Soft But Undercooked

We drive the Punto’s latest Reincarnation

- Aadil Naik

The car business in India is pretty unforgiving. Good cars bomb spectacularly and terrible cars do very well. Profitability and market share are important, with some manufacturers trying everything to achieve those, and yet failing. As a proud MBA graduate, I’m supposed to know the answer to these ‘industry issues’, but the truth is I haven’t the foggiest. What car companies tend to do in India, then, is throw new model after new model at you till one clicks. And when you are Fiat, you need something to click. Soon.

A NEW MODEL? YES!

Kind of. Fiat had the Punto, the Punto Evo, the Punto Abarth, the Avventura, and just because that wasn’t confusing enough, we now have the Urban Cross. They ditched the ‘Punto’ moniker for this, for reasons I can only wonder at, but I assure you it’s still very much a Punto. Fiat says it is aimed at an urban clientele living in metro cities, people who are looking for something of a crossover between the regular Punto and the Avventura. I’m not so convinced though, but more on that later.

OKAY, SO WHAT IS NEW?

At first glance, it looks exactly like an Avventura, minus the spare wheel on the back. But there are a few changes. The revised front grille with a glossy finish looks good, and new bumpers and side skirts are pretty much all the external differences on the Urban Cross. The petrol gets the Abarth’s wheels and plaque, but scorpion logo is missing entirely from the car. Why, Fiat, why?!

WHAT WILL I SEE INSIDE?