Which car/Suv should I buy

[C_J]

Hi,

I'm trying to figure out which Japanese  car has the most comfortable seats. I like to have a sofa like sitting experience, which Premio offer as most of you already mentioned.

Is there any better alternative?

Edited December 3, 2023 by C_J
Thread went on a different direction, hence changed the title

[iRage]

4 hours ago, C_J said:

Without renewing the car license? I doubt it. 

Oh..they even rent out unregisered cars that they bring. Example....back in 204ish when I was looking for a Mark X a few car sales had unregistered Mark Xs for sale which were imported a few years earlier. However, they had been running as there were pictures of one as a wedding car on FB and then the other the mileages didn't add up from what the inspection certificate was and what the meter said (at least they hadn't forged the certificate and the meter). The guy just simply claimed that the car was just transported from their yard to a few their car sales locations (ok..nearly 5000km ?).

[iRage]

1 hour ago, Gummybr said:

Call me biased but I loved the seats in my old P11,

Exactly what I said in the beginning...Nissan seats are amazing. The new ones have the latest Zero-gravity tech but the old ones have hints of early development of the tech.

I too agree with the Teana, but going to be hard to find. If found...probably would be much cheaper than the Premio/Crown for a whole lot of car.

[C_J]

1 hour ago, iRage said:

Exactly what I said in the beginning...Nissan seats are amazing. The new ones have the latest Zero-gravity tech but the old ones have hints of early development of the tech.

I too agree with the Teana, but going to be hard to find. If found...probably would be much cheaper than the Premio/Crown for a whole lot of car.

If it's hard to find the car, I'll have a harder time finding spear parts 😑

[iRage]

11 minutes ago, C_J said:

If it's hard to find the car, I'll have a harder time finding spear parts 😑

Not necessarily. Most were imports from the agent (CHOGM cars) and agent should be able to source parts. Older models were from Singapore and Japan.

Yes..it wont be as easy as the Premio/Allion but it won't be any more difficult than a Crown or Audi.

A search in the quick site shows 1 that was posted 3 days ago. You don't have to buy it or even think of buying it. But just go take a look. It will be a good comparison as to what you can get from another brand for a lot less money than a Premio.

Edited September 21, 2023 by iRage

[Gummybr]

1 hour ago, iRage said:

I too agree with the Teana, but going to be hard to find. If found...probably would be much cheaper than the Premio/Crown for a whole lot of car.

Yes the thel hinganna crowd stays away from them so prices are lot less for much more of a car. Everyone told me the Primera will be a disaster when it comes to sourcing parts and resale. Never had that issue during the time it was with me.

[C_J]

1 hour ago, iRage said:

A search in the quick site shows 1 that was posted 3 days ago. 

You mean ik***.lk right?

All of them are pretty old with huge mileage. I'm trying to find a car as latest as possible

[iRage]

39 minutes ago, C_J said:

You mean ik***.lk right?

All of them are pretty old with huge mileage. I'm trying to find a car as latest as possible

Uhh..2013 (which is newer than the Crown you were opento purchasing) with 104,000km.

If it was a brand new import and maintained at the agents and properly done so, that mileage might actually be more honest than the mileages of the Premios and cars like it that you will be looking at.

100,000 is nothing if the car has been taken care of (similarly even a car with 46,000km might be a nightmare if not properly taken care of). Do not fool yourself in to believing that most of these popular models actually have original mileages (they forge documents all the way from Japan to service records in SL after altering mileages...for a Premio it usually starts with sticking the fake G Superior badges, original G Superiors were only 2L models with a very few limited run of actual 1.5L and 1.8L dealer optioned packages that got a G superior badge). Isn't it strange that most of the Premios, Allions, Axios etc show mileages less than what it should be even if they have been registered and used for 8 to 10 years ? Its almost like they bought the cars to just keep them parked in garages.

Edited September 21, 2023 by iRage

[C_J]

16 minutes ago, iRage said:

Uhh..2013 (which is newer than the Crown you were opento purchasing) with 104,000km.

If it was a brand new import and maintained at the agents and properly done so, that mileage might actually be more honest than the mileages of the Premios and cars like it that you will be looking at.

100,000 is nothing if the car has been taken care of (similarly even a car with 46,000km might be a nightmare if not properly taken care of). Do not fool yourself in to believing that most of these popular models actually have original mileages (they forge documents all the way from Japan to service records in SL after altering mileages...for a Premio it usually starts with sticking the fake G Superior badges, original G Superiors were only 2L models with a very few limited run of actual 1.5L and 1.8L dealer optioned packages that got a G superior badge). Isn't it strange that most of the Premios, Allions, Axios etc show mileages less than what it should be even if they have been registered and used for 8 to 10 years ? Its almost like they bought the cars to just keep them parked in garages.

