Sporty sedan for permit

[abiman]

Hi,

Im planning to upgrade from CE110 for a 3.6M permit. 

Im looking for a sedan and budget is 8M+Permit. (if I have realy good option I can get loan over this too) 

I like sporty option with paddle shifters and modern tech, non hybrid and brandnew. 

I like compact sedan or close match to my current car. Being a government employee I cant afford large depreciation. Up to 10% depreciation per year is ok from full market  value of car. 

Im planning to sell this in 3 years for our next permit.

Since Im from Galle, ability to service and maintain from around galle would be great. 

Any suggestions are welcome.

 

 

 

 

 

[mcs627]

New 3 series with 1500cc engine coming out in a few months. 330i has a 2 L engine. C200 is also a good choice. Cars don't depreciate in Sri Lanka ?

Edited August 9, 2019 by mcs627

[kush]

Germans will be Rs. 10-11 Mn + Permit, unless you opt for CLA which will be around Rs. 9 Mn. + permit

Japs, Mazda 3 (new), Civic 1.5 L, Accord 1.5 L if you can stretch

Or wait for the new Corolla hopefully JDM saloon will come in 1.2L, I got down the hatch (Corolla Sport) paid only Rs 265K duty.

 

[Uditha88]

Mazda 6

[kush]

46 minutes ago, Uditha88 said:

Mazda 6

Will be too expensive

[abiman]

2 hours ago, kush said:

Will be too expensive

Mazda 6 2.5l was initial dream. I waited with CE110 for that. Not possible now thanks to (most probably) central bank heist planned and executed by the PM and his MPs. 

[abiman]

3 hours ago, kush said:

Germans will be Rs. 10-11 Mn + Permit, unless you opt for CLA which will be around Rs. 9 Mn. + permit

Japs, Mazda 3 (new), Civic 1.5 L, Accord 1.5 L if you can stretch

Or wait for the new Corolla hopefully JDM saloon will come in 1.2L, I got down the hatch (Corolla Sport) paid only Rs 265K duty.

 

I checked out accord. It has all features I want. But car is too big. Almost 2ft longer than current one and more than 6inch extra wide. Also depreciation might be higher than what I can afford in first 3 years or 5years max. 

Civic 1.5 sedan seems to be good. How much will it cost in sl for permit? Did not see it in any car sale or at stafford. 

[iRage]

I would say :

- New JDM ? Mazda 3

- 1.5L Civic Sedan

- 1.2L Corolla Turbo

it has been officially announced to have a 1.2L Turbo, 1.8L Hybrid and 1.8L ICE....1.2L puts out about 115hp, Hybrid about 170hp combined and 1.8L 100!!!???? I know !!! WTF !!!? I am hoping this was a typing error....either way...Corolla is the most lowest powered of the three, and the car with the least steering feedback...however, based on the Corolla Sport the driving dynamics will be good and fun...it will be comfier than the Civic and Mazda 3 and I believe the interior looks a lot more premium than the Civic but a tad lower in than the Mazda 3.

Are you in to hatches ? Get a Vitz GR Sport GR !

[sathyajithj99]

14 hours ago, abiman said:

I checked out accord. It has all features I want. But car is too big. Almost 2ft longer than current one and more than 6inch extra wide. Also depreciation might be higher than what I can afford in first 3 years or 5years max. 

Civic 1.5 sedan seems to be good. How much will it cost in sl for permit? Did not see it in any car sale or at stafford. 

Maybe that's because new civic is as huge as the previous accord, so they need to make a significant difference in size.

[kush]

Stafford should be able to get down the Civic 1.5T you will need to get in touch with you.

Everybody is getting down CRV as the duty is same so the cost is marginally high

Quote

 

 

[abiman]

1 hour ago, kush said:

Stafford should be able to get down the Civic 1.5T you will need to get in touch with you.

Everybody is getting down CRV as the duty is same so the cost is marginally high

 

I went to and did talked to stafford. They told me realistic chance of getting civic is less as they want to move more accords. Also they told me something about their quota and utilizing it for accords only as of now. 

 

 

[DJR]

another option

Toyota agent brings down new generation corolla sedan with 1.6 engine.

They have a branch in galle too..

