Oct 17, 2007 03:34 PM
5608 Views
So I was contemplating replacing my ageing maruti with another car, with a budget around 4-5 lakhs, and with following vendors to choose from
suzuki - swift, alto
hyundai - getz
Fiat - palio Stile
Tata - Indigo
The alto seemed a very small upgrade from my M800 , the indigo was a lil bit more pricey that I could afford, 5 was my limit and the indigo was pushing it too far
so I had to choose from the swift , the getz and the palio.
My line of thinking was a bit different, every where I look around me I see swifts and getz flying around, are these the only cars in the market ? why is everyone obsessed with getting a swift ?
why not a palio ? I mean what the hell happened to the palio, so I googled looked around a bit on motor websites here and there , the results were astonishing.
The palio has had very good reviews in probably most countries where its sold, but it india thanks to poor dealership it suffered, but that doesnt mean that its a bad car, so whats in it then ?
lets take a look, I test drove a 1.6 sport (stile version )
dropped into manipal motors for a test drive and hopped in took it around
the first thing that gets to you about the palio is your sense of security inside the car, you feel really really safe.
The cabin is quiet and you can hardly hear the engine
the ride is incredibly smooth and the gear shifting is pretty effortless, the car has a system to prevent double cranking of the engine there fore it can prevent wear and tear.
the car handles very well around corners and it grips the road very well , thanks to tubeless tires that come fitted with all models. the braking needs to get used to as they engage quiet late, but its more of a getting used to than a flaw.
The pickup is quite good, not that you can go from zoom to doom on bangalore's roads ;)
0-60 in probably under 5 secs isnt bad, but when you cruise with the car, the car is pretty stable at high speeds
the engine is a 1596cc , 4 cylinder with 100Nm@5500 rpm power and 137Nm/4250 torque
4 valves per cylinder(DOHC) and a 32 bit microprocessor system ensures superior fuel injection
and peformance, I must add fiat is a child company of ferrari so they do have some of that thinking built into this machine :)
there is ample boot space and ample leg room and the drivers cockpit is quite spacious with easy to use controls
i think this car hasnt been given a chance in the Indian Market , people who still think the getz and the swift are the greatest must surely test this car out
I'm sure you will not be disappointed
My Palio sport delivers tomorrow
and i'm off for some happy motoring
Good Luck !
