[zaks]

As though there is a grill which can't be compared to anything.. what rubbish!!

[phamilyman]

btw, was in Apra yard checking out dZire today. It is quite tinny all around compared to the Palio. Makes one more confident of its safety - if only they gave the sp!

Originally Posted by gemithomas

Hey rippergeo, just saw your sign off tag with the swift DDiS and the Verna CRDi. Just thought you would be the best person to give an opinion on comparing the 3 cars on

1. INside Cabin Noise
2. Engine Power Delivery
3. Gear Ratios (Leading to more or less changes in city/highways)
4. Ride COmfort.
5. Confidence at higher speeds

Which car would you say is a real drivers car that wont make you feel tired even after a long drive. ANd which would be the VFM car.

Sorry for the long list of questions. Just enthusiastic since you've got first hand experience of the best diesels around.

I can try to answer all those questions except 2.
because I've been driving a peted swift for 7000kms. and that is an entirely different animal.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/modifi...ted-swift.html

1.Cabin noise(best first)
Swift>Palio>Indica
the indica is surprisingly silent at idle, but very raucous in the powerband of 2000-3000. gets louder as you climb up the rev range.
palio's engine sound way more refined.
swift beats them both in NVH. comprehensively.
2.
3. gear ratios (best first)
Swift>Palio>Indica
slotted the cars into 4th gear at 40kmph and asked them to pull(floored the accelerator). all 3 of them do well. but if I had to choose, the order would be as above. all of them are in turbo lag territory for the first few moments here, the swift seems to get out first. and flies up the rev range faster.(even the stock swift)

4.Ride comfort(best first)
Palio>indica>>swift
not a big margin between the palio and the indica. but the swift is way behind here.
5.Confidence at higher speeds
Palio=indica=swift
note- I didnt take the test drive cars above 100kmph.
but i suspect the palio will fare better at speeds above 120(based on my past experience with the 1.2petrol palio) Indica is pretty good too.
but not much to chose between the three.

points I'd like to add
Flickability
Swift>>Palio=Indica

Front and rear Visibility
Indica>Palio>swift

steering feedback
Swift>Palio>>Indica

Braking
Swift(after upgraded tyres)=Palio=Indica
all of them are surefooted when decelerating from a 100. provided you upgrade the rubber on the MSIL offering.

Braking feel
Swift>Palio>>Indica
the indica braked well, but the fell was yucky..seriously guys..the pedal feel actually made my toes curl up and set my teeth on edge.

body roll(most body roll to least)
Palio>swift>Indica

Ergonomics
Swift>Palio>Indica.
the front seats on the swift are very satisfying to me.
the palio has lost out on its ergonomics from the initial batch from early 2002-2003. the indica didnt feel too great.

I am disappointed with the build quality of the fiat. which is good, but only very very slightly better than the indica. there's no point talking about the swift in this regard is there?[IMG]file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/Louis/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/msohtml1/01/clip_image001.gif[/IMG]

the sheet metal in the new palio is cheaper, tinnier than what i experienced with the 1.2 palio in 2002. I think all fiat fanboys(that includes me) should stop harping on the "legendary build quality" the indica is now very, very close.

Disclaimers.
1.i currently drive a swift- so i may be biased. its not intentional.
2.I'm not a hater of any brand. please dont bash me.
3.i have only TD cars experience with the palio and the indica. a true TD would be driving a car that is cared for.
I remember my TD of the swift DDiS- it was an absolute nightmare. but i still picked up the car after reading the reviews here. I still smile every minute that I drive that car, 13000km later. just to let you guys realise dealer supplied TD cars are not the best way to experience a model.
4.this is just my opinion. i do not claim to be a 100% accurate or infallible



Verdict
Get the swift if you want to have fun.best driver's car
great fun on long trips if its just 2 people.

if you want to buy the palio still- its not a bad car, but its not as good as its made out to be.

the indica Dicor is far greater VFM than the palio or even the swift.


the palio and indica are both going to be very good for the highways, but will not make you grin /laugh chuckle everytime you stomp the pedals or turn the steering.

On road,
indica 4.40 lakhs roughly
palio 5.30 lakhs roughly
swift 5.7 (I think)

[blue_pulsar]

Nice comparison rippergeo. Very accurate except for one IMO:

Originally Posted by rippergeo

Front and rear Visibility
Indica>Palio>swift

Swift has good front visibility. Agreed, the rear visibility is bad.

Regarding Palio, the front visibility is hampered a little by the dashboard itself. I get the feeling as if the dashboard is at my nose level. And am not that short at 5'10".

[aushdeep]

Originally Posted by blue_pulsar

Regarding Palio, the front visibility is hampered a little by the dashboard itself. I get the feeling as if the dashboard is at my nose level. And am not that short at 5'10".

