142
F0U0125mfig. 142F0U0126mfig. 143
FRONT AIRBAG ON DRIVER’S SIDE
fig. 142
This consists of an instant-inflating bag contained in a spe-
cial compartment in the centre of the steering wheel.
FRONT AIRBAG ON PASSENGER SIDE
fig. 143
This consists of an instant-inflating bag contained in a spe-
cial compartment in the dashboard: this bag has a larger
volume than that of the driver’s.KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
WARNING: Do not put child seats facing
backwards on the front seat if the pas-
senger’s airbag is enabled (ON). Deploy-
ment of the airbag in an accident could
cause fatal injuries to the baby. Should it
be absolutely necessary to place a child seat on
the front seat, always deactivate the passenger
airbag. Also, the passenger seat should be as far
back as possible to avoid contact between the
child seat and the dashboard. Although this is not
mandatory by law, the airbag should be immedi-
ately reactivated when children are no longer car-
ried to ensure better protection for adults.
WARNING
129-148 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:40 Pagina 142
143
F0U0343mfig. 144
KNEE BAG ON DRIVER’S SIDE fig. 144
(for versions/markets where provided)
This consists of an instant-inflating bag contained in a spe-
cial compartment under the steering wheel at knee level,
designed to give further protection in the event of a head-
on crash.KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
MANUAL DEACTIVATION OF FRONT AND
SIDE PASSENGER AIRBAGS
(for versions/markets where provided)
Should it be absolutely necessary to carry a child on the
front seat, the passenger front and side airbags can be de-
activated. The instrument panel warning light
“will stay
on constantly until the passenger front and side airbags are
reactivated.
129-148 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:40 Pagina 143
147
KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
Do not rest your head, arms or elbows on
the doors, windows or window bag de-
ployment area as you could be injured during the
inflation phase.
WARNING
Never lean you head, arms or elbows out
of the window.
WARNING
Do not cover the front seat backrest with
sheets or covers that are not compatible
with side bags.
WARNING
If, when turning the key to MAR, the warn-
ing light
¬does not turn on or if it stays
on when travelling (together with the message on
the multifunction display, where provided), there
could be a failure in the safety systems; if this is
the case, the airbags or pretensioners may not trig-
ger in the event of an accident or, in a minor num-
ber of cases, they could activate incorrectly. Con-
tact a Fiat Dealership immediately to have the
system checked before driving off.
WARNING
GENERAL WARNINGS
Do not travel with objects in your lap,
in front of your chest, or between your lips
(pipes, pencils, etc.). In the event of a crash when
the airbag is deployed, you may be seriously in-
jured.
WARNING
Always drive keeping your hands on the
steering wheel rim so that, in the event of
airbag activation, it can inflate without obstruc-
tion. Do not drive with your body slouched for-
wards; keep the backrest upright and lean back
into it.
WARNING
129-148 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:40 Pagina 147
149
STARTING PROCEDURE FOR PETROL
VERSIONS
Proceed as follows:
❒ensure that the handbrake is on;
❒put the gear lever into neutral;
❒fully depress the clutch pedal without touching the ac-
celerator;
❒turn the ignition key to AVV and let it go the moment
the engine starts.
If the engine does not start at the first attempt, return
the ignition key to STOP before repeating the procedure.
STARTING THE ENGINE
The car is fitted with an electronic engine lock device: if
the engine fails to start, see the paragraph on “The Fiat
CODE system” in the “Dashboard and controls” section.
The engine may be noisier during the first few seconds of
operation, particularly after a long period of inactivity. This
is a feature of hydraulic tappets, the timing system cho-
sen to reduce the number of servicing interventions, and
effects neither functionality nor reliability.
KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
STARTING AND DRIVING
It is dangerous to let the engine run in en-
closed spaces. The engine consumes oxy-
gen and produces carbon dioxide, carbon monox-
ide and other toxic gases.
WARNING
In the first period of use, we recommend
that you do not demand maximum perfor-
mance from the car (e.g. excessive accel-
eration, extended travel at maximum revs, heavy
braking etc.).
With the engine off, do not leave the
key in the ignition to prevent draining the
battery.
Remember that the brake booster and
power steering are not operational until
the engine has been started, therefore you need
to apply much more force than usual to the brake
pedal and steering wheel.
WARNING
149-160 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:41 Pagina 149
151
STOPPING THE ENGINE
Turn the ignition key to STOP while the engine is idling.
IMPORTANT After a long drive, you should allow the en-
gine to “catch its breath” before turning it off by letting it
idle to allow the temperature in the engine compartment
to fall. WARMING UP THE ENGINE AFTER IT HAS
JUST STARTED (petrol and diesel versions)
Proceed as follows:
❒drive off slowly at medium revs, and accelerate
smoothly;
❒do not demand maximum performance for the first few
kilometres. Wait until the engine coolant gauge starts
moving.
KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTSRemember that the brake booster and pow-
er steering are not operational until the en-
gine has been started, so you need to apply
much more force than usual to the brake pedal and
steering wheel.
Never jump start the engine by pushing,
towing or driving downhill. This could cause
fuel to flow into the catalytic converter and
damage it beyond repair.
