GTAm

Did not like a 600? Not as cute but better gear change, more oomph, lots of upgrade and mods possible and more availability.

More "Hotwheels" than Matchbox I'd say eh Clarks' son ? Expectations will not be very high after the somewhat disappointing MP4-12c failing to blow away the 458. Anyway it should have it's work cut out with the next Pagani Huayra derivatives and the upcoming Enzo replacement - 1100kgs and 940bhp with KERS. Btw with the global economic slowdown now affecting China as well, I'm wondering if this will turn out to be a poorly times financial disaster for Mac like the XJ220 was for Jag for instance.

Di Resta and Hulkenberg options for possible Massa replacement - http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/19789183

Yes true Watchman. But MS is at his last stages of his career and has nothing to lose after what amounts to a disastrous stint at Mercedes. Shumi is not numero uno at Merc as well. He's used to Ferrari. It'll be like coming back home. And from Ferrari's point of view he'll get a lot more points than Massa and help them with the constructors title. It's a win win for both and Michael can go out on a high.

If I was Stefano Domenicali I would replace Massa with Schumi for 2013.

It's not as simple as that I think Peri. With the sudden changes downwards and then upwards in duty plus the issuing of various permits, devaluation of the Rupee, credit clamp on lending, increase in interest rates. So many conflicting variables means it's hard to read the market. Cars in some price ranges would have gone up, some ranges stayed put and some have surely come down regardless of brand and models. It is indeed interesting and important for people involved in the market I'd say. If one were to read it wrong it could be the difference between survival and bankruptcy. Perhaps the title of this topic is not correct though.

You mean like a crusher? Well Komi, our population to cars ratio remains very very low compared to even Thailand let alone Japan. It's just that our infrastructure (roads and proper clean/efficient public transport) are severely under-developed, so we are running out of space. We need more roads and better public transport but to do this we need to earn money by developing industry and exports. Alas we are just borrowing and building roads and not really prioritizing what we need. For example I think the airport highway and the Kandy highway should have got precedence over the E01. Cars being so expensive in our country (because of duty) it's hard to imagine people would almost ever junk their cars. I mean many many cars that are on our roads would be junk yard material in developed countries. but people are forced to keep re-using them because replacement is so expensive. A house can be built for the brand new price of most average cars in SL! It's crazy when you think about it. Just imagine the main board of directors of a blue chip company ordering a fleet of brand new cars - Let's says Mercs. With the current duties they'll spend about 150 to 200m ( 25m avg X 6 directors)!!! Just see what a lot of money that could go for investment is spent on cars where the bulk of it goes to the most unproductive institution - the government. Shocking!

Agents, private importers, individuals all made made lots of money I'm quite sure. That UML profit figure includes all vehicles. Lots of Vivas were sold to non-permit holders too. D*mos also made record profits with no permit vehicles at all. Their biggest seller is the tiny Tata truck. Other agents like C*r Pl*n and Pr*st*g* A*to made big money on permit vehicles.

I think both MoneyMaker and Komisiripala are both correct. Demand for and sales of Brand new and Un-reg cars have dwindled. All importers are reporting this. I met a CEO of a large PLC that is in vehicle imports and according to him they are revising their targets downwards by two thirds over last year. The only vehicles that are coming in now in some quantities are ones on permits and hybrid luxury vehicles like Lexus' and Porsches. I don't know much about the cheaper hybrids to comment. However there is selling pressure on the vehicles that are coming on permits are also adding to selling pressure. For example a BMW 520d which started out at 12.5m is now 10.5m. The government policy is mind boggling to say the least. By increasing duty they want to restrict our import bill but at the same time by issuing so many permits they reduce potential revenue that they earn on taxes And worse when diesel vehicles are imported the (subsidized) diesel fuel bill is increased while the profitable petrol bill is reduced. They are just shooting themselves in the foot. @Komi since a regular unreg car that used to be affordable like a Toyota Vitz is now over Rs. 4m, definitely prices of used cars in the lower price brackets will go up due to demand. Many people will put off their plans for replacement due to a) High cost of replacement even if one were to downgrade to a smaller car, and Increase in costs of funds. Therefore with less used cars coming up for sale, demand for these cars will be stay stronger than supply and should impact the price upwards. @MoneyMaker, the stock market is slowly recovering with a lot of foreign inflows and could put pressure on interest rates to ease a little by end of this year. Already there are some small signs. The govt. is under pressure to reduce interest rates to maintain economic growth. This is why they want to borrow even more from the IMF and sell out shares to foreigners. Also I feel the govt. revenue will be way off target without non-permit vehicle imports, so they must be wondering if any changes are to be made at the budget presentation in November.

