?Fiat Diesel Drives India? may sound too bold on the face but the company surely holds the right to make the claim. After all, the 1.3 ltr. diesel engines from Fiat?s stable are driving many a mid-segment sedan and hatchbacks in India .
Last week, I also got to drive the Fiat Punto and Linea, although on the last leg of the 10,000 km nationwide journey on the popular Delhi-Jaipur Highway. The 300 km stretch gave me a great opportunity to experience the abilities of the multijet engines that makes these cars what they are.
But in reality, apart from some basic common characteristics, the way one car?s engine has been tuned and how it works in it is way different from the other, and it showed in the way each car performed through our journey.
In case of the Linea 1.3 ltr. diesel, a slight noise of the engine was audible from inside, however, it is very well fortified, compared to so many other diesel engines we have in the market. The initial pickup of the 1.3 ltr. diesel engine is not great. After reaching a speed of about 50Km plus, the engine was responding well. From 50 km/hr to reach 150 km/hr on the highway, it did not take more than 25 seconds. The brakes are superb and the ABS kicks in early than expected, for safety purposes.
Linea deserves an applause for the amount of power it generates from under your right foot as it crosses the 50 km/hr mark on the speedometer.
?Admiration guaranteed?, lives up to its name and we aren?t just talking about the exteriors here.
Then there is the Punto. I am very happy with Fiat?s latest attempt to bring back the lost magic of brand Fiat in India . Here is a car in which you would find most of things right and maybe just a few wrong. It may not be the fastest, yet it lives up to your expectations in other ways.
I found the Punto engine to be extremely responsive and refined. You could drive all day long in the fourth gear, with its peak tourque intact, compounded by the superb fuel economy. As far as acceleration is concerned, it zips really well at a weight of 1.2 tonne.
The car moved eagerly as I released the clutch but ran out of breath as soon as I pressed the accelerator. I automatically shifted to second gear, which did make the ride smoother, but the real fun started with the third one. I could go as slow as 20 km/hr to as high as 70 km/hr in third gear. Fourth and fifth gears too were very drivable. I could go as slow as 30 km/hr in 5th gear and the engine did not even flinch. As for which one’s better, take your pick.