I couldn't find a 2013 on ik***.lk or reya******.com

maybe it was already gone. 

[iRage]

2 minutes ago, C_J said:

I couldn't find a 2013 on ik***.lk or reya******.com

maybe it was already gone. 

I searched on the quicksite just a few hours ago.

[Gummybr]

19 hours ago, C_J said:

I couldn't find a 2013 on ik***.lk or reya******.com

maybe it was already gone. 

There are still two for sale. Maybe you can use the balance money to pump fuel and enjoy all that luxury.

[iRage]

48 minutes ago, Gummybr said:

There are still two for sale. Maybe you can use the balance money to pump fuel and enjoy all that luxury.

Messed up isn't it ? A car that falls into the same category as a Camry (and slightly below a Crown) is nearly 3-4 million cheaper than a Premio !

[C_J]

My bad, I was searching for Primera. You meant this right? Nissan Teana 2.5 XV 2013. Sorry about that @iRage

It has 2 Sunroofs as well, I will definitely check this one. Thanks for bringing it up @Gummybr

[Gummybr]

You could also look at a Sylphy, there is one for sale at A*W a 1.8l as well 2014 registered in 2017. Good price as well compared to equivalent Toyota's. 

[iRage]

38 minutes ago, Gummybr said:

You could also look at a Sylphy, there is one for sale at A*W a 1.8l as well 2014 registered in 2017. Good price as well compared to equivalent Toyota's. 

If you are referring to the model in the pic...

Comfortable..yes...but one thing I do not like about this particular Sylphy is the build quality. Even at the Nissan dealership...a car with 16km...the panel gaps were off (it was different in each car), the gearbox felt rubbery. 

But it did look nice..and was comfortable.

 

[Gummybr]

6 hours ago, iRage said:

If you are referring to the model in the pic...

Comfortable..yes...but one thing I do not like about this particular Sylphy is the build quality. Even at the Nissan dealership...a car with 16km...the panel gaps were off (it was different in each car), the gearbox felt rubbery. 

But it did look nice..and was comfortable.

 

Yes thats the model.

Here I was thinking Nissan sorted those issues with these models. Nothing like the build quality of the 90s then.

[C_J]

So, we checked a few cars these days like Premio, Crown, Teana, Civic, A3, CHR, CRV, Outlander etc.

My family is leaning towards a SUV now, particularly CR-V 2018/19. I was searching the forum gathering all info you guys shared earlier about the CR-V.

Do you think it's overpriced these days at 18M onwards for 2018?
 

[iRage]

4 minutes ago, C_J said:

18M onwards for 2018

 holy #$%& $h!z

[sathyajithj99]

6 hours ago, iRage said:

 holy #$%& $h!z

And it's not for the highest grade either. Here in SL people prefer 7 seater FWD Australian version (VTI -L) over VTI-LX which is AWD, 5 seater highest grade.

And there is a JDM version known as Masterpiece which is AWD 7 seater with teak interior bits and brown leather seats which is quoted for crazy prices like 22 million .

[Dee Jay]

6 hours ago, C_J said:

Do you think it's overpriced these days at 18M onwards for 2018?

Anything and everything in SL is overpriced at the moment. Originally these CRVs landed in SL back in the day when they were brand new for around 10-11 million.. So, considering the current market prices it is in line with every other vehicle model on sale.. 

[iRage]

10 hours ago, C_J said:

Do you think it's overpriced these days at 18M onwards for 2018?

The question is do you think it is overpriced? and that the price you are paying is not going to be returned to you in terms of what the car can do? are you sure that paying 18M is worth for what you want from the car ?

Obviously, some people think it is reasonable....so the answer lies within you.

[C_J]

On 9/17/2023 at 5:06 PM, iRage said:

..... Premio. ........prices are simply and absolutely not worth it.

You had a strong opinion about Premio, seems like you don't have the same opinion about the CRV, maybe indicating it's worth it if someone can afford it.

I can comfortably afford 23M for the highest grade but I'm considering my options and valuable advice from well-experienced members of this forum. 

I'm trying to understand 'Master Piece ' options. Do you think the following has all the highest grade options?

