Fiat India has started teasing the upcoming Abarth Punto for the Indian market. This car will become the most powerful and even the quickest hatchback amongst its segment rivals when launched.
The Abarth Punto is expected to go on sale in the coming month. It is the powerful version of the standard Punto Evo hatchback on sale now. The biggest difference between the regular hatchback and the Abarth Punto is that the latter comes powered by a four-cylinder 1.4-litre T-Jet mill that produces 143bhp of power and 200Nm of torque. The former one gets two petrol mills, the base version is a 67bhp 1.2-litre four-pot motor, while the higher spec version is an 89bhp 1.4-litre four-cylinder engine.
In all the variants, power is sent to the front wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox, but the Abarth does the 0-100kmph sprint in just 8.8 seconds. None of the competitors come anywhere close to these figures. The Abarth Punto gets a lowered ride height, disc brakes on all wheels and a stiffer suspension.
Cosmetically, the Abarth Punto retains the shape and design of the Punto Evo hatchback but gets many external changes to portray it as a sportier vehicle. There is an Abarth logo in place of the Fiat logo and the car gets T-Jet badging. The other cosmetic changes include a Scorpion decal, red Abarth stickering at the sides and the car features red coloured OVRMs and a new pattern for the alloy wheels.
The cabin of the car is also slightly altered though the layout remains the same. The Fiat logo on the steering wheel is replaced by the Abarth logo and the instrument cluster also gets an 'Abarth' badging in the centre. The interior comes with different seats with coloured stitching and features new sporty pedals.
The Abarth Punto is expected be priced in the range of Rs 50,000 to Rs 70,000 more than the naturally aspirated versions. It will appeal to enthusiasts in our country and also to those who are looking for a decently powerful petrol engine.
