White tigers at Singapore Zoo

Your Singapore trip is not complete without a visit to the national zoo. So, last week we took sometime to spend a day at the popular tourist attraction in Singapore. According to estimate, over 1.6 million people visit the zoo each year.

We learnt during the tram ride that this zoo houses the largest captive colony of orangutan in the world. Our Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation centre in Sandakan may be bigger in terms of number of animal as well as land area but our orangutans are not keep in captivity.

This zoo is very well-kept and is easy to get around.

Note: All pictures were captured with smartphone cam, so, pardon the quality.


Wud be good for safari ride but this one is just for show. Not for rent.



You can purchase your entrance ticket to include tram ride. It helps a lot






On another day, you'll see these orangutan doing their 'Tarzan' swing



You can get pretty close to the giraffes






Inuka the polar bear during a show



Feeding the white tigers is one of the highlights at Singapore Zoo









Quite a crowd at the Splash Safari Show

Top 10 best-selling cars in Singapore (2013)

I was reading my copy of The Straits Times made available to hotel guests during our stay at Festive Hotel Singapore and this caught my attention - for the top 5 best-selling brands, the rank was dominated by European cars, with one Japanese brand in the mix.


3,506 Mercedes cars were sold in Singapore as at end-November 2013. Snapshot: The Stratis Times, December 24


Of the 10 favourite brands in The Lion City, one Korean car maker (Hyundai) made it to the list. Sorry Malaysia, your brands are nowhere in sight here. I'm not questioning why; I'm just reflecting on the popularity of the national cars outside of their country of origin.

To put things into perspective, popular models in Singapore such as BMW 3-series and Mercedes C-class are (for examples) sold at:

BMW 328i Luxury (A) Sedan - S$242,800 (with COE)
Mercedes-Benz C-Class C200 BlueEfficiency 7G-Tronic - S$237,888 (with COE)
[Reference: Oneshift]

In Malaysia similar cars would cost:
BMW 328i Luxury (A) Sedan - RM293,800
Mercedes-Benz C-Class C200 CGI BlueEFFICIENCY 7G-Tronic - RM262,888
[Reference: Cycle & Carriage]


Top 10 best-selling brands in Singapore (Jan-Nov 2013):

Mercedes-Benz	-	3,506
BMW	-	3,295
Toyota	-	3,037
Volkswagen	-	2,729
Audi	-	1,593
Volvo	-	873
Mazda	-	595
Nissan	-	545
Jaguar	-	457
Hyundai	-	444

Proton & Perodua?           -       dream on?

As an example, Proton Preve 1.6 CFE is selling at S$116,000 ( total base price of S$58,000).
Kia Forte K3 1.6 (A) 2013 is selling at S$133,999 (total base price of S$67,000).

From every angle you look at it, Proton and Perodua will take a back seat in terms of number of cars sold in the rich city state. It's the similar case in Brunei.

TheGreenMechanics: While gaining popularity at home, there's still much to be desired of the homegrown car brands with regards to competitiveness and quality in general. Prices are still very high for Malaysian standard of living.

Merry Christmas 2013 from The Green Mechanics

Merry Christmas from The Lion City.

-

Let us make peace with each other,

Let us make peace with the past,

Let us march forward to the future,

With God's grace.

©The Green Mechanics,

Sentosa Island,

Singapore

25th December 2013,

"...And Happy New Year 2014"