The Must-Knows before you buy a Car in Singapore

So you want to buy a car in Singapore. You have decided to ignore the price of entry , bypass the excellent public transport system and decided that personal transport is a must. Well, if so, welcome to the club.

Jokes apart, buying a car in Singapore is much like a house purchase in most of the world because of the sums involved. The complexity of a market forces driven pricing and permission system which drives incredible price variability adds fuel on the fire. With all that in mind, this is the structured way in which you can go about

Car Shopping is fun but you really need to do your research in Singapore

Step 1: Understand how the Singapore Market and Pricing works. I recommend this article which explains it about as succinctly as possible. The long and short of it, cars are expensive due to massive taxes, get registered 10 years at a time but you can get some of those taxes back

Step 2: Decide the kind of car, duration and intended usage period. This will affect whether you will buy new or used. Typically used would be what I would recommend, unless you absolutely expect to keep the car for a full 10 year duration. Please check out my guide to Car Pricing, as well my note on Paper Value which is one of the most important things to consider especially if you are buying a used car.

Step 3: Do the math on how much your desired car will really cost you per year (guide over here). Do your own assessment on whether your own needs justify this outlay and whether you need to adjust anything or reassess your purchase to meet your needs.

Beyond these steps, I want to share a few Critical Tips to consider.

1) Agent Car or PI Car. Cars in Singapore are either imported from the official dealer or parallel importers. If you are risk averse, you are better off with the Agent car though you will pay more for the privilege, new or used. The reason isn't as much servicing and warranty, but more of concerns on complications in case there are any manufacturer recalls. Also certain companies such as BMW and Mercedes have special hot weather package (better air conditioning, more sensitivity to lower fuel quality (though fuel quality is not a concern in Singapore) )on their Agent cars, whereas the PI cars are usually UK Spec cars which haven't quite been adjusted for Singapore's tropical weather

2) The Conti Car Premium: Singapore is a brand conscious country and traditional European marques (like BMW, Mercedes, Audi and even Volkswagen) command a significant premium, like for like vs Japanese or Korean cars. These premiums are significantly higher vs what you would see for the same cars in Europe or the USA, and this is before you account for Singapore's higher car pricing.

These European marques are even colloquially referred to as 'Continental Cars'.

Now, remember especially if you are not local, there is no reason for you to indulge this local value perception. If a Honda Accord does the same job for you as a Vokswagen Passat, don't pay that premium

3) The Performance/Luxury Car Premium: The best way to understand this is to understand the Singapore Government's general philosophy to perhaps taxation and life in general. The basic are well taken care of but if you want luxury, you pay for it. Which is why for example, public housing i.e. a roof over your head is well subsidised, as is public transport, but the luxuries of Private Housing and Personal Transport are much more expensive. When you apply this philosophy to cars, you see it come to life in the taxation system where taxes increases exponential for bigger and more powerful cars (see the details here). Again, you can get a perfectly functional A to B transport significantly cheaper than that Brand on the Bonnet or something that sets your pulses racing everytime you step in it. Choose wisely whether the Luxury/Performance premium is worth it to you

These of course are just starting points and my collection of Videos and Articles hope to provide you with all the resources you need. For further information, I do provide a Consultation, which aims to be the two hours that saves you thousands of dollars, leveraging all the knowledge and little nuances that can only come out in a detailed discussion. More details on that here.