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Hi all My SE is going to charge me $80 for installing visor on my Latio. Do you think 80 is worth it for visor to be installed at TCM? Or would it be better for me to get it installed at outside car workshops? For those who got their visor from TCM, any complaints or you feel like it is not worth the money? Pls advise. Thank you

Contest from 1st Dec 2012 till 31st Dec 2012 Take part in our monthly sgCarMart contest by answering questions about Goodyear tyres in the month of December and stand a chance to win one of two Seiko Watches worth $595 each. More details here : http://www.sgcarmart.com/contest/index.php#contest_second To view video reviews on Goodyear Tyres, click here.

Izit worth to buy 7 series with high omv for 07 cars? With current coe very high depreciation, many 2007 cars, high omv and low depreciation. http://www.sgcarmart.com/used_cars/info.ph...975&DL=1242

Contest from 16th Dec 2012 till 15th Jan 2013 Take part in our sgCarMart contest by answering questions about Parrot ASTEROID and stand a chance to win one Parrot ASTEROID Smart worth $899. More details here : http://www.sgcarmart.com/contest/index.php#contest_second

Hi, All My wheel (Cat B) is reaching its 10th yr nxt Jun. And dun think COE will come done in the next 2yrs (end 2014 maybe). Bcos I had spent great efforts & loads $ to maintain the car, it still looks brand new inside out (yes, how stupid of me). I dun mind about the price of car body, but rather the $ to put it on the road for use . . . . Please advice on a step-by-step guide to obtain the open COE for the abovementioned? Does it require inspection, insurance etc? Finally, is it worth it ???

Hi all If I were to trade in my honda civic 1.8A, reg dec 2007 (saw prices about $56k-58k), what would be a worthwhile 2nd hand vehicle in its place in the current market? I saw a few toyota allions which are not really my taste. Aside from Japanese vehicles, is a 2nd Audi worth looking into right now? Thanks for suggestions.

With so many strong contenters coming into this market, should we keep our chevy or dump it for something else? I have recently given this some deep thought. (I owned a Optra Jun'05). I check out the following cars 1. Mazda 3 2. Lancer 3 Advante 4 Kia Forte 5 Altis, Axio I was told my Optra is only paper price and that is $22K. I bought it at $59K 3.5 years ago. So the depreciation is 10.6K per year!!! Question, why do I need to change to 1 of the above car? Better performance? It is new? Cheaper? Frankly, not true. It is just the trend that is making my mind working hard to play catch up. My Optra is serving me well.

Signed up for a Singtel broadband package and was given a Galaxy S3. If top up $198, can get the Galaxy S3 LTE. Is it worth it? Besides the colour scheme and 4G, any other difference?

I just bought a 7 year old Vios normal plate.... road tax until next year Feb. Was thinking since I am not driving to work and only fri evenings and weekends night out with gf... should i change to OPC and receive $1100 rebate from LTA every 6 months? Since the price of normal and OPC car is almost the same... I bought the normal plate instead.

i am quite amazed by ppl who goes around singapore or website asking for the best exhcange rate to foreign currency. I never do that as i don change in millions. i am not sure if it is worth the effort or going to a further place just to get that extra few cents worth. what is your take?

