I own a FIAT Palio 1.2 ELX which I bought second hand in 2006. After finishing the lessons of the driving school and getting a driving license(with a bare mininum driving skills), I wanted to buy a second hand car so that I can perfect my driving skills.
A good idea, but getting a good second hand car is not so easy. From my experience I saw even the flimsy built MaruriSuzuki second hand ones cost a good deal. I wanted a good car but
had not the required money. I spent two months with test drives of second hand cars - but none had the cost-to-satisfaction ratio that I required. Then I saw the ad for a FIAT Palio 1.2
(2004) at around 2.15L. When I took the test drive, I had to say to myself - What A Car! and at What A Price!. Bought it immediately - I mean I paid the advance then and there. Its been two years since I bought this gem of a car - and still I can say - What A Car - and at What a Price!
This review takes on points of all Palio’s(1.1 Stile, 1.2, 1.3 multijet, 1.6 Stile, GT, Sport, 1.9D). There are so many Pro’s to the FIAT that it really requires a good summarization. Here are the different aspect of the car examined:
Build: Extremely Well Built(tm)! I heard somewhere the Palio’s are built like WarTanks. That’s not really far from it. In another review someone said that Plaio feels like its built to withstand a nuclear blast. That would be a bit far - but lets say that it might as well withstand a bomb blast. Here is my experience - one biker in a hurry rammed his bike handle into the car door at
around 70kmph - there was only a minor dent.
Ride Quality: Best in class. This is already compared. Its even better than the Swift. Its smooth as silk on good roads and on bad roads the ride is Good. The fact is the suspension is built
for third world countries(FIAT’s proven A178 Platform). I go at 40-50kmph over Bad roads where other small cars crawl at 20kmph. The ride quality is in league of the highend cars.
Engine and Gearbox: Smooth efficient engine with a MagnetiMarelli ECU - smooth power delivery and brilliant to touch gear knob - europoean quality and feel. Some say the gears are rubbery. I dont know what this is but I say I shift the gears with perfect easy and I know when its slotted - when the clutch is fully pressed. In a maruti car I can feel the vibrations from the gears trasmitted to my finger tips - this certainly cant be great mechanical design.
Handling and Stability: Best in class. I never feel a bit nervous when I cut even sharp corners at 80-90. In Coorg I have taken it to 60-70 over turnings. Ofcourse as already observed by someone even with windows open - you are the safest place in the world even at high speeds. This is not so with other small cars - most notaby the TallBoy designed cars like Santro and
WagonR.
Interiors: Very good and high quality. The interiors of the FIAT is of very high quality - this sadly seems to have changed in the newer Stile and Multijet - but just touch the plastics and steering wheel of the older FIAT - and you will see its of European touch of class. It is extremely spacious - next only to Indica as far as small cars go. Then for comparison just looks at the platics of the Maruti’s or even Getz. You can decide for yourself.
Touch the gear shift lever - its shape is unique among ALL cars - the shape being made to fit the palm - jussst italienish!. It also had the reverse gear protection where you have to pull a knob and engage - and just what do you think - these two brilliancies are copied by the Hyundai Verna!
All in all the older FIAT is the touch of European class, ride, interiors and safety - all for the Indian cost. Yours is this this warm feeling when you drive the FIAT around.
Mileage: With all this, mileage is the last I would think about given that every rupee I spend on fuel I enjoy in driving. Still I get 10 in city and a whooping 15 on highway(1.2 ELX). Now all
this depends on driving. I went to Tirupati and back(250+ 250= 500kms) with 35 litres - full tank. Back to home it was showing orange - so 5 litres in tank. You do the calculation.
Bottom line: You do get enough mileage and the extra 1-2 kms is not worth it if you have to sacrifice safety and driving pleasure.
Styling: The Plaio is excellenty styled and its rear looks very sport. I would say Swift is modernly good looking whereas the Palio has comtemporary good looks. It has pleasing look and
also a highclass european look. The pleasing, rounded, elegant and symmetric looks are also something that some of the Maruti cars dont have - eg WagonR(I sure its for smarter race - if getting only good mileage is what is smart!)
Maintenence: Palio is very reliable from my 2 year ownership experience. Even the previous owner told me that it was very reliable - required little service. Except for normal service, there have been no major maintenance problems. Luckily for us TATA has taken over and the service in bangalore is good - they have been quite friendly and have given prompt service. Some minor spare parts like headlights also didnt cost much. I also do get a call from the FIAT India HQ in Bombay after each service to get a feedback on how the service was done. This in my opinion is a good idea of FIAT.
Others:
Due to the Indian customer’s stingy attitude towards fuel and Governments lame tax cut for <1.1L engines(I say so because there are a LOT of very small two-stroke engines which cause more pollution than 10 Cars put together in places like bangalore), FIAT was probably forced to create a 1.1 with 57bhp which ofcourse is underpowered. A shame really. My 1.2(3V) with 72bhp is adequate power and the 1.6 Sport or GT(4V - 100bhp) is a well powered car.
The same attitude is taken over to the FIAT 1.3 Multijet as well - its ECU seems to have been calibrated for mileage(just 1 or 2 over the Swift) rather than for driving pleasure.
Wake up FIAT! - just saving 1 or 2 Kms over Swift wont get you a Halo of efficiency or a market share. But making the 1.3 to 90bhp(like Punto)
with good noise insulation certainy would have endeared the Palio 1.3 Multijet to many Sporty fans!
A strange twist of irony - the Common Rail Diesel engine(FIAT are the pioneers of the Common Rail Technolgy) from FIAT which was also the engine of year is getting Suzuki sales.
All this is set to change with the Grande Punto and Linea - two great cars that will certainly change FIAT’s image once for all.
There you have FIAT Palio in a nutshell - a European feel small car - I call this the SUV among small cars since its so well built and big - The choice for you is between the mileage and driving pleasure.
Cons:
Ah yes, there are cons to FIAT Palio 1.2. The car gets a bit sluggish with AC turned(But AC itsef is very effective). I dont get a kick out of driving sluggish cars - so I do turn it off most of the time.