Next generation Fiat Palio spied without camouflage

     Fiat has been testing the next generation Palio in Brazil for a while and now we have the clear pictures of the next generation Palio. The new Palio is expected to be launched in Brazil next month.

     The earlier generation Palio was a huge success for Fiat in most part of the world. However the Palio could not make a mark for Fiat in India, thanks to the launch of Tata Indica at the same time which resembled Palio in its looks. The Palio was little overpriced than the Indica which was one of the main reasons for Palio’s steady growth in Indian market.

     In styling aspect, the new Palio carries over from its preceder. The overall silhouette of the new Palio will resemble closely with the old one. There have been changes to the front and rear in the form of newly designed headlamps and tail lamps. The headlamps look more of the Punto type and the front bumper has been inspired from the Punto styling as well. In the rear, the tail lamps are elongated and are designed very well to blend the car’s overall design. The window lines now look more aggressive which sweeps back to the top of the rear door – a design seen most of the present generation cars.

     Weather the new Palio will come to India is still a big question as Fiat India recent announced that it has not got any plans to launch a small car till 2013. Fiat India earlier had hinted about a sub-Punto hatchback for Indian market and we feel the new Palio will definitely suit Fiat’s plans.  

Volkswagen Vento facelift spied

     It is barely an year old and the Volkswagen has thought to give a facelift to its sedan Vento. Our friends at Motorbeam snapped a spy picture of Vento during its test runs. The Vento facelift comes into the picture soon after Honda City facelift was spied near New Delhi.  

     The C segment in Indian market is becoming increasingly competitive with the launch of Fluidic Verna, All new Ford Fiesta and the latest Nissan Sunny. Majority of Indians who had bought a hatchback 3-4 years back are planning to upgrade to a sedan which is making the C segment most lucrative after the hatchback.

     To remind you, after the launch of Vento within couple of months, the market leader Honda City started to lose its dominance and we see Honda gearing up to launch a City facelift very soon. Also the new entrants in the segment are offering better value for money making the existing players to cut prices and give a facelift to make their cars look fresh amongst the competition.

     In the spy picture of Vento, smoked headlamp is clearly visible. The current Vento headlamps come with cristal clear surrounds. Also seen in the picture is the front bumper and grill covered with white camouflage material, which means there will some changes in the front bumper and grill as well. We guess after the launch of Jetta which looks similar to the Vento, Volkswagen is trying give a little different look to Vento to distinguish it from its bigger brother. Apart from changes in the front, we can expect some changes in the rear and interiors as well. We have remote information about the rear and interior changes. Keep tuned, we will post more deatials as soon as we come across…

Honda City prices slashed up to Rs. 70,000, only till October 5th

     Honda has once again slashed the prices of its most popular car City by up to Rs. 70,000. To remind you Honda had recently reduced the City’s prices by up to Rs. 66,000. With this price correction, the base model Honda City EMT is now priced at Rs. 7.24 lakh after Rs. 25,000 discount. The other variants SMT and fully loaded VMT gets discount of Rs. 65,000 and 70,000 respectively whose prices now are Rs. 7.54 lakh and Rs. 7.94 lakh (All prices ex-showroom, New Delhi).

     This price reduction is only till 5^th of October. There is an added benefit of slightly reduced interest rate of 11.49 percent. Now with this price cut it is evident that the new Honda City facelift is around the corner. We are waiting for you Honda City facelift!!!

Hyundai Eon teaser ad, car launch on 13th October

     In our earlier post we had posted about the Hyundai Eon micro website coming up. Now we have a teaser ad of Hyundai Eon in which a question is asked to a family of 3 to say which is the most exiting car and the small girl says she prefer to say it on 13^th October. It is now confirmed that the Eon will be launched on 13^th of this month.  So hold your breath to see the most exiting car of the year. 

Skoda unveils Citigo small car

     Just after the launch of Volkswagen Up small car at recently concluded Frankfurt Motor Show, Czech Republican VW’s sister concerned company Skoda Auto has come up with its own version of Up. Skoda has named its small car a Citigo which will debut in European markets by early 2012. The Citgo is powered by VW’s 1.0 petrol engine with two different output variants – 59 Bhp and 74 Bhp. Skoda has ruled out a diesel version of Citigo but is working on an electric verion of the car.

     Skoda Citigo tough is based on Up, the styling has been inspired by Skoda’s MissionL and VissionD concepts. It measures 3.56mx1.65mx1.48m (length x width x height).

     Skoda India has already hinted at sub-fabia hatchback for the market. What better car than Citigo match Skoda’s plans in India. So expect to see the Citigo in India soon after its European launch. 

Hyundai Eon micro website up, bookings start from 1st October

     The micro website of Hyundai’s all new small car for India had come up www.eonindiaon.com. Hyundai will start bookings for Eon from 1st of October. As per the website, the Eon will be launched on 12th of October and the cars are likely to hit the roads by early November.

    
     Hyundai Eon is an ambitious product from the company to rival the bestselling car Maruti Alto. Last year Maruti sold over 3 lakh vehicles which made Alto the largest selling single brand car. With the launch of Eon, the supremacy of Alto will be put to test for the first time by any rival company. Eon with its fluidic design styling has an upper hand as compared to the Alto. But again, we say it is the price which plays a major role. Hyundai unlike its other cars like i10 and i20 should price Eon almost equally with that of the Maruti Alto. Otherwise they will miss a great chance to make a mark in India again.

Hyundai Eon Pictures

Mahindra XUV500 priced suprisingly at Rs. 10.8 lakh

     Mahindra has shockingly priced its premium SUV XUV500 at Rs. 10.8 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi) for the base 2WD(W6) variant. The other variants available are 2WD(W8) and top of the line 4WD(W8) which are priced Rs. 11.95 lakh and Rs. 12.88 lakh respectively (All prices ex-showroom, New Delhi). These are introductory prices and in coming months Mahindra is likely to revise the rates of XUV500.

     The Mahindra XUV500 is powered by the same 2.2L mHawk diesel engine carried over from the Scorpio. However, the XUV500 deliver more power and torque of 140 Bhp and 33.33 Kgm. The engine is placed transversly, which is first of its kind in Mahindra vehicles. The engine is mated to a new cable operated 6 speed manual transmission which is developed in the help of Riccardo. The new cable operated transmission provides more torque than the Scorpio gearbox. Mahindra is also working on an automatic transmission for XUV500.

The XUV500 is loaded with features such as

• LED reading lights, ESP
• Tyre-pressure monitoring
• Six airbags, traction control
• ESP, hill-descent control
• Voice commands
• Cruise and audio controls on steering wheel
• 6-inch touch screen Infotainment System with Sat-Nav
• USB and iPod connectivity

     Mahindra will soon launch the XUV500 in South Africa followed by Australia, Sourth America, Western Europe and SAARC countries. In the phase 1, the XUV500 will be available only in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Chennai and Bangalore.

Mahindra XUV500 Pictures