[Boom Shiva]

I know enough people who bought Palios without a second thought, even before Tata-Fiat joined hands. And they're all very proud owners, whether it's diesel, 1.2 NV or 1.6 GTX.

The 1.6 does have lower FE than other hatches, but most people who buy the car realise this and are not crazy running behind FE. They want performance and a solid build instead, where Palio beats the pants off the competition.

Swift is another very nice car, but it's for my mom and girlfriend. It's too damn cute for me.

Getz is ok, but I've never really looked at it long enough.

I'll never buy Tata again, so Indica is out.

[rapideffect]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Most people who vote for Fiat cars will never consider a palio as their next car. i.e. they may say petra is the best but their next sedan will be baleno etc., ditto for hatch. There are exceptions, but mostly its true.

Wrong assumption. A Fiat user can not think of a baleno, they may think of a Skoda, but no Maruti stuff. Still you can find few odd people with a different mind set.
___
I'm waiting for the Grande Punto and will keep my palio as long as I can.

[Dragonov]

Palio 1.6 is an out-and-out drivers car in terms of performance, robustness and stability. Not to mention the world class safety norms it adheres to. So I would vouch for the Palio 1.6 anyday !

[amit]

but sadly, the Palio does not live upto most of its hype

Oh ya I totally agree. If the Palio is a 'hype' then so are VTEC and Baleno.

in all the polls wherever they are listed as options, Palio 1.6/Petra emerge mostly as convincing winners. But, it never translates in Fiat sales, thanks to brand image, A/S/S ghosts and lack of marketing.

And everytime there is a poll and fiat cars win, I keep hoping that someone from Fiat is looking. It STILL is easy for Fiat to start selling cars here. A good product means half your battle is won. Fiat has that and hopefully they will address the issue of service soon. Having said that, people need to have a open mind too.

they might view Fiat Palio/Petra as a good car, but not a practical one to buy or own - too fraught with risks, it seems.

I bought a Palio in 2003 knowing all the risks invovled. I don't regret it. My next car will be a Fiat again. And this is coming from a guy who currently drives a VW Jetta and has driven and expereinced cars from a VW Golf to a BMW 328. Great cars all of them, some were even better performing then the Palio but none had the passion that the Indian Palio has. This is what always amazes me. The amount of passion that the Italians put into basic hatchbacks, cars twice and thrice as expensive don't make you feel as special as the Palio when you sit and drive them. Don't know how the Italians do it but hell they do a bloody good job at that!


Someone said a Fiat owner will never be satisfied with a maruti product. The Swift, I am sure is a brilliant car and so is the Baleno, but when you are used to doors closing with a THUNK around you, you really get used to that. I was a Japanese car fan before I bought the Palio. Today, I want the same high speed comfort, stability and build quality from all cars and not many have that. Why Japanese, even the Jetta MK V, I have now, doesn't give the THUNK of the Palio! Yes I am serious, guys.

Bring on the Grande Punto! 1.9 JTD 130 Bhp 6 speed Manual.

[ksethuram]

Originally Posted by goldie_malhotra

only the getz actually gives you the feeling of riding in a sedan in all respects - decent engine, loads of space, easy to drive, verrrry refined and stable at all speeds. one could say it does everything fairly good, though maybe nothing best in class, except for the space and comfort.

others lose out on
swift - absolutely no space inside - even a santro beats it here !!
xeta - no refinement in the engine - fit and finish still a big issue
palio - harsh ride, bad FE, mammoth to drive in the city, meagre space and nothing to say about Fiats rep and A/SS ... the engine and the build may be the only good thing about it.

"only the getz actually gives you the feeling of riding in a sedan in all respects" -- ?????

PETROL
**********

SWIFT - " swift - absolutely no space inside - even a santro beats it here !!", ??? I don't think santro beats the swift in any department other than FE which is bcz it is 300 kg lighter and has a small engine. Any day it gives better FE than Xeta, Palio or GETZ. Aircon best in it's class.

XETA - beats all hatches in VFM (u save 1+ Lacs when compared to others). Reat seat comfort is next to Palio.

Palio - harsh ride?????? meagre space ????? check it out dude....??? We need to change our views after TATA-FIAT tieup. Beats all hatches in build quality even though the interiors seem a bit outdated in design. Best overall performer.

Getz - Spacious than all hatches. Ride quality is good in city and not so on highways. Not as stable as SWIFT or PALIO in the highways. Down in saftey features when compared to SWIFT.

