'Punto
al titolo'
Review of Fiat Punto Super1600 Evo 2003
Thanks to a lot of new features, the Turin's Super1600 did further quality jump and Andreucci has shown it immediately at the Tutta Terra Toscana, where he was really so narrow to the 4WD cars with a 2WD car. We were able to exclusively test the car and we unveil you all its secrets.
courtesy of Rally Sprint (Aldo Calabrini, Daniele Sgorbini, Tomazzoni)
Here it the Fiat weapon to conquer the absolute Italian rally title: this year, 2003, revolutioned by new regulamentations, with the transition to the Super1600 cars, although the Group N turbocharged all wheel drive car fleet promises to join battle, it does not only succeed a turning-point, which can be naturally named as epic from a sporting point of view, but it even opens doors which was simply unconceivable only one year ago, that is having a Turinese car on the topmost of the Italian rallying.
After
the epic deeds of Lancia Delta Integrale ten years of foreign dominance followed
in the Italian rallying panorama, Toyota, Subaru, and Ford for the absolute title
and the gravel one, while the undiscussed ruling of Peugeot in the two wheel driver
championships. Now this foreign superiority may stop and at Chivasso and nearest
districts Fiat men are working hard to succeed. Even more because Punto Super1600
2003 edition starts with great advantage: since January 1st 2003 FIA increased
the minimum weight of the Super1600 category, moving up the older threshold by
50 kg and fixing the new regulamentary value to 1000 kg, a point surely in favour
of the Turin's car, which suffered during previous seasons an "abundacy"
versus the challengers, although it did not stop to see the others, presenting
at mid 2002 a lightened version which Andreucci drove even more faster to the
Super1600 Italian title.
On
the other side the evolution of Punto never stopped. The first release of the
car, which marked the real return by Fiat to the rallying world, debuted in the
season 2000 and it was used according the kit-car regulations.
The first, important, evolution was just the Super1600 conversion, succeeded at
the beginning of the next season, just in coincidence of the Junior championship
startup (called in 2001 Super1600 championship).
Such radical transformation meant a completely different car: better we remember the main differences between the technical regulations of kit cars and Super1600 cars, really more restrictive than the former. First gross modification which Turin's engineers had to face was the engine and its specific air intake system.
The kit cars could use a throttle body for each cylinder, while the Super1600 rule obligates an only throttle body. It is not a detail, because the adaptation to this regulation needs a deep modification of the engine, with a new air intake system, the adoption of different camshafts and another electronic management unit.
The kit car maximum power was about 225 HP, the first Super1600 prototype paid
off about 10 HP, than its progenitrix, although the power distribution and the
maximum torque at the lowest revs possible is more important than the number of
horses. While developing and making the kit car version Fiat (then renamed in
N Technology) didn't forget anything, employing extensively noble materials, with
several parts in carbon fiber (inner cockpit, various components, mirrors) or
titanium compounds for valves. All these materials have been banned with the transition
to the Super1600 rules and their prohibition provoked a remarkable fattening of
the car: the kit car weighed 960 kg, the first Super1600 prototype reported on
balance almost a hundred kg more and it was really fatter than the minimum weight
of the Super1600 common limit.
The car was at its very origin very heavy, because the original project aimed
to make a kit car to be used in monomarque trophy and engineer Limone concentrated
on the achievement of the best passive safety, developing very strong frame and
rollcage. The weight issue has been an important handicap in a class where any
detail cannot be ignored, that's why the lightened version of the Punto saw the
light of day in 2002.
Now (in 2003) the weight bound moved up to 1000 kg, the Punto Super1600 can load onboard two further spare wheels. The story starts again...
Technical review
Ongoing tuning activity: that's the treatment forced to the car by N Technology
men: the first target, pursued in the last two seasons, is the weight enlightenment:
the Punto has become thin a lot, losing, with respect the first release, more
than 100 kg! A true record!
How were they able? Almost any detail has been revised, for example, the thermic windscreen, an antimisting model, which has allowed the total removal of the heating system, which is installed in racing and rallying only to avoid the misting of the front glass.
During the slim cure the Turinese technicians had to consider the severe constraints introduced by the Super1600 rules, which banned high-tec materials usage, like carbon and titanium. They changed all the screws and small hardware, without adopting special materials, but with firm razionalization: shorter screws and filed grams everywhere, such that at the end of the job requiring infinite patience the weight of the last version of Punto is 970 kg.
