Probably only in Malaysia a car the size of Camry/Accord/Teana etc. can be sold like peanuts with just those little 2.0 NA 4 cyl. engines! Thanks to ridiculous Malaysia road tax regulation I guess.

Hahaha, naah I would never want to own such underpowered cars! What on earth do I need 150 or 180HP for in Malaysia? Well now I'm driving >200HP 2.5ltr car everyday, already red line it many2 times (which means using the max 200HP already, right?). Now already feel bored and slow with it, and a bit regretting why I did not buy something really fast like an Evo 9 instead! Later I'm planning to search for piggy back to at least add a bit of kick to it to keep it interesting once again. I guess power is addictive, at least for me. Heck if I don't think of other more important priorities, I'd supercharged my car too and add 50% more power!

I guess the Germans are bit odd too eh. For Malaysia, I'm quite sure the stupid road tax plays a big part in shaping up people's mind here in choosing cars (big cars with smaller engines). Heck I my self if not for that stupid road tax would have opted for >3.0ltr car if going for NA engine! It does affected my choice a bit, it does not change my mind and opinion though. If not for that, quite sure those underpowered cars would not sell that well here. Like in Indonesia, there's NO Accord/Camry/Teana/CRV/X-Trail 2.0 even offered on sale! This despite the hellish traffic jams in Jakarta which makes jams here just like peanuts/kids play!

Well anyway people have their own preferences. I'm not here to stop anyone buying any cars be it underpowered, ugly, or whatever, it's not my money anyway.

This post has been edited by 6UE5T: Feb 23 2013, 12:05 AM

True that many countries also increase roadtax with cc as factor but usually not the only factor like in Malaysia. Like in Indonesia, the cars market price, model type and class are also affecting roadtax amount. In US if I remember correctly, there's gas guzzler tax which is based on how fuel efficient the car is, so even if the car has big engine but if fuel consumption can match smaller engines then it does not necessarily have to pay gas guzzler tax. But here, it's the only factor, hence becomes a bit unfair IMHO, for example: a guy who buys a Peugeot RCZ turbo (which is >200K sports car) pays less roadtax than a guy who buys a Proton Inspira 1.8. Then there's the guy who owns Lancer Evo pays the same roadtax as those who owns Proton Inspira 2.0 just because both cars have 2.0ltr engine, even though the Evo drinks fuel like a 3.0 car or even more if on boost.

As for mine, I cannot red line from 4th gear onwards cuz my car has that bugger 180kph speed cut which is not that simple to remove like most other Japanese cars. So I've redlined 1-2-3 lah to enjoy the full acceleration. I do like the sensation of having good power ready on tap at the tip of my foot.

Really? How much is a Golf GTI in Germany? I thought still much cheaper than here.

That system makes more sense, not just blindly based on displacement like here. To generalizing/simplistic if just based on that.

Ic, then how about more expensive cars like BMW & Mercs or Italian & British cars, also almost the same prices for comparable specs in Germany??

This post has been edited by 6UE5T: Feb 23 2013, 10:36 PM

Yeah that would be great! I'd just order basic manual car with minimal electronics (just power window & locks) & A/C but using the most powerful engine option!