DIESEL
**********
INDICA - VFM when compared to palio.

PALIO - Winner in all areas.

[goldie_malhotra]

Originally Posted by finneyp

....DELETED.... We have owned & driven Palio and thatz why we are saying Palio is the best among the lot! Sincerely request to test drive a Palio and then come back with your kind comments!!!

Good for you

However, I have shared a flat for two years with a guy that owned a Palio 1.6, and needless to say, had a lot of driving and riding experience in them.

Its a good thing to love one's car - but bad to force that opinion on others.

[desmoquattro]

Originally Posted by goldie_malhotra

Its a good thing to love one's car - but bad to force that opinion on others.

Forcing an opinion is one thing. Disrespecting is another.

Peace.

[rahulv]

this poll is kind of ill-designed. palio 1.6 soprts can not be compared to any of the cars listed in poll. thats the reason palio didn't do well in the market. consumers started comparing palio 1.6 with maruti zen and santro and concluded that palio is almost same as zen and santro, and drinks lot more fuel.

how about comparing

begpiper, 8 pm, rc and johnny walker

or

samosa, idli, wada, dhokla and tandoori chicken

[Conan]

This is one tough poll. As rajdoll mentioned xeta is in wrong company and should be compared with wagonr/santro/alto.
Now coming back to the remaining Getz/Swift/Palio 1.6

Palio 1.6 is very very tempting as performance car. This would have been my choice, if I was to own only one car.
Else I would go for an vtec/RS/Continental GT depending on the financial status….
Though I have not driven it, I presume the ride will be stiffer for better handling.

Getz does everything well but does not figure anywhere in my scheme of things.

Swift is a good overall product. It has got adequate power/comfort/FE/handling and the maruti A.S.S. to boot.
Three/five years down the line swift will hold more value than any of the cars in competition including the TC Indica.
And it definitely has more space than a santro/Palio. Being a 6 footer and weighing in at 98 kgs, I think I am in a fairly decent position to judge on this.
And I have ridden in all these cars except getz, along with three other passengers and the driver offcourse.
Recently we had been on a trip to belur/halebidu from Bangalore in a swift. It returned an average of 15.12 kmpl, tank full to tank full.
With 60% AC and the driver was in 4th gear almost all the time with speeds around 60 - 100 kmph.

So there you go it is the new kid on the block for me.

PS: Palio 1.2 is out of question here. It does nothing better than the “thunk” of the doors.

[MexXxentric]

GTX(1.6) simply Rocks....
Owning a Palio is not tat risky now--TATA-FIAT tieup..

"Smart ppl will see tat they wont run into RISK
SmartER ppl wil be take RISK because they know how to manage RISK."

[Fiero]

PALIO 1.6 !!!!!!!
the others aren't even in the same league as far as the engine goes.

[typeOnegative]

Bhai log. Why are you guys fighting? :(

The Palio is a good car. But so are the others in the poll.

That being said I must confess that the ride of the Petra 1.6 i stiff. But that is what makes its handling so good. Besides you feel that it is practically indestructible. The rear is not made for 6 footers. I would hate to sit in the rear of my car. But will I buy a Fiat again? Yes. This is the only machine that makes me feel one with it. For me all the comfort of the Indica, the sophistication in the Getz and the Swift, acceleration of the Baleno / VTEC count for nothing compared to feeling I get in my Petra.

Let us 'Fiat Boys' not become famous for blind devotion. Or become so touchy when some one else raises an opinion contrary to ours.

[ego4evr]

I guess some time back we had a poll on the best seats ......i think it was palio whic was the winner then ...i really wonder why is it palio all the time ddaammm!!!!!......u would hardly meet any palio owner not loving his car.


PPL who voted Againt Palio ...drive it .........to beleive it !!!!!!

God Bless......

[speedbuster]

Summation:

Palio 1.6 : good car in wrong company's hand.

if palio was a product of maruti or hyundai, it wud have been the best seller in market right from its launch till today.period.

[devarshi84]

I put indica xeta here coz though it has a weaker engine it still remains in the same semgement as other cars in size and engine capacity. its cheaper so what? Price plays a strength for Xeta.

and same goes for palio. the only thing bigger for the car is its engine size. Its axually cheaper than swift when both are fully loaded.

i think Indica xeta is pretty much a good car and with no offense to getz owners I find it to be better than this hyundai car.