21 July 2009

Cheesburger probably tastes better

For most working class citizens who work a minimum of 10 hours a day , which unfortunately includes me, buying a personal mode of transportation in the Bolehland is probably one of the biggest decisions ever in our life. Beside from buying a house or choosing our livelong soulmate, when it comes to owning a car, we have to look into every imaginable aspects very seriously. They cost us a bomb too. In some cases the installments will piggyback us even past our retirement age . Thus nothing should be taken for granted when making this important decision.

With load of pampering and TLC to shower these beauty though, it can be a good future investment. But the depreciation in value is phenomenal. The moment we take out the brand new car from the show room, the value will slip down faster than we could lower our pant down during a seasonal diarrhea.

Actually, for the past 2 months I've been quite busy spending my weekends hunting high and low for a decent family car. With four ever-growing up kids, a saloon car wouldn't comfortably fit us anymore. It looks and feels like sardines in a small can. If we add in our maid into our entourage, the car become slightly more tastier than a chicken masalla.

After a much arduous and time consuming fact finding mission, my significant half and I finally narrowed down our searching into a few selective models.

To be frank, at first I was quite excited to give our nation much talked about MPV, our pride and joy, a second chance. The price is quite reasonable even though I still feel as a national car , locally build and assembled by the nasi lemak nation the price should be much lower. What more with a mere 1.6l engine, rumored to be the same engine as its smaller gen-tle sibling, I think this MPV is seriously underpowered. But the most alarming fact that bothered me most was, the moment this MPV enter the market, the interest rate rocketed up. From a consumer point of view, that doesn't sound good at all and I don't think this is fair to suddenly have to fork out extra money from my small pocket. Am I not patriotic enough? I still eat nasi lemak and sing Negaraku from time to time.

Another interesting choice was a genre from the country of the rising sun, a close contender with proven history for its reliability. Load of new innovations that rise to its name. The huge difference between the 2litre E and G spec is quite unreasonable though (digital air conditioning system, a door strip, wood finishing to name a few). But I will keep this option open. At least until a new interest rate is being revised. We were also quite tempted with its bigger brother the Aeras series. A reconditioned unit cost another RM30k - RM40k. But it makes me wondering. After at least five years of being driven around by Yakuzas, who probably eat sushi and spilled some sticky sakae onto the seats, I would still have to pay an installment higher than what I am paying now for my double storey terrace resident. Doesn't sound justifiable too. I don' think I want to spend numerous hours sleeping, eating and having my intimate moment in any of these MPVs.

We looked and tested a few other car brands too. The Grand Starex is, in our mind quite stands out among all and the most ideal MPV so far (in term of its specification). A brand new 12-seater, 2.4 Diesel turbo with five years warranty cost as much as the reconditioned Aeras (year 2004) and slightly longer in size than the mother of all MPVs - the Alphard. And it doesn't has the pungent smell of kimchi at all.

Finally, after so much effort and trouble in interviewing the many patience salesmen, test driving and kicking here and there onto the tyre, opening and closing the doors (that is what most people do) to see if they can stand the humiliation on our bumpy road condition, we decided not to part with our money yet, 'investing' in buying an MPV. We resorted to just rent any MPVs we fancy whenever we want to 'balik kampung' and save the many absurd installments for our next honeymoon :)

As i am not working or associated with any of the car companies, and obviously they are not paying any money for this unofficial car review, these are just my personal opinion, personal preferences. All in all, I still feel that the local consumer in the Bolehland is still being shortchanged as compared to some of the countries, where buying and selling cars is just like changing their dirty garments. Dirty cheap.

I remember one time when I talked about cars with my mentor, she reminded me of one thing - a car is just another mode of transportation from point A to B. Or even a piece metal when left to decay is similar to any other scrap iron in a junkyard. I am not sure whether I am wise or not but for the time being, I am stuck with two German frankfurters. But for me, if its not for their Sheer Driving Pleasure, it is still my Ultimate Driving Machine.

28 comments:

Zendra-Maria said...

A decision wisely made - pleasure above pressure

ASH said...

Aeras = era?..adakah stesen radio atau sebuah MPV?
macam kubiasa dengar nama itu...

CAHAYA said...

When can we expect the arrival of the new ride eyh?

True enough that car is an easy mode of traveling from point A to B. But sometimes we need to know for how long it can take us from point A to B. We don't want to end up somewhere in between at the end of the day, right?

Abd Razak said...

Salam DrSam,

Things relevant to you, fuel economy, price, safety, reliability, cargo capacity, and the ability to hold your family comfortably.

besi said...

dr sam...hmmm dengar cite perodua pun nak keluar MPV gak...after raya...tapi jepun punya mpv mmg dah terkenal...k dr sam..selamat memilih heheheheh

Fly said...

salam doc, have anice day :)

DrSam said...

zendra,
As it is, the temptation is still manageable. Not sure for how long though ;)

ashley,
agaknya kalau makan kuih karas dalam aeras memang parah nak vakum lepas tu.

CAHAYA,
Initially I hope to buy and 'begaya' with it even before Raya. But now we decide to 'bergayas' with rented MPVs of our choice instead.

Yes, apart from the look for 'bergayaing', car that won't make you stranded in the middle of nowhere is another important factor to be considered.

Razak,
Salam. After taking into consideration all the above mentioned, we think it is a wise decision not to embark into another car-changing frenzy and make use of whatever reasonable alternatives available.

besi,
dengar juga ura-ura tu. tunggu dan lihat.

Fly,
salam bro. Have a nice day and take care bro.

Hidup KOKA said...

hee hee hee... what's the brand of the car?

Aku ni slow sikit tentang "reading in between teh lines!!!"

