COE Bidding - May 2026

[Bmxcar]

May 2026 - COE Bidding

New COE quota from May to July 2026

1st Bidding: 4 May - 6 May 

2nd Bidding: 18 May - 20 May

 

Event happening:
The Car Expo (9-10 May)

Edited April 25 by Bmxcar

[ER-3682]

Wow Cargod @Carbon82got Fired by MyCarForum's Admin for not doing his Job.?

[Wildfaye29]

Very seemper

Cat E will be used to supplement Cat A registrations

Upcoming 1st May bid will dip slightly 

This is engineered by the car dealers for the upcoming car expo the weekend immediately preceeding the 1st bid

To create promotions and to lock in orders using a 'now or never' situation

The remaining 5 bids will go up because the orders collected will be spread over the next 6 bids

@Tianmo wash for 1st bid because it will work this bid! wahaha

[Tianmo]

On 4/26/2026 at 11:12 AM, Wildfaye29 said:

Very seemper

Cat E will be used to supplement Cat A registrations

Upcoming 1st May bid will dip slightly 

This is engineered by the car dealers for the upcoming car expo the weekend immediately preceeding the 1st bid

To create promotions and to lock in orders using a 'now or never' situation

The remaining 5 bids will go up because the orders collected will be spread over the next 6 bids

@Tianmo wash for 1st bid because it will work this bid! wahaha

Cat B maybe will correct a little, Cat A looking at the backlog I think wash until car change color also is up only.

 

 

[Daniu82]

On 4/26/2026 at 12:20 PM, Tianmo said:

Cat B maybe will correct a little, Cat A looking at the backlog I think wash until car change color also is up only.

 

 

Cat B this round up $1, maybe next round drop $1. Cat A can only go up with so many cars in this category. 

[SGCM928]

On 4/26/2026 at 5:52 AM, ER-3682 said:

Wow Cargod @Carbon82got Fired by MyCarForum's Admin for not doing his Job.?

What fired by MCF admin? I think he promoted to EM (Emeritus Moderator) liao, another way of saying he has retired from the role.

I wish him well in his retirement life.

 

On 4/26/2026 at 12:44 PM, Daniu82 said:

Cat B this round up $1, maybe next round drop $1. Cat A can only go up with so many cars in this category. 

And not forgetting this, most likely due to the cut and fill approach started 2 years ago (and we are only seeing the impact now.)

COE quota: Cat A falls 2%, Cat B rises 7% for May to July (https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/transport-logistics/coe-quota-cat-falls-2-cat-b-rises-7-may-july)

Now every brand are rushing to roll out cat A model while quota is shrinking, don't really need to second guess where are we heading in the near term.

[Ghgan]

Really meh? 

If you look at past COE trend from 2010, 2020, 2021 COE supply lower than 2024 - 2026 ,  but the price of the COE is a faction of today prices. Mean what? market imbalance? 

April 2026:

Category A (Mass Market): $123,010 (driven by EV crowding).

Category B (Luxury/Large Cars): $121,001 (driven by traditional demand).

The mass market category is now officially more expensive than the luxury category. This is the smoking gun. It proves that the market is no longer driven by natural supply and demand, but by the distorted bidding power of EV dealers who are financially insulated by rebates and strategically crammed into the lower category.

https://coe.sgcharts.com/

[Benarsenal]

I think the more pertinent question should be, who are these people who are actually buying?

Most certainly I don't think it is the average Singaporean.

I suspect the current demographics of car buyers suggests they are not the typical car buyers we know of before.

[Mkl22]

On 4/29/2026 at 9:00 PM, Benarsenal said:

I think the more pertinent question should be, who are these people who are actually buying?

Most certainly I don't think it is the average Singaporean.

I suspect the current demographics of car buyers suggests they are not the typical car buyers we know of before.

Eh? Quite some here have recently bought. I guess they are not the average Singaporean cause FULL CASH! 🤣

[inlinesix]

On 4/29/2026 at 8:53 PM, Ghgan said:

Really meh? 

If you look at past COE trend from 2010, 2020, 2021 COE supply lower than 2024 - 2026 ,  but the price of the COE is a faction of today prices. Mean what? market imbalance? 

April 2026:

Category A (Mass Market): $123,010 (driven by EV crowding).

Category B (Luxury/Large Cars): $121,001 (driven by traditional demand).

The mass market category is now officially more expensive than the luxury category. This is the smoking gun. It proves that the market is no longer driven by natural supply and demand, but by the distorted bidding power of EV dealers who are financially insulated by rebates and strategically crammed into the lower category.

https://coe.sgcharts.com/

Cat A & B has to be bid under owner name.

Would dealer bid more than agreed amount?

[inlinesix]

On 4/29/2026 at 9:00 PM, Benarsenal said:

I think the more pertinent question should be, who are these people who are actually buying?

Most certainly I don't think it is the average Singaporean.

I suspect the current demographics of car buyers suggests they are not the typical car buyers we know of before.

The market is flush with liquidity. Just look at property new launch

[Benarsenal]

On 4/29/2026 at 9:24 PM, inlinesix said:

Cat A & B has to be bid under owner name.

Would dealer bid more than agreed amount?

Dealers will 'guide' buyers as to the preferred price to bid to obtain COE.

If you ask for too low dealer will just tell you cannot get.

[Ghgan]

On 4/29/2026 at 9:24 PM, inlinesix said:

Cat A & B has to be bid under owner name.

Would dealer bid more than agreed amount?

