Slightly Intrepid: Comparing Australian & New Zealand new <b>car prices</b> |
| Slightly Intrepid: Comparing Australian & New Zealand new <b>car prices</b> Posted: 04 Feb 2014 12:44 AM PST Here's another reason not to trust car salesmen - as if you needed one. I've always marvelled at the pricetags New Zealand new car dealerships place on their vehicles, and wondered how on earth New Zealand roads ever see any new cars at all given the comical amounts the dealers ask for new vehicles. Naturally, the dealer's sticker price is the starting point for negotiations, but some of the asking prices are just so ridiculous that you have to wonder at the sanity of those driving away in those new cars: 'You expect someone to pay $54,800 for a Mini?' Admittedly that's for a top-range Mini John Cooper Works, and yes some baby boomers have more money than sense, but that's a deposit on a house! So I've made a quick survey of some common makes and models sold in both New Zealand and Australia, to get an idea of how much prices vary across the Tasman. All prices have been obtained from the car company co.nz and com.au websites. In the table below the Australian prices have been converted into New Zealand dollars at today's rate of AUD 1 = NZD 1.09243. Obviously, the Australian market is five times bigger than New Zealand's, which means there should naturally be much more competition in the Australian market. There's also the difference in per capita wealth, which is quite substantial due in part to the now-ebbing Australian mineral boom and years of modest economic growth in New Zealand. But the scale of the price difference for many models is surprising. When examining the price comparisons below, it's important to note that the New Zealand and Australian prices aren't for exactly the same thing. The comparisons actually tip further in Australia's favour than on first appearances. In New Zealand advertised new car prices are generally exclusive of on-road costs such as registration. But Australian prices are generally full 'drive-away' prices including registration and a year's compulsory third-party insurance. To get a drive-away price from the Australian car websites you usually need to enter an Australian postcode so it can calculate the state sales tax and whatever local registration fees there might be. (I used my Melbourne friends' postcode, 3146). So the Australian prices below include a great deal more for your money than the New Zealand prices.
[Note for any Australian readers: the Qashqai is badged as a Dualis in Australia - sounds like a toilet cleaner if you ask me, but then Qashqai isn't much of a name either. The Legacy is known as the Liberty in Australia, which is a bit American for my liking. I wasn't able to compare the price for the Mini in Australia because the Mini AU site was completely down!] It's clear from these prices that Australian car dealers are much more comfortable offering big discounts to attract buyers. The top two differentials in the list below, the Focus Ambiente and the i20 GL, are both discounted prices. But even for most of the rest of the list, the difference is price is substantial. Perhaps instead of considering importing new cars from UK dealers, which a few have done with encouraging results, enterprising New Zealand buyers could look closer to home across the Tasman for a bargain? At the very least, if you're ever in the market for a new car be sure to look up the Australian price beforehand, and print out the details to show your New Zealand dealer. The explanation should be entertaining if nothing else! See also:  | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Beijing licence plates fetch twice the <b>price</b> of the <b>car</b> on black market <b>...</b> Posted: 03 Feb 2014 11:57 PM PST Some frustrated car owners in Beijing dispense with the licence plate entirely. Photo: Reuters Beijing's clampdown on new car registrations is creating a scramble for licence plates and fuelling a boom on the black market, where prices have soared as high as US$33,000, almost double the price of China's best-selling car, the Ford Focus. Keen to curb pollution and traffic jams, China's capital city instituted a lottery in 2011, where it initially awarded plates to one in 10 people hoping to get a car. This year, Beijing will cut the allocation of new number plates by 40 per cent to 150,000, meaning only one in 150 will get a plate. The long odds have created a thriving black market, even though it is illegal to buy, sell or rent a number plate. Those eager to own a car say they are willing to take the risk. "I participated in every lottery over the past two years but have never won. I'm desperate," said Han Kuilong, an office worker who rented a licence plate last month for 5,000 yuan (HK$6,350) a year. "I live on the outskirts but work downtown. Life is very inconvenient without a car," Han said. The Beijing government's traffic management bureau confirmed that trading in car plates was illegal but did not immediately respond to requests for more details. Lawyers say the government can fine people involved in the transactions and revoke their licences, but the practice is so widespread, it is impossible to police. "Such deals are unlawful," said Yang Lisha, a Beijing-based lawyer. "But many people are in this market, so the cost of enforcement is very high." Beijing resident Zhang Cheng said he has been taking part in the lotteries for the past two years, but his patience has run out, and he is now seeking to rent a plate. An online lottery attracted nearly two million participants for about 25,000 plates to be handed out this month. "The government is depriving us of our rights to enjoy a better life. Instead of restricting car plates, they should build more roads and improve infrastructure," Zhang said. Many people desperately want a car, so we're helping them through financial innovation Wang Shaoyong, sales manager at a Peugeot dealer Estimates of the size of the black market are hard to come by, but a car dealer in Beijing, speaking on condition of anonymity, said his firm rented out nearly 200 plates last year. There are also several websites that carry hundreds of postings soliciting or offering car plates. "Demand has been very hot recently, because winning a car plate through lottery is getting more and more difficult," said a manager at Beijing Sunshine Aomei Asset Management, which says on its website that it buys and sells car plates. Prices have surged to about 200,000 yuan apiece from 120,000 yuan just six months ago, said the manager, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter. Several other dealers quoted similar figures. So far, four other cities – Shanghai, Guangzhou, Guiyang in Guizhou province, and Tianjin – have also implemented car restrictions and more are expected to follow suit. Some cities use an auction system to allocate number plates, while others use a combination of lotteries and auctions. Beijing and Guiyang hand out licence plates only through lotteries. If a car owner in Beijing wants to buy a new car, he or she must cancel the old plate and apply for a permit to get another plate for the new vehicle. These permits allow car owners to bypass the lottery. While many companies are reluctant to publicise their involvement in the black market, some say the permit system allows them to lease out licence plates legitimately. Wang Shaoyong, sales manager at a Peugeot dealer in Beijing, said his shop provides car buyers with licence permits from a partner firm that has many plates registered in its name. Wang said this practice, which he called leasing, is legal. "Many people desperately want a car, so we're helping them through financial innovation," he said. "This is perfectly legitimate." |
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