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Thanks for the suggestions guys. Prius is out for me due to several reasons. Firstly, it is out of my budget, which is 3.3M max with the possible initial repairs, registration, insurance, etc. So I cannot spend more than 3.1 - 3.2 for the car. Secondly, this will be driven by my wife, who is new to driving (may herne protect us!?). And thirdly, I need to park daily at a place with minimal space, so a lengthy car would be a bit troublesome. And fourthly, as iRage mentioned, this is only for a short period, and I would prefer if the car does not depreciate by a large margin within 1-2 years.

No. That circular is issued regarding the luxury tax. If the mentioned conditions are fulfilled, the luxury tax could be waived off. (There is a time limit for LC opening, which I cannot remember) The permits are still transferable. But rumors are that after the election, the permits would either be cancelled or will be made non-transferable.

Thank you, that seems like a good option. Will definitely have a look.

Yes, I have realized this is a රැවුලයි කැඳයි දෙකම බෑ situation. I'll try to list them in order. 1. Gasoline. Automatic or Triptronic. After 2010. 2. A mid size car (sizes in the range of aqua or the fit), possible to park in limited spaces, and easy to driven by wife. And not too small, should have some boot space. 3. Fuel efficiency - not too bad, 8-10kmpl in city limits is ok. 4. Not requiring heavy maintenance, meaning the time consumption as well as cost. 5. Hopefully not too boring to drive. Atleast 1300cc engine. I do prefer cars which have a low center of gravity. 6. Resale value is a minor concern, as I will be using it only for a max of 1.5 years. I know that with these requirements, my choices are limited, may be none at all. But hope I can compromise one or two and find a suitable one. Value all your help.

Thanks a lot guys, no matter how much I like it, don't think I will be able to spend that much time due to other commitments to work and family. Guess I will stick to a jap, and will keep looking. Thanks again.

Wouldn't be going through all this trouble if I wanted to buy a vitz or a wagon-R.

Guys, I am still looking for a car and need your help once again. With your advice and other inputs from friends, decided to stay away from hybrids. I need to find small car, but hopefully one with some life.?. The 2010 Peugeot 308 hatch seems promising, and it falls within my budgetas well. However I have not used a Peugeot before, but have heard that maintenance is costly. Please enlighten me on Peugeots... driving pleasure, fuel efficeincy, maintenance costs etc. Thanks in advance.

Yes, ES is a bit too old, wanted to go for something newer. But coming from and ek3, FD1 was my first choice, but it is a bit above my budget. 3.5M is my max, including the insurance and possible repairs of the new one. The decision to change my ek3 was a difficult one, but necessary due to practical reasons. The reason I initially considered aqua was because of the engine, with 1500cc I hoped for the pulling power that I am used to. What ever the other requirements, I dont feel like going for something that would not give that pleasure of driving. This is going to be a difficult decision, I guess I will have to spend a lot of time hunting cars. Thanks a lot to all you guys for the valuable advice. I'll update once I make the change. Cheers.

Really appreciate the valuable advice guys. I am quite ok with korean ones. I had a a look at the rio and cerato, which were within my budget. I have not used kia cars before. (My father had a hatch sometime back, I remember it being a decent car) Are they good? Specially maintenance and reliability? With your advices, I feel it would be better to avoid hybrids, except may be the gp2 or a one of a kind aqua, if there is one.? I did a search for the vitz, and it seems I will have to try hard to find a good 1300cc one. I could not find a 1500cc one. I will keep an eye for them. Any other cars that I should look at? Thanks once again for your time and advive guys.

Yes, I could live with 8-10kmpl in city limits. My ek3 does 10-12 in city traffic. That range would be ideal. I have no experience with hybrid vehicles. What is the correct way to check the hybrid battery? Should I go to the agents? Thanks for the suggestions to guys, I will have a look at the shuttle as well. About the 1300vitz, does it have adequate power? I do like the axela. Should I expect out of the ordinary repairs in a 2010 axela?

Thanks for the advice tiv. Since I would be driving mostly in city traffic, a better fuel efficiency would be an advantage, but being a hybrid is not necessary. Considered aqua mainly because it has a 1500cc engine. I might not be comfortable with 1000cc ones, so opted against the vitz. Any other suggestions for my requirements? And I'm quite ok with brands other than toyota, and resale value is also not a big concern as long as my other requirements are met. I would prefer something after 2010 or so. I considered mazda axela and FD1(although before 2010), but they seem above my budget.

Guys, I am planning to upgrade from my manual EK3, and am looking at buying an aqua, as it suits my budget and other requirements. My biggest concern is the battery. There are some adds saying battery 100% and some saying battery has been replaced. How should I check the battery? Is it a big concern? Anything else to check when buying a used hybrid vehicle? I would value other recommendations as well. Although I would prefer a manual, I have to settle for an auto due to family concerns. Budget is 3 - 3.5M. Prefer a sedan, but a hatch with reasonable space is OK, but prefer to avoid very small ones like the wagonR, etc. Will be driving mostly on colombo city traffic, with occasional long trips. Something reliable as my wife will also be using it. I would also like to have some power under the hood and driving pleasure, but I know I might have to compromise on that due to other requirements and comittements. Fuel efficiency is not a big concern, but a good efficiency is most welcome. Resale value is also a minor concern as I will only be using it for 1.5yrs max. Appreciate if you guys could help me, as you always have!

