Downgrade Car To Opc Or Not?

[latitude 0]

I currently have a 28 months old "normal" car (drive anytime of the day). After I moved into my new place I Nov 07, I have stopped driving to work cos there is a SBS Premiere bus service which brings me right in front of my office in 20mins.

Recently I was wondering if its worthwhile to have the "normal" car, since I only use it on weekday nights and weekends. I was thinking of downgrading to Off Peak Car, partly to lower monthly installments and lower road tax too.

what are my options? Must I sell the car, and buy a OPC car? There are not much savings in converting the car to OPC. Anyone to share similar experience? Thks!

Edited July 13, 2008 by latitude

[Starscream 0]

1. Driving a car should mostly be a lifestyle decision and not a financial one cause it does not make any financial sense.

2. LTA or Onemotoring.com is your best friend with regards to your query. Oh well, here's some info dug us just for you.

Vehicle Related Matters > Off-Peak & Weekend Car / Private Hire Car Scheme > Off Peak Car Scheme

Q: Can I use my OPC during the restricted hours?

A: If you wish to use your OPC during the restricted hours, you will need to display a valid $20 supplementary licence.

You can purchase the supplementary licence from the following places during their office hours:

* Automobile Association Of Singapore

- 336 River Valley Road, Tel: 6333 8811

- 2 Kung Chong Road, Tel: 6333 8811

* Any Singapore Post Office

* LTA office at 10 Sin Ming Drive, Singapore 575701

Q: What are the differences between Off-Peak Car and Normal Car scheme?

A: The Off-Peak Car (OPC) scheme was implemented on 1 October 1994 to replace the WEC scheme. The OPC scheme offers new and existing car owners the option to save on upfront car registration and road taxes in return for less usage of the cars.

Q: What are the documents I need to re-register my normal car to off-peak car?

A: Bring the following documents to LTA to effect the conversion:

* Form R10 - Application For Conversion Of Vehicle;

* Current road tax disc;

* Valid insurance certificate covering the road tax period of 1 year from the date of conversion;

* Periodic inspection certificate (if applicable);

* Original NRIC (for Singaporean, Singapore Permanent Resident and Malaysian) or passport (for foreigner other than Malaysian) for individual owner. If the owner is a company or a business, the original NRIC (for Singaporean, Singapore Permanent Resident and Malaysian) or passport (for foreigner other than Malaysian) of the authorised person from the company or business must be presented;and

* Original NRIC (for Singaporean, Singapore Permanent Resident and Malaysian) or passport (for foreigner other than Malaysian) for authorised representative if the registered vehicle owner/authorised person is not present at the time of application.

Q: What is the penalty for not displaying a valid supplementary licence when the OPC is used during the restricted hours?

A: It is a serious offence to use an invalid or a tampered supplementary licence. Offenders can be fined up to $10,000 or $20,000 and/or imprisoned up to 12 months for using an invalid or a tampered licence respectively during restricted hours.

*More details on OPC Scheme are available on the LTA Corporate website.

Q: When can my OPC be used freely on the roads?

A: You do not need to display a supplementary licence if the OPC is driven on Sundays, Public Holidays and during the following non - restricted hours:

Weekdays 7:00pm to 7.00am

Saturday and Eve of 5 Public Holidays* 3.00pm onwards

*New Year, Lunar New Year, Hari Raya Puasa, Deepavali and Christmas.

Q: When will Weekend Cars be automatically converted to normal cars?

A: The Government has previously announced that the automatic conversion of Weekend Cars (WECs) to normal cars (NCs) would be effected when the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) scheme is implemented island-wide. This is expected to take place beyond year 2000.

Phase 1 of the ERP, which was completed in Sep 98, involved the automation of the Area Licensing Scheme (ALS)/ Road Pricing Scheme (RPS). ERP Phase 2, which started in Sep 99, involved only another cordon outside the Central Business District (CBD). The current coverage of our ERP system thus cannot be considered island-wide.

Beyond Phase 2, ERP will continue to be extended to other parts of Singapore where and when traffic congestion levels become unacceptable. The pace of this expansion will depend largely on the travel pattern of motorists and the traffic situations after ERP Phase 2. It is therefore not possible to determine at this point in time the exact implementation schedule of island-wide ERP.