$808,080 HDB sale hits the roof By Benson Ang Just how much are people willing to pay for an HDB flat? Mr Freddy Choo paid $808,080 for his executive maisonette in Tampines. Worth every cent, he said. The price includes a whopping $168,080 in cash over valuation (COV). That's among the largest COVs paid since the financial crisis in 2008, said real estate agents. One of the previous reported highs was about $200,000 for an HUDC flat in Shunfu. It was sold at $1.1 million in July, 2010. Mr Choo, 46, said he was willing to pay a premium as his new home was renovated just five years ago and came fully-furnished. The real estate agent had come across the unit, on the eighth storey of Block 146, Tampines Avenue 5, in April. The 150 sq m flat is two bus stops away from the Tampines MRT station and Tampines Mall. Mr Choo said it was valued at $640,000. The median resale price of executive flats in Tampines was $640,000 as of the second quarter of 2012, according to HDB's website. The father of two said the final amount - $808,080 - was also an auspicious number. It is the highest price paid for an executive HDB flat in Tampines in the past year, according to HDB's website which shows transacted prices. Mr Choo is married to another real estate agent, and they have a daughter, nine, and a son, 13. Mr Choo said his family had previously owned a condominium penthouse in Geylang, which he sold for $1.4 million. To pay for his new place, Mr Choo has taken out a 24-year loan of $560,000, saying: "You can always earn more money. "But it's not easy to find a suitable flat which you can call home." "I searched for a month and looked at six units before I decided on this one." The block is about 600m away from St Hilda's Secondary which Mr Choo's son attends. His daughter, Schermaine, attends the nearby St Hilda's Primary School. She said: "I can walk to school in 10 minutes. There's also a park, shopping mall and playground nearby for me." Mr Choo's family was also drawn by the extensive renovation to the unit. He said the previous owner had spent $200,000 and had fittings such as a water feature in the living room, and glass banisters. And Mr Choo claimed the owners left behind furniture worth $100,000.Some of the furniture they included a custom-made bed, Japanese-style tabletop and a Swarovski crystal chandelier worth $3,000. They also left electrical appliances like a flat-screen TV, fridge and speakers. Said Mr Choo: "They were also a Singaporean family who upgraded to a condominium. They initially wanted a COV of $240,000, but I managed to bargain down." The previous owners could not be contacted as Mr Choo said he does not have their telephone number. The transaction was approved in May and Mr Choo's family moved in two weeks ago. He said: "All my friends who have seen my place say it is worth the amount I paid." Good buy? Mr Albert Lu, key executive officer of property firm C&H Properties, told TNP: "On the surface, the figure definitely looks like a lot. "But if what Mr Choo says about the renovation and furnishings is true, it is actually a good buy." Most flat owners, he said, spend under $100,000 on renovations. "For someone to spend $200,000, the renovations would have been very 'high-class'." Mr Mohamed Ismail, chief executive officer of PropNex, agreed. He said: "In this case, the transaction seems value-for-money, considering the value of the renovation and furnishing the previous owner left behind." COVs have exceeded $160,000 before, said Mr Ismail. For example, he encountered two such flats - one in Yishun and another in Jurong East - in 1996. Indeed, it was previously reported that resale prices had hit a high in 1996, with the median COV going as high as $42,000 in the third quarter of 1996. Since the economy recovered after the 2008 financial crisis, it is possible for some COVs to have returned to such "spikes", Mr Ismail added. Mr Chris Koh, director of property firm Chris International, said Mr Choo's case is the largest COV transaction he has come across since 2008. It was previously reported that in 2007, some home-owners were asking for COV sums of more than $150,000 in certain mature estates. "But if the flat was well-renovated and well-furnished, as claimed by Mr Choo, I can understand why he agreed to pay such a large amount of COV." Half of all flats sold are renovated, he estimated, but only about 20 per cent have good furniture for buyers to use, he said. "Most owners tend to bring their furniture along with them when they move out." Only about 5 per cent of all flats can command such high COVs, he added. All three did not think this case was reflective of housing prices in general. Mr Koh said: "This is a resale flat, which is more expensive than a Build-to-Order (BTO) one. "The BTO flats are still affordable, and there are many schemes to help young couples get these flats quickly." For example, a four-room flat in Tampines Alcoves and Tampines Green Terrace - BTO projects launched earlier this year - was reported to cost $292,000. Mr Ismail warned that the transactions like Mr Choo's are "one-off" and are not reflective of general prices. He said: "It would not make sense to pay such large COVs for flats which do not have comparable furnishings and renovations." COVs have fallen to an average of $25,000 island-wide, he noted, so buyers should exercise caution before paying large amounts over valuation. "They should also remember that if the property market corrects itself, like during an economic downturn, whatever COV you pay will mean nothing."

Contest from 1st July 2012 till 31st July 2012 Take part in our contest by answering questions about the Explorer GPS Add-On Module in the month of July and stand a chance to win attractive prizes worth up to $1,175. More details here : http://www.sgcarmart.com/contest/index.php Proudly sponsored by http://explorer-gps.com

hey guys, would appreciate some help in this, newbie car buyer. went to test this car at this dealer. car was quite decent condition except knocking sound from suspension when at low speed. dealer offered me 43000 if i fix suspension myself. 3 owner car and milege 81000km. can i know if price is worth it for a 3 owner car? i intend to drive for maybe 2-3 yrs http://www.sgcarmart.com/used_cars/info_ph...amp;CUR=2#photo

Contest from 1st June 2012 till 30th June 2012 Take part in our contest by answering 3 simple questions and stand a chance to win 3M

Just saw that Vectra has a 1.8 MTA version. Any bro test-drove it yet ? Very tempted to try it. That kind of money can only have the Astra a while back.

Contest from 1st May 2012 till 31st May 2012 Take part in our contest by answering 3 simple questions and stand a chance to win Pioneer Audio Products worth up to $967 (3 prizes in total). More details here : http://www.sgcarmart.com/contest/index.php

what is our worth as NSmen? recently I received my Good Service Medal (5 years). However what saddened me was that, i received the medal through postage mailing. I was thinking what could have been happened that resulted in postage mailing? Is it because an NSF screwed up the job or was it the norm? So do I conclude that our worth is only as good as postage mailed medal?

