But Japanese cars are just as bad, just that they are more expensive. I mean, the Japanese can make good, safe cars, but Malaysians will buy them even when they are not, so, well, they are neither safe nor good. That will change once Malaysians start buying contis en masse... then the Japanese will have to follow suit and give the cars the same specs as in Europe/start making the cars meant for Europe in Malaysia. Just, for example, have a look at http://www.toyota.co.uk.

And yeah, cars are expensive, but petrol is super cheap. When you look to Europe, do realize that a car of the same spec in Europe often costs a similar amount... perhaps a bit more in Malaysia, but the difference is not big. I believe the Malaysian government just says "a Myvi sized car can't be below 70k", but the specs are up to the manufacturer/importer. Thus a Fiesta sedan, as it is sold in Malaysia, would be at least as expensive in Germany, when it had the same specs. There is just a lack of entry level contis in Malaysia (it is not uncommon for a continental car in Europe to cost at least 2 times as much when you have finished spec'ing it... 200k RM just in options (so that you won't just get an empty box) are not unheard of).

And of course, there are the taxes, but afaik the difference between Malaysian and foreign cars is not so big. 30, 40% perhaps. Then you have to consider that a liter petrol costs around 1.60 € in Germany... RM 6.60.

I do agree that they should open the market... at least slowly. Which, IMHO, is actually happening (a well spec'ed Fiesta for 80k, where the MyVi with much much much worse specs costs more than 60k?). Maybe in a few years we will be able to buy an entry level Touran for 80k, as those in Europe can. Ok, probably not. But Proton seems to be preparing for that, their cars get better and better, and more desirable with each version (or they want to get into the global market again, including those areas where there is a lot of competition and the cars are on a higher level). Perodua not so much.

Inspira... Protons proudest achievement? Really? It's a freaking Mitsubishi. Good car, but it's not really their own development. Perdana too isn't a real Proton. I think the new one will be a good one. And it is developed by Proton.

A German AFAIK will not earn 4 times as much as a Malay for the same sort of work, after all taxes are deducted. And even if, cost of living is higher. Want to buy a house? Expect to pay at least 100000 Euro... ours would probably sell for around 170-200000, and it's an average terraced house in a slightly above average area. Going out for lunch/dinner? 10 Euro minimum.

A young copilot may earn 4000 Euro, if you work at Tesco it's probably more around 1000. On average married people earn 2141 Euro, unmarried ones 1771 (in 2007). I agree that it's very tough here, and those ridiculous car taxes are unnecessary.

But at least many do have a car, no matter how awful it is, and they can afford to run it. You could consider a new good and expensive car a luxury good, at least you have something that can bring you from A to B at a reasonable cost (relatively affordable fuel), so you can get to work. Even if it is neither comfortable nor safe to get there. But what good is it to own a car, but not to be able to use it to go to work cause you can't afford the petrol?

Also the fuel prices go up way faster than the earnings.

This post has been edited by kadajawi: Dec 29 2011, 12:03 AM

Yes, they want to make you buy P1 or P2, that is why they keep the foreign cars expensive by forcing them to a higher price (again, it is up to the manufacturer to chose how the specs will be, so sometimes it is still good value for money, it is just kept out of reach for most.)

Mazda 6 is a Passat competitor, Golf is supposed to go against Mazda 3. Polo against Mazda 2. Touran against Mazda 5 I think.

Teana looks nice though. Interior from outside also looks nice. And small rims are a good thing. It is ridiculous what these manufacturers put onto their cars nowadays, totally ruins the ride. First thing I'd do is buy smaller rims/tyres with most "premium" cars.

lol, I'm 26. Have you driven a Touran? With stock rims it is stiff, but bearable. Fun to drive. Put huge rims on it, and it becomes downright ridiculous. It's not a Ferrari! Performance isn't as good anymore, FC is higher, ... it just doesn't make sense whatsoever, unless you only care about looks. And why would a Citroen C5, which has only one purpose, to drive very smooth, provide a magic carpet ride and be comfortable, have big rims? Totally defeats the purpose. Hey, I'm driving a Ferrari... with bicycle wheels for better fuel economy.

Btw., the old BMW 5 series (E34 and E39) looked great with small rims... and absolutely horrible with big ones. The new ones are unfortunately designed with big rims in mind.

