[fine69]

Hi,

I am planning to get in to the call center cab business with an Indica Diesel (that i wud purchase) in NCR (Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon). Since I wud be new to this business I am planning to drive the cab myself for at least 2-3 months so that i learn the tricks of the trade and then pass on the cab to a driver and get in to supervision (probably even buy another indica).

I have an estimate of costs that would go into all this and few questions around this little business plan of mine.
- The daily run wud be around 300-350 kms so would power steering be a necessity here bcoz the power steering model wud be a costlier one. Also wat r the chances of the power steering belt wearing out with a daily run of 300 kms (as in frequency)
- I am planning to get the 24 hr car helpline service membership, hope its a good idea
- I would be able to work for 8-12 hrs but if i get a driver as well i can probably get the indica available to the vendor for 24 hrs. Wud it be advisable to have the indica on the run 24hrs (considering the wear n tear of the tyres n their capacity to tolerate heat or some other thing maybe)
*the car wudn't actually run the entire 24 hrs...the run here might increase to 500 kms maybe
- wat wud be the maintenance cost of the car (considering both situations, 12 hr run daily (300 kms) n 24 hr run daily (500 kms)) I have taken an estimate of Rs. 2000 a month here. Also, i believe the maintenance wud continue to increase as time goes by (need help on the estimated maintenance cost here)
- is there anything else that i am missing out on that i shud consider



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[Eddy]

What you should remember is regular servicing, and most importantly to use engine oil preferably of a better grade than what TATA recommends. Oil change every 5000 kms becomes a must for you, and would cost you approx 800 bucks each time. That alone would be close to 2000 bucks of the budget that you earmarked for maintenance if you are running >10k per month.

But the indica is a workhorse and would take all the abuse thrown at it without much fuss.

Which model are you buying ? I hope its the traditional DLE/DLS and not the Vista

[dinar]

Looking at the car from business point of view the initial cost and the running costs, Indicab or Indica DLE is a good chose , power steering will put added cost on maintenance. These vehicle is best suited for taxi business.
Keep a preventive maintenance schedule and the car will run for ever.
-get the oil changed every 5000km without fail, use better oil than the once used by the TATA A.S.S.
-get the tyres rotated, balanced and alignment done on regular bases and the tyres will last put to 45,000KM .[that depends on lot of factors though]
- NO issues keeping the car on 24 hrs call, as long as you do not drive it like at La' mans 24 hrs endurance race.
-engine will last at least 140,000 km before overhaul is necessary. oil consumption is around half a liter every 3500 km , after the engine completes around 85,000-95,000km.

As for the cost of maintenance, 2000 per month with how many km every month, that's the question.
if you do 300km a day [300*26 day =7200 km every month] for this average of Rs 2000/- is ok for till 75,000 km [if serviced at TATA A.S.S.] after that it will increase, you need to find a good mechanics to maintain the car in that cost. cause after this there are issues with suspension, electrical, fuel pump needs adjustment after 70,000km [remanded by TATA, but overlooked by most service stations, cost is around Rs 3000-5000], timing belt needs to be changed , tyres need replacement anywhere between 35,000-45,000 km [cost RS 9500-11000 /- for 13 " tyre] etc. The labor charges are quit high at TATA service stations.
Take all these costs into consideration for whole year depending on your running and get an average per month maintenance cost.
I would suggest do the math again taking the costs of things in your city and do it this way, the costs are in my city.The DLE returns around 14-16 KMPL in city depending on the driving styel and around 18-on highway.