1996 Suzuki Esteem

Routine

Owners filed 5 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the service brakes, hydraulic › foundation components › disc › caliper. No safety recall has been issued.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Tires › Tread/Belt1
000
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Power Assist1
000
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › Caliper1
000
Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine1
000
Air Bags › Frontal1
100

What owners reported

Newest filings
Tires › Tread/Belt
Filed May 1, 200473,000 milesVA

AFTER 31,000 MILES, 4 GOODYEAR AQUATREAD TIRES DEVELOPED FEATHERED TREAD BLOCKS ON ALL 4 TIRES. THIS RESULTED IN ROAD NOISE FROM THE TIRES THAT WAS SIMILAR TO THAT OF ALL 4 WHEEL BEARINGS FAILING SIMULTANEOUSLY. THE NOISE WAS SO LOUD THAT NORMAL CONVERSATION IN THE VEHICLE WAS NOT POSSIBLE AND ANY EMERGENCY SIGNALS SUCH AS SIRENS OR HORNS COULD NOT BE HEARD. I BELIEVE THAT PROLONGED EXPOSURE WOULD HAVE LEAD TO HEARING LOSS. THE DEALER WHERE THE TIRES WERE PURCHASED COULD FIND NO EXCUSE FOR THE TIRES DOING THIS SO HE REFUSED TO HONOR THE TIRES WARRANTY BASED ON MY NOT HAVING HIM ROTATE THE TIRES ON SCHEDULE. EVEN THOUGH I INFORMED HIM THAT I HAD ROTATED THE TIRES MYSELF AND THAT I HAD FOUND MANY POSTINGS ON INTERNET SITES DETAILING THE EXACT OR SIMILAR FAILURE ON THESE SPECIFIC TIRES. I SENT A EMAIL MESSAGE TO GOODYEAR CUSTOMER SERVICE. THEIR REPLY WAS THAT THERE WAS LITTLE THEY COULD DO TO CONTROL WHAT THEIR DEALERS DO. I WAS FORCED TO REPLACE THE TIRES AT ANOTHER DEALER AT MY EXPENSE. IT SEEMS THAT THE ONLY WARRANTY GOODYEAR HONORS OR THE ONLY DEFECTS THEY ARE INTERESTED IN CORRECTING ARE ONES THE JUDGE SAYS FIX.*AK

Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Power Assist
Filed Jul 1, 1999WA

TOOK IT TO THE SERVICE DEPT. REPEATEDLY AND THEY NEVER FOUND PROBLEMS SO CONVIENANTLY WE HAD NUMEROUS PROBLEMS AND ENDED UP TURNING THE CAR IN AND LOSSING EVERYTHING WE PUT IN TO IT AND MESSING UP OUR CREDIT DUE TO WE WERE TIRED OF FIGHTING WITH THE DEALERSHIP AND THE MANUFACTURER. SO OTHER PEOPLE NEED TO BE AWARE OF THESE DANGEROUS PROBLEMS WITH THIS CAR. IT STRANDED ME AND MY 2 CHILDREN SEVEERAL TIMES NOT INCLUDING MY MOTHER IN LAW ONCE WHEN WE LET HER BORROW IT . NO ONE WOULD LISTEN TO US SO MAYBE YOU WILL ! I HAVE WRITTEN STATEMENTS OF THESE PROBLEMS THAT OTHER PEOPLE HAD SEEN THIS CAR DO ! NO SAFETY DEFECTED MENTIONE DIN SUMMARY. *AK

Engine and Engine Cooling › Engine
Filed Dec 3, 1998NV

WHEN DRIVING AT 45 MPH, THE PULLEY: CRANKSHAFT BROKE, CAUSING THE CONSUMER TO LOSE CONTROL OF STEERING, AND THE BALACING AND THE TIMING BELT WAS DAMAGED AND THE BOLT CAME OFF. *AK

Air Bags › FrontalCrash
Filed May 19, 1997IL

DRIVING 40 MPH VEHICLE IN FRONT STOPPED SUDDENLY, HIT THE BRAKES BUT REARENDED VEHICLE ANYWAY; DRIVER'S SIDE AIR BAG DID NOT DEPLOY; WAS REARENDED BY ANOTHER VEHICLE AND ESTEEM WAS TOTALED. *AK

Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › Caliper
Filed Apr 22, 1997NV

ABS BRAKE FAILURE, FRONT CALIPERS AND BUSHING MALFUNCTIONED, CAUSING FRONT END VIBRATION. *AK

5 of 5 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2000
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
20025100Routine
200121000Routine
200026000Routine
199920000Routine
199824010Routine
19977000Routine
1996 — this page5000Routine
199513000Routine

Compare every Esteem year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.