Hmm. According to Naza Group head honcho Tan Sri Nasimudin S.M. Amin, Mercedes Benz is now getting popular with youths as young as 22 years old, especially the C and A class (though the source article says E and B class which I seriously think is a misquote), as there are models below RM200,000. These cars are given as graduation gifts, or a present for a child or girlfriend. I wish I was in that social circle, don’t you? Meanwhile on the other end of the social ladder, we’re still trying to cope with the steep hike in petrol prices. Heh, funny.
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
Well, we can't all have a Mercedes when we graduate can we?? Things work differently in different countries and it's not all it's cracked up to be.
Anyway I find it more satisfying to buy the car with my own hard earned money than to be given one knowing more or less that it's never "really" yours.
cbljkkj,
i overheard this some time ago from some college kids (whom i believe had rich parents) while one of their mate said the same thing as u did :
"so what? at least i have one to drive, better than you who dont"
man, i feel like giving some tight slaps to that kid while cursing his parents undr my breath…
pathetic …or its jus naza bulsh**ing ppl in order to sel more cars and make ppl catch on the "trend"….
HatukNgkau
Heard that plenty of times HatukNgkau, when they crash "their" cars they'll go running to their mommies (those that show off lar) Fact is that these people do not even have the know how to earn that kind of money to afford that car let alone think for themselves.
Just remember that you are better than them because you are not a freeloader =)
yea, kids r now vry spoilt……………..their attitude oso fuh tak boleh tahan!!!!
If you live near a college with these bunch of idiots kids driving around, you would go crazy even sooner. Don't adhere to traffic rules, stop in the middle of the road to pick-up friends especially chicks, holding up the traffic behind. Bunch of inconsiderate brats.
Tracks……
i work near 1… :D
in Cyberjaya…..where else???
LIM KOK WING!!!!! hahahahaha……
so many accidents happened before at the traffic light out from there….
once i Witness 1 stupid driver(not sure if its a student…)
turning out from there…without considering giveway to car from other side (which is green light at that moment)
that car besides that moment was my Boss!!!
he personally expressed that so shocked!!!
so….some of them really never treasure….bcoz for them…money is not hard earn….its given and taken….
Wahlaueh…
Get a BEnz as a present… I only afford for the RIMS & tyres…when i graduated….haha…
their slogan "if moneys are the solution, there will be no problem (cantonese)"
but when the car has a problem, they can't even tell u what might it be caused from.
cratzelogy, they dun even know that they cause the car to "kong" , they just tell their parents " this car lousy la, always spoil, buy another better one for me!!!! "
then, those parents will buy, ho ho ho………one of the contributions to the rise of petrol coz so many fuel guzzlers nowadays.
the jealousy here is terrible……*shakes head* hahaha
i agree with the statement that its bullcrap and he's trying to start a trend to a certain degree, but the number of wealthy people in kuala lumpur especially is rising fast, so there may be a grain of truth in it.
when i have kids, i would not "give" them a merc, or other continental car, but i would let them use one of mine, basically giving la, but still considered mine lol…..why? Whether or not they are responsible drivers (which im sure they will be), the matter of fact is you still get drunkards idiots etc on the roads, and i would rather them be safe in one of those european cars rather than a kancil or iswara that dosent even meet basic modern safety standards.
personally i live in london and have no use for a car….hehe public transport here rocks. but when i do get a car, i want to buy it with my own money, and i want it to be a great car cos i dont intend on ever selling my first car!
Initial D, no doubt..i agree to ur statement.
afhstingray, i heard owning a car in london cost a bomb.
(so i heard?!)
Merc are for old men… the design is very classic n timely.
Younger people from late 20s n 30s should take BMW, VW or Audi.
Those around 40s, should opt for Volvo or Merc C Class.
And those above 50s, can opt for Merc E or S Class.
The super rich (and young around late 20s) can opt for Merc CLK / SLK / CLS or any performance-tuned Merc cars from AMG, Kleemann or Brabus. Alternatively, they always go for Alpina (those who prefer BMWs).
However, I find that the current models from BMWs are Bangle UGLY! I rather take the engine from the latest M5 n dump into an older E34 or E39.
