14 years ago | Aloke Chatterjee
Regardless of the year of manufacture, do not buy any that has clocked more than 40K-45KKms. With the AC on in city traffic, mileage will be about 11-12 kmpl, not more.(Could be less depending on the condition. On the hands of a good driver, on highways 14 -16 kmpl is possible but who drives an Esteem at a speed of 45-50 kms/hour on highways? If you are anything over 5'6", getting in and out of the driver's seat can be a real pain in the neck.With a kerb weight of around 875 kgs the ESTEEM body is too fragile & flimsy but then that is why it has an extremely good power to weight ratio which makes the car quite quick & zippy. While buying please do have a look at the undercarriage, thoroughly and look for rusting there as well as places such as the doors or panels.Scratch a tiny area,if you find a thick coat of paint and putty, the car has been repainted a number of times and may possibly be hiding rusted areas inside.Check the tyres & battery condition. Finally, in case you do buy replace all oil & lubricants & the spark plugs immediately and set the GAPS correctly. Check the Central locking & each of the the power windows as well as the windshield. The original windshield has green tinge on the top area to cut out sun glare.A 2003 vintage Esteem vxi with good tyres, Engine , battery, alloy wheels and interior with up to date regisration & Insurance with less than 40K on the odo wont be anything less than 1.5 lacs . If someone sells at a lesser price, there is justified reason for suspicion unless you know the owner & the car and has observed it in use.Good luck
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