[swiftnfurious]

Sinfully Sexy, Shamelessly Raw, Explicitly Powerful - By a PUG-ian! And, I AGREE!!



Likes::

• Timeless design
• Power & torque on tap - A true HOT hatch (100 bhp) even by today's standards!
• Refinement and the free revving nature of the naturally aspirated 1.6L engine
• A/C - This thing is a chiller, even in the scorching heat of Chennai!
• Gearshift & Clutch - this is so unlike the current gen Fiat products and great by 2002 standards
• Space
• Ride & handling package
• Right hand orientation for indicator / headlamps - again unlike the current gen Fiat products.
• Low re-sale value makes it quite an affordable buy.
• Equipment levels - height adjustable front seat belts / rear wipe & wash / 14" alloy wheels / leather stitched steering / all four backlit power window switches / rear spoiler

Dislikes::

• Brakes! Mediocre at best.
• Seats - those are just NOT comfy. The later versions of the Palio has better contoured seats.
• ABC pedals are placed close to each other - many times, you accidentally press accelerator while trying to brake
• OVRMs - those hardly cover anything on road!
• Dearth of knowledgeable garage / mechanics.
• Multiple component failure pertaining to an old (14 years) car.
• Parts availability can be an issue

Disclaimer :: All the beautiful pics uploaded in the review are collected from the previous owner (a bhp'ian too). Thanks a lot to him to share those with me, for the purpose of uploading on the forum.

[swiftnfurious]

Life was so cool with my Bright red Swift VDi ABS bought on 17 Oct 2008, which had clocked ~80,000 kms. Every moment I spent with the car was so beautiful, had done a lot of highway, outstation trips. My detailed report on the car can be seen below.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...1-2-4-5-a.html

Shifting jobs frequently threw a new challenge other than adapting to the culture & technology in the new company apart from the new place, language & climate - a car to commute as well. Due to lack of parking space, I didn't take the Swift along when I got a job in Chennai in 2013. Life without it was horrible, but then the thoughts of the car lying in open space haunted bigger.

But like all petrol heads, the "itch" to have a car always was prominent. And the thought of another car started playing in my mind. I was in two minds about a brand new car. Reasons being

1. The high investment required. The expenses on the swift had already crossed 10L (in 5 years) including all payments (EMIs + down payment), service & spares, accessories & fuel bills. I still evaluated the options in the market (2013) which could fit my budget (7-8L).

2. What do I upgrade to?! My requirement was a FTD car with character, reliability, reasonable service costs, good A$$! And the budget would again suit ONLY hatchbacks.

The Liva didn't have the kinda personality I wanted, Punto had ergonomic issues + lower agility (quick and easy maneuvering in the city) than I wanted, Polo had scary A$$, Figo (Gen-1) wasn't exciting to look at & as fast to drive, as I like), Vista was never considered!

That left me with just one option - the newer Swift! Would I buy one? NOP!! The new one lacked the BEST from the old one - the turbo thrust! I prefer the older design more than the new one. The thinner windshield was another -ve as I preferred a silent cabin (from external noise). And then, the price; what was I getting for a higher price - NOTHING substantial. So decided that there is no point in upgrading to another hatch which doesn't tick all boxes I wanted.

And then I thought - how about a pre-worshipped one? Yes - that would make a lot of sense as I pay a lot less; I might get lucky with a higher segment car for lesser $$$ and even if I need to pay taxes in the new states, the pinch will be a lot lesser.

I used to go thru the classifieds almost everyday (just to see the options available) and drool on some of the hotties which I always adored. The acquarius blue Fiesta 1.6 for example, Or the yellow / black Cedia (with the curved grill) or some of the S10s. Most of these used to come with a price tag of ~4-5L minimum based on the location. Down south was never cheap anyway. I thought of the pocket rockets that would fit in my budget of 1.0~1.5L. The ones I love to own are the Jelly Bean Zen (1st gen), Esteem (latest iterations - LXi/VXi), Baleno & Palio 1.6 variants. Since I learnt the need of an ABS during my Swift days, I was more inclined to a car possibly equipped with ABS and this narrowed down the choice to just the Palio. More research proved that ABS & Airbags were offered on just one version of the Palio - the Palio 1.6 GTX SP, which was way too rare to find in the market.

