Hello from Singapore

Niebelung

Niebelung

New member
Good day to all from sunny Singapore :)

I've been lurking on AF and the AGO forums for some time, so I thought I'd just break the silence and say hi.

I detail a stable of about 5 cars (my family and gf's included), all daily drivers. It's a bit of therapy for me, although the gf can't understand it at all. :)
 
Niebelung said:
Good day to all from sunny Singapore :)

I've been lurking on AF and the AGO forums for some time, so I thought I'd just break the silence and say hi.

I detail a stable of about 5 cars (my family and gf's included), all daily drivers. It's a bit of therapy for me, although the gf can't understand it at all. :)
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welcome! i detail my 3 cars for the same reason. look fwd to hearing abt your experiences on the other side of the world.
 
A quick overview of the detailing scene in Singapore:

1. Cars here are really expensive because of luxury taxes and such; the average corolla runs about S$100,000 (approx. $77,000 USD). A Ferrari 458 is north of a million Singapore dollars (approx. $780,000 USD). Notwithstanding these obscene prices, there are more Lamborghini's per capita in Singapore than any other country on the planet. As a result, most drivers here have daily drivers only, but do take some pride in their appearance. There are no "beaters" in Singapore as regulations mean that most cars are scrapped/exported before they reach 10 years of age.

2. We have cheap immigrant labour by the bucket loads, so there are no "touchless" washes or brush-type car washes. Most service stations have a couple of guys who will hand wash a car for about USD$5, but the technique, wash media and soap is crap so expect lots of scratches.

3. There are detail shops and mobile detail operators that operate in the country, and the good ones charge about $30 per hour of work.

4. Product-wise, the main OTC brands are Megs, Armor All, Polyglaze and Sonax. Some larger stores carry japanese brands like Soft99, while Dodo Juice, Optimum, Duragloss and Zaino are available from specialist retailers. It's still cheaper to import some products from AG and ACC into Singapore though, even with air freight prices.

5. >90% of the population lives in apartment buildings, so access to water is generally through a shared washing bay. I have a Meg's DA, but to operate it I have to run it off a portable generator as the parking structures here have no power outlets.

6. Average temperatures here from 80 - 90F in the shade all year run, with heavy rainfall and humidity of 60%. Most products cure quickly, but I wouldn't drive around after laying a sealant on the car.


That's all I can think of for now =)
 
Niebelung said:
A quick overview of the detailing scene in Singapore:

1. Cars here are really expensive because of luxury taxes and such; the average corolla runs about S$100,000 (approx. $77,000 USD). A Ferrari 458 is north of a million Singapore dollars (approx. $780,000 USD). Notwithstanding these obscene prices, there are more Lamborghini's per capita in Singapore than any other country on the planet. As a result, most drivers here have daily drivers only, but do take some pride in their appearance. There are no "beaters" in Singapore as regulations mean that most cars are scrapped/exported before they reach 10 years of age.

2. We have cheap immigrant labour by the bucket loads, so there are no "touchless" washes or brush-type car washes. Most service stations have a couple of guys who will hand wash a car for about USD$5, but the technique, wash media and soap is crap so expect lots of scratches.

3. There are detail shops and mobile detail operators that operate in the country, and the good ones charge about $30 per hour of work.

4. Product-wise, the main OTC brands are Megs, Armor All, Polyglaze and Sonax. Some larger stores carry japanese brands like Soft99, while Dodo Juice, Optimum, Duragloss and Zaino are available from specialist retailers. It's still cheaper to import some products from AG and ACC into Singapore though, even with air freight prices.

5. >90% of the population lives in apartment buildings, so access to water is generally through a shared washing bay. I have a Meg's DA, but to operate it I have to run it off a portable generator as the parking structures here have no power outlets.

6. Average temperatures here from 80 - 90F in the shade all year run, with heavy rainfall and humidity of 60%. Most products cure quickly, but I wouldn't drive around after laying a sealant on the car.


That's all I can think of for now =)
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Welcome ! I have been to Singapore quite a few times over years but not in the last couple years.

I would add the professionals I worked with there often had their cars washed in the garage under the building where they worked. Yes, it was quite inexpensive to have this done once a week.

In general, I would say the cars were all usually fairly clean due to the climate and the lack of a lot of dirt on the road. Also, you do not see many clunkers since there is an car age limit if I recall. The Singapore government kept the roads in very good condition compared to the US despite all the construction plus the rains usually flushed away the dirt. There was haze at time due to the fires in Indonesia but Singapore has been lucky in the sense of a lack of earthquakes or cyclones.
 
CT3 said:
Welcome to the forums! $77,000 for a Corolla?

Thanks for the background info too.
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The government taxes are based partly upon engine size but the government can also increase or lower fees if it wants to change car sales. The more powerful the engine the higher the tax. Singapore is a small place so the roads are quite often packed and in the main urban area there are special higher taxed zones (electronic tolls) so cars can be a luxury to many but they have ample taxis and a first rate mass transit system so getting around is not difficult at all.
 
Bunky said:
The government taxes are based partly upon engine size but the government can also increase or lower fees if it wants to change car sales. The more powerful the engine the higher the tax. Singapore is a small place so the roads are quite often packed and in the main urban area there are special higher taxed zones (electronic tolls) so cars can be a luxury to many but they have ample taxis and a first rate mass transit system so getting around is not difficult at all.
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I guess I'd probably make use of that first rate mass transit system then. Thanks for explaining it to me. I didn't know any of this...now I do!
 
mwtaco said:
wow. clearly a different scene. where do you wash your car?
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For a hose n bucket wash, my parking structure ("multi-story carpark" in the local parlance) has a card operated dispenser... about 10 gallons for 25cents. Normally I lug down a bucket of ONR from my apartment... and thus I'm a firm believer in the one bucket method for ONR :)
 
Heya Chris. Welcome to the forum and thanks for sharing some background details. It's always interesting to get a glimpse into how things are someplace else. And, yeah, I'd probably be into the "one bucket method" too if I had to haul it from the apartment to the carpark!

-J
 
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