Hi Crosscap - Welcome to T-BHP first of all and make sure you go through the Announcements & Introduction section wher you can Formally Introduce yourself ( If not already done ).
Now for your ride. In your budget of 6 Lacs I would recommend the following cars ( Priority wise )
Maruti Suzuki Swift Vxi / Zxi
SX4 Vxi - ( 6.75 Ex so over your budget )
Hyundai Accent 1.5 GLE
Chevrolet Aveo ( Bit expensive but worth it & better than Accent )
Hyundai Getz 1.3 GVS
All the above cars are brilliant with Accent being the oldest of the lot. It is not being discontinued and is selling well as prices have come to 5 Lacs Ex-Showroom.
Swift / Getz again are excellent car ( Minus the Boot ).
Aveo is a very good package but would cost you more like 6.5 ex ( Mid Variant ).
Ikon & Esteem are good cars but going to be discontinued any time. That holds partially true for Accent also. But do not worry about the parts & mantainance on any of these cars as they are so many on our roads.
Future Upcoming Models -
Fabia Petrol - 6 Lacs Ex ( Base Variant Petrol )
Swift Sedan ( Esteem Replacement ) - 6 Lacs or so
Fiat Linea ( Only guesses on the Price - 6 Lacs or so )
Keep a watch on the upcoming Auto Expo 2008 which will give you a fair idea of what all is going to be launched.
As far as ICE goes - there is no dearth of Members here who will be more than helpful in Burning your Pocket / Credit Card's
Cheers !!! Varun