[coolguru]

hi scooby5,

Yeah, it makes sense in this as Msia is always later than the worldwide
launch. And usually the older model will come with many attractive offers
before and right after the announcement of new models.

However, the value will drop tremendously like my current car. I didn't do
enough research to know that my current model went out in less than 12
months, sigh...

That's why I'm spending a lot of time to really look into both MINI and
Smart, expecially these two cars are niche!

Cheers.

[scooby5]

Thing is, though, that WITH these niche type cars old or new is less
important when viewing it from solely a "depreciation" perspective.

Niche cars have a far lower rate of depreciation if the car is of a good
quality. They basically become instant classics. I see this with my
Impreza. The new Mini became a classic the day it was launched and i
believe the face-lifted model will also fly off the shelves.

If you think Volvo S40 on the otherhand..... you buy the old one 6-months
before the new one is launched because 1) no research 2) good incentives
to overcome the quicker rate of depreciation 3) really need a car that
week. When the new model comes of this "standard" type of car it's more
costly if you bought the older model just a few months prior. This is
why "old" models are sold off with incentives.

For both Mini & Smart you should be relatively safe from the depreciation
point of view unless....... they both become SO popular they no longer fit
into the "niche" category and this is something you'll need the next few
months to see. It sounds like Smart are selling really well, considering
the price and size, to it's worth waiting and viewing where they fit into
the Grand Malaysian Scheme.

[artois]

Sophia of Da Vincci Code drives a Smart...


anyway... for that kinda money...it's a lot to buy a kereta kartun

[BridgestoneRE711]

when you say mini is goign to have 2006 mini ...
please bare in mind that smart 2006 is on the testing now too ...

its not fair to compare smart and mini ... maybe 1007 can compare with
smart . mini can only be compareable with smart forfour .

[F43]

Agree with "its not fair to compare smart and mini". Totally 2 different
cars.

Just for reading pleasure, chek out
http://news.bbc.co.u...ess/4252679.stm

[rockdandy]

yup, we can only compare mini with smart for four...and DC will probably
bring the 1.3 and 1.5 version in this year..with the price tag of around
112k for 1.5L and 98k for 1.3L...are they using mitsubishi colt`s engine??
i think so...

i`d definitely go for smart forfour instead of mini if the former is
available in malaysia...

[BridgestoneRE711]

whoops .. i miss somthing here ...
not forfour . i mean smart roadster .

in usa .. smart roadster , mini and golf ... .. under one category . and
bmw mini out sold all of them .. and roadster smart sold quite less .

[coolguru]

wow... did you guys see the new MINI Malaysia website? Check it out at
http://www.MINI-Malaysia.com.

I think those are the MINI updated version as read from the recent
newspaper. It surely sounds expensive but it could well worth the price for
a nifty piece of technology!

Cheers.

[Scream]

Get the MINI if you are seriously considering the two. I've driven the
SMART for a whole weekend in London and it seriously isn't a serious car.
The most you can do is go to the shops. Full stop.

[coolguru]

Thanks, Scream!

Yeap, have made my decision to choose MINI Cooper S.

Although it's much more expensive, at the very least it carries a legendary
heritage, lifestyle and quality in comparison to SMART (which Daimler is
about to ditch for never making any money for the company).

Cheers