Great option if large fuel bills are ok

With the current qualifying pace of the F2012, and the on track pace deficit with the Macs at the initial stages it's hard to see a Ferrari win unless it rains or there are retirements in front. That said the faster tracks like Japan and Korea should suit the Ferrari better than Sing did, though I doubt they'll keep up with the Macs (they are so damn quick). Even though, I think Alo will pull through for his first Ferrari title if there are no more retirements. He's been extremely consistent and give him half a chance and he grabs it with both hands.

On the Singapore track (road) the Ferrari seemed to be bucking too much compared with the Macs and Red Bulls. I expected Lotus to perform better though.

That's almost impossible to answer since they are as rare as hen's teeth in SL. More common classics like MGAs and Triumph TRs have some sort of established prices. In this case I guess it will depend on how badly someone wants one and how much 'that' person values it. A WILD guess would be between 1.5m to 2.5m depending on the condition.

The 104 had a bit of rust problem. I think that's why not many are left. There used to be so many on the road in the 80's. I've seen a really good one in Battaramulla some months back maybe even a year back. Burgundy coloured and quite neat. Not seen it for a while now. I think it was also advertised a while back.

Saw the blue one on Monday at Borella Cross road. Looks the same. No bumpers still and wheels spaced out.

Thanks carboy. The Multipla (pronounced "Mool-ti-pla" by the Italians) intregues me a great deal. When I was a kid I used to see one in the neighbourhood of one of my relatives. I thought it looks like some kind of Monster and actually was a bit terrified of it .

Yes the pristine one is with a member of the ICE club. It was a one owner car used by the Trinity College warden. Master Don whose is that 4 sri car? The one in the classified I've had a look at it before. The body had more filler than steel and they were quoting a ridiculous price.

The V8 engine is going to be a very rare item. Unless new fuel saving tech is found, down-sizing will be the name of the game. F1 is going V6 turbo and Ferrari is developing a road car engine too.

Will do Supral. I'll first get it into decent shape though - where people won't faint when they see it . Don't want to sound boastful but since I've gone through 3 already I know how hard it is and I think few people will endure the long drawn process of the body work. Mechanical work is relatively easier as almost every part is available brand new as this is Giulia based. The only other classic I really want is a Fiat 600 Multipla. If I get that I might let this babe go.

Interesting MG. I guess the Lambo had more torque. The Ferrari must have been higher strung delivering everything higher in the rev range I guess.

Don I'm sure your dad would have kept the Corolla in tip top shape. But many 70's and early 80's Jap cars did rust badly. Remember how many Datsun 180B s, 6 and 7 sri Toyota Crowns were on our roads? We owned two cars from that era. A Mazda 808 and a Subaru Leone 1400. The 808 kept rusting on the doors and side valences. The Subaru was a real rust bucket. We did not have it for long because the way and the speed it rusted scared us. Early 80's Cedrics and Bluebirds have also vanished from our roads. Peugeot 404s, VW Passats and W115 Mercs come to mind as other rust prone cars of the 70's. The Merc's rear structure is notorious and that make the boot droop down if you notice on poor condition cars you can see this. Do you also recall the Chrysler/Talbot hatch the Police used to have? Can't remember the model name now. Was it the Horizon? They've all disappear from the horizon too But none to beat the Italians for sure. Alfa Suds and Lancia Beta's the at p1 and p2 . P3 - maybe the 131? Italian cars from the 50's and 60's were a much better. See the number of Fiat 1100s on the road. Yes I've been thinking about getting this guy to fabricate Alfetta and Sud panels. I could get the exact blueprints from the Alfa Museum. Let's see once he comes out of Hell

Supra, I know people who have made the entire body locally for a very valuable car or a car that they are very attached to. So I know it's been done before. Btw I already have a guy who wants to take this off me if ever I'm selling.

I'm sure that that difference in responsiveness is the Lambo being laced with German sauce while the Ferrari is pure Italian although the development input came from a German driver MG, what sounded better at the red line in your opinion?

Yes MD. In fact all my cars are from that era where rust was rampant in Italian cars especially because of the poor quality Russian steel and Italians forgetting to treat the metal. Maybe they were just lazy . Most 70's cars rusted like there was no tomorrow but sure Italians were the trend setters here.

Since it's your driver, you travel regularly and interest rates are temporarily high my vote goes for. 1. N16 with Money in bank 2. Santa Fe Diesel