I think the CHR Koba (australia) may not be affected while the japanese ones are affected. Not 100% sure though.

True that. Me being in the same profession, bought my first car, a 1995 ek3 at 1.6M in 2014 with a loan and still running it (and still enjoing). Now I have 2 permits at hand and trying to sell them so that I can settle other comittements and upgrade to something around 3M. So you my friend, are in the previledged lot! ?

Too late, permits are already screwed!?

Btw, permits are sold around 2 - 2.2 M these days, not sure if buying a permit for that price to get a 2M tax cut is a good business. But I may be wrong as I have zero knowledge of business and finances?

I don't know the finer details, but theoritically with the permit you can import a vehicle of any CIF value and you can get a tax benefit up to a maximum of 3.6M. There are advertisements for Raize with price tags of 3.895M for the permit and 5.895M without the permit. This is because the Raize has a total tax less than 3.6M, so I believe. Hope someone who knows how these tax things work could help.

Guys, what will happen to the vehicle permits under the new government? There are rumours that they will cancel the permits. If they do, will they cancel it before the general election?

Try excellent motors kiribathkumbura, they have helped me several times and they did well.

Guys, value some advice. I am interested in learning about tunning vehicles and basic mechanics, just for my interest. I do not have any exprience in motor mechanics, and know very little of it. Because of my work schedule, I am unable to attend any fulltime or weekend courses. Are there any night time courses to learn this? Are online courses available and if so, is it practical? Are there any other ways to learn this? Thanks in advance.

Thanks a lot for the suggestions and advices guys. Definetely wont be giving it up until I am able to open LC. I have a few worries which makes this decision a bit complicated. 1. My car is almost 25 yrs old now and has been needing some running repairs which seems to be increasing in frequency recently. So will it be better to go for a newer one considering the possible cost of probable repairs? (already I could spend north of 2k if I had the money!!! I become a bit selfless when spending for my car!) 2. I am due for the permit in September according to the new circular. Will the value drop even further by that time? Definitely not a kei car bro... I'd rather go for a 30yr old proper car. I enjoy taking an evening ride on my own just to relax myself... last week drove along hantana for 2 hours because the day was stressful at work. I am not going to give up that hapiness!?

First of all, I am sorry if I offend anyone here by asking this and I hope I am not breaking any forum rules, and please pardon me for the very long rant. I know very well that the permit is given for the relevant officer to buy a vehicle and selling it is unethical. Having said that, I would like to be blatantly honest and discuss the real life situation. I have been in the government service for 6 years and I am eligible for the permit now. I do not have a rich family background I have bought my first car (a manual honda ek3) with a loan, which I am still paying back. Although I am due for the permit, I do not have any savings to buy a vehicle and too many loans to get another vehicle loan. If I had enough money, I would certainly buy a dream car ( a manual one again with a good motor!) But given the real life situation, I would like to make the most of it without letting the permit go to waste, to pay back my loans as well as my fathers which he took to educate me and go for a slight upgrade of my car. My current options as I see them are, 1. Sell the permit for the market value, pay back theloans (close to 1.5mil), and either i. to go for a repair and some upgrades to my current car. ii. sell my car and go for a slightly better car iii. sell my car, take another small loan and go for a bit better car. 2. Import a car for the permit, sell that car and go for either i, ii or iii above. If I go for option 2, i need to find the money to import a car by selling my car and going for another loan to find the balance needed. So, understanding the unethicalness behind this question and hoping you all forgive me, my queries are; 1. Which of the above option is better to get the most benefit? Are there any other options better than these? 2. If I go for option no. 2, is there any other option other than a loan to find the deficit? 3. What would be better, upgrade my beloved ek3 manual vtec or go for an upgrade (I expect it would cost about 4k to repair and upgrade my current car) ? If I should go for an upgrade, what would be the options with my requirements being, i. Manual transmission (or triptronic atleast) ii. Good driving pleasure iii. Acceptable fuel economy (need not be very good, but hopefully better than 5-6 kmpl) iv. Sedan Hope you guys will help me as you all have done before... Thanks in advance.

Thanks a lot guys... Actually the problem turned out to be a very minor and an embarrassing issue. One of the wires coming from the thermostat has got disconnected. Now everything is fine. Thanks for the help guys. Sorry to have troubled you guys for such a minor issue.

Thanks TT. Any idea of someone good around Colombo to take the car to? (Sorry if I'm breaking any forum rulesby asking)

Guys, I have a honda ek3. The radiator fan is coupled to the AC fan (through a relay I think, I'm not exactly sure how it was done), to make the radiator fan to come on when the AC fan kicks in, which was done several years back. For the last few months I noticed the heat going up when stuck in traffic after a long run. No problems in continuous driving, including the highway. Today I realized that the radiator fan works when the AC fan kicks in, but does not work for rising heat when the AC is off. Before going to the mechanic, I would like to know where the problem could be. Aprreciate any insights for this matter. Thanks guys.