The following is advertised for 23.6M 

YOM 2018 - YOR 2019 
CRV JAPANESE MASTERPIECE FULLY LOADED MODEL 7 Seater 
MILEAGE: 34,000km
CHERRY RED COLOUR
SEVEN SEATER 
CRUISE CONTROL 
PADDEL SHIFT 
ORIGINAL GATHERS DVD PLAYER 
ORIGINAL TYRE SET
WELL MAINTAINED 
COMPANY SERVICE RECORDS AVAILABLE UPTO NOW 
ACCIDENT FREE
FOOT RACK INSTALLED 

 

Another for 22.8M
 

🔖 Honda CRV Master Piece Japan Highest Spec
🔖 Manufacture 2018
🔖 Registration 2019
🔖 36000 Km Done (GENUINE MILEAGE) 
🔖 All Service Records are Available 
🔖 Maintained BY STAFFOD MOTORS 
🔖 1st Owner 
🔖 7 Seater 
🔖 Dual Panoramic Sun Roof with Both Tilt And Open 
🔖 Rear Electric Tail Gate Open & Close With Kick Boot Opening (Gesture Control) 
🔖 Teak Panels 
🔖 Black and Teak Full Leather Interior
🔖 Both Side Electric Seats & Memory Seat
🔖 Adaptive Cruise Control
🔖 Paddle Shift
🔖 Electric Parking Brake with Automatic Brake Hold 
🔖 Dual Zone Climate Control 
🔖 Adaptive LED Head Lights
🔖 Safety Auto Brake 
🔖 Lane Departure 
🔖 Lane Keep Assist
🔖 7" Inch TFT Color Touch Screen Display
🔖 8 Speakers
🔖 Reverse Camera with Guidelines
🔖 Reverse Camera with Guidelines 
🔖 18" Inch Alloy Wheels 
🔖 Seat Warmers 
🔖 Automatic Rain-Sensing Wiper 
🔖 Led Daytime Running Lights 
🔖 Turbo Charged 
🔖 CVT Transmission 

 

[C_J]

We went to check the 22.8M CRV (2018) today but instead ended up checking the Audi Q7 (2011) which was parked right behind it. It was a QUATTRO S LINE 3.0L TURBO, brand new imported one with 82,000km for 17.5M. 2nd owner. It was so feature-rich, has a moonroof even for the 3rd raw 😂

@fiat fan I get your point now, we were amazed at all the extra features we get on euros. We checked A3, A5 and few Mercedes & BMW as well. I might end up with an Audi after all 😁
 

[iRage]

13 hours ago, C_J said:

You had a strong opinion about Premio, seems like you don't have the same opinion about the CRV, maybe indicating it's worth it if someone can afford it.

My opinion about paying 14m for a Premio stems from the fact that even a 2018 Premio is based on early 2000 tech and is pretty much the same car as a 2008 but with safety equipment retro fitted (which doesn't give it the highest safety scores). So for that price there are much better alternatives for at much better price points. <Sure..plenty of cars like the Land Cruiser and HiAce are based on 20year old tech..but the value propositions of these cars are totally different. Also...these cars too have the badge tax as the Premio..>

As for the CR-V, you are truly getting a modern vehicle. New tech. New Platform. IMO a 19M CR-V would be better than a 14m Premio. But then I also don't think that a CR-V is worth that much...

4 hours ago, C_J said:

 I get your point now, we were amazed at all the extra features we get on euros. We checked A3, A5 and few Mercedes & BMW as well. I might end up with an Audi after all 😁

See that is the thing...for 23M what do you expect ?

Do you want brand image? TBH if I fork out 23M on a car...I would want to feel special. Which a CR-V or Premio wouldn't cover. At those prices I would at least look into a Lexus if I want a Japanese car (I personally don't find the appeal for Audis, BMWs are too wankerish and at my age I would much prefer an elegant Merc..but sadly most of the ew ones are way too bling for me).

Yes...the Euros would offer a much better brand and driver experience.  However, Euros...no matter what does require a bit more pampering as they get old and require being diligent in terms of maintenance from day one. It has always been the case. So you need to go into it with that mind set. A 10+ year old below to about averagely maintained Euro can be a bit fussy over a Japanese car (only hitch is most Japanese cars are simply thrashed).

Now...a personal rant....none of these cars are worth a single Rupee you spend beyond the price they were probably 5 year ago (even then it was ridiculously over priced thanks to the taxation). Even the Euros.

[C_J]

9 hours ago, iRage said:

Now...a personal rant....none of these cars are worth a single Rupee you spend beyond the price they were probably 5 year ago (even then it was ridiculously over priced thanks to the taxation). Even the Euros.

Sadly, that's something we have to live with if we choose to stay in SL. So I guess, it comes to just pay & buy it, if you can comfortably afford it, as everything is overpriced these days anyway.

I hate to help the inflation by buying an overpriced car but in my case, I'm car-less for a few years now as I had to sell my last car with the economical downtime. Was using in-laws car all this time & now it seems the time to move on. 

[C_J]

@iRage I just came across a brand new 2016 Mazda 3. Only 270Kms on the Clock. The quoted price is 11.5M on the quick site. Feels like I can ride for a couple of years trouble-free. 

I also see 2013 Benz C220 with 100,000km to 120,00km going for around 12M to 12.5M.

If trouble-free maintenance is the main concern, would you recommend  2016 Mazda 3 over 2013 Benz C220?

What do you think has the best value for the money spent from above 2? (for a budget of around 12M).

Thanks