[planet_rocker]

Jayant,

I guess it was the ring - it was replaced.

i have fixed the foglamp switch on the dash. it was a DIY - very simple - remember how we used to hit the old black and white television sets to make them work properly?

Current odo reading: 56,800kms in 8years - roughly 12,000kms after i got the car in 2008.

[rock18]

@JVH and Planet rocker:
My palio S10 bottoms out with even 2 people on the rear.its a nightmare to drive with 3ppl near my home filled with speed breakers and bad roads...car sits on the speed breakers and scapes its way out.

Is this the case with all the palios? is it having lesser ground clearance than Indica?
Mechanic said replacing the shockabsorber might help.
In chennai, we get different makes of rear shock absorbers in G.P road
One claims OE piece made in brazil is 6400rs/pair and bush kit will come around 800rs.
Another shop has OE(as they say) for 5500rs/pair
Taiwan brand imported is from 4000rs to 5000rs/pair(Name is Ascot)

Checked with kava automobiles and they have
1.OE brand (something like capico he says.did not get it roperly)- 2000rs/pair (yes true)
2.Taiwan brand imported-name AXXIS - 2400rs/pair.

How much did you pay for the shock absorbers?

which one should i go?
some PUGGers recommend kava automobiles shocks are good.
my main criteria is i want to go for somewhat stiffer springs to avoid scappping or planning to buy auto runner coil assist and fix it in the rear.

[lohithrao]

@rock, maybe your rear shocks are weak or any of the components related to shock. ask your mech to check thoroughly before going for the change. also make sure you pick the original one. yes the pricing has shot up last one year but always makes sense to get the OE...

meanwhile even mine make some noise at times, time for a complete check up guess need to visit bangalore for the same

[rock18]

Thanks mate.but i can see lot of difference in the prices of OEM ones itself.so what is the brand name of the OEM one? that will be helpful.
mechanic said there is some sort of oil leakage in the rear shocks.
My car does not make any noise and the suspension feels ok but only the bottoming out is a major issue..
I need to increase the height asap and also my new tyres 185/60 R14 was a mistake.
i lost GC as well as ride comfort.

[rudrah]

Originally Posted by rock18

I need to increase the height asap and also my new tyres 185/60 R14 was a mistake.
i lost GC as well as ride comfort.

Are you very much sure its the 185/60/R14 causing this problem? I really doubt that.

Another pugger and TBHPian, Romil has a S10 and is running on 175/65/R14. It still appears to bottoms up when 5 people are on board however its not causing any issues other than scrapping on hugh speed breakers if any.

[rock18]

Originally Posted by rudrah

Are you very much sure its the 185/60/R14 causing this problem? I really doubt that.

Another pugger and TBHPian, Romil has a S10 and is running on 175/65/R14. It still appears to bottoms up when 5 people are on board however its not causing any issues other than scrapping on hugh speed breakers if any.

Thanks for replying.
I don't have a clue as this is the only Palio i have driven extensively.Compared to Indica it bottoms out a lot.
Tyre 185/60 R14 reduces GC by atleast 3mm when compared to 175/65 R14
If you upgrade to 185/65 R14 from 185/60 r14. GC increases by 10-11mm.
I guess that is good enough to clear some speed breakers and also ride comfort is bit harsh on 185/60 compared to 175/65.
Are the shock absorbers same for Old Palio and Palio stile?
I require a stiffer or heavy duty shock absorber as i travel most of the time with 4 or 5 ppl on board.

And also since you have driven S10.I would like to know if S10 sits lower than other Palio's? and also is the S10 seat is very low compared to 1.6 GTX?
My friend's GTX seat is very high when compared to my seat.

