Here comes the red beauty - FIAT Palio Stile 1.1 SLX

[choombak]

Got the delivery of FIAT Palio Stile 1.1 SLX (furnace red - maroon) on 14th April 2008 (Saturday), from B.U.Bhandari in Pune. Many thanks to all those who helped us arrive at a decision. I got a discount of Rs. 21,000 (13K march discount, and 8K corporate discount). Got door mats, mud flaps, and Garware sun film as free accessories. The odo reading was 125, and BUB told me that they do some sort of testing, etc., and all their cars have between 110 to 150 during delivery.

Some photos here, here and here.

The pre-delivery checklist was very helpful, as I found two scratches on the rear doors. Got it written down from the salesman, so that the touch up job can be done for free during the first servicing.

Initial drive report
-------------------------
- the car does feel heavy on the accelerator. I consider this as a "safety feature", as it dampens the jump in case you happen to hit the accelerator hard.
- the AC is powerful, with good cooling at setting "0" of blower fan.
- there is a single turn indicator on the cluster panel, which makes it difficult to remember which turn light is working. It looks something like <==>
- the ride is comfortable on bumpy roads for all passengers. I felt it is better for rear passengers than in a Santro.

Since I am a new driver, a friend got the car from the showroom, and he had considerable trouble with the accelerator's slow response - especially while reversing. He drives a Swift ZXI.

Shall post more about the car, as I get to know her finer points.

-choombak (aka Amarendra Godbole, in real life).
Pune

[jkdas]

Congrats. The paint job looks great than I have seen with Palios.

Just curious, what other cars did you have in mind while shopping for one?

[finneyp]

Congrats pal! Nice choice of Car & Color!

Enjoy the drive!

[bottle]

congrats on the new car Amarendra , color looks lovely

[jalsa777]

congrats buddy.

welcome to the palio club,
or should i say, the FIAT club.

hopw you have a pleasent stay, lol

[Karandeep81]

congrats mate. enjoy ur ride and drive safe.

[Karandeep81]

oh and BTW how come this model has the 'Old' Fiat Symbol and not the new Red one? U sure it is the 2008 model?

[choombak]

Originally Posted by Karandeep81

oh and BTW how come this model has the 'Old' Fiat Symbol and not the new Red one? U sure it is the 2008 model?

All petrol FIAT Palios' come with the old symbol, while MJD onwards have the new logo (as told to me by both dealers' in Pune). Also, the receipt issued by the dealer mentions the year as 2008.

Having said that, I am unable to locate the date of manufacture on the car. I tried looking inside the bonnet on the bonnet-rest, it has a VIN (Vehicle Identification Number), and Engine number. But nowhere is the date of manufacture mentioned. In contrast, the manual says that this plate will have the VIN, engine number, and the date of manufacture. Am I missing something?

The VIN number is M/AH178H7E (next line) 08068532XCRZ (There might be a mistake in the first two characters, as I am reading it out from the photo I have taken). I am not sure if the date of manufacture is encoded in this number. Can anyone comment? Thanks.

-Amarendra

[choombak]

Originally Posted by jkdas

Just curious, what other cars did you have in mind while shopping for one?

Santro, Indica, WagonR and Chevy Spark. Palio won because of the interior space, and build quality, as my main concern was safety on highways.

-Amarendra

[hbaruas]

Congratulations !
Drive safe and take care of your baby in the run-in period .