I was never a fan of the new gen Fiats though I have driven and also traveled in those. It just didn't strike me the way I love a machine to . The left hand orientation of the combination switch, the rubbery gear shifts, the long clutch travel, the slower off-the-block starts, the heavy steering at slow speeds and more than anything - the shoulder pain I used to get even during a 100 km drive for some reason. I was never scared of the A$$ though I as always witnessed great warranty replacements on my friends car, even without asking a single question.

But every time I go thru a Palio 1.6 or an S10 thread, there is a different vibe that I get. All the owners would be darn passionate that every thread is so much fun to read. Every guy who contributes makes you feel astounding about their love for the car. And more than anything, I LOVED the Palio design - TIMELESS. The moment Stile had come out, the "Palio" moniker faded away from my heart. The Linea & Punto never evoked the same emotion (design wise) for me which the Palio managed. And there was a bigger bonus to buy a pre-owned one; the "pathetic" re-sale value of the Palio 1.6. I also noted the growing craze for S10s, especially in Kerala. And the atrocious (high) resale prices even for a battered S10 that was expected used to surprise me no ends.

Some threads that added fuel to fire.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...pees-less.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/buying...-car-less.html

[swiftnfurious]

Well, kept my eye open for any of these cars in the team-bhp classifieds. Since I was on the look out for a new job and was open to location change, I was NOT too serious. One day while browsing thru the classifieds, came across a B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L Palio 1.6 GTX. The delicious pic added to the desire I should confess. The car looked brand new and I was wondering how! The location of the car was Chennai, which added another point. And just done 35,000 kms! I read again and again but wasn't convinced with the low mileage + 3 owner already, so decided to skip. Was browsing a Fiat forum and chanced across the same car listed there. Went thru it and realized this car belonged to one of the Mods there and also saw the description and comments which re-assured that the 35K kms were indeed genuine and the engine was pristine. Also read that that the car was completely restored and painted and hence it looked brand new. Was quite interested in it but was in two minds. Let it go for a week or two, daily checking the status and praying someone buys it so that am spared of taking the plunge. A weak moment, I called up the number listed and a very soft spoken guy answered the call and agreed to catch up for a TD in 2 weeks time.

Fixed up the time and went for the TD. On the way, came across a beautifully maintained Palio parked on the opposite direction of the road and had a "Got BHP?" sticker. Knew only bhp'ians can maintain a car like that and continued my journey wishing at the back of the mind that if only I could buy the very same car! Reached the place and waited for the owner to come; lo & behold - they very same car comes in! My heart skipped a beat and the decision was made - She has to be mine!

Went for a spin and loved the way it drove and the NVH levels. The smooth gearshifts (for a 2002 car), lovely clutch and the steering feel is way above the current gen Fiats. The interior was superbly maintained too. After the drive we sat down to discuss the price. Pitched in with my quote and I was flatly denied but politely. One statement I remember from the conversation is "It's NOT about the price; but the effort that I put in to get the in this shape". And I had to admit - I could easily pay a premium for such a car. I had zero work to be done on it. We agreed on a mutually acceptable price with one condition that I shall make a payment in 3 parts which was Ok with him too and a week's time for me to confirm the deal based on my budget. We bid good bye and parted ways.

After a week, I confirmed the deal and told him that I shall pick up the car when he leaves abroad (which was two weeks from then) as I didn't have a parking slot. Since his travel was postponed, I got the beauty after a month's time. The transaction was very very smooth and the seller & buyer being bhp'ians helped a lot. The bonus was a wonderful & homely lunch on the day I picked up the car - Thanks a lot Ramesh!

[swiftnfurious]

Technical Specification of Palio 1.2 / 1.6

[swiftnfurious]

Technical Specification of Palio 1.2 / 1.6 contd...

