My car, my precious

Any ordinary man off the streets of Singapore will tell you that owning a car in land-scarce Singapore can be a very pricy affair and it's set to get even pricier from a reading of the relevant authority's recent publications (see the masterplan) - using public transport is strongly encouraged as opposed to private car ownership.

Other than the initial upfront cost of purchasing the vehicle of one's means or dreams, one has to pay for the certificate of entitlement, the price of which depends on the results of the bidding for the same in that particular month or forthnight. Then on an annual basis, one has to pay for road tax which is in the hundreds of course, and for motor insurance.

Also, there are the day to day costs which takes its toll on the proud owner's pocket as the car he has purchased depreciates in value every single day
(1) fuel costs - unlike Malaysia, the cost of fuel in SG is not heavily subsidised.
(2) parking costs - if one stays in public housing, one has to purchase a season parking for about SGD70 to entitle one to park one's car in the public housing carpark at all times. Parking to go shopping at our famous shopping belt, Orchard Road, is also a very expensive affair where an hour of parking could cost one up to S$8.
(3) cost of use - Singapore has implemented the electronic road pricing ("ERP") system which requires all vehicles to be fitted with a device where one slots in a cashcard and the value stored in the cashcard (the value can be topped up at most major banks' automatic teller machines) is automatically deducted when a vehicle passes under a gantry. Failure to have a cashcard in the device results in a S$10 administrative fee being imposed in addition to having to pay the requisite fee. The ERP gantries are found on almost all expressways and are operational during certain hours of the day. The ERP fees also vary depending on the time of the day and the rates and times can be found on onemotoring.com.sg
(4) Maintenance cost - the usual servicing every 10,000km cost generally between SGD 200 - 400 for a Japanese-made saloon car and the tires do need to be replaced every three years (about SGD 400 for an ordinary set) as does the car battery (SGD 70).
(5) Repair cost - If one gets into an accident and decides to claim against his insurance, the no-claim discount (NCD) that he has been enjoying will be forfeited the next time his insurance is renewed. The NCD is based on each year of ownership where there has been no claims against the insurance policy - 10% for the first year until a max of 50%. Therefore if one's insurance policy cost SGD 2000 and one has a NCD of 50%, one only has to pay SGD 1000 for the insurance premium. Therefore, when one is in a minor accident, one tends to refrain from claiming against one's insurance and pays for one's repair cost out of his pocket. So that's another cost.

Despite all of the above, I am the proud owner of a car in Singapore, even single cent of which I have paid for by myself. (1) to (5) above is also borne by yours alone truely. I bought the car in January 2008 and it has been to me (and rightly so), the sign of ultimate freedom, indepedence, self-sufficiency and self-indulgence.

Choosing the model I wanted was easy - the newer version of my mother's car. We both wanted something that was fuel-efficient, economical, value-for-money and reliable. Of course, I did look around at a few other models and narrowed it down to either a Daihatsu Terios and Toyota Vios. I finally chose the latter (but not the color - that was chosen by my sister!) - paid half the cost (plus COE of course) in cash from my savings and took the minimum loan required (1 year) to enjoy a SGD 500 discount off the insurance for the other half.

Presenting...My Precious with whom I have enjoyed some of the best experiences of my life.