Saturday, June 26, 2010

Fiat Punto Evo Multiair GP 1.4

fiat punto evo

Fiat Punto Evo: redefining the limits of style… Really? Photograph: Simon Stuart-Miller

Fiat Punto Evo Multiair GP 1.4

Price £14,085

Top speed 115mph

Acceleration 0-62mph in 10.8 seconds

Average consumption 49.6mpg

CO2 emissions 134g/km

Eco rating 7/10

Bound for sixth gear

In a word Spirited

Have you ever asked yourself what "spirito di punto" actually means? Not its literal meaning, of course, which is obvious to even the most English of linguists, but its "brand" meaning, if you like. The Fiat Punto ads that first featured the phrase toyed with preconceptions about the different driving habits and interests of males and females, but surely no one outside a media studies course would argue that the marketing line was intended as a postmodern critique of consumer sexism.

It might be said that the words evoke a sense of liberation, but then it's hard to think of a more constricting idea than the "spirit of point". The point is it's pointless, although very effectively pointless. They sound good, the words, yet they are best left unexamined.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Fiat Punto Evo bows, looks good

Fiat Punto

We never really considered ourselves the Fiat Punto kind, but the 2010 Evo variant strikes a chord, and for a little guy it comes with a lot of kit. The Blue&Me interface will be available on all trim levels, providing control of all the car's major functions, along with a mobile phone, MP3 player and touch-screen navigation. On top of that will be rain sensors, ESP with Hill Holder, engine start-stop and adaptive cornering fog lights.

There will be two chassis options: Grande Punto and Sporting, which both come with a "sport chassis" and "more assertive looks;" and Comfort. There are five engines to choose from: four of the firm's new MultiAir, and MultiJet II diesel models, from a 1.3-liter, 75-horsepower MultiJet to 1.4-liter, 135-hp MultiAir turbo, and a vanilla 1.4-liter, 77-hp gas variant. A sixth engine choice, the 1.6-liter MultiJet with 120 hp,

Chrysler builds cars the Fiat way

There's a new look, commitment and enthusiasm at a refurbished Jeep plant in Detroit and it is a model being replicated across Chrysler Group LLC's 28 North American plants.

Chrysler has spent $700 million on the new Jeep Grand Cherokee and the Jefferson North assembly plant where it is being built. But the investment represents more than the traditional tooling and promises that accompany the launch of a next-generation vehicle.

Cars are now being built the Fiat SpA way. After Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy June 10 and formed a partnership with Fiat, CEO Sergio Marchionne ordered all Chrysler plants to adopt Fiat's World Class Manufacturing system, designed to improve quality and productivity by eliminating waste and bottlenecks.