Resolute
modifications on the heart of the car too, with a different design for the airbox:
the air induction geometry has been shaped with a form which resembles vaguely
the Peugeot 306 Maxi's airbox, where the air is breathened from the lower part
of the bonnet.
Another important change has been the substitution of the suspension kit, since Catalunya Rally 2002, with new Ohlins dampers and excluding Bilstein ones. Fiat Auto is expecting gross results from the last release of his own Super1600 car and nobody suppresses the ambition for the Italian title. Moreover for the second half of 2003 the restyling of Fiat Punto is ongoing, with the option to homologate a new car and to debut a totally new project, designed and authored in all the development phases to maximize performance from regulations.
Engine
I
think it is exactly the engine the main component where the technicians directed
by engineer Limone achieved the best results and the difference between the new
Punto 2003 and the previous versions is moreover here.
Apart the maximum power, which is about 20 HP according to the staff, what impressed me has been the big step forward for the power output: with the rule of one throttle body, which has been always Achilles' heel for all the Super1600 cars, which were empty at lower revs, with a "fat" and bad-tempered engine, and a difficult power erogation to manage.
Now, thanks also to the new airbox collector, which has been completely designed from scratch, everything changed positively and the car is more and more reactive. The engine has improved very much about the torque: before the revision the engine started to push at about 4,000 rpms, but under such threshold there was nothing to use, instead of the current one almost half a gear has been gained at low revs, which can be very useful in the tortuous roads and let you escape from misadventures.
Trasmission
I
didn't notice big improvements for the gearbox: the ratios are well spaced and
with the engine enhancements discussed above, all the system becomes more exciting
and profitable.
The six-speed sequential trasmission of Hewland is fast and precise and there is also a switch to change up the gears without leaving the accelerator. About the differential system the car feels well balanced, although I tasted only the Punto Super1600 only with gravel setup and I can't compare any difference.
It's hard getting from the technicians precise suggestions about the differential setup and parameters: they are some of the details held secretly and you can understand it so well, because all the Super1600 cars are very similar and it is the fine tuning of certain details, which let build the car's superiority step by step.
Brakes
With respect of the kit car version I have been told that the braking system is
less efficient, because the more free regulations of kit cars allowed the usage
of carriers with eight calipers.
Honestly I would say that the Punto Super 1600 braking power works really well; the 4-calipers carriers achieve fully their task and the car stops always in the right way.
The hand brake command, in the "classic" vertical configuration, is reachable well and the hydraulic system had the needed power to spin the car when requested.
Setup
Besides
the engine it looks like the N Technology technicians worked a lot also with the
setup and the results are immediate. The car uses Ohlins dampers, but important
changes have been done also for the braces and the incidence angles, whith the
final achievement that the car behaviour when entering the curve has improved
very much, the car nose has become more reactive and the car looks for the chord
in a faster and more natural way.
Furthermore you can play, of course, with all the adjustments to suit even better the Punto to your driving style, but I should say that the basis and the potential are at supreme levels.
Performance facts
| Engine | 4 inline cylinders
mounted on front transversally Compression ratio: 12.5:1 Distribution: two camshafts driven by belt, head with four valves per cylinder Injection: integrated system Marelli MF4, monothrottle body intake with diameter 60 mm Max Power: 220 HP at 8.900 rpm Max Torque: 196 Nm at 6500 rpm |
| Body | Framebody: three doors body and two volumes with soldered rollbar cage Suspensions: front independent wheels with McPherson system, rear twisting bridge with coaxial springs, Ohlins dampers Steering: rack and pinion with assistance Brakes: front Brembo carriers with four calipers, rear Brembo carriers with two calipers. Front vented disks diameter 355 mm (tarmac), 300 mm (gravel). Braking force distribution from cockpit Trasmission: Hewland sequential gearbox with six gears and reverse, autoblocking differential Hewland with thin plates, monodisk clutch in metalceramic diameter 200 mm Traction: two front wheels |
| Sizes | Length: 3800 mm Width: 1788 mm Wheelbase: 2460 mm Wheeltracks: front 1600 mm, rear 1580 mm Wheels: 7Jx17" (tarmac), 6Jx15" (gravel) Tyres: Michelin 17/63 17" (tarmac), and 16/65 15" (gravel) Weight: 1000 kg (fiche minimum) |
 Reinforced frame |
 Fuel distribution |
|
 Front frame |
 Exhaust pipe |
 Cooler |
 Cockpit |
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