Tokunbo watch: 1995 Suzuki Baleno: needs discretion

So, we set out to look for cars which she could afford with all the options she requested or. Our survey spanned from the car stands of Abuja on the Murtala Mohammed express way to the Kaduna stand where prices of car are less than Abuja price by a small margin. After coming up with […]

So, we set out to look for cars which she could afford with all the options she requested or. Our survey spanned from the car stands of Abuja on the Murtala Mohammed express way to the Kaduna stand where prices of car are less than Abuja price by a small margin.

After coming up with a number of choices we finally settled for a Sukuki Baleno. Obviously this is not a common choice and the questions everyone will ask is ‘are the part available in the market?’

Well the answer to that question is yes there are but the real good question is where? Currently we have enjoyed the Baleno. Its handling is good but the steering could use some more feed back. The sport shock keeps the car in line but suffer the interior dash with a lot of vibration- so look for the one without sport shocks. The only problem we didn’t notice was rust underneath a link arm of the front suspension but we took good care of it immediately.

There are quite a number of Suzuki repairers but the parts are seen in major commercial cities like Lagos or Kano- sometimes in Kaduna depending on what you are looking for.

But for this car which my sister loves so much for its cuteness, getting the brake pads was a headache because after taking a trip to Kaduna, we had to order it from Lagos. It did arrive brand new and this morning, I had the car to myself to have a feel of it. So far, the car is great and the air conditioning unit is splendid. Just watch you break your head lamps because they don’t come that cheep either.

My experience with having cars not common as tokunbo is that there is a high chance the part of the car may have to be ordered ahead of time. To do that effectively, you need to carry out an all round inspection even when your car is still in good condition. The other good thing, it is not likely prone to theft like a Honda.