Fiat Punto Evo: redefining the limits of style… Really? Photograph: Simon Stuart-Miller
Fiat Punto Evo Multiair GP 1.4
Top speed 115mph
Acceleration 0-62mph in 10.8 seconds
Average consumption 49.6mpg
CO2 emissions 134g/km
Eco rating 7/10
Bound for sixth gear
In a word Spirited
Have you ever asked yourself what "spirito di punto" actually means? Not its literal meaning, of course, which is obvious to even the most English of linguists, but its "brand" meaning, if you like. The Fiat Punto ads that first featured the phrase toyed with preconceptions about the different driving habits and interests of males and females, but surely no one outside a media studies course would argue that the marketing line was intended as a postmodern critique of consumer sexism.
It might be said that the words evoke a sense of liberation, but then it's hard to think of a more constricting idea than the "spirit of point". The point is it's pointless, although very effectively pointless. They sound good, the words, yet they are best left unexamined.