works for me thanks..!!,
@
JTD_Liam - how's the mito..??
Charlie
It's pretty good. Handles well, sweet gear change, strong brakes without being grabby like a lot of new cars, light clutch, comfy seats (optional full leather), good leather steering wheel. Steering in Dynamic mode is very quick, but a bit like it's connected via elastic bands in Natural mode! The Stilo had more feel through the steering but the MiTo's isn't bad.
Engine (1.3 JTDm) feels very perky over 1500rpm and once you've got it going you'd be hard pushed to tell it's only 1248cc. However, the turbo doesn't cut in till 1500rpm & below that it's woeful. The Stilo picked up from the word go, so I do find myself having to drop to 2nd where i'd be able to floor it and go in 3rd in the Stilo. That does have a big 1.9 lump under the bonnet though.
Refinement is ok. The engine's a lot less diesel-like than the Stilo's and you get hardly any engine noise at motorway speed as I used to. Wind noise is also low, but tyre roar can be tiring on poor surfaces. On good surfaces it's a lot quieter than the Stilo though (both on 17" wheels).
Fuel economy is good, but not outstanding. It's claimed combined MPG is 80mpg, and i'm getting 53-55mpg over the first 4 tank fulls (measured manually, not via the on board computer, though this is proving pretty accurate). Stilo did 45-49mpg and claimed combined was 53.3, so it got a lot closer to its claimed.
The biggest negative is ride. It's overly firm and at times crashy. It's fine on motorways and twisty b-roads but going anywhere near town makes me wanna cry. It'd be less of a problem if the UK sorted out its roads, but the MiTo ride & suspension is still unacceptable on a car of its price. The Stilo, whilst firm, had a slightly more sophisticated rear suspension set-up and it showed. I think MiTo's with small 16" wheels or the active suspension would be better - sadly mine's on 17"'s and has the bog standard suspension.
So overall, I'd give the MiTo 7 out of 10. Good looking, good handling, fairly perky & fairly comfy. Let down by no power under 1500rpm, slightly less than expected economy and poor ride. Plus it's got an annoying noise from underneath for which a new exhaust is on order under warranty. The dealership has been good about that though.
as the Punto is built at Melfi, which is in Central Southern Italy.
