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http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/transport/manhattan-motor-in-turf-city-shuts-down-car-buyers-may-lose-tens-of-thousands-of?utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&xtor=CS1-10#link_time=1512106715 Manhattan Motor in Turf City shuts down, car buyers may lose tens of thousands of dollars Manhattan Motor closed shop after leaving more than 20 buyers without cars which they have paid for. SINGAPORE - The names have changed, but the story is the same. Another motor firm has closed shop after leaving more than 20 buyers without cars which they have paid for. Manhattan Motor in Turf City, a sole proprietorship owned by used car dealer Lee Kum Kuen, had sold the cars to several buyers in the last month or so, collected the money, but did not transfer the ownership to the buyers. The finance or leasing companies which the cars are still registered with then proceeded to repossess the cars. Dentist Daniel Chan, 34, was among those affected. He bought a used Volkswagen Tiguan in November and collected the car on Nov 6. On Nov 15, he tried to renew road tax for the car, but could not. He contacted the Land Transport Authority, and was told that the vehicle had not been transferred to him. The car has since been repossessed, and Manhattan has closed shop. Asked why he did not buy from authorised agent Volkswagen Centre Singapore, which has a used car division, he said: "I didn't want to spend too much on a car. The (Manhattan) price was right. I did an internet search on the company and there were no bad reviews. "I've bought two used cars before, and never had a problem," he added. He bought the six-year-old car for $70,000 and paid $50,000 in cash. Volkswagen Centre Singapore said it does not have a similar car in stock currently, but estimated that one would cost around $50,000. Police said they have received "more than 20" reports from consumers regarding Manhattan Motor. "We are looking into the matter," a spokesman said. Auto Lease Pte Ltd, one of the companies that repossessed the cars sold by Manhattan Motor, had already towed back seven cars. "Four are still at large," said director Anthony Lim. Mr Lim said such cases have become "very common". "You don't need a licence to be a motor dealer," he said. "Buyers just have to be vigilant." The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) said it has received 14 complaints against Manhattan Motor since January, with 11 filed in the last two weeks. Executive Director Loy York Jiun said: "The complaints were primarily about the lack of transfer of ownership of the car to the consumer's name. "Some consumers feedback that despite having made full payment to the car dealer, their cars were repossessed as payment was not made to finance company. "Case is of the view that collection of payment by the dealer with no intention to fulfil their obligations under the contract is highly unethical and it is an unfair practice under the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act. Consumers can seek recourse under the Act." But Case noted that “options are more limited in the event where a business ceases operations”. Manhattan Motor has not been contactable. Happening more and more often these days. Im sure its hurting all the other Parallel Importers as people lose faith in smaller dealers. what do you think can be done to stop this?

Hi I am the adminstrater for nissan latio forum. http://forum.thelatioclub.org/index.php Due to the fact that our forum will end at this april. I am considering to extend it but due to the low numbers of active members. I seriously need some ideas on how to further enhance the forum. Any ideas?

Just back from Malacca over the weekend, heard from the street vendors there that the government is shutting down Jonker Walk. But the street vendors will still operate there next weekend there despite the shut down notice.

http://www.tremeritus.com/2014/03/12/famous-nasi-padang-restaurant-at-zion-road-shutting/ Famous nasi padang restaurant at Zion Road shutting March 12th, 2014 | Author: Editorial The famous nasi padang restaurant at Zion Road. (Photo: ST) The famous nasi padang restaurant at Zion Road, River Valley, will be closing down on 28 March 2014. It has been selling nasi padang at River Valley since 1957 i.e. more than half a century. It moved to its current location at Zion Road in 1998. It is popular for its beef rendang, curry chicken and sambal sotong, among many other dishes. Last December, it was given a one-year lease and rental had gone up by $1,000 to $11,000. The restaurant owner said, “The landlord said that he can ask me to leave with just three months’ notice. So maybe he has a better deal with other people.” The owner revealed that currently they can only earn enough to “break even”. He does not rule out moving to a smaller place with lower rental. He added, “We have already asked our staff to look for other jobs. If it’s God’s will, we may reopen somewhere else. But for now, we want to take a break.” The owner also cited lack of manpower and high food costs as other factors for closing down. In fact, the restaurant had moved to its present location from the unit to its immediate right (as one faces it) about 10 years ago. It moved because the previous landlord had raised the rent to an unbearable level. The previous landlord then rented his shop to another nasi padang restaurant. When the famous nasi padang restaurant moved next door, it placed a sign in front of the new premises to indicate that it was the original, famous nasi padang restaurant, so that returning customers would not patronise the wrong nasi padang restaurant. The nasi padang restaurant that had taken its place did not do well and closed soon after. Now it looks like even the famous, original nasi padang restaurant has fallen prey to high costs and will be closing down. Meanwhile, a 99-year residential site in Yishun reportedly drew a record bid of $278.8 million from EL Development at the close of a state tender yesterday (11 Mar). The bid was higher than expected and a record for the area. EL Development’s bid for the 221,239 sq ft parcel works out to $450 per square foot (psf) per plot ratio (ppr). This is higher than the range of $390 psf ppr to $431 psf ppr that consultants had earlier predicted. OrangeTee research said that it is a historical high for a purely residential private plot in Yishun, with the previous record being $406 psf ppr in August 2010 for a land parcel that has been developed into The Miltonia Residences. EL Development plans to build 600 to 660 condominium units on the plot. Despite the high price, a property consultant said, “Developers are mindful of the changing tides and softening of the market.” Consultants estimate a break-even price of $925 psf to $940 psf for the site and a selling price of at least $1,000 psf.