Then again, u need loads of cash reserves to play Continentals.
it depends how old you are and what car you are driving and the number of years you have driven because the main "running" cost other than petrol is the insurance. THe worst is if you are a 18-22 year old male wanting to buy a sports car. Cost of aquiring the car is cheap, can get brand new C class merc during the sales for same price as toyota corolla in malaysia hehe..the CLK's are pretty cheap, about 120k ringgit. (yes, mercedes here has sales :| last xmas they were giving free engine upgrade, e.g if you buy E240 you will get E280 etc…)
for college/uni students, they usually opt for a vw golf, polo, smartcar, vauxhall astra, ford KA, and the current favourites the renault clio and 206. Clio's and 206 selling like hot cakes cos stylish and cheap, cfor as low as 11k for the 1.4 models with cd player bla bla. Ford KA is 8k, smartcar 6k.
All those are new prices. Most students here usually ask their parents for those two, or they buy it themselves…second hand prices are great.
you can pick up a 1989 190E merc for 100 pounds, in quite good condition, and a porche 928 will cost around 9-15k
initial D: nowadays with all the gadgetry, a lot of the problems cant be identified even by experienced auto enthusiasts. you have no choice but to take it for a diagnostic. Plus, even though they are rich kids when they get a car it usually becomes their prized posession and they tend to obsess over it lol….so they end up learning lots about it.(believe me i know a lot of them, one of the mayor of shanghai's kids was in my college, and lots of russian oil kids etc) (ok one exception is the kid whose dad owns lithuanian airlines….that guy used to purposely smash 5 series)
dont you guys think the worst drivers are those kids in kancils? (modified with HUGE exhausts and sound like a kriss motorbike without silencer heheh)
they seem to think their car is a macho sports car….
the way these comments are going it sounds like only rich kids in merc's and beemers cause trouble on the road.
Daddy got money… Mercedes might be his weekly salary…. no harm to love his kids so much…..
these poor brats in kancil wana be like those rich brats too… they both cause trouble on the road.
That’s how AP king spend their ‘easy get money’
the koreans are improving their cars a lot very quickly….
for all we know in a few years the sonata can fight with those japanese luxury cars but at lower price…..that will put it in range for a lot of malaysians who want a luxury car.
how much is the current sonata going for? i think its about 150k right?
"Son, congrats on scoring 3rd class for your graduation, with this, I will give u a Merc SLK as a gift for your excellence, i hope u like it son"
"oh thank u papa, but can i have a Ferrari Modena F50 instead? coz I dont like Merc.."
"Anything for u son"
"I love u Papa"
Yeah, I agree. If I had that kinda money to give to child or gf, I wouldn't bother getting a Merc. They are like so meant more for mature people. I'd much rather get an Audi A4 or Beemer 3-series. But not all 22 year old kids who drive expensive continentals (paid for by parents) are dumb or snooty. Some do drive carefully, and take good care of them.
Yeah, agree with u, heybadigol….
In an article i've come across before, a car represents the personality of the owner. Mercs are meant for taukes and uncles above 45 y.o.. Beemer are meant for young, aggressive execs who has 'out-of-the-box' revolutionary thinking/mindset. Audis are also meant for such execs, who either can't afford or hate Beemer. Proton are meant for average malaysians who goes for affordable cars
generally audi's are bought by people who are not really looking to show off, but want the best technology. and thats what audi markets their cars as…..vorchsprung dur technik remember? Forward through technology
its a bit like buying a Smartphone rather than a Nokia……most ah bengs would go for the nokia because its "high class", and a "stylish brand" but people who actually use most of the functions for business etc would go with a Smartphone or a PDA phone
*by saying smartphone im referring to the microsoft smartphone platform like the o2 xphone..
mercedes are trying to get rid of the "uncle" image, that is why the 2003-present e class looks much sportier than its "bulky" "old looking" predecessors.
how come everyone here is forgetting about volvo (haha) i mean the XC90 is a damn good piece of engineering
Eh… I go to Lim Kok Wing osso eh…but in my humble little SLK (Small Little Kelisa lar not Merc) A lot of lansi buggers there, can't stand them…I just wanna kick in their faces.
