliability methodologies throughout the model’s development and construction. This is a car built to be solid and safe.And finally, Punto is agile and enjoyable to drive in all situations, and its engines combine strong performance, low fuel consumption and respect for the environment.
Styling, comfort, best-in-class safety standards, solidity and a highly competitive price: these are the guidelines along which Punto was developed; a car created for young adults, for first-time car buyers, for women, and for young families.
To meet the requirements of this broad customer base, Punto offers vibrant Italian styling, a symbol of character and refinement, in three or five door form. The three door version is more assertive and dynamic, and will appeal above all to performance and style-driven owners, while the five door version strikes a balance between styling and comfort, performance and safety, access and its distinctive look.
NEW FIAT PUNTO PRICE LIST
Version / Body / Trim / Engine/gearbox / Recommended retail pricePunto Dynamic / 5 door / Cloth / 1.4 litre 57 kW / 5 sp man / $19,990
Punto Dynamic / 5 door / Cloth / 1.3 litre 66 kW diesel / 6 sp man / $22,990
Punto Emotion / 5 door / Cloth / 1.9 litre 88 kW diesel / 6 sp man / $27,990
Punto Sport / 3 door / Sports Cloth / 1.9 litre 96 kW diesel / 6 sp man / $27,990
Options / Punto Dynamic / Punto Dynamic 1.3 / Punto Emotion 1.9 / Sport
Metallic Paint / $750 / $750 / $750 / Standard
Pastel Paint / $750 / $750 / $750 / $750
Electric Sunroof / $1950 / $1950 / $1950 / $1950
DESIGN
Styling
Penned by the Fiat Styling Centre in conjunction with Giorgetto Giugiaro’s Italdesign studio, the new Punto marries smooth, naturally aerodynamic lines with pronounced, muscular wheel arches to create an elegant, unashamedly Italian sporting design which is instantly recognisable as the latest addition to the Fiat family.
The front end of the new Punto combines dynamic styling worthy of a small sports car with the highest standards of pedestrian protection. It incorporates sleek, powerful headlamps with a crisp, sporting grille design, an integral, colour-coded bumper and a deep front airdam complete with recessed foglight housings.
In profile, the bonnet flows seamlessly into a steeply raked windscreen, the resultant aerodynamic efficiency awarding the new Fiat exceptional high-speed stability, a marked reduction in wind noise intrusion to the interior, and enhanced fuel economy. Aerodynamic, door-mounted mirrors not only further reduce interior wind noise levels, but also allow for the creation of a third, front quarterlight window beneath the A pillar, thus reinforcing the monobox homogeny of the design and improving visibility when cornering or during low speed manoeuvring.
Unlike previous Punto models, the new Fiat’s design no longer differentiates between 3 and 5-door models. Both versions now share tall, upright tail-light clusters flanking a practical, top hinged tailgate which offers full-width access to the loadspace across a low-silled aperture. The new Punto’s broad, purposeful stance is further strengthened by an aerodynamic lower bumper, housing slender fog and reversing light clusters and, on the 3-door Active Sport and Sport models, a roof mounted rear spoiler and side skirts.
The new Punto also offers a range of 15"-17" alloy wheels, and a choice of 13 exterior colours, nine of which are metallics.
Life on board
At 4030mm long, 1687mm wide, 1490mm high and with a wheelbase of 2510mm, the new Punto is the largest car in its segment. The combination of a height adjustable driver’s seat, rake and reach adjustable steering wheel and generous glazing afford the driver a comfortable, ergonomically adaptable driving position allied to excellent all-round visibility.
The driver's instrument binnacle flows seamlessly from the upper fascia and features large, clear graphics, backlit in orange after dark. A central, multi-function display gives access to a wide range of menu options in a choice of eight languages.
Careful consideration has gone into the ergonomic placement of gear lever, steering column mounted switchgear and all other centre console based functions, to ensure optimum ease of access with minimal driver distraction.
The seats, produced in accordance with principles developed by Professor Dal Monte, head of the Biometrics Department at the CONI Sport Medicine Institute, offer exceptional comfort and support, devoting particular attention to passenger posture and lateral containment.
The height adjustable, anti-submarining front seats can be fitted with electric lumbar adjustment for the driver. The 60:40 split/folding rear seat offers seating for three, or may be folded flat to increase the new Punto’s 275 litre loadspace.
The attraction of the new interior is boosted by a highly innovative range of colour combinations to the two tone dashboard, including the use of pearlised, light blue, sand and orange finishes. A complementary range of fabric upholstery to seats, door panels and centre armrest offers further bespoke tailoring opportunities within the new Fiat’s interior.
SAFETY
Reaffirming Fiat’s uncompromising commitment to occupant safety, the new Punto benefits from 15,000 hours of computer aided design, 60 crash tests, 100 HyGe slide simulations and 200 tests on components and subsystems, and has been awarded a maximum 5-star safety rating in the gruelling Euro NCAP crash test programme.
Achieving 5 stars for passenger safety, 3 stars for child protection and a further 3 for pedestrian protection, the new Fiat recorded 33 points out of a possible 37 – the highest overall score yet recorded in the B segment – placing it at the very top of its category in terms of passive, active and preventive safety.
It meets preventive safety needs with an adjustable cockpit that adapts perfectly to drivers of any size. The combination of a height adjustable driver’s seat, and reach and rake adjustable steering, allied to an extensive glazed area, allows the best possible view of the road ahead. User-friendly ergonomics allow drivers to operate all instruments and controls without taking their eyes off the road. And the new Punto’s excellent all-round visibility is further enhanced by the availability of optional rain and parking sensors.