From AI

The Evidence: How You Are Forced to Pay

Strategy How It Forces You to Pay More

Rebate Shield
Rebates allow dealers to bid higher. Higher bids raise the clearing price for everyone. You pay the inflated price.

Category Flooding
EVs crowd Category A by detune power out, driving mass-market COEs to luxury prices. You cannot avoid this by "downgrading."

Urgency Trap
Artificial deadlines create panic buying. High demand prevents price drops. You buy now out of fear.

📉 What Is Happening Now

The situation is evolving. With the Iran war and the $40,000 rebate has been reduced. The PARF rebate for petrol cars has been cut. A major review of COE categories is underway.

However, in the April 2026 bidding rounds, dealers continue to submit bids that far exceed available quotas—ensuring the backlog of demand remains and prices stay high.

🛠️ Your Options as a Buyer

Bid for your own COE - You can bypass dealers entirely. Individuals can bid via ATMs. This removes the dealer markup, but you still compete against their aggressive bidding.

Wait for category reforms - The government is reviewing COE categories. Changes expected by end of 2026 may separate EVs into different categories.

Time your purchase - Avoid bidding periods immediately before incentive deadlines, when panic buying peaks.

The fundamental issue remains: as long as rebate-shielded dealers dominate the bidding pool, COE prices will reflect their bidding capacity, not market clearing prices in a neutral system.

 

Then again the big whale from middle east might come in SG in truck load, and push up the COE, meanwhile the rest with limited budget have to suck thumb and wait it out or go in with wide eyes open.

Edited April 30 by Ghgan

[inlinesix]

On 4/30/2026 at 1:12 PM, Ghgan said:

From AI

The Evidence: How You Are Forced to Pay

Strategy How It Forces You to Pay More

Rebate Shield
Rebates allow dealers to bid higher. Higher bids raise the clearing price for everyone. You pay the inflated price.

Category Flooding
EVs crowd Category A by detune power out, driving mass-market COEs to luxury prices. You cannot avoid this by "downgrading."

Urgency Trap
Artificial deadlines create panic buying. High demand prevents price drops. You buy now out of fear.

📉 What Is Happening Now

The situation is evolving. With the Iran war and the $40,000 rebate has been reduced. The PARF rebate for petrol cars has been cut. A major review of COE categories is underway.

However, in the April 2026 bidding rounds, dealers continue to submit bids that far exceed available quotas—ensuring the backlog of demand remains and prices stay high.

🛠️ Your Options as a Buyer

Bid for your own COE - You can bypass dealers entirely. Individuals can bid via ATMs. This removes the dealer markup, but you still compete against their aggressive bidding.

Wait for category reforms - The government is reviewing COE categories. Changes expected by end of 2026 may separate EVs into different categories.

Time your purchase - Avoid bidding periods immediately before incentive deadlines, when panic buying peaks.

The fundamental issue remains: as long as rebate-shielded dealers dominate the bidding pool, COE prices will reflect their bidding capacity, not market clearing prices in a neutral system.

 

Then again the big whale from middle east might come in SG in truck load, and push up the COE, meanwhile the rest with limited budget have to suck thumb and wait it out or go in with wide eyes open.

From Chatgpt:

Bottom line (clean version)

• COE prices are high because demand exceeds quota, full stop.
• Dealers don’t “force” prices up—they compete aggressively to secure sales, which amplifies demand.
• Rebates and promotions increase buyers’ willingness to pay, indirectly pushing bids higher.
• EVs play a role in Cat A pressure, but they are not the dominant cause.
• Dealers generally do not exceed your agreed COE bid cap—that’s governed by contract.

[Ghgan]

On 4/30/2026 at 1:55 PM, inlinesix said:

From Chatgpt:

Bottom line (clean version)

• COE prices are high because demand exceeds quota, full stop.
• Dealers don’t “force” prices up—they compete aggressively to secure sales, which amplifies demand.
• Rebates and promotions increase buyers’ willingness to pay, indirectly pushing bids higher.
• EVs play a role in Cat A pressure, but they are not the dominant cause.
• Dealers generally do not exceed your agreed COE bid cap—that’s governed by contract.

Ha, the data already shows the total number of bids received in a COE bidding exercise is often lower now than in 2019, even though prices are much higher. This seems counterintuitive, but it reveals a fundamental shift in who is bidding and why. 

For what is worth, I think you are much cheaper to take over Ah Siow role who just kick the COE framework down road and save tax payer some $$$ on ministar pay package. 

[inlinesix]

On 4/30/2026 at 4:09 PM, Ghgan said:

Ha, the data already shows the total number of bids received in a COE bidding exercise is often lower now than in 2019, even though prices are much higher. This seems counterintuitive, but it reveals a fundamental shift in who is bidding and why. 

For what is worth, I think you are much cheaper to take over Ah Siow role who just kick the COE framework down road and save tax payer some $$$ on ministar pay package. 

If I take over, Altis will be in Cat B🤭

Similar to property market, there is just a lot of liquidity.  Just look at the new launch.

There are a lot of Singaporeans who can afford $200k Cat A car.

 

 

Edited April 30 by inlinesix

[Alfc]

Property, car, lifestyle, children. Same $ spread over these, no prizes for guessing which one get prioritized, or given up. 

[Ake109]

On 4/30/2026 at 4:47 PM, inlinesix said:

 

There are a lot of Singaporeans who can afford $200k Cat A car.

 

 

There are a lot of _residents_and_companies_ who can afford a 200k car.