Fiat Palio
| Fiat Palio | |
|---|---|
| Fiat Palio Fiat Palio MkI | |
| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Fiat |
| Also called | Nanjing Fiat Palio Pyonghwa Hwiparam |
| Production | 1996–present |
| Assembly | Betim, Brazil Agra, India Shanghai, China Bursa, Turkey |
| Designer | I.DE.A Institute (Mk I) Giorgetto Giugiaro (Mk II/Mk III) Centre Stile Fiat Brazil (Mk IV) |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Supermini |
| Body style | 3-door hatchback 5-door hatchback |
| Related | Fiat Albea Fiat Palio Weekend Fiat Siena Fiat Strada Fiat Uno |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine | 1.0 L FIRE I4 1.0 L Fiassa I4 1.1 L FIRE I4 1.2 L FIRE I4 1.3 L Fiassa I4 1.3 L Multijet turbodiesel I4 1.4 L Sevel I4 1.4 L FIRE I4 1.5 L Fiassa I4 1.6 L Fiassa I4 1.6 L Sporting I4 1.6 L Torque I4 1.7 L turbodiesel I4 1.8 L GM Powertrain I4 1.9 L diesel I4 |
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Fiat Uno |
The Fiat Palio is a supermini designed by Fiat as a world car, aimed at developing countries. It is produced in Brazil, Argentina, India, Turkey, South Africa and China. It is also built under licence in North Korea as the Pyonghwa Hwiparam. Russian ZMA started assembly of Turkish CKD kits in Autumn 2006. The palio platform is also used to produce Fiat Siena sedan, Fiat Palio Weekend station wagon, Fiat Palio Adventure SUV Crossover and Fiat Strada pickup truck. The station wagon and pickup versions are also sold in Western Europe.
Mark I (1996–2001)
Launched in 1996 in Brazil, as part of Fiat's "178 project", the Palio was Fiat's first attempt to build a world car, the same basic design being produced in numerous nations around the globe. Four principal models were produced -hatchback, sedan, pickup and station wagon-, with different versions being built for different markets. The powerplants, both diesel and petrol, also varied from region to region depending on local production capability, legislation and market requirements.
The basic chassis was a development of the Fiat Uno, but little remained unchanged. The entire structure was significantly stronger in order to be suitable on the rougher roads found in some of the markets for which it was intended, as was the suspension. The body was a completely new design by the I.DE.A Institute of Turin, who also designed the new interior.
Production began in 1996 in Brazil and was followed later that year by a plant in Argentina. 1997 saw production starting in Venezuela, Poland and Morocco whilst Turkey started building the same car in 1998. India and South Africa began production in 1999, Egypt in 2001 and China in 2002.
Mark II (2001–2007)
In 2001 the model had its first facelift. The new design was made by the Italian automobile designer Giorgetto Giugiaro. This facelift included new front and rear fascias, and a brand new interior. Also, new engines came for the Palio: the FIRE 16 valve 1.0 L and 1.2 L and the Sporting engine, a 1.6 L 16 valve with 120 hp made in Turkey. The Mark II series was the first Fiat to be made in China by Nanjing, and included a "SpeedGear" version.
Mark III (2004–Present)
The Mark III was released in 2004, designed again by Giorgetto Giugiaro. It is basically a facelift from the previous models. The 2004 Palio was the very first Brazilian model in the B-segment available with four airbags (two front airbags and two side airbags), parking assistance, and light and rain sensor. In Europe, the new model featured a Mark III front fascia and interior and a Mark II rear fascia. It has also a sport version called the Palio 1.8R which has a new version of the General Motors 1.8 L "Powertrain" engine rated at 115 hp (ethanol) and 112 hp (gasoline), lowered suspension, new 14 inch alloy wheels, new seats, and other sporting features. The third generation of the Palio had huge sales numbers, even getting higher sales in some months than VW Gol, the Brazilian best-selling car for over twenty-four years. It is currently still sold as "Palio Fire Economy" as a cheaper alternative to its posterior facelift, with alterations derived from the "Uno Mille Fire Economy" model.
