Cars of all the companies are driven from Birgunj to Kathmandu.
Most of the Korean and Japanese cars are driven all the way from Kolkata to Kathmandu but the Indian cars come to Birgunj in lorries and are driven from there onwards. The cars sometimes develop scratches on the way but the damage may be as severe as under-body scratches, link rod damage, spoilt suspension and shocks.
There are a group of drivers in Birgunj who are hired for a day or more to drive these cars to Kathmandu and the determined route which is Birgunj to Kathmandu via Narayanghat is not strictly followed by the drivers in order to save fuel and are found taking shorter route through Pharping where the road is pretty bad to treat a new car.
Car dealers admit the situation and regard it a compulsion as they have no other option. "We have to drive the car all the way because we need huge lorries to carry them to the valley. The existing highway may not support such heavy vehicles. The trucks that are available in the country are capable of carrying only one vehicle at a time," said Rupesh Sharma Bhatta, senior manager for business development and planning at Laxmi Intercontinental, the authorized distributor of Hyundai vehicles for Nepal.
The vehicles that are damaged go through repairing but the customers are often kept in the dark about the real condition of the new car they are purchasing for millions of rupees.
Some dealers requesting anonymity said three out of 10 cars go through repairing before entering the showroom.
"We have a huge liability while brining the car. We cannot send it back to India or choose not to sell the car. The only option available is to repair and sell it," said Suni Chheti, manager of Go Ford, the authorized distributor of Ford vehicles for Nepal.
Some companies are keeping track of the trip meter to prevent the drivers from taking a shorter route and are cross checking if they are carrying passengers on the way to collect some extra earning. But most of the companies have no option but to accept the cars even if the drivers may have played foul on the way.
"If the dealers informed their customers about the real condition of the car and provided additional warranty for the parts that may have been changed, it would be fair on customers. Since the customers here are not aware about the real quality, the dealers have an advantage," said Rajesh Nakarmi of Raj Auto Works.
Related story
Samsung hands over new car to lucky winner