Naddy said...

I dream of entering some contest and winning the grand prize of a car/MPV. If it costs more than RM100 kilos I am selling it and then tour asean on a month long trip. But since I am not entering any contest at all I am hoping to buy a car which most importanty - like you quoted - can take me from point a to point b without hassle for it's first 9 years.

my family don't have a car at all until my sister bought one last month. my neighbour was smiling from ear to ear when he saw it and tegur us joyously. It was usual sebab selalu hi and bye biasa je.

cendawanintim said...

memula baca tajuk cisburger memang tak tahan nak pi mekdonald terus!

papepon, buatlah pilihan yang bijak!nanti balik beraya ngan mpv baru lah yer!

Yang Benar, Kakak Perkara Rawak said...

teringin nak bawak lamborghini.
tp lesen pun tak ada,nek teksi jela jawabnya..hehe

MHK said...

Susah juga pilihan tak byk di malaysia ni ..ada yg harga agak berpatutan tp 'interest' pulak agak tinggi. Kereta import harga jgn cakap la boleh buat beli rumah/apartment pun ada. Walaupun fikiran kita mula set kereta ni utk bergerk dr point A ke B tp perasaan nak bergaya tetap ada kan.....Dr Sam pasti boleh buat keputusan yg menguntungkannya.

nAz said...

saya rasa kena beli yg enjin 2 litre ke bawah, nanti leh dpt diskaun tol!

;)

Faisal Admar said...

i agree with this:

"I remember one time when I talked about cars with my mentor, she reminded me of one thing - a car is just another mode of transportation from point A to B."

i read a book by azizi ali before.

car = liability :)

ASH said...

psstt..

if the number is NINE than you can expect more than just KUIH KARAS..ha ha ha

DrSam said...

hidup KOKA,
if I ever want to buy an MPV, the car would be the one using a tagline 'drive your way'.

mizzyN,
Probably entering as many as competitions that give cars as their giveaway is a good idea. You'll never know when lady luck will be smiling on you.

cendawanintim,
kalau ada rezeki tu, boleh le kita beraya kehulu kehilir naik MPV - yang disewa.

PJM,
cita-cita mesti ada. Kalau tuhan nak bagi tu sekelip mata aja dia boleh bagi. tuah ayam nampak dikaki...

MohdHafizKamal,
Itu yang mengambil masa yang agak lama menilik. Tapi semakin banyak yang dilihat, semakin banyak pilihan, jadi gelap mata pula :)

nAz,
Kalau kereta saloon, mungkin O.K engin yang kecil. menjimatkan petrol. Tapi kalau MPV yang gedabak tu, bila nak panjat bukit mesti termengah sikit - kesian enjin mengaum nanti.

Faisal Admar,
When I was in UK, one Pak Arab told me. If you see cars parked on a parking lot (near the student residential area), it is easy to tell which car belong to whom. The biggest and the posh car normally belong to Malaysian. I smiled because it is so true!

But they are so cheap, so can't blame our own folks (me included :)in away. If we want to drive those cars back in the Bolehland, keep dreaming!

ashley,
nine is a good number, kuih karas is a bit messy though...

Memorable trails... said...

Hi Doc!
I read patiently n with interest until d end as to know which MPV you would buy finally.After so much trouble you decide not to..
Sabarnya you doc n tidak cepat terpengaruh
For me I am comfortable with the one that smell sushi..biar pun orang kata macam bawak bas,yg penting my kids are comfortable.

Meen Eunos said...

DrSam.

Semoga berjaya membuat pilihan.

DrSam said...

madam gold,
I believe 'good things come to those who wait'. You have made a good choice there ma'am.

meEn,
dah habis merisik, tengah tunggu masa yang sesuai aja untuk meminang.

Mia's Mom said...

Salam DrSam (:-D)

If you are seriously thinking of buying one later, do also consider the safety measures that come with it too. Since we're driving one and it hardly gives us any problem, do include the Stream in your test drive list.

Faisal Admar said...

haha doc.

"The moment we take out the brand new car from the show room, the value will slip down faster than we could lower our pant down during a seasonal diarrhea."

i take off pant when i'm horny faster than seasonal diarrhea.

so my case is different :P

S@Y@NGH@SNI said...

memang ramai orang yang terpengaruh untuk bergaya like my hubby..
tapi pd saya kereta itu hanya satu keperluan untuk memudahkan pergerakan..
tak perlu berbazir sangat untuk dapatkan kereta yang mahal..
ade banyak lagi yang lebih penting dalam hidup..

CatlinaFly said...

salam dr sam..so dah jumpa kete yg sesuai?

pssstt..pakcik kite jual wish hahaha..promosi gitu..hihihi...kot2 nak riki2..:)

bozzobattousai said...

saya sokong...sewa je senang...tapi klu nak beli baik amik alphard tuh..besar dan power dan mengempiskan wallet..

Ida BorneoLove said...

i always prefer cheese burger.. anything with cheese lah...

PerantauSepi1306 said...

wuhooooo Dr is looking for MPV... hmm might wanna try out Chery Alado MPV.. a definite value for money at 2.4 horse power and steptronic features that allows you to shift from auto to manual mode easily when you drive those hilly and winding road balik kg, very spacious and the seats are all comfy... definitely a better selection than naza ria (famous for it's huge oil consumption) and bolehland mpv which at the same price, smaller space and thin seating and 1.6cc that shakes when climbing gua musang road(macam tak nak buat je keter ni.. this semi cheeseburger is more towards continental spec car and not to forget the japanese body used had established a sound confidence in me buying it... I had been using it for almost 4 months and travel long distance and grateful that i had bought it... with the price and the specs it's a good bargain for me indeed..

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