Fiat Punto Evo 2009 Review - International

Fiat Punto Evo 1.3 MultiJet II

First Drive
La Spezia, Italy

What we liked
>> MultiJet II engine is brilliant
>> Flexible engine brings chassis to life
>> Hardly uses a drop!

Not so much
>> Seats are dead ordinary
>> Styling upgrades aren't overwhelmingly successful
>> Diesels put new MultiAir petrols in the shade

Overall rating: 3.5/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 4.5/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 4.0/5.0
Safety: 4.0/5.0
Behind the wheel: 4.0/5.0
X-factor: 2.5/5.0

About our ratings

There are those in Fiat who think the MultiAir valve-train technology is the future of the combustion engine and there are those who stubbornly refuse to toe the line. Fortunately for Punto Evo buyers, many of the stubborn work on Fiat's famously economical four-cylinder diesel engines and they've set about proving they can make an efficient, economical and extremely strong engine without the benefit of the expensive whizzy bits the Evo's 'clever' petrol engines use (see sperate drive impression below).

Indeed, the latest upgrades to the diesel engine have taken the Punto's four-cylinder, 1.3-litre turbodiesel from credible, economical alternative to undisputed class leader. It's that good -- even though fresh competition from VW, Ford, PSA and a host of others are not far off.

In its upgrade from the four-year-old Grande Punto to the new Punto Evo, Fiat's Small Car segment car has received much more than freshened engines. There is, for example, the mildly clumsly uglification of the front end, the adoption of LED daytime running lights, an engine stop-start system, an integrated TomTom navigation docking station, an extra airbag for the driver's knees and more oddments space inside the cabin. You can even keep track of your fuel economy and your driving style with an online-based advice program.

Yet, with the rigid steel monocoque body and the suspension only lightly fiddled, it's the engines that star and the MultiJet diesel who's star shines brightest.

In a typically Fiat strategy, there are a range of turbodiesel outputs (all the way up to a storming 320Nm version), but we tested the middle-of-the-road option with 70kW and 200Nm.

Put simply, the Punto Evo feels strong and flexible in MultiAir petrol form, but it feels alive and wonderfully integrated with the turbodiesel under the bonnet. That's because the engine smoothes out its former coarseness at idle, it eliminates it completely under acceleration and it pulls hard and strong from any engine speed. And it barely uses any fuel doing it, claiming just 4.2L/100km on the combined fuel economy cycle -- and just 3.5 on the highway!

It helps its cause that it mates the engine to a terrific five-speed manual gearbox (and will, next year, hook it up to a six-speed dual-clutch semi-automatic unit), but the real key is inside the engine.

BMW boasts of fitting a variable geometry turbocharger to its new 7 and 5 Series, but Fiat already has one sitting here, inside its baby Punto Evo. That helps to act like both a small, nimble turbo at low rpm and a larger, more-powerful turbo at higher revs.

The Italian brand combines this with the latest generation of fuel-injection technology, which forces diesel into the injectors at up to 1600 bar of pressure. It's these injectors that are the jewels in the system's crown. These are capable of precisely injecting the right amount of diesel at just the right time -- up to eight times each each stroke (MultiJet I could do five).

According to Fiat Group Auto's Product Development Director, Claudio Demaria, that's because the old injectors were electro-hydraulic and MultiJet II's are 'driven' by a solenoid.

"It gives us advanced combustion shaping and we can reduce noise and fuel consumption, plus it lets us pull NOx emissions down by 30 per cent," he claimed.

It also gives a boost in power and, importantly, a boost in the spread of the torque, which is the second thing the driver notices.

The first is, very clearly, how much smoother and quieter the engine is -- even from the first flick of the key. The new injectors are a big part of it, but so too are new engine/gearbox mounting bushes and even a new roof headlining. It's clear that, even against the strength of Peugeot/Citroen and the VW Group, there's a new leader in the small-diesel pack.

It's also incredibly strong. While its 0-100km/h sprint time of 11.7sec might not be exactly sparkling, the in-gear acceleration results certainly are. It will pull forward in any gear, at any speed and it won't shudder or send coarse rumblings through the pedals or the steering wheel.