[swiftnfurious]

Below are a bunch of Palio 1.6 threads which made me a bigger fan of the product. I thank all the thread owners and contributors in these threads, helping me to take the final call.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...00-kms-10.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ort-1-6-a.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...3-000-kms.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...ip-report.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...1-years-6.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...o-1-6-gtx.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...002-model.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian...o-1-6-gtx.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...kms-up-14.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...rs-review.html

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-t...ms-report.html

Fiat Palio 1.6 GTX issues : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...tx-issues.html

[swiftnfurious]

Problems faced so far

• Brake booster
• A/C Resistor
• All brake lights ON in ignition
• Wipers jammed
• Rear washer NOT working
• Combination switch (Headlight) stalk loose
• Brake pads & discs replacement
• A/C in-efficient cooling
• Metal clinging noise from boot
• A/C water leakage
• Coolant leakage
• Starting trouble after idling for long (cold temperature)
• Clutch bearing noise

Garagaes / Mechanics contacted for repairs / parts


www.99rpm.com - A one stop shop for (most of the) parts. While the experience with the site has been on the positive side mostly, I have had a not-so-great experience also once.

Kottayam, Kerala:

JJ Automobiles - Fiat Specialist

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/other-...am-kerala.html


Chennai:

SMK Automobiles - Fiat Specialist

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/chenna...ml#post3891948


Mumbai:

Motoshines Detailing

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...ml#post3735963

Unicool A/C Works

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...ml#post3735954

Automech Exhaust Systems

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...ml#post3888176

Car Battery Expert Website

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...ml#post3885605

R.S. Motors

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...d-service.html

Maithri Motors

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...iat-palio.html

WagenWorks

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...kz-mumbai.html

[swiftnfurious]

If this car has one problem, that's the BRAKES!! On my drive back right after purchase, I had two incidents where the brakes would NOT bite at all - very very scary. Posted about this on team-bhp and I was pointed in the direction of "brake booster malfunction". Looked at 99rpm and I was clearly looking at a huge bill (~15K) soon after the purchase. I had also read about the adventure brake upgrades on a number of 1.6s and wanted to do it ASAP so that I can enjoy the drives without any scare. While taking the car for the precautionary service to Murugan from SMK Automobiles, Murugan felt the same "no brake bite" situation and confirmed the booster was shot. A new brake booster was fit and the brakes are working fine.

Symptom : A long hissing sound while braking. Sometimes, you need to pump the pedal to stop the car.

[swiftnfurious]

Chennai to Kerala trip

The blower sometimes would work ONLY on speed 4 and NOT on any other speeds. Since I was shifting out of Chennai, I was a on tight deadline to sort out the issues. Called up Murugan and told him the problem. He mentioned that the problem could either be with the fan switch or with the resistor and asked me to order both to make sure we have the right part to replace. Ordered this to Murugan's and requested for a quick delivery. But the order took slightly more time which meant, I may get it ONLY on Saturday which was the say I was planning to travel to Kerala. And on Friday I saw the shipment had reached the warehouse. Thought I'll collect the shipment from the warehouse itself.

Called Bluedart and got the address and co-ordinated with Murugan to collect it as the delivery address belonged to him. Went to his garage and tried the fan switch which was NOT the problem. And resistor infact proved to be the culprit. Replaced it and paid for it and started the journey to Kerala at 11 AM against the pre-decided time of 5 AM.

The drive was faily good though I encountered heavy traffic for the first 50 kms. I kept it cool as this was the first long drive and it was the opportunity to get to know the machine better. I kept the speeds around 80-90 kmph for most of the trip and occasional burst upto 120 kmph. Reached home around 10 PM.

The trip was good. Major differences I found in comparison to Swift D was the lack of driver seat support and refinement. I wasn't feeling all that comfortable and would have loved a more supportive seats. But where Palio outshines the Swift D is the refinement of the engine - I could drive without music for most of the time and I was NOT even annoyed. The other strong point of Palio is the ride comfort - typical Fiat style. Palio has much lesser body roll too!

I believe I managed a 15 kmpl on the toll roads and feel it's quite a good FE for the 1.6L engine. The FE dropped to 13 kmpl or so for the bad roads (after Dindigul till Kanjirappally, thru ghats and bad roads).

[swiftnfurious]

Kerala - Mumbai, by road!

