{"id":49,"date":"2006-08-10T07:07:14","date_gmt":"2006-08-10T12:07:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wp.jiinjoo.com\/?p=49"},"modified":"2006-08-10T07:07:14","modified_gmt":"2006-08-10T12:07:14","slug":"should-i-buy-a-car-in-singapore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.jiinjoo.com\/?p=49","title":{"rendered":"Should I buy a car in Singapore?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\nMy first car – 96 Honda Civic 1.6<\/span><\/div>\n

To car or not to car?<\/p>\n

I mean to buy car or not? Buying car in Singapore (or in Malaysia) is, to the average joe (ah beng?), as big a decision as buying property and getting married. Compare – in US, the cost of a new sedan is probably equal to that of 6 months a fresh university graduate’s salary, here, it’s 2 to 3 years.<\/p>\n

I’ve always wanted to get back my mode of transport in the states when I came to Singapore, but I decided to reacquaint myself with the public transport first, something that I missed taking. Recently, the pace of life and the variety of activities that I participate in started making large demands on my time, and time is something I always want control of (even more than my money that is…) Riding on a variety of MRT, buses and taxis, I found the inability to take charge of my life frustrating. I mean, 3 hours wasted on a Sunday because you have to return a book to the library, perform in the middle of botanical gardens, and then meet a friend for dinner? Why should I take 1 hour to work everyday, and 1 hour back when the distance of Braddell Hill and Bedok is like 15 minutes drive (as shown to me by cab drivers) minus getting in and out of car parks?<\/p>\n

Perhaps I’ve come to a point of mental irrationality. Wait, first, let me list down the list of cold water that I’ve gotten from surveying people that I socialize with:<\/p>\n