[singlepic=1142,250,250,left]We have a decade old Daewoo Matiz (still in perfect condition), that my husband “inherited” from his younger sister when my father-in-law bought her a Samsung car. FIL playing favorites? No, my husband thought he didn’t need a car before. Lately, my husband has been talking about purchasing a new car to take advantage of the government’s tax cut. I was excited but when I asked him which car to buy, he said the same model or a hybrid car. Nye! I love the Matiz but I’d like to try something new, like the funky Kia Soul 🙂 Seriously, the Matiz saves us 50% ALL THE TIME on parking, toll fee and it has great mileage (we can drive about 400km on a full tank). I wouldn’t want a gas guzzler (like my nephew’s Jeep) and a city car really appeals to me since parking is a horror in Seoul, not to mention that there are some streets here that are ridiculously difficult to navigate.
The government announced last May the tax cuts of up to 2.5 million won for replacing an old car or up to 3.3 million for a purchase of a hybrid car. My husband and I both agreed before to replace the Matiz with a hybrid car but only one model is available right now in Korea, the Honda Civic Hybrid. We just might consider this when more models are available.
Hopefully, the government will introduce more benefits for hybrid car owners like less insurance 🙂 We almost always have to check auto insurance quote every year to get the best value for money. It’s easier to do it online though, but we still get flooded with mail from different insurance companies come January.
Oh cars! We don’t really need one in Seoul but we travel a great deal whenever we can.
actually Hyundai released their first Hybrid in Korea several weeks ago (July 8th), the Avante LPi Hybrid. i know cause i just bought one. runs on LPG (50% cheaper than gas). it’s supposedly the cheapest car to operate in the world. you might want to consider it. costs around 21,000,000 to 25,000,000 won.
http://www.hyundai.com/kr/avantehybrid/index.html
hi betchay. i hope you still remember me, i emailed you back in the philippines 2 months ago and now here i am, in korea. we’ve actually been here for 2 weeks now and i’d like to ask you something. i’m going to ask my husband to buy me a car, a second hand car . do you think its a good idea? buying a 2nd hand car here in Korea? or better still a new one? coz honestly i dont want to be cooped in our house while taking care of my 2 kids ,we’d better go outside sometimes while hubby is in the office. My husband just bought a new car and i dont want to burden him with another new one so i’ll be asking for a 2nd hand? is it wise? Do we have to pay a lot for taxes and insurance if its 2nd hand? i need all the info i can get so that i can work it out with my husband if ever, Really, i dont have any idea. thanks in advance for the help.