Since I re-located to Mumbai, I left the car back at home since I was NOT sure of my stay in Mumbai. After 3 months, I planned to take the car to Mumbai. Call it co-incidence, a friend of mine had a conference in Mumbai on the same date of return as mine and a company would NOT hurt. When I came and checked out my car after 3 months, the seats and the steering was covered in fungus. Took a clean 1 hour to clean the car up and decided for a complete water service at Euro car wash, Kottayam. The car also had a bad odour from the fungal attack. When I was about to start to the place, I noticed that the wipers were jammed. So all plans went out of window and I found out the details of Markiar Fiat @ Kottayam and went over.

The sales & service center (side by side) is located at Kodimatha (right next to Malayala Manorama factory). I was asked about the problem and they straight away said they do NOT have the equipment to diagnose the issue for Palios (neither spare parts). They could service ONLY Puntos and Lineas. The guys were helpful though and provided me the numbers of Hyson Fiat @ Cochin and said they do service Palios. A drive to Cochin meant another 3 hours spent and probably a day or two of mine spoiled too. I checked with them whether anyone locally can support the Palio - they told about a mechanic who specialise in Palios. Since they didn't have the actual details, they requested me to wait for 10 mins till an employee of theirs came in. In the mean time, I checked their sales wing hoping for a TD of the T-Jet. Unfortunately, the car had gone out to a customer's place for TD but the showroom was neat and had a T-Jet, M-Jet, an Avventura and Puntos for display. A sales assistant also was with me for all the time I was checking out the cars.

Once the employee came in, I was provided all details of the garage and they kept apologising they could NOT help me with the car. I was fairly OK since am quite finicky about service standards and was happy they didn't fiddle with the car just to cater. For this attitude and help provided, I would rate Marikar fiat a clean 4/5 !! They also provided their number in case I found any problems in locating the garage or any other help. This is what I call Customer Experience.

Having said that, I still do NOT know their skill levels and proficiency for servicing the cars - I suggest anyone to check with your friends on the servicing standards.

The garage I was pointed to is J.J Automobiles run by Mr. Sabu. This is located opposite to Popular Maruti @ Chootuveli, Kottayam. The garage is in the same property where Mr. Sabu stays. Went in and the first question was whether I had been to Marikar Fiat. It was heartening to see 3-4 Palios parked in. Told him all the problems and he said he'll have the electrician look into those and we also went for a TD. He didn't find any problems with the car otherwise. He also said he was with TVS Fiat for 20 years and started his own garage 7 years back. I was told to call back after 2 hours. Decided that I'll utilise the time for long pending TDs. After roaming around a few showrooms and a 20% successful TD requests, I came back to J.J Automobiles and was told that all issues except the hedlight stalk was fixed. The stalk was NOT in stock or old ones could NOT be sourced (I was asked if I was ok with swapping old ones if they could find one and I had approved that). Paid 400/- and drove out happily. I was so disappointed all thru my drive to Kottayam and kept on thinking the frequent niggles and was thinking how long do I plan to keep this car. On the return drive, it was another feeling, especially on every sharp curves I went thru. That's the magic of Fiat; you hate it, but you love it!!

[swiftnfurious]

Brake replacement.

There was a grinding noise while braking and thought that it's because of the long drive from Kerala and I had NOT got a under body wash done after that. But turns out that the pads were worn out and even the discs were damaged. Had to replace both and the cost was 4000/- (pads + discs).

A/C water leakage.

The floor was wet after giving it for a wash and thought it was the wash. But no - it was NOT! It was happening regular and with A/C on. Add to it, I also noticed water dripping from behind the centre console somewhere near the dead pedal. Took it to the garage and am told that there are two issues. One of them near the centre console and another leakage due to a clogged drain pipe.

The drain pipe is fixed temporarily, the rubber bush on the floor needs to be replaced with a genuine piece though, in the next visit. For fixing the leakage near the centre console, looks like the dashboard needs to be removed and Jatin also said, there is rust around the cowl.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...ml#post3735954

Metal Clinging Noise from boot:

There is a metal clinging noise from the boot when I run through pot holes. Not sure it's the tool kit making the noise. Will have to remove it and drive it to see whether it's something else.