Oh man, I love the XC90! Lookwise, I prefer the XC90 rather than an X5 or the Range Rover. Looks masculine unlike the other 2 that looks like a box. Ceyenne is too expensive. But the Touareg ABT looks macho!
afhstingray, if I'm not mistaken, they used to give free insurance to certain type/models of cars to certain age group in UK. Is it true?
As for kids driving Mercs, the C-class is fine to me. Put bigger nicer wheels, pimped it a bit, you won't look old driving it. I know one fella who park his pimped C240K next to his faculty's Dean at the school when he was in final year. And mind you, he bought it with his own money! Eh? How can a 24yr old final year student can afford a RM300k+ car?
Not all rich kids are numbnuts who knows nuthing about cars. Some of them do take their rides seriously and passionately. But it is true that lots of them don't/can't appreciate the value of their rides. As it's not them who work hard days and nights to fork out the money to get them their rides. Maybe the parents are bloody loaded. But still the parent(s) works for the money. All these kids knows is, "Pa, I 'need' a car to go to the college. But I want a VTEC" or just simply "Pa, college will start soon, can you get me a Toyota Supra instead of you giving me your Volvo?" "Pa, can I have your suppliment card so that I can use it for petrol (and shopping)?" Heck, you guys go to UIA or UNITEN and see how many kids driving a Porsche or a Skyline.
A bit of jealousy, yeah, but lucky for them they got rich parents. If only they knew how hard it is for the parents to be where they are so that they could give them a proper education, and an easy life too….If only….
aiyooh…
better ask urself this question..
if ur father is super rich… and wants to give u a merc..
do u want to accept it?
A: accept it la.. no harm done wat… it's a gift!
B: decline it.. would rather to take the bus/ride motorcycle/kancil instead (konon2 nak berdikari la)
i have that sorta friend actually.. and it's just a matter of time when reality strikes him
El Goodoo
Don't misintepret the story. Kids with rich parents are fine. What we're rambling about is rich kids with expensive cars that show off. Those are the kind that we despise. Don't take it the wrong way.
I'm still waiting for a young bugger to pimp a Merc. Got lots of money mah…
quote from ukms
Heck, you guys go to UIA or UNITEN and see how many kids driving a Porsche or a Skyline.
are u sure? i ve never seen any there…
flizzardo, when I say that, not necessarily mean a lot. But I did pass a student drive a Porsche in UNITEN back in 1999 when I was visiting my girl there. And there's a female UIA student driving an R32 in….was it 2002? That was when I was a student and have friends who were still students back then. Hey, a friend of mind even get the FTO when he got into University.
All I'm saying is, there's a lot of rich kids around. Only that sometimes some of them did show off and kinda snobbish. While some others are more low profiled or down to earth persons. And some really knows their rides while some….didn't even know what a spark plug is.
By the way, are you a student there, now?
nope but i have few friends who are studying so i asked them ! and they said they have not seen any btw i am studying in mmu and there is a girl driving supra here and some 3 seiries i think about 4-5 students driving !
Seriously speaking, from the sales point of view … this isn't NEW news. Ask any Benz salesman. One guy walks in, buys THREE C-Class Mercs for his three lady friends. And I personally know a man who bought an SLK for eldest daughter, and was considering C-Class for younger daughter, but then she went and asked for MINI Cooper Convertible. He didn't want to get her an 'expensive' car cos he was worried she might wreck it!
flizzardo, maybe they've graduated because I spotted them many years ago. Anyway, you get to see it with your own eyes now that a few of your college mate drove some fancy cars. I'm not making up what I wrote here.
BLITZWAGEN, that guy thinks a C-class is cheap? Ouch! He must be a bloody rich fella. I was thinking of getting a new car. But now since the petrol has risen up, seems like I'm gonna stuck with my Kelisa and my beat up Starlet for another year or two. Sigh! Maybe you could ask that friend of yours donate a car for me lah. Hehehe. Is his daughter(s) single? Hehehe….