In car crazy Singapore, car demand had pushed Certificate of Entitlement (COE) prices sky high and this is starting to take effect on motorcycle COE prices. People who worked hard for many years only to find that they are priced out in the recent COE bidding might be turning towards motorcycles, a category of personal transport often regarded as dangerous.
Recent news reports (Yahoo! News), had people holding their breaths as the authorities decide whether to place the Twizy into the motorcycle or the car category. This decision would have a large impact ($75,000 difference) on the selling price of the Twizy.
Twizy as a motorcycle
Most reports reckon that if placed in the motorcycle category, the Twizy would cost about $25,000, putting it in the same price range as the Chinese made 4-seater Cherry QQ a few years ago. This price range is no longer heard of due to the extreme COE prices. A typical Japanese hatchback costs upwards of $100,000. A $25,000 price tag will likely be a hit with Singaporeans and you can bet that motorcycle COE prices will skyrocket as more people buy the Twizy since they can finally afford a "car" or as a 2nd vehicle for their daily runabouts.
Personally, as an average Singaporean, the Twizy at $25,000 would be the only car that I can afford. My workplace isn't that far from my house and the Twizy's 100km range can take the occasional extra trip to the far ends of Singapore if I needed it to, making it the perfect everyday use vehicle.
Unfortunately, the skyrocketing motorcycle COE will impact the sales of small motorcycles as the COE price may be several times higher than the motorcycle itself. This would be inequitable to the lower income folks as they too will be priced out from their only form of private transport available to them, widening the gap between those who can and cannot afford private transport.
On another note, it would be very strange to make motorcycle learners take tests for motorcycle and then plunge them straight into a twizy.
Twizy as a car
However, if placed in the car category, the Twizy instantly costs a whopping $100,000, immediately eliminating all its advantages and rendering it as an extremely overpriced toy for the rich. Personally, it is likely that the Twizy will be classified as a car because it resembles a car and drives like a car. In UK, this is also classified as a car, however, there is no exorbitant COE to complicate things and it costs about 7,000pounds.
At $100,000, you might as well use the money to pay off your mortgage loan since housing in Singapore is also painfully expensive or you might prefer to top up another $20,000 to get a normal car.
End note
I would really like to see the Twizy be classified as a motorcycle, but that would be selfish to real motorcycle buyers. However, if it does end up classified as a car, then it signifies the state's reluctance to promote any form of private vehicle ownership despite its green credentials.
What most news report speculate is the creation of some subsidy framework to acknowledge the small size and environmental footprint of such cars, which sounds reasonable to me as well. However, my soul is prepared that the Twizy may very well cost upwards of $50,000.
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