Replacement for Palio

[psp62in]

I now looking to replace my 5 year old Palio, which has done an excellent job so far.

I have loved my Palio, and ideally would like to have the new car to have all desirable characteristics of Palio, viz, the same drivability and comfort, the solid built, the road hugging feel even at high speeds. On top of it, I now want something with ABS, & preferably airbags. (I was also looking for an Auto-transmission but there are hardly any options availble in AT). I have not shortlisted any cars as of now, but my budget can go upto the range of 10L.

I thought of the Skoda option, but I am worried about the spares prices and ***. If Fiat was to come out with a new model (but not a weak hearted one like Stillo), then i would be inetersted, but cant see anything on the horizon.

Cars short listed - None so far, but those excluded are like lower end & outdated sedans like Lancer, esteem etc. I thought of SX4 on one end (but I'am told its ride is on harsh side, need to take a test ride) to Innova at the other end.

Pls. give your suggestion.

Following are my other requirements
Price range - 10L + 1

Petrol/diesel = No preference

Maintenance & After Sales Service (A.S.S.) expectations - I was happy with Fiat, so anything better will do.

Average distance traveled per month - 1000 km

Where car will be mostly used (city / highway / rough roads etc)- City + Occasional long distances on highways

Chauffer driven / self driven- Self driven, in fact i enjoy driving. Certainly the new car has to be drivers delight.

Whether the vehicle will be shared by other members of family - Yes, by my wife, who is a more sedate driver than myself.

Any specific requirements from car - A sedan, good rear seat comfort, responsive engine, Safety features (ABS atleast), cushy suspension, easy to maintain. (and with Auto transmission if possible)

How long you intend on keeping this car (and how important resale is to you) - 5 years

[reignofchaos]

Considering your budget and the fact that you are going to drive yourself, check the Cedia Sport. Has everything you want and more. For roughly around 10 lacs.

Best handling car in the segment, Has all the safety features you are looking for, good FE, lots of space. The only thing you'd potentially miss is the low end grunt of the palio 1.6.

[finneyp]

If you can wait for a year, Fiat Linea would be the best choice!

Otherwise check out Mitsu Cedia & Optra Magnum.

[payam]

Even I think the best option for would be Cedia,amazing car.

[flipsyde]

optra magnum is a good option...... loads of space..... gr8 engine...... good A.S.S
of course for that price the Innova is good too. but think about your need for the 2 extra seats or the vast acres of luggage space.
cant say much about the cedia.... havent driven it but i dont see why you should look at the SX4!! for 10L you can do way better than the SX4.
if your ready to wait FIAT themselves have quite a bit lined up for next year.

[PatienceWins]

I would recommend the Cedia, Verna and Optra Magnum.

[hydrashok]

I'd also back the Cedia Sport.

I'm also a Palio 1.2 ELX owner, and my Palio has served me well for 5 years. I'm not going to sell it at all, but if I did need a bigger car now, the car I would buy is the Cedia Sport.

Maybe the Linea would be a good option, but then it is not available right now. In another 6-7 months, maybe.

[snaronikar]

My options would be Optra Magnum/SX4/Cedia. If you still push your budget would recommend Honda Civic/Skoda.

[Ford_madhan]

CEDIA is the way to go. It gives you more VFM than the competitors. Contains good amount of safety features and you have the option to go for LPG version as well.

[RishiSuri]

I agree with you on the point that for Mumbai traffic you ought to have an Automatic transmission car especially if u going to drive in Suburbs
Now
The automatic cars around 10 or above that range are

1) City around 8
2) Chevrolet Optra around 11
3) Corolla around 12
4) Skoda around 13


I have driven a city automatic and would say its amazing.. very light steering and since being a CVT dont feel the jerks of gear automatically shifting.

For the stick (gears) cars the options provided by others is well good enough

[ram_hyundai]

cedia is a good choice,you can look into the optra magnum as well as the civic.optra gives you a service holiday package for 3 yrs too .take a td for all three cars and decide.
ram

[CrAzY dRiVeR]

Since you love to drive, Cedia would be a good choice, as most people have said. Its not entirely the perfect package, but at the price its offered now, is a very good deal.

I would personally look at either Civic/Optra Magnum. But both may pose difficulties for ladies in driving. Civic with its visibility, and Optra with its turbo lag and huge power.

[tsk1979]

Honda Civic?
If thats too much, test drive the sub 10L ABS+Airbag sedans and choose. There are around 5 of them for you to test drive.
Things like ride/handling/usable power are best tested during a self drive. Most owners think their car is the best handling and the most powerful in the segment and the best car in the world.

[suman]

Optra Magnum
Mitsubishi Cedia

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Most owners think their car is the best handling and the most powerful in the segment and the best car in the world.

Good one tsk

[spadival]

SX4 with Fiat Multi-jet engine (Well okk.. Suzuki DDi or whatever its called) would have been the perfect choice - considering your 1000 km per month running on city / highway / rough roads. Also, remember that SX4 was a joint development by Fiat and Suzuki . But only problem is Maruti cant make enough of SX4 petrol itself to meet the current demand, forget about Diesel !! So you can opt for SX4 petrol, but u may end up waiting for delivery as well!!

About the ride quality, I have driven my cousin's SX4 with 18inch alloys (http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifications-accessories/24291-my-sx4-18-inch-rims.html) (MY SX4 with 18 inch rims)

After that, I really don't know where is this talk about hard ride quality is coming from!!