Singapore Car Guide: Green cars on Singapore roads

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Green cars on Singapore roads
By: Goh Mei Yi
Published: November 18, 2006
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Trees and shrubs planted along the roadsides, on road dividers and just about everywhere else give our island a verdant hue. Things are looking even greener now, thanks to more petrol-electric hybrid cars on the roads. This boost is thanks to a bigger tax break for green vehicles that came into effect in January 2006. Hybrids are also looking more attractive with rising pump prices.

The tax rebate for green cars is equivalent to 40 per cent off the vehicle’s additional registration fee (ARF), the main tax for cars. When the rebate was first offered in 2001, it was only half that amount.

Three petrol-electric hybrid cars are in the local market: the Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid which debuted in the middle of the year, and the more recent Lexus RX400h.

The price of going green

Hybrids cost more than conventional cars because of the technology involved in putting them together. But with the higher rebate, lower yen, falling registration taxes and COE premiums, the prices of Japanese hybrid cars have come down to a more competitive level since they were first introduced in 2001.

In a Straits Times article on Oct 9, it was reported that a new Civic Hybrid costs around $78,000 and the Toyota Prius $84,888 (with COE). Compare this with the first-generation Civic that sold at around $120,000 in 2002 and the Prius ($106,000 in 2001). The luxury hybrid the Lexus RX400h costs $169,000 after the green rebate; the standard RX350 costs $150,888.

Paradoxically, smaller hybrid cars require more compact technology and are more costly to develop. As a result, it is easier to introduce petrol-electric hybrid technology in larger models.

More than 100 new hybrids have been delivered here since May. Both Honda agent Kah Motor and Toyota distributor Borneo Motors have reported many more bookings in hand.

These cars appeal mainly to those who are environmentally conscious, so they are still considered a relatively new niche market. It may not be easy to get the less environmentally-savvy general public to change its mindset about paying more for what seems like the same car, but we have to make a start somewhere.

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