Owners of WECs will be given ample notice of the date when their WECs can be automatically converted to NCs.

Edited July 13, 2008 by Starscream

[Phantom 1]

"Driving a car should mostly be a lifestyle decision and not a financial one cause it does not make any financial sense."

That statement alone is very good advice. =)

[yoongf 11]

http://www.lta.gov.sg/motoring_matters/mot...mes_offpeak.htm

Can directly convert from Normal to OPC.

Driving a car in Sg is truly a lifestyle decision, and not a financial one.

My view is that the current cost structure is more on operating costs, rather than ownership cost. regardless of registration, petrol, insurance, maintenance still cost the same.

Therefore, if can afford it, keep the registration. The enviromnent is also getting volatile, maybe the premium service after 6 months the operator say not viable, cancel the service or reroute, maybe got baby on the way, maybe got better offer at another location. If can spare the $, I rather keep options open.

[MaCe 3]

if got no problem with the loan. might as well sell the car.

[NiVleK 0]

That is the same problem I am facing too. As I bought a car due to work purpose and lifestyle, was single and going out everytime and everywhere, and need to travel from east to west for work.

Now I shifted to within 10km from work and married. So I was thinking for very long on whether I should just sell the car...now still thinking...having a car is really just pure luxury and buying convenience at a high cost. But everytime I think about squeezing in public transport, waiting for cab irks me. But the savings if I sell the car is enormous!!!

Haiiii

[junxian 0]

That is the same problem I am facing too. As I bought a car due to work purpose and lifestyle, was single and going out everytime and everywhere, and need to travel from east to west for work.

Now I shifted to within 10km from work and married. So I was thinking for very long on whether I should just sell the car...now still thinking...having a car is really just pure luxury and buying convenience at a high cost. But everytime I think about squeezing in public transport, waiting for cab irks me. But the savings if I sell the car is enormous!!!

Haiiii

for a person "who never own a car" point of view ( me )

public transports in Singapore still quite O.K , but just don't expect the bus move faster cause you are in hurry/ expect no train failure cause its peak hours etc.

[NiVleK 0]

Yeah I know. I got take bus before la...Just sort of got used to just going down, open car door and drive away.

Was also considering the probability of upcoming baby, need to send wife to see doc every now and then, then got kid, things to carry in the car rather than pack so much things and travel everywhere with it, blah blah

My wife just said I am pampered and cannot live without the car la...giving excuses...LOL

[junxian 0]

Yeah I know. I got take bus before la...Just sort of got used to just going down, open car door and drive away.

Was also considering the probability of upcoming baby, need to send wife to see doc every now and then, then got kid, things to carry in the car rather than pack so much things and travel everywhere with it, blah blah

My wife just said I am pampered and cannot live without the car la...giving excuses...LOL

In this case , IMO better keep the car, my colleague who just have a newborn, need regular trips to hospital, childcare, parent house etc... its very ex to take cab

[zirhk3355 1]

what are my options? Must I sell the car, and buy a OPC car? There are not much savings in converting the car to OPC. Anyone to share similar experience? Thks!

The only financial differences between OPC and normal cars are the upfront ARF rebate and road tax discount. If you convert, you do not get the ARF rebate in cash; it will be given only when the car is deregistered. So you only get road tax discount, which IMO is not worthwhile financially.

But if you are considering to sell the normal car and buy another OPC car, then you will have substantial savings. However you would probably lose money by selling your car now, so that has to be factored in as well...

[mi lOr 0]

hi there, i'm also facing the same dilemma as yours.

now that i've married and moved to my new house, mrt is just minutes away. parking at office is not free either. since then, i've stopped driving altogether and take public transport to work. my car now resides with my parents who use it only once or twice a week. well, i only use it when i need to carry heavy stuffs.

after calculations, i actually find that its not very worthwhile to convert to opc for used cars. if you do a trade-in for a new opc car, you will probably have to re-finance the loan again which is undesirable in my opinion.

anyway i do have the intention of selling mine probably within a year, unless i find a new job which needs me to drive because of the distance and time savings.

[junxian 0]

wrong post

Edited August 5, 2008 by junxian

[wonderlee 1]

I'm on the opposite of this thread, opc (manual) wanting a nc (auto) cos my workplace is more far away from my new house