How a Perodua Axia can sell for RM231,000 over in Singapore.

So the latest thing to go viral is the story about how the Perodua Axia, in RM41,000 specification is sold for RM231,000 or SGD 75,000 in our good old neighbouring Singapore. 

Firstly - it's actually abit lesser now. By a measly two thousand Ringgit due to the current exchange rate of SGD 1 = 3.0578 MYR. But who the heck cares. It does cost RM230,000 due to the weak as hell Ringgit. 


The approximate breakdown would be - 

Certificate of Entitlement (COE), which you need to run the car for ten years

SGD 45,000 (see chart above)

GST 

SGD 4,000 

Customs and Excise Duties

1. The CED will assess the Open Market Value (OMV) of your vehicle. Customs duty is levied at 20 percent of the OMV of a car and 12 percent of the value of a motorcycle or scooter
2. A seven percent charge will also be levied on the CIF (cost, insurance and freight) value of the import, as calculated via Singapore Customs form SC-A-012

Soooooo..... you have to do some maths

SGD 75,000

MINUS

45,000 -

4,000 -

= 21,000SGD 

Less Customs Duties and CIF tax

= 19,000 or RM 58,000 WITHOUT taxes and COE etc.

We get the same model for RM41,000.

Just for the sake of argument the distributor makes SGD9,000 and Perodua makes SGD10,000 OR Approximately RM31,000 per Axia. I do hope Perodua sells the car in USD or SGD and not MYR/RM. 

For comparison, a Suzuki Swift 1.4 auto costs SGD85,000 (Note that the Suzuki Swift 1.4 costs around RM60,000). The cheapest car sold in Singapore is a Chery Fulwin 2 Manual that costs SGD 71,000. The Axia is the cheapest automatic sold in Singapore. 

So look on the bright side people. Singaporeans get to buy the same budget car that most of us can afford at a much higher price. Being a car enthusiast is truly expensive over there. Of course, it still does not stop the people who can afford it from buying cars there. I still see the latest stuff everytime I am there. Lots of other factors are in play. The price of cars may be expensive, as are houses but food, public transport is affordable if you are earning in SGD. This I know. 

Just head to the nearest neighbourhood food court and you can still get a plate of noodles and a drink for under SGD3.50. You earn SGD 3,000.. If you head to the nearest neighbourhood restaurant, your plate of noodles and a drink would cost you RM5.50. Imagine if  you earn RM3,000? Public transport is efficient and reasonably priced. Smartphones and cellular packages are cheap - you can get the latest Samseng Universe 111 bundled for free into your unlimited calls unlimited data package that may cost you SGD50. Try getting all of that here.

But even SGD75,000 for a Perodua Axia is madness. That car is basic. I won't pay RM75,000 for an Axia. I would pay RM40,000 for one. But let's just compare one of the cheapest car markets in Asia - India. There, the Suzuki Celerio AMT sells for RM30,000+. That car is as basic as an Axia. Of course, I have to say in this case the quality of life in Kuala Lumpur is slightly better than the life you get in New Delhi. So that RM10,000 extra for a similar sort of car is justifiable.

So again. SGD75,000 for an Axia. Wow.