[iRage]

15 hours ago, DJR said:

another option

Toyota agent brings down new generation corolla sedan with 1.6 engine.

They have a branch in galle too..

Huh ? The new Corolla Sedan has not been released for the Asian market yet...and so far there is no announcement about a 1.6L engine for any of the markets (only rumors of a high performance version with a 1.6L BW engine). I think you are mistaken and mixing up the current (and outgoing) E170 series Corolla with the NEW Corolla sedan

EDIT : So a 1.6 engine HAS been announced for the South East Asian and European markets (most of Asia gets the SEA variants anyway). SEA will get a 1ZR-FBE with about 120hp (around the same as a 1.2L Turbo) and Europe a 1ZR-FAE with about 132hp....

E170 Corolla (Current and soon to be out going model)

 

NEW Corolla Sedan (still have not been introduced to the Asian market)

Edited August 11, 2019 by iRage

[kush]

They will not get the new Corolla around Aug/ Sept but not the 1.2T. It will be the same 1.6 currently available.

Extra duty over the permit will be over Rs. 2.0 Mn. not worth the price.

That is why decided to get down the Sport before the prices start going up in Japanese auctions.

[kush]

You should be able to pick a Civic Sedan 1.5L with less than 5000km (2018-19) from Jap auction for less than JPY 2.2 Mn.

Approx cost in SL around Rs. 6.2 to 6.4 for the permit.at

Hatch will be more expensive as it has more features and is more powerful too 182 PS vs 173 PS

 

Edited August 11, 2019 by kush

[abiman]

1 minute ago, kush said:

You should be able to pick a Civic Sedan 1.5L with less than 5000km (2018-19) from Jap auction for less than JPY 2.2 Mn.

Approx cost in SL around Rs. 6.2 to 6.4 for the permit.

 

Thanks. That is new info for me. Any auction site I can check? 

I checked brand new prices from honda japan and price is around 3.2mJPY with some options like honda sensing included. 

Is there anyway to verify mileage from an auction car and To make sure not an accident repaired car? 

Ive been in Japan for some time and didnt notice people changing cars after little run like ~10K kms. 

 

 

 

[kush]

You will to register with a local rep to get access, google and see there are few sites which gives info.

You are correct there will not be a flood of vehicles but there are few which is reasonable considering the size of the market.

Majority of them as you said are accident repaired, to get a good car you may have to wait patiently and lucky.

Generally auction reports are reliable as they are done by Japs. This will be also verified by the independent export  inspection certificate too.

[abiman]

15 minutes ago, kush said:

You will to register with a local rep to get access, google and see there are few sites which gives info.

You are correct there will not be a flood of vehicles but there are few which is reasonable considering the size of the market.

Majority of them as you said are accident repaired, to get a good car you may have to wait patiently and lucky.

Generally auction reports are reliable as they are done by Japs. This will be also verified by the independent export  inspection certificate too.

If I visit japan, does auction companies let me personally inspect vehicles? Maybe I can meet some of my friends and find a car too when it is time. If it is 1m JPY less, this is well worth. 

If I personally visit, lets say 3wks, do you think I can find good car there?

 

[matroska]

21 hours ago, abiman said:

I like sporty option with paddle shifters and modern tech,

Civic 1.5 L sedan. 

[iRage]

3 hours ago, abiman said:

If I visit japan, does auction companies let me personally inspect vehicles? Maybe I can meet some of my friends and find a car too when it is time. If it is 1m JPY less, this is well worth. 

If I personally visit, lets say 3wks, do you think I can find good car there?

 

No you cannot just walk in to an auction and start looking at and bidding on cars.

1. There are specific days for you to walk though the yard and look at the cars available. Again...you cannot drive it or anything....

2. If you are looking at a specific model of car....the available vehicles will not be at one particular location...it will be right through out the country at different locations and the specific model you are looking for at the auction house you will visit will be small or 0.  So during the three weeks you are there you will not be able to find a car unless you plan to visit many many auction sites like a mad chicken running across Japan. Travelling in Japan can be very expensive...When some of our car sales people say they personally check every vehicle they buy, etc...they are lying....The original auction sheets are trustworthy enough that they can buy a car without actually seeing them. The large car sales have agents in many areas to hunt down cars so those sometimes have people looking at the actual car they bid.

