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Deccan Herald, Saturday, September 13, 2003 (As fuel efficiency continues to be the first question on many buyers’ minds, Fiat had to do something to change its gas guzzling reputation. With the launch of Palio NV, the company hopes to tackle the problem, says Murad Ali Baig) No one would expect 14.4 kmpl from a Palio especially if this result was the average of ten cars at the end of a 170 km test drive with city traffic out of Mumbai, high speeds along the expressway towards Pune and with low gears on the steep ‘ghat’ sections. Actually Car No 1, that I was driving at high speeds upto 150 kmph, got the worst result at 12.12 kmpl though some other more cautious drivers got 17.68 and 15.33 kmpl. As fuel efficiency continues to be the first question on many buyers’ minds, Fiat had to do some serious work to change its gas guzzling reputation. The Fiat Palio like the Corsa Sail is actually a big car roughly comparable to an Accent or Ikon except for the chopped off boot. It has about 30% more internal space and so about 30% more weight than the smaller hatchbacks like the Zen or Santro. To tackle its fuel gulping reputation, Fiat has just launched a new model, the Palio NV, that has been re-engineered to improve fuel consumption by 9.8%. The catalytic converter has been positioned close to the exhaust manifold to ensure quick engine warm up for thermal efficiency. So this solves one of the major causes of fuel consumption, as the engine will immediately warm even on short trips and not after ten minutes as in most cars. Secondly, the powerful AC system with a big 130 cc compressor has been reconfigured to put minimal load on the engine and finally an air dam under the front bumper improves airflow under the car for less air resistance. I had expected that Fiat would remap the MPFI to give leaner fuel supply but Mr. Alberto Montanari, Chairman and MD of Fiat India, emphatically declared that the engine management system had not been touched so the pick up and performance of the Palio 1.2 would not be affected at all. As all modern engines are quite well optimized I found such a huge improvement hard to believe until I accidentally discovered another reason from one of Fiat’s proud technical people. The earlier Palios had actually been giving better fuel consumption than most people realised because of an error in the odometer. It had originally been calibrated for low profile 165/70 R 13 tyres and not corrected when Fiat opted for bigger 80 profile tyres to get better ground clearance. So the increased circumference of about 5% meant that old Palios were actually giving 5% better fuel consumption than their odometers were telling them. So with the changes and with the corrected odometer, buyers can now expect about 14 kmpl for normal highway cycle driving and roughly 11 kmpl for urban cycle driving but a lot depends on the driver, the traffic and the roads. The NV also sports a few other changes like wider and better seats, an RPM meter, interior lights that stay on for a few seconds after switching off, etc. Though the new Palio NV now offers excellent value for money Fiat will also have to change their perceptions about its service and spares. There had also been the concern about the future of Fiat worldwide, but those fears are now ebbing. Palio is part of Fiat’s 178 platform that has been a success in many countries clocking a cumulative sale of 2.4 million units. The fuel efficiency gap with the Zen, Santro and some other models will further improve because new crash test requirements of ARAI is forcing Indian automakers to make them stronger and heavier than they used to be. So safety norms may spell the end of light, thin-skinned cars. The four new NV models will be in the showrooms at a price marginally increased by Rs 3000 to range from Rs 3.55 lakh to Rs 4.35 lakh. So buyers can now expect the space and comfort of a bigger car with small car fuel efficiencies.Palio turns fuel efficient-from ArchivesOld article but worth reading