I would have agreed with you had I not driven both cars and that too for long. I am 5'4" and feel more Comfy with the palio. No doubt Swift makes one feel high with a feel of good visibility but I would say both are the same. Also would like to say with Palio the TD can be short enough to know the car and one only realises the feel post driving it for long. For me I believe it is a culture change. It drives like no other.

So in case you get to have TD , TD it for long else you won't realize the difference.

[extreme_torque]

@rippergo... Are you telling me that EPS in Swift has more feedback than Palio??? Its not even close.... the one on swift is dead meat!
Secondly, there absolutely no change in the sheet metal thickness whatsoever and before you say anything I own a 1.2 Palio too.

Thirdly would you care to elaborate what are you trying to say when you say this "the palio has lost out on its ergonomics from the initial batch from early 2002-2003"

Fourth, How has the build quality suffered? Did you hear any squeaks or rattles?

"Disclaimers.
1.i currently drive a swift- so i may be biased. its not intentional." Indeed you are.

[PatienceWins]

@rippergo

I do not agree with the following:

Steering Feedback
Palio has a hydraulic steering with good feedback which is much much better than the electronic power steering of Swift.

Build Quality:
The build quality of the latest Palio may not be as good as the old one. But, it is much better than the build quality of Swift.

Body Roll:
I doubt this as I did not find this issue with the Palio we had. It was planted to the road.

Brother, I am just stating my opinion. Please do not take me in the wrong sense. Keep up the good work.

[speedzak]

What doubt?
Palio beats Swift in all departments. How unfortunate!

[PatienceWins]

Originally Posted by speedzak

What doubt?
Palio beats Swift in all departments. How unfortunate!

haha. That is a honest feedback from Zak.

He is in love with Fiat and its after sales service. Kurumban (Naughty) Zak.

I should have listened to good sense and stayed out of this thread. gemithomas is to blame

A heavy steering in the palio does not mean its giving you good feedback. it just means its heavy.
agreed it gives feedback, and that it is better than most sedans I've used, but it feels lacking when compared to the swift.

build quality issues
The A pillar is thinner than my original 1.2 palio
which is one example of loss of rigidity.
the fabled door thunk is gone.
so is the feeling of solidity when you swing the door
everything feels lighter.

ergonomics.
the front seat was disappointing compared to the perfect fit in my 2002 1.2
or the swift D which beats even my old favourite, the 1.2 palio.

A TD is a very subjective thing. We can argue till hell freezes over. none of us, me especially, will change our opinion.

The Indica Dicor is the VFM car
Swift is the most fun to drive.

I'm one seriously disappointed Fiat fanboy.
Death threats will not make me change my opinion

[speedzak]

Ripper! You're very very biased. Indeed biased!

This is a Palio test drive thread. Why should we discuss which car is better and not? There's a separate thread discussing that.
For now, FiAT Palio 1.3 MJD is still a newcomer in the market. It's selling in some numbers too. That means the car is good enough for their needs.
If I avoid buying this car, it would be only due to Yuck interiors, poor A.S.S and the brand name.

Although the A.S.S have improved after the Tata alliance, still it lags far behind. Poor availability of spare parts being the worst case.
My opinion.

[gemithomas]

ripper. thats the best and most honest comparison i have read so far. I guess i asked you the question on the wrong thread. As speedzak said. this should really have been on the other comparison thread. MODS. is it possible to swap these posts. SOrry.

[jyobeb]

Originally Posted by rippergeo

build quality issues
The A pillar is thinner than my original 1.2 palio
which is one example of loss of rigidity.
the fabled door thunk is gone.
so is the feeling of solidity when you swing the door
everything feels lighter.

I own a 99 Sienna. I feel no difference in the quality of sheet metal or in the thickness of the A pillar (Which actually calls for a whole new design and jigs)
The door thunks shut the same way and feels as solid as the Sienna.
I do not care either way for maruti or Fiat, but irrelevent banter which is inaacurate, is not done.
Also smileys such as seem to be a fad these days.

[condor]

@ripper, that was a nice way to compare the three cars. But I'll take most of what you have said with a pinch of salt. Reason : your disclaimer.

You have ended up comparing a car that you are comfortable with (atleast currently) with two others that you expereinced a TD on. And like you have said, using a TD car to get a feel of the car is a bad idea.


I would like to hear ashudeep's views in the same format that ripper has used. Would be a better comparo.

@Patiencewins, patience pls : if one car has a EPS, and the other a hydraulic, then the comparison is betwen the E & the H. Not car A & car B. They are going to feel different.

[PatienceWins]

@rippergo: We are just sharing our opinions in this wonderful forum and opinions do differ. I will be the last person to give death threat for sharing opinions of a car. Its afterall just a car.

@condor: I do not understand your theory. A car consists of features and what is wrong in comparing the features in different cars? You cannot just compare two cars without considering the various parts/ features that make the car.