Off-Peak Car Sales Hit Record Highs
More people than ever are now opting for OPCs
By The CarBuyer Team
SALES OF OFF-PEAK Cars have accelerated exponentially this year, with Motor Traders Association of Singapore (MTA) members putting 2,943 OPCs on the road in the first half of 2005 alone, more than the 2,711 units for the whole of 2004.
In percentage terms, OPCs made up 5.6 percent of MTA’s new car sales in H1 2005, compared to 3.0 percent last year and a mere 1.2 percent in 2003.
Since the fixed $17,000 upfront rebate on OPCs represents the biggest percentage savings on cheaper cars, it’s no surprise that the budget Korean brands dominate the OPC market. Hyundai is the clear leader here – its cars accounted for 49.5 percent of all OPCs registered in 2004, although its market share has slipped slightly to 45.9 percent this year.
The Matrix is Hyundai’s most popular OPC model, with more than one in four units sold in H1 2005 being registered under the scheme.
Kia’s 1.1-litre Picanto is another favourite among OPC buyers, mainly because it is already one of the most affordable cars in Singapore. It cost as little as $38,999 with COE earlier this year, which meant that an OPC would have set its buyer back just $21,999 – effectively a huge 43.6 percent discount. Although Toyota has figured in the top three OPC brands for the last three years, it has been overtaken by Nissan this year. Now that the Sunny is retailing at lower-than-ever prices (the range starts at just $52,500 with COE), those who have always wanted to own a Japanese 1.6-litre family car are taking the plunge. Nearly nine out of 10 Nissan OPCs sold in H1 2005 were Sunnys.
Most people in the industry expect the OPC trend to continue as long as COE prices remain low. “I think OPCs are here to stay,” said Marcus Ang, the general manager of sales at Hyundai distributor Komoco Motors to CarBuyer. “Buyers, especially the younger ones, are beginning to realise that it’s a logical and practical way to own a car.”
WHO’S BUYING? An OPC owner’s profile
SO WHO EXACTLY is leading the emerging wave of Off-Peak Car buyers? According to the motor trade, first-timers who might not have looked at owning their own set of wheels if not for the $17,000 discount on an OPC form a large part of the buying pool, along with retirees, who are frugal with their spending, and yet cherish the freedom of having personal transportation – when they need it. Common to all OPC buyers, however, is the pragmatism which leads them to the sensible conclusion that perhaps it’s less than necessary to have a car on standby all the time.
Lee Wan Ting is a perfect example. Although she currently drives a Honda, the 30-year-old accountant is awaiting delivery of her Off-Peak Toyota Vios.
“I have a vehicle with me but I mainly use it for going to work and coming back from work,” she says of her current usage pattern. “Cost-wise, an OPC has more benefits than a normal car.”
Ms Lee says the decision to switch to an OPC was also helped by the fact that she lives close to her office. “I’m staying quite near where I work, and there are private buses which take me from my door to Shenton Way,” she explains.
Though she’ll have to cough up for bus fare, not driving to work will save her as much as
$300 a month in season parking. With her journey to work taken care of, when the Vios arrives it will be pressed into service for recreational use. “I’ll drive it definite mostly on Saturdays and Sundays, and then on weekdays when I go off to the gym, or when I come back from work and go out again,” she says.
Another plus? She’ll be able to drive the Vios across the Causeway. “I do visit my mum in Malaysia quite often,” she says.
The only time she’ll be using public transport, in other words, is for her daily journeys back and forth from work. Having calculated that the Vios should cost her between $300 to $400 a month, Ms Lee obviously believes an OPC is a smart way to enjoy car ownership without having to pay through the nose.
So much so, in fact, that even her next car might have a red number plate. “If things remain status quo, then yes, I think an OPC is the way to go.”
