Ohai!
Today Imma talk about cars.
As you all know, I had a lot of problems driving wtf.
Ride bicycle mou?
Not an option in hot humid dusty Malaysia. 🙁 If I were in a temperate country I might have been tempted to do this!
First I have to learn how to ride a bike wtf.
When I was working, either Fatty or Fat Her would drive me to and fro from work. I hated this cos I felt very dependent on them. But at the same time, I was still paying off my student loan and had no money to spare. Besides, Fat Her would get antsy every time I brought up buying my own car and change the subject fml.
Didn’t stop me from perusing car websites and car ads to find a car that suits me and that I can hopefully afford.
Here’s what I learned from googling and from talking to people. And some points to consider in making a decision.
1. To buy new or secondhand?
Fatty is all for secondhand because it’s cheaper and you can still get an almost-brand new car. Even his car now is secondhand bought. But my parents are very against it, seeing that the secondhand car they bought is giving them loads of problems. They said that they would rather I buy a new smaller car and they can sleep well knowing that there are no problems, than a nicer secondhand vehicle.
New car doesn’t equal to expensive car.
2. Calculate the costs
Fat Her actually made me sit down and wrote out all the costs applicable for me to see if I could afford it or not. T___T Party pooper wtf.
But this is a very real concern. First you have to think how much deposit you’re within your ability to put down, then figure out how much you can afford in installments every month, and factor in the interest rate and installment period *migraine
Then I also had to consider petrol costs, parking (and office parking rates were cutthroat), toll. Then got road tax, insurance and regular car maintenance. Although if newer car I assume it would be less than a secondhand one?
SIGH.
At this point I crumpled up my paper in anguish and threw it away. Lolol.
3. Go for test drive
To make sure your prospective car will suit your needs and lifestyle, go for test drives! This was actually the most fun part for me hahaha. I booked quite a few test drives and dragged Fatty along to see with me.
If you are satisfied, then get the sales advisor to prepare the documents.
So one of the cars to consider can be the Proton Saga FLX . It’s one of the most affordable cars in the range yet doesn’t resemble a tin can on wheels wtf.
- Price starts from only from RM38,373.00
- comes with CVT, which stands for continuous variable transmission, (usually only available in high-end cars like Mini, BMW, etc.) CVT is like a single gear that connects all speeds seamlessly. So there’s no loss of power, your car is more fuel efficient, and the ride is smoother.
- Also comes with ABS and EBD. ABS prevents wheels from locking up when braking, and you from skidding/crashing/touch wood. EBD on the other hand, distributes the right amount of pressure to each wheel to help a car stop sooner.
- Also features Proton Ride & Handling tech that integrates body tuning with perfect balancing. The result Saga FLX sticks to corners, stay in your control, and goes where you point it.
- Music and entertainment for the Saga is very convenient too! You can play your music from iphone by USB connecting to the audio unit. And skip and change songs with the steering audio controls.
- Bootspace can take up to 413 liters of baggage.
If you’ve done your homework in all areas and feel comfortable about it, JUST DO IT!
Sign the papers and you’re done!
Overly Attached Air Freshener. lolol.
For more info on Proton Saga, go here or to any Proton showroom for a testdrive.
Comments (12)
Hi Audrey=) about the topic looking for used/new car, maybe you can check out http://www.carsifu.my/nit is a website selling used/new cars at affordable price=) one of my friends bought a used car from the website not long ago and he is satisfied with it =) njust saying only, maybe you had already make your decision ^^ nnp.s. update more of your daily life and fashion style ya, i love to see them <3
What’s up with your skin girl? Your face looks so bad -_-”
BAhhhhhh. Mention Proton, sure a lot of Malaysians would feel strongly one way or another. Because of inefficient Proton, most other cars are taxed heavily. 20+ years already causing so much disgruntlement. And almost 20 years to finally fix a power window (not even sure if they really fixed it). Most people brainwashed into thinking Proton is cheap, and as you know in the US the same price can buy around a Civic.
I am a proud owner of Saga FLX 1.3 Elegant Brown, and I daresay that my car is fuel-efficient. Up till now, I have no qualms with Proton, and its a definite must buy for starters like me. 😀
What the? There’s only one photo of me in this post and it’s taken at a distance and you can’t see anything. What you smokin bro -_-“
Yea I understand what you’re saying. It’s sad that ironically because of Proton, the cheapest option we have is Proton. 😛 but right now those are the options we have lo not much you can pick from when your budget is a certain size.
That car is only…$13,000CDN/US? You can’t even get a used car for that here usually, that’s so affordable wtf.nnAlso — I am glad to see you’re still quoting me on the Overly Attached Air Freshener *feels cool*
I have to say that the new Proton is much better than the old one. Went for a testdrive and got myself a new Saga FLX. The pickup is so-so but who needs a powerful pickup for city drive. Let’s not talk about the car price in US as it’s a never ending discussion. I do agree that it is one of the most affordable cars in Malaysia for it’s space and fuel consumption.
@Courtney You can’t get a *used* car for US$13,000? Which planet are you on? You can get a brand spanking NEW Nissan Versa, Chevrolet Spark or add $300 more and get a Smart ForTwo Pure. With US$13k you can get almost any type of used car you want. Sports car? Four door? Two door? Minivan? Truck? What you smokin, girl.
umm are you guys in different countries or something?
yea i think it’s hilarious hahahaha. it’s not affordable because you actually can’t convert it like that! since we earn dollar for dollar, it would be like us paying USD38,000 in the US 🙁
oooh thank you so much! so helpful 😀 😀