Though outdated in styling its a gem of a car when it comes to reliability, the Esteem Di may not be the quickest off the mark but sure makes up with the low cost of maintenance and excellent fuel efficiency. Its comfortable for long drives and as good as an Accent in terms of drivability. It would be unfair to pitch it against a CRDI though.
The 1.5 Peugeot TuD5 workhorse under the hood sure does wonders with low NVH levels and hardly gives you an impression of a diesel powerhouse until you expect to shoot off the mark or a quick get-away. The Esteem does well to complete a diesel package with absolutely no qualms, though originally desiged to fit a petrol engine.
Only if the TuD5 complied with the Euro 3 norm im sure we would have seen a lot more Diesel Esteems on the road. For as many friends and relatives I’ve driven around in my car, practically all have wanted to get one themselves, only if I could find as many.
The one irritating thing about this car is that, you go to refuel and just no one believes that it runs on diesel, until they read it off the fuel cap.
All-in-all its simple, reliable and economical but kinda outda... (no I dint mean it, I love my car).