A quick burst on the accelerator before
turning off the engine serves absolutely no
practical purpose; it wastes fuel and is es-
pecially damaging to turbocharged engines.
149-160 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:41 Pagina 151
164
KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
Degraded engine oil should be replaced as
soon as possible after the warning light
comes on, and never more than 500 km after it
first comes on.
Failure to change the oil within the first 1000 km
may result in severe damage to the engine and in-
validate the warranty. Remember that when the
warning light comes on, it does not mean that the
level of engine oil is low, so if the light flashes you
do not need to top up the engine oil.
WARNING
DOOR/BOOT/BONNET OPEN (red)
On certain versions, the warning light turns on
when one or more doors or the boot are not
properly closed.
A specific message is displayed on certain versions. You
will hear a warning sound if a door is open and the car is
moving.
´
DUALDRIVE ELECTRIC POWER
STEERING FAILURE (red)
(for versions/markets where provided)
This warning light comes on when the ignition key
is turned to MAR, but it should go off after a few sec-
onds.
If the warning light stays on, you will not get the benefit
from the electric power steering and the effort needed
to turn the wheel will be greatly increased, although it will
still be possible to steer the car. Contact a Fiat Dealership.
On some versions the display shows the associated mes-
sage.
g
Note that engine oil degrades faster under the following
circumstances:
– use of the vehicle mainly for city driving, requiring more
frequent regeneration of the DPF
– use of the vehicle for short drives, in which the engine
does not have time to reach its regular operating tem-
perature
– repeated interruption of the regeneration process, sig-
nalled by the DPF warning light coming on.
161-174 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:40 Pagina 164
172
KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
IMPORTANT Do not continue driving with one or more
flat tyres as handling may be compromised. Stop the car,
avoiding harsh braking or steering manoeuvres. Replace
the wheel immediately with the small spare wheel (for ver-
sions/markets where provided) or carry out a repair us-
ing the dedicated kit (see “Changing a wheel” in the “In
an emergency” section) and contact a Fiat Dealership as
soon as possible.
Tyre pressure unsuitable for speed
Should you need to travel at a speed higher than 160 km/h,
inflate the tyres to the pressures specified in “Tyre pres-
sures”.
If the TPMS system (for versions/markets where provid-
ed) detects that the pressure of one or more tyres is un-
suitable for the current speed, the warning light will turn
on (together with the message on the display) (see “Tyre
pressure low” in this section) and it will stay on until the
car slows down to a speed below the preset threshold.
IMPORTANT In this case, slow down immediately because
tyre overheating could damage tyre performance and dura-
bility beyond repair, and may even make the tyre explode. CHECK TYRE PRESSURE
(amber)
TYRE PRESSURE LOW (amber)
TYRE PRESSURE UNSUITABLE FOR
SPEED
(amber)
(for versions/markets where provided)
When the ignition key is moved to MAR position, the
warnintg light turns on but should go off after a few sec-
onds.
Check tyre pressures
The warning light turns on to indicate the flat tyre. Should
two or more tyres be flat, the display will show the indi-
cations corresponding to each tyre in sequence.
Restore correct tyre pressures as soon as possible (see
“Cold tyre pressures” in the “Technical specifications” sec-
tion).
Tyre pressure low
The warning light on the panel comes on when the pres-
sure of one or more tyres falls below a preset level. In this
way, the TPMS system warns the driver that one or more
tyres may be dangerously flat and probably punctured.
n
161-174 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:40 Pagina 172
173
KNOWING
YOUR
VEHICLE
SAFETY
STARTING
AND DRIVING
WARNING LIGHTS
AND MESSAGES
IN AN
EMERGENCY
SERVICING
AND CARE
TECHNICAL
SPECIFICATIONS
CONTENTS
RIGHT-HAND DIRECTION
INDICATOR (green – intermittent)
The light (arrow) comes on when the direction
indicator control lever is moved upwards or, to-
gether with the left-hand arrow, when the hazard warn-
ing light button is pressed.
D
DUALDRIVE ELECTRIC POWER
STEERING ON (green)
(for versions/markets where provided)
The word “CITY” appears on the display when the
Dualdrive electric power steering system is activated by
pressing the relevant control button. If the button is
pressed again the word CITY goes out. A specific message
is displayed on certain versions.
CITY
CRUISE CONTROL (green)
(for versions/markets where provided)
When the ignition key is moved to MAR posi-
tion, the warnintg light turns on but should go off
after a few seconds.
The warning light is lit up on the display by rotating the
Cruise Control twist switch to ON. A specific message
is displayed on certain versions.
Ü
Strong radio-frequency noises could hin-
der the regular operation of the TPMS
system. This condition will be indicated by a mes-
sage (where provided). The message will disap-
pear automatically as soon as the interference
ceases to disturb the system.
WARNING
FOG LIGHTS (green)
The light comes on when the front fog lights are
turned on.
5
LEFT-HAND DIRECTION
INDICATOR (green – intermittent)
The light (arrow) comes on when the direction
indicator control lever is moved downwards or,
together with the right-hand arrow, when the hazard
warning light button is pressed.
F
161-174 PUNTO FL EN 3ed 9-12-2009 13:40 Pagina 173