Fiat India is making the Mark III palio with old Mark II interiors at Ranjangaon plant along with Grande Punto, Linea. After entering into a partnership with Tata Motors, the Palio has been relaunched as Palio Stile with 1.1 Fire, 1.6 Torque and 1.3 Multijet engines. Sales have been low at hardly 200 units per month.
Mark IV (2008–present)
The Palio Mark IV was launched in 2008, in Natal, Brazil. The model will be sold alongside an adapted version of the Fiat Grande Punto, which was launched in Brazil in the first semester of 2008.
This fourth facelift includes new front, rear and side design, but it keeps the original chassis from the 1996 model despite being marketed as "New Palio". It also has a minor change in the instrument panel with differences between the two variants sold.
The trims for this new Palio are ELX with the 1.0 or the 1.4 FIRE engines, both flex (ethanol and petrol) and the "sporty" version 1.8R with the current revision of the 1.8 8 valve engine from GM, also flexible. The new Torque engines will be shown at the Palio, only after the launch of the Grande Punto.
Fiat has sold 111.949 Palios since January from June 2008.
Mark V (projected for 2010)
A complete new-generation Palio was announced by Fiat Auto in early 2007. Some prototypes have seen spotted in Italy in an early stage of development. [1] but this news was wrong. The car spotted was the new Ford Ka, which has been tested in Italy. The Ford Ka is a co-development between Ford and Fiat (The 500).
The Palio replacement has been code-named B-Compact, and its launch has been set for 2009, as a 2010 model. The final name of this model is unknown to date, but the press thinks that it could be badged as the new Fiat Uno
Nanjing Fiat Perla
The Nanjing Fiat Perla was launched at the 2006 Auto Guangzhou Motor Show, and is based on the European Fiat Albea. The car's rear got a more profound facelift for the Chinese market. For example, the rear is longer and lower than the Siena. It has a new 1.7 L MPi engine, air conditioning, dual front airbags, anti-lock brakes, power steering, power windows, central locking, and many other features.
Russia will be the first country outside China to receive this new model, but with the 1.4 L Fire 8v engine with 77 PS (57 kW; 76 hp) and the Speedgear transmission. l;'l'l'l'l;'
Electric versions
Fiat is joining utility companies Cemig and Itaipu to develop new electric vehicles for Brazil, with an initial batch of Fiat Palio cars scheduled to start testing later 2007 [2].
Safety Rating
The Fiat Albea a sedan version of the Palio, was tested in Russia according to the EuroNCAP latest standard (Offset frontal crash at 64 km/h). The Albea scored 8,5 points in the frontal test, equivalent to 3 stars. The tested vehicle, was equipped with standard driver Airbag and regular seatbelts.AutoReview Magazine; Russia
The Fiat Perla a Chinese version of the Fiat Albea, was tested in China by the China-NCap in three different test; 100% front crash test with a wall (like the US NTHSA test) a 40% offset test (like the EuroNCap) and a side crash test like the EuroNCap. The Perla scored 8,06 points in the 100% frontal crash test, equivalent to 3 stars; 12.02 pts in the 40% offset crash test, equivalent to 4 stars, and 10,96 pts in the side crash test, equivalent to 3 stars; with an average result of 31 points and 3 stars. The tested vehicle, was equipped with standard driver and passenger Airbag and regular seatbelts.China-NCap
Motorsport
Several competition and homologated versions of the Palio have been produced, such as the A6 class rally car, multi-Brazilian and South American champion of the A6 class with Brazilian Luis Tedesco as driver, and the Turkish Fiat Rally Team create Palio Super 1600 Super 1600 Abarth rally car, with a 215 hp 1.6 L 16-valve engine and a 6-speed sequential transmission. Turkey also boasts an N2 Palio.
References
- ^ Gazeta AutoDiario (in Portuguese)
- ^ Viknesh Vijayenthiran. "Fiat launching electric cars in Brazil". MotorAuthority. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
External links
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