Since new car will be rising higher and higher, do you think we should buy COE car? This worth considering Porsche Boxster Tip 1997 ?

Hi, Would like to buy an used car with low mileage. Considering buying an OPC (4~5 years old) and convert it to normal. Is it worth doing so? Regards, Cheuman

Critical Illness as we all know can bankrupt families. Do you guys have any CI coverage? If yes, to what age and what kind of coverage? I'm currently reviewing my plan, does it makes sense to extend coverage to 99 or 100 years? Or just cover till 60 then after that rely on MediShield?

Hi, Would like to buy an used car with low mileage. Considering buying an OPC (4~5 years old) and convert it to normal. Is it worth doing so? Regards, Cheuman

any bros to share their experience with this shop ? is the groupon worth the buy? $88 bucks + $50 for MPV.. seems quite cheap hor http://www.groupon.sg/deals/deals-near-me/...-499-/715925590

Just saw the 328 and 335 officially inducted into SGcarmart with prices starting from 234K for the 328. So far no new car has caught my attention this year but this pair with decent performances may just do the trick. Anybody think they are good buy? Prices are still however a bit steep though.

http://www.sgcarmart.com/used_cars/info.ph...172&DL=1004 What are the hidden cost? Parts expensive?? Monthly only $849?? $47.8K for a Feb 2005 car??

Man to fight for share of tycoon's estate 24 Feb 2012 Straits Times A SINGAPOREAN man will get to fight for his share of a dead tycoon's HK$6 billion (S$970 million) estate, even though he was not named as a beneficiary in the will. Hong Kong judge Azizul Suffiad held on Monday that Mr Lionel Lau, 38, had provided sufficient grounds to prove that he was the tycoon's biological son - he was born out of wedlock - to get a copy of the will to start his probate fight. Probate is the legal process of administering a dead person's estate and settling all claims. The executor of the will - the tycoon's nephew - had moved to set aside Mr Lau's court application in Hong Kong for a copy of the document since the latter was not a beneficiary in the will. Malaysian tycoon and philanthropist Lau Gek Poh died in 2008 at age 92. In Hong Kong, he owned 60 per cent of shares in Lei Shing Hong, a firm with businesses in Vietnam, Korea and Singapore among others. His assets in the company were worth HK$6 billion. He also had other assets in Malaysia, Singapore and elsewhere. He is survived by his Malaysian wife Khoo Geuh Noi and their daughter Vivian Liew. The court was told he had a longstanding relationship with a Madam Lum Sook Chun, who gave birth to Mr Lau in 1973. The latter filed his Singaporean birth certificate in court which he said entitled him to get a copy of the will and take advice to ensure the estate was properly administered. The will executor claimed that Mr Lau had failed to prove he was the biological son of the tycoon. He pointed out there were two birth certificates, one showing that Mr Lau was born in Singapore on Dec 4, 1973, and the other indicating that the birth took place a day earlier in Sabah, Malaysia. There were also discrepancies in the spelling of the name on the certificates. He added that Mr Lau had two passports - one Singaporean and one Malaysian. But the court accepted that the Chinese surname could be spelt as Lau or Liew in Singapore and Malaysia due to different dialect pronunciations. It noted that the tycoon's daughter was called Vivian Liew. Mr Lau confirmed that he was not born in Sabah and that the detail in the Malaysian birth certificate was incorrect, but he pointed out that the will executor had always been aware he was the tycoon's natural son. He had worked for the tycoon's business empire and the latter had always introduced Mr Lau as his son and Madam Lum as the wife. Mr Lau further provided details of his upbringing, schooling and addresses where he lived with his mother and the tycoon. The latter had bought two houses in Singapore in Upper East Coast Road and Jalan Lateh in 1988 where Madam Lum used to live. It also emerged that the executor had never told Mr Lau he was not a beneficiary of the estate. The judge held that the evidence showed Mr Lau was the biological son. The judge noted that almost four years had elapsed since the tycoon died and no probate had been obtained on the will by the executor and no steps had been taken in that direction. There was also no indication when the tycoon executed the will or if there was a document that pre-dated the will. These were questions for a court of law to settle and if for any reason part of the estate falls outside the will, then Mr Lau could claim a share, said the judge. He pointed out that Hong Kong laws, unlike Malaysian ones, allowed for an illegitimate son to be a beneficiary, even if he was not named as one in the will. The court ordered the will to be produced within eight days. Lawyers for the executor are appealing next week for the order to be stayed.