[rudrah]

Originally Posted by rock18

Thanks for replying.
I don't have a clue as this is the only Palio i have driven extensively.Compared to Indica it bottoms out a lot.
Tyre 185/60 R14 reduces GC by atleast 3mm when compared to 175/65 R14
If you upgrade to 185/65 R14 from 185/60 r14. GC increases by 10-11mm.
I guess that is good enough to clear some speed breakers and also ride comfort is bit harsh on 185/60 compared to 175/65.
Are the shock absorbers same for Old Palio and Palio stile?
I require a stiffer or heavy duty shock absorber as i travel most of the time with 4 or 5 ppl on board.

And also since you have driven S10.I would like to know if S10 sits lower than other Palio's? and also is the S10 seat is very low compared to 1.6 GTX?
My friend's GTX seat is very high when compared to my seat.

Thanks for the info on the diff of GC for 185/60 and 185/65.

To answer your questions:

The Stile 1.6 suspension is stiff.

Yes, the S10 and other older Palios in your words sits lower than the Stile version.

It is funny but yes the seat styling is different in Palio variants. The previous variant of Palio 1.6, i.e. Palio 1.6 Sports had seats in higher position while the Stile has low seating height. The Palio 1.6 Sports never came with a Dead pedal but the Stile 1.6 has
I think the S10 and Stile seats are near to same.

[thenomad]

Originally Posted by rock18

mechanic said there is some sort of oil leakage in the rear shocks.

The shocks have gone bad if they leak oil. They need to be replaced. That could be a reason for your rear bottoming out as well.

I get a creaking noise when I go over speed humps and my wheels turned slowly. The noise is audible from the drivers side when the surroundings are silent. Not sure what is wrong. Thoughts anyone?

[rudrah]

Originally Posted by thenomad

The shocks have gone bad if they leak oil. They need to be replaced. That could be a reason for your rear bottoming out as well.

I get a creaking noise when I go over speed humps and my wheels turned slowly. The noise is audible from the drivers side when the surroundings are silent. Not sure what is wrong. Thoughts anyone?

Check out the Strut mounts!

@Rock: Your suspension needs a thorough check, it may have gone bad due to which it is bottoming.

[jagan0677]

Originally Posted by rock18

@JVH and Planet rocker:
My palio S10 bottoms out with even 2 people on the rear.its a nightmare to drive with 3ppl near my home filled with speed breakers and bad roads...car sits on the speed breakers and scapes its way out.

Is this the case with all the palios? is it having lesser ground clearance than Indica?
Mechanic said replacing the shockabsorber might help.
In chennai, we get different makes of rear shock absorbers in G.P road
One claims OE piece made in brazil is 6400rs/pair and bush kit will come around 800rs.
Another shop has OE(as they say) for 5500rs/pair
Taiwan brand imported is from 4000rs to 5000rs/pair(Name is Ascot)

Checked with kava automobiles and they have
1.OE brand (something like capico he says.did not get it roperly)- 2000rs/pair (yes true)
2.Taiwan brand imported-name AXXIS - 2400rs/pair.

How much did you pay for the shock absorbers?

which one should i go?
some PUGGers recommend kava automobiles shocks are good.
my main criteria is i want to go for somewhat stiffer springs to avoid scappping or planning to buy auto runner coil assist and fix it in the rear.

IIRC, it is called cofapco. I remember replacing it at around 65000 kms on my 1.6 Sport on the rear(along with the bush kit). Pretty good. I expect them to last till about 120,000 kms. Currently at about 78000 kms. Sorry, i do not remember the price. Maybe around 1500-1800 per piece, i paid about a year back.

While the workshop visit at that time was decided based on rear suspension sounds, personally I am, anyday, more concerned about the front suspension. After some time and kilometers on the odo, the steering stops being precise, which can be a safety hazard on highway trips with family, at speeds above 100 kmph. So, my car practically got a new suspension all round at about INR 14000 cost.

In case you need any specific detail, pls let me know. I can tyr and dig out old bills and parts pictures, maybe!

Cheers,
Jagan.