[swiftnfurious]

Coolant Leakage:

Had taken the car to RS Motors as I had bought a couple of items for replacement. The car was given in the morning and while checking the engine bay, we found pink stains (the coolant was filled newly as a part of the annual service). The coolant which was filled a couple of weeks back had already come down to half of the tank. The reason was a loose clip and I asked them to replace all the old ones with new clips.

The petrol filter was replaced, transmission oil replaced and a rear wiper was installed. The exhaust pipe was also loose and had bought some parts from 99 RPM and it was fixed too. While taking delivery, I noticed a louder exhaust note and took the car back to the service centre. I was told that the exhaust had developed leakage and will have to be checked. They also noticed the coolant being drained at a faster rate. Since the clips were tightened, the coolant had started leaking through the weaker areas, which was diagnosed to a metal pipe and it wasn't available.

I dropped the car since the part had to be re-ordered and finally got the car after a week. I was informed that the exhaust had completely rusted on pipe 3 & 4 and will have to replaced. The estimate was given at 5.5K. I requested them to have a temporary solution as I was keen to explore aftermarket options and they obliged.

Automech Exhaust:

I drove to Automech and checked for the options. As the low end torque is good, I was not planning to have a free flow done and was looking at replacing the 3rd & 4th pipe and getting a good end can for a bassy note at high rpms. I spent around 5 hours and it was done. Details are in the directory thread mentioned above.

Overall, the car feels lighter & faster with a good exhaust note. I am told that the note will be even better as time goes and carbon deposits occur. Cost of the set up - 7.5K

[swiftnfurious]

Starting Trouble on cold mornings

The car off late was showing a hesitation on cold starts. The car wouldn't start unless a bit of accelerator input was given. The behaviour was predominantly on mornings or after the car stays idle for a long time. I was worried whether this had something to do with the O2 sensor or fuel pump. However, posted on the 1.6 GTX issue thread and I got the below response and it was SPOT ON!

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ml#post3882969

Changed the battery to a DIN50 from Amaron and the car is starting without a blink.

Cost : 4300/-
Details : http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/mumbai...ml#post3885605

Clutch Bearing Noise:

While testing the battery, I heard some creaking noise from the engine bay. Thought it would be the radiator fan or some belts grinding. The noise was quite audible in the morning. Travelling to R.S Motors, Charkop was proving to be a time consuming affair. In the mean time, saw a post in the PUG yahoo group about a garage close to Powai. Took the car there and it was diagnosed to be the clutch bearing. I was told that the effort required is high as they have to remove a lot of parts from the engine bay to get this rectified. The work took almost a week and now it's goo.

Parts replaced:

Clutch bearing : 1000/-
Gearbox mounting : 1050/-
Axle boot : 230/-
Gear Oil : 290/-
Tail clip : 10/-
Axle grease : 40/-
Cotton : 10/-

Labour : 2000/-

Total : 4600/-

[swiftnfurious]

Overall ownership experience:

Total kms driven so far : 39,000
Kms from the time of ownership : 5000 (I bought the car at 34,000 kms)
Upkeep costs : HIGH! Guess I have spent around 50K on the car so far.
FE : 6 kmpl (City) / 14 kmpl (Highway). Figures are with A/C atleast 90% of time driving.

I have had the car with me for 2 years now and it has been a sweet & sour affair. This is one car that was ahead of time (2000) and we still don't have many cars which matches the 1.6 / GTX in many aspects, as on today.

I am quite happy with the power on tap, ride and handling and it gives a decent FE on highways. At the same time, the brakes are weak, dismal FE in city and frequent problems make it less desirable to own.

Even though you try to hate it, you actually fall in love when you drive it. I would love to keep it for a longer time unless I have some serious parts issue in the future. Read below to understand why I choose to keep the car.

http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ink-again.html

I'll keep the ownership report going with regular updates as I get a whole lot of help from fellow bhp'ians. The updates could be considered as a token of appreciation and probably help other owners or potential owners to take a call.

[swiftnfurious]

Thank you so much for reading. Some more beautiful pictures that Ramesh (previous owner) had captured.