3. Most auction house attendees, even if they go to the auction, do not see the actual car. They go to a big hall with a big screen in front and is full of terminals. The car gets shown on screen and they press buttons to bid.

4. You cannot just walk in..you need to find an agent.

5. This is a brand new car you are looking at....and you are going to have to find an agent in Japan anyway....so why not just direct purchase one off of a Honda Dealer in Japan ? You will have to wait a few months (since the accord has been around for awhile I would reckon the wait is about 6-8 weeks at most). So you have your agent (or even a a friend can do this if he/she has a place to park a car) go to a Honda dealership (with or without you) and then order one with the accessories you want.

6. The brand new cars you see it auction are there not because Japanese people buy the cars and then decide to sell them. Those cars are there because they are put there by car dealers who know they can export them...so most of the time the brand new vehicles at auction are more expensive than at the dealer (because car salesmen buy it and put it at the auction keeping a margin for themselves and  they know people will buy them to beat the waiting list at the agent.

7. Japanese do not sell cars based on mileage....the decision to sell or not sell is hinged more on when the shaken (road inspection) needs to be renewed. For the first 3 years of a brand new vehicle it is not needed but after that it needs to be done every 2 years and can get rather expensive for the repairs and inspection. It is just that most cars do not use their cars that much either becuae you do not need to use it in the city or ifyou live in the suburbs you would be using a mixture of cars. My 20 year old Corolla has only 38K on it...

8. The relatively new cars you see at auction are put by people in 6.; rental cars; leases (actual leases not the type in SL...where the user pays to use the car and then returns it in exchange for a newer one).

Edited August 11, 2019 by iRage

[abiman]

36 minutes ago, iRage said:

No you cannot just walk in to an auction and start looking at and bidding on cars.

1. There are specific days for you to walk though the yard and look at the cars available. Again...you cannot drive it or anything....

2. If you are looking at a specific model of car....the available vehicles will not be at one particular location...it will be right through out the country at different locations and the specific model you are looking for at the auction house you will visit will be small or 0.  So during the three weeks you are there you will not be able to find a car unless you plan to visit many many auction sites like a mad chicken across Japan. Travelling in Japan can be very expensive...When some of our car sales people say they personally check every vehicle they buy, etc...they are lying....The original auction sheets are trustworthy enough that they can buy a car without actually seeing them. The large car sales have agents in many areas to hunt down cars so those sometimes have people looking at the actual car they bid.

3. Most auction house attendees, even if they go to the auction, do not see the actual car. They go to a big hall full with a big screen in front of terminals. The car gets shown on screen and they press buttons to bid.

4. You cannot just walk in..you need to find an agent.

5. This is a brand new car you are looking at....and you are going to have to find an agent in Japan anyway....so why not just direct purchase one off of a Honda Dealer in Japan ? You will have to wait a few months (since the accord has been around for awhile I would reckon the wait is about 6-8 weeks at most). So you have your agent (or even a a friend can do this if he/she has a place to park a car) go to a Honda dealership (with or without you) and then order one with the accessories you want.

6. The brand new cars you see it auction are there not because Japanese people buy the cars and then decide to sell them. Those cars are there because they are put there by car dealers who know they can export them...so most of the time the brand new vehicles at auction are more expensive than at the dealer (because car salesmen buy it and put it at the auction keeping a margin for themselves and  they know people will buy them to beat the waiting list at the agent.

7. Japanese do not sell cars based on mileage....the decision to sell or not sell is hinged more on when the shaken (road inspection) needs to be renewed. For the first 3 years of a brand new vehicle it is not needed but after that it needs to be done every 2 years and can get rather expensive for the repairs and inspection. It is just that most cars do not use their cars that much either becuae you do not need to use it in the city or ifyou live in the suburbs you would be using a mixture of cars. My 20 year old Corolla has only 38K on it...

8. The relatively new cars you see at auction are put by people in 6.; rental cars; leases (actual leases not the type in SL...where the user pays to use the car and then returns it in exchange for a newer one).

