You have the usual piddling little utility car - the ubiquitous family hatchback. And then you have the Fiat Palio 1.6 GTX. Small it might be (and small is a relative
term here), trifling it certainly isn't, oh no. Don't believe me? OK, The Fiat Palio 1.6 GTX. Let's do the numbers first. 1.6-litre DOHC four-cylinder engine, one hundred brake horsepower, 1080-kilo kerb weight, five-cog box, and 14-inch alloys shod in 175/65 Bridgestone rubber.
Get inside now. The white-faced Veglia rev-counter is marked up to 8000, the speedo is marked for 220kmph. The bare-metal clutch/brake/throttle pedals are drilled in correct sportscar tradition, the steering wheel is chunky and feels right. Engage first (firm, precise-feeling
gearbox), and stomp the accelerator. Sixty comes up in less than five seconds, hundred in a whisker under eleven, and we go on to touch a speedo-indicated 187kmph on the Mumbai-
Pune Expressway. What we have here, is out very first 'hot
hatch'. Fiat deserve a standing ovation for bringing this car here - gentlemen, please stand and applaud.
Sure, I did expect good things of the Palio, but driving the 1.6 GTX was ecstasy. I am no great fan of small 'family hatchbacks', but this was something else. In a country where
speeding is generally frowned upon, fast cars are seen as completely unnecessary frivolities, and the words 'sport' and 'car' are never spoken of in the same breath, Fiat have had the audacity to launch this, the 1.6 GTX. Finally, we have a car that makes no bones whatsoever about the fact that it likes to go fast, very fast. For aficionados everywhere, what a blessing this is!
Of course, there is more to the Palio 1.6 than just speed. For starters, the car looks neat from the outside. The styling is crisp and fresh, and the 1.6 GTX we had on test drew 'oohs' and 'aahs'wherever it went. The unanimous
opinion seems to be that the car looks best when viewed from the front, though the brilliant jewel-like rear lamps also elicited a lot of praise. Views were divided when it came to the side view, with more than a few people
immediately remarking that it looked like an Indica. That could possibly be - there are shades of the Indica there, if you look carefully enough - when the car is viewed from the side. Is that a good thing? You decide. I, for one, think that with its alloys and spoilers et al, the GTX looks really special. Inside, the car feels well put-together and has an air of solidity which goes amiss in some
equally priced Japanese and Korean machinery. The Euro lineage shows, I guess!
Inside, the GTX comes with some sliver alloy-effect plastics on the centre-console, and since this kind of thing
seems to be finding an increasing number of fans, it could possibly be a good thing. In any case, the silver alloy facade is somewhat in keeping with the sporty nature of this car, so that's okay. The lack of a boombox in the GTX was a bit surprising though! Fiat probably expect that
enthusiasts would want to buy and customise their own eardrum-busting audio equipment, and have made the job easier for them. The all too important airconditioner is present and is very effective... and you have the usual brace of power-windows, power-steering, and central locking etc.
More important than these sybaritic habiliments, there is space. Space to sit back in comfort, recline, stretch out, read, and just do your own thing. Really, there is no other
small hatchback sold in this country right now, which is as spacious as the Palio. Even boot space is huge. The Indica, again, might be close, but no cigar. On the flip side, the Palio does have a smidge too much gray and black plastic inside, but these days, which car doesn't? Also, though I am no specialist when it comes to cloth, I do think the GTX deserves better upholstery. The switchgear, at least, works well, and the seats themselves are very comfortable and supportive - long journeys were absolutely no problem at all.
Best of all, is the ride. The boffins at Fiat have managed to pull off one of those most difficult tasks in automotive engineering - making the ride fairly pliant and comfy, but
not at the expense of handling. Throw it around on smooth and fast tarmac, and the Palio will take all the hard cornering and wheelsliding dare-devilry you can dish out. At the same time, when the pace slows down, and you come to broken, bad roads, the Palio will simply laugh, and summarily dismiss them with utter contempt. If only this was how all small cars drove!
Okay, so how does the new wonder perform on the road? The car's 14-inch alloys, 175/65 rubber, and MacPherson
strut front-suspension work wonders, if you are inclined to play rough. The power-steering is nice and direct, and gives tactile 'feel' of what's happening on the road. On the road, at very high speeds, you can use that feel to good
effect. The car sticks to the chosen line at very high speeds, and there is almost no tendency to wander. The one thing that could possibly catch out the unwary, are the brakes. The disc (front)/drum (rear) combo gets the job done, but could definitely use more 'bite' and 'feel'
Braking deep into fast corners would, at times, unstick the rear end, which could be a bit disconcerting at times. The 1.6 GTX, with all its performance potential, needs bigger brakes, or better pad material. Fiat have equipped the GTX with ABS (optional), and it works reasonably well - it always did manage to haul the car down from the usual (and illegal!) triple-digit speeds, without fuss. That said, I think the brakes need to be even better. Go figure!
The handling is largely neutral, and unlike many other small cars, the front does not have a tendency to 'wash out' under very hard cornering. Steer it on the throttle, keep the box pegged in second or third, and you are home and dry. Lifting off the gas pedal on very fast, sweeping bends does not produce any untoward drama. Top marks to the suspension/chassis combo. The engine is lusty, and howls and roars. Rev the thing hard at rest, and for the enthusiast, the 1.6 GTX's rasping symphony is a delight. Spinning the wheels in first is fun, what with scads of smoke coming off the front tyres, and amazed onlookers showing a clean pair of heels with admirable alacrity! The
sporting intent is clear - just get there, and drive! The engine is also quite tractable, and if relaxed motoring is what you are looking at, frequent shifts are not required. The clutch pedal takes a firm push (perhaps firmer than
you'd expect...), but the gear-shift is precise. Hot-swap the cogs fast and loose, keep the engine on the boil, and you can well make mincemeat of the most demanding mountain
roads in the GTX.
So what's not to like? Poweful engine and capable chassis/suspension combination is complemented by proper running gear - perfect!!!