[JVH]

rock18 - I remember we exchanged messages some time back on your car bottoming out. While Palio's suspension is slightly on the softer side, there's no reason to bottom out as frequently as you claim to be. Did you happen to check with a Mechanic on the issue? Don't bother checking with T.A.S.S, they'll definitely recommend you to replace. Having said that, the rear suspension rarely goes kaput, its actually the front which is prone to wear and tear. What kms your car has done? Was it lying idle for a long time?

Edit - the tyre specs has got nothing to do with scraping the bottom.

[rock18]

Originally Posted by rudrah

I think the S10 and Stile seats are near to same.

Seating position is different in 1.6 GTX also. GTX has a higher seat when compared to S10.

Originally Posted by jagan0677

IIRC, it is called cofapco. I remember replacing it at around 65000 kms on my 1.6 Sport on the rear(along with the bush kit). Pretty good. I expect them to last till about 120,000 kms. Currently at about 78000 kms. Sorry, i do not remember the price. Maybe around 1500-1800 per piece, i paid about a year back.

While the workshop visit at that time was decided based on rear suspension sounds, personally I am, anyday, more concerned about the front suspension. After some time and kilometers on the odo, the steering stops being precise, which can be a safety hazard on highway trips with family, at speeds above 100 kmph. So, my car practically got a new suspension all round at about INR 14000 cost.

In case you need any specific detail, pls let me know. I can tyr and dig out old bills and parts pictures, maybe!

Cheers,
Jagan.

Thanks.it would be great, if you can post the old bills too.
As per your quote 2000/piece means 8000rs for 4 shock absorbers and what else needs to be changed and how much is the labor you have paid that made the total bill close to 14k?

In Chennai different dealers are quoting different prices for OEM fiat shock absorbers. starts from 5k to 8.5k
I am not sure how prices are very cheap in mumbai.
They are quoting 2.5k/pair.

Will change the front also very soon.

Originally Posted by JVH

rock18 - I remember we exchanged messages some time back on your car bottoming out. While Palio's suspension is slightly on the softer side, there's no reason to bottom out as frequently as you claim to be. Did you happen to check with a Mechanic on the issue? Don't bother checking with T.A.S.S, they'll definitely recommend you to replace. Having said that, the rear suspension rarely goes kaput, its actually the front which is prone to wear and tear. What kms your car has done? Was it lying idle for a long time?

Edit - the tyre specs has got nothing to do with scraping the bottom.

Yup that's right.
When i told my mechanic that my car is hitting the speed breakers...he checked and told me that shock absorbers seems to be fine so i left it out.
When we were looking out for some other options to increase the GC.All of a sudden mechanic told me that rear shock absorber needs to be replaced as he found some oil leakage.
so now decided to change the shock absorbers and see if it reduces bottoming out.
I am also thinking about adding Autorunner coil spring to increase GC a little bit.

My car has done just 18k as of now.It was 13.5k when i bought it.I use it once in a week atleast.
i could not believe shocks would be gone within 18k kms...

[jagan0677]

Originally Posted by rock18

......S10.


Thanks.it would be great, if you can post the old bills too.
As per your quote 2000/piece means 8000rs for 4 shock absorbers and what else needs to be changed and how much is the labor you have paid that made the total bill close to 14k?

.....

IIRC, I only changed rear shock absorbers. On front, I changed lower arms. Let me get me the bill copy for further details. Else,I may recollect incorrectly.

Cheers,
Jagan.

[jagan0677]

@rock18,

i have attached the bill image below. I think my memory was not very accurate. the prices seem to be inline with what you have quoted.

Items 1,2 and 5 are for front suspension.( I remember changing both lower arms - I am not sure why its showing qty as 1. I have the old ones somewhere at home. Will recheck to see if its one or two.)

Items 3 and 4 are for the rear suspension.

Remaining are other jobs.

[Nvgtr6776]

You've brought home an absolute sweetheart. I used to make a sticker out of the expansion of FIAT and stick it on my Palio. Just to let people know that the beauty is from Italy and also that FIAT actually had an expansion. Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino.
Happy Motoring JVH. And always, always Buckle-up.