Thanks. And thanka a lot to taking time to write such detaild answer. This clarify many things I was looking into and did not knew

 

 

 

[iRage]

4 hours ago, kush said:

They will not get the new Corolla around Aug/ Sept but not the 1.2T. It will be the same 1.6 currently available.

Extra duty over the permit will be over Rs. 2.0 Mn. not worth the price.

That is why decided to get down the Sport before the prices start going up in Japanese auctions.

That is really strange....you mean they WILL get the new one....

Actually I checked...apparently the SEA version will have the 1ZR-FBE engine....which will have the same output as the 1.2L Turbo....

[iRage]

I have to ask...why a sedan ? If you take something like the Mazda 3 sport or the Corolla Sport....usable space in the car is more or less the same....refinement and luxo plush wise I would say it is Mazda 3 - Corolla - Civic. Driveability wise Civic - Mazda 3 - Corolla. Practicality/Living with it wise Corolla - Mazda 3 - Civic. Smiles per gallon wise Civic - Mazda 3 - Corolla (but each set apart by only a small margin). I must say the manufacturers have gone back to a lot of their core values with these cars...

 

[abiman]

1 minute ago, iRage said:

I have to ask...why a sedan ? If you take something like the Mazda 3 sport or the Corolla Sport....usable space in the car is more or less the same....refinement and luxo plush wise I would say it is Mazda 3 - Corolla - Civic. Driveability wise Civic - Mazda 3 - Corolla. Practicality/Living with it wise Corolla - Mazda 3 - Civic. Smiles per gallon wise Civic - Mazda 3 - Corolla (but each set apart by only a small margin). I must say the manufacturers have gone back to a lot of their core values with these cars...

 

Sedans seems elegant to me. Dont like hatch back or suvs. Im almost 6ft and if I fit in comfortably rest of space is manageable as this is 75% solo ride. Fuel figures doesnt matter. 7km/l is enough. Sporty and tech is what im after. 

I want compact sedan because it makes easy to park legally on side of roads without bothering others when necessary. Im happy to walk half a mile so that I can legally park. 

[iRage]

Well...where tech is concerned most of the cars come with pretty much the same thing now and the prices are almost the same. Especially in regards to active and passive safety features (primarily because in Japan most of the driver aid and safety features are mandatory from 2020 onwards...what differs from each other is if you want a small screen or a big screen or if you want Apple CP or Android or a Japanese proprietary system

You should know that a car like a mark X or a mazda 6 is not that much more difficult to park than a Civic or something....sub compact sedans have gotten pretty huge....and if you are looking for something the size of a 121...then you are going to have to look at a Grace or a Yaris/Vios...but then those cars are not very techy. as for tech...well....every time I power up my 486DX powered PC with 128Mb of ram and load up my little shooting game from a 3.5" floppy disk...I am in amazement as to how long technology stays relevant and wroks without no hitch  

If you are a tech person who wants that to be happy in a car..then so be it..but also don't let the tech stuff detract you from buying a car that will actually give you driving satisfaction as well, especially if the tech stuff you are seeking for will not be used or work in a local context. Because at the end of the day...once the newness has worn out; if it does not give you a satisfying drive...when the tech goes bad (and it always does)....you are going to be miserable.

[kush]

2 hours ago, iRage said:

That is really strange....you mean they WILL get the new one....

Actually I checked...apparently the SEA version will have the 1ZR-FBE engine....which will have the same output as the 1.2L Turbo....

Yes i believe they are waiting till Thailand manufacturing starts.

Very unlikely they will get the 1.2L as it will be mostly for JDM and some specific developed markets, may not be offered in the saloon outside Japan.

Even with the tax advantage of the 1.2T unfortunately we will not get the better vehicles in the range (CH-R, Corolla Sport), when i inquired  they tried to push me to a Yaris Active, piece of s**t made to south Asian  morons who will go and buy any crap with a Toyota badge and a boot.

However they do bring JDM through a subsidiary, prices are ridiculously high to justify.

Decided to go my own way got down mint Corolla Sport GZ with optional part red leather/ suede, TRD body kit, 9" audio Navi, nice dark blue paint job all the optional safety ++

Was fortunate to get the car for over  Yen 1 Mn. less than the list price new. Auction grade 5 AA.

If you decide to go out of the box there are good deals.