It's not just quiet around town, either, because it's quiet at speed as well. Its better gearing lets it cruise comfortably, even at 150km/h, and its top speed of 178km/h leaves it plenty of strength in reserve.

It's also a light engine, which helps the Punto Evo's handling no end. While it feels 'solid' as a petrol-powered machine, the Evo comes to life with this engine. It feels better balanced, strong coming out of corners and predictable and even fun all the way through them.

While Punto's two-stage steering system is silly and over-complicating things (you can push a button for lighter city steering), the wheel itself is accurate and light and the suspension upgrades see it walk across hard-edged bumps with far more assurance than the old car.

Urban fuel consumption (and noise) benefits from the auto 'Start&Stop' system, which kills the engine when you pop neutral at the lights and re-starts it when you push the clutch in.

The marginally intuitive You&Me interactive multi-media system has had a huge boost with the addition of an integrated TomTom port. You can navigate around it by using the TomTom's touchscreen or by the steering-wheel buttons and it controls everything from navigation to the phone.

The cabin's also had an overhaul and the trims are all new, the door design is new, there is more space inside for bits and pieces and there's even a driver's kneebag now. The seats, though, are perhaps the only truly disappointing aspect of the car. They are flat and unsupportive and not particularly comfortable in any situation.

Which is a shame, because the rest of the car is, fundamentally superb. Even more so when Fiat insists its prices will not move (in Europe, at least) from the Grande Punto's pricing.

Petrol - if you must...
A small car with a small engine shouldn't be doing this. The hill might be slight, but the 1100kg Fiat Punto Evo has no fancy turbocharging power feeding its petrol engine and there is only 1.4 litres under the bonnet. Yet, in fourth gear from just 1000rpm, it's climbing without complaint. Its easing its way forward with the traffic on Italy's west coast and it's barely using a drop of fuel doing it. In fact, we'd hazard a guess that the air coming out of the tailpipe is cleaner than the thickened air going in through the first MultiAir-driven inlet valves in a Fiat.

Fiat's entry-level Punto Evo MultiAir has only 57kW but it boxes with so much cleverness that it feels like it's output is comfortably stronger. The direct-action, hydraulically activated inlet valves give it dollops of torque right where you need dollops of torque and the short gearing on the five-speed manual 'box helps, too.

Fiat claims the Punto Evo is a breakthrough car, and it's hard to argue because, quite simply, a 1.4-litre engine with no force-feeding assistance has no right to be this strong. It's smooth, too, and there's barely a tremor at idle.

Push away from the lights and the front-drive Punto Evo feels much more like a 2.0-litre engine in its character, at least in the bottom half of its rev range. Up to around 4000rpm, the 1.4 moves the five-door hatch purposefully and refuses every offered excuse to shudder, strain or lapse into harshness.

It helps that the gearing is so short, but Fiat figures the lower-powered, non-turbo Punto Evos will live most of their lives in cities, so straining at higher revs on the highway is a small price to pay for what is effectively cheap, urban muscle.

So, if 57kW (at 6000rpm) and 115Nm (at 3250rpm) seem like a tiny numbers these days, rest assured it's coming from an engine that unstressed and feels it every inch of the way. Sprinting to 100km/h is, obviously, not a forte, but its combined fuel consumption is down at 5.4L/100km, with just 124 grams of CO2/km as well.

It will stretch across the traditional sprint in 13.2 seconds and will top out at just 165km/h, but it's more about rolling in-gear acceleration than outright speed. And, in rolling in-gear acceleration, it's more than strong enough in thick traffic. Another sign of its city focus is the addition of an auto stop/start system like its turbodiesel MultiJet counterpart.

Fiat's Australian importer, Ateco Automotive, has confirmed that the Punto Evo is due to arrive in local showrooms in the third quarter of 2010. Although the final make-up of the line-up isn't confirmed yet a company spokesman said both MultiAir and MultiJet variants are likely. We'll bring you more information as it comes to hand.

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