Fiat has just launched its updated Punto hatchback, called the Punto Evo, at a starting price of Rs 4.55 lakh. The Fiat Punto Evo gets exterior and interior cosmetic upgrades and comes packed with more features. So, how does it stack up against the Maruti Swift, Volkswagen Polo facelift and Nissan Micra? To find out, we have compared the specifications of all four hatchbacks.
Under the hood
The Fiat Punto Evo offers buyers the option of two petrol engines. There's a 1172cc, four-cylinder motor that makes 67.06bhp and 9.78kgm of torque while the bigger 1368cc, four-cylinder engine produces 88.76bhp and 11.72kgm. The 1.2-litre petrol powers the base and mid variants while the 1.4-litre motor is available only on the top Emotion trim.
The Punto Evo diesel variants are powered by a 1248cc, four-cylinder engine but in two states of tune. There's a 74.96bhp and 20.08kgm version which powers the regular trims and a more powerful 89bhp and 21.31kgm version which is offered only on the top Sport trim.
Just like the new Punto Evo, the Volkswagen Polo too offers the option of two petrol engines and a diesel engine in two states of tune. The regular Polo petrol trims get a 1198cc, three-cylinder engine that generates 73.97bhp and 11.21kgm. The sportier Polo GT TSI variant gets a 1197cc, direct-injection, four-cylinder engine that makes 103bhp and 17.8kgm of torque.
The facelifted Polo diesel's new 1498cc, four-cylinder engine makes either 89bhp and 23.45kgm in standard form or 104bhp and 25.5kgm of torque in the GT TDI variant.
In comparison, the Maruti Swift and the Nissan Micra are available with only one petrol and diesel engine each.
The Maruti Swift is available with a 1197cc, four-cylinder petrol motor and a 1248cc, four-cylinder diesel engine. The petrol motor produces 85.80bhp and 11.62kgm while the diesel makes 73.97bhp and 19.37kgm.
The Nissan Micra is driven by a 1198cc, three-cylinder petrol engine good for 74.96bhp and 10.60kgm and a 1461cc, four-cylinder diesel motor that makes 63.12bhp and 16.31kgm.
Space on offer
At 2510mm, the Punto Evo has the longest wheelbase amongst this bunch of hatchbacks. The Volkswagen Polo gets closest to it with a wheelbase of 2469mm. Next is the Nissan Micra with a wheelbase of 2450mm while the Maruti Swift has a 2430mm wheelbase.
The Fiat Punto Evo measures 3989mm in length, 1687mm in width and 1525mm in height. It is 18mm longer than the Volkswagen Polo, 139mm longer than the Maruti Swift and 164mm more than that of the NIssan Micra. It is slighter wider than the Polo and the Micra but not the Swift. Also, it is 56mm taller than the Polo but shorter than both the Swift and the Micra by just 5mm.
How does it stack up?
The Fiat Punto Evo’s 67.06bhp 1.2-litre, four-cylinder petrol engine is the least powerful in this bunch. In comparison, the Nissan Micra and the Volkswagen Polo both get similar capacity, but three-cylinder engines which make 74.96bhp and 73.97bhp, respectively. The Maruti Swift petrol gets a 1197cc, four-cylinder engine which makes 85.80bhp.
The 88.76bhp 1.4-litre, four-cylinder Punto Evo petrol variant doesn't have as much power on tap as the Polo GT TSI that makes 103bhp. Also, the Polo GT TSI gets an automatic DSG transmission only.
The 74.96bhp 1.3-litre Punto Evo diesel version has a horsepower disadvantage compared to the bigger 1.5-litre Polo engine which makes 89bhp. However, it makes more power than the Nissan Micra’s 1.5-litre engine which produces 63.12bhp. In comparison, the Swift, which is also powered by the same 1.3-litre Multijet diesel engine as in the Punto Evo, but makes 73.97bhp.
The sportier 89bhp 1.3-litre diesel Punto Evo Sport makes 15bhp less than the Polo's range-topping GT TDI.
So, this is what the new Fiat Punto Evo looks like on paper against its rivals. However, real world performance is likely to differ.
Rivan RS 
Viraaj Bhatnagar
Uday Singh
Suraj Viswanathan