Also, if a car is very loud and has a very fast looking bodykit, it better be very fast. Otherwise I laugh and laugh and laugh when I pull away in my (unfortunately stock engined) Kangoo.

The other way round it's better, a car that looks slow, but is insanely fast. There is a Opel Corsa A (A segment car from the 80s) with 2 engines and 740 hp, that looks pretty stock. I'd love to drive _that_. Even though it has oversized rims, but there they make sense. (http://opel-specials.de/boostbeast.htm)

Ok, I agree (mostly). I still think though that cheaper fuel is more important to the poor than a cheap car new imported... at least Malaysians have the chance to own and drive a car, even if it is a lousy one. The taxes are ridiculous though.

Yes, I did. But does a poor family need to drive a brand new Altis? It's not a human right to drive a new BMW either. I also think that the taxes are way to high... bring them down to a European level for all cars (around 20%), and then maybe add 20-30% for CBU and 10-15 for CKD.

I'd also introduce tax breaks (or rather penalties) for safety equipment (with a higher base tax perhaps). So maybe it is expected that a car has ABS, ESC and 4 airbags. Any car. Less than that, for each missing feature 5% more tax. Got more airbags, 5% discount for each. That way it won't be more expensive for manufacturers to put in safety equipment.

An extension would be to conduct crash tests on the base spec model, and the cars would be taxed according to the results. A car that is safe only in high spec would also be taxed higher because base spec is what counts (and the manufacturer is only allowed to advertise with the crash test result of the low spec car, though they are free to add that the higher spec one is better equipped with safety equipment).

The good thing about the high taxes on fuel in Europe is that contis and most cars sold there usually have a low FC. But then again FC is a big concern in Malaysia too, unlike the US.

But government apparently puts a 75% tax on _all_ cars (and more on top of that on CKD and CBU ones). Including Proton. I mean... how can Proton bring down the price even more? People already complain about poor quality... The car is taxed 75% here, in UK maybe 20% + shipping. So it will probably despite higher specs still be cheaper, just because the government isn't so keen on making money. Get it down to a European level and force manufacturers to not make a single cent more. Then the price would go down a lot, and it really should.

Malaysians do earn less than others, so they should pay less for their cars too. (Same with electric appliances (a noname front loader washing machine (you can't get nonames of this type here) would cost perhaps RM 800-900), TVs (seen a 50" FullHD LG plasma for around RM 2000, but with a bit of effort it was available for 1700. Here that would only get you a HD ready 42" model...), cameras (Olympus E-PL1 is 1799 in shops here, 1000 in Germany), phones (LG Optimus 7 a few months ago RM 650, here just now it was like 1700 when I asked...), ...). Simply not fair at all, especially since they should have higher taxes than Malaysia (19% on almost everything in Germany).

@0300078 (totally off topic):
I think it has to do with competition. Maybe 15 years ago consumer electronics were rather expensive, I remember that I smuggled a computer and everything that belongs to it from Sim Lim Square to Germany. Many computer shops next to each other competing heavily vs. no computer shop at all within the next 50-100 km... so the one that was 100 km away could charge anything they wanted to.
Nowadays people just order anything online, there are many online shops fighting hard for customers, and there are websites that let you compare prices. Margins must be pretty low.
Btw. I have just seen that very 50" LG I mentioned above for 2099 at Giant. Similar price as in Europe.

Yup, the 50PT250 plasma. I have the smaller brother, 42PJ350 (paid 1699 a year ago... *sigh*). The 50" only has a very low resolution (thought it was a FullHD model, my bad), but it is huge. And with an aerial TV signal they shine, colours and black levels also (not in the show room or bright living rooms, but at night... very nice).

Checked now... http://geizhals.at/deutschland/503795 To be honest I didn't check if the price was correct... had a look now, and well, it is kind of weird that only one dealer has it for 245 Euro, while the others want 400. That would be RM1640, 250 would be 1005. Though when I look at the price history of the camera it got down to 220, so they were clearing stocks probably, and the 400 Euro shops might have forgotten that prices have changed, so they are the only ones left who still have any stock.

Woot. That's a really good price there (especially since I now doubt the 245 Euro...), even though it's a demo unit. Trustworthy? Might point an Uncle in that direction... Also thanks for that website

This post has been edited by kadajawi: Jan 2 2012, 07:27 PM