My father tells me a story of a man who won a helmet in a raffle.
As people were congratulating him, the man became sad.
When asked why he was sad, the man said, “Now that I have a helmet, I should buy a motorcycle. Once I have a motorcycle, I should install a basket and some motorcycle accessories. So the helmet was not really free. Sure the helmet is free, but everything that comes with it is NOT.”
The same goes with buying a car —
Even if it was gifted, you still have to pay for:
- Gasoline: This costs us ₱2,000-3,000 for a full tank
- Driver’s license and car registration
- Insurance: Our car costs us ₱15,000 annually
- Maintenance: Change oil, add performance
- Accessories: Alarm, led lights and what not
- Parking space: ₱50 per entry if in the mall
- Parking space at home: ₱2,500 to ₱5,000 monthly if you have to rent
What’s more, since you have a car, you have no excuse not to drive your family and friends dueinf the weekend.
The price of a car is not only the price of the car itself. Once you buy a car, it’s like buying a liability. While there is an initial euphoria of owning a car, you will be like a frog immersed in boiling water, being killed day by day.
To be honest, I don’t drive.
So I always get driven around by others in their own car.
I don’t pay for all the stuff car owners have to pay for.
I grab all the time which is still way cheaper than buying a car
Yes, it’s great to buy a car. But it SUCKS to own one. Remember this when someone gives you a car.
Some cities we don’t need a car others we do. I will never dare drive in Manila. I’ll have a heart attack! But here in northern Cali , it’s a must unless you live in San Francisco
Thanks for leaving a comment.
Definitely! If you’re in LA, you need a car. However, in Manila, you really don’t. What’s more, a car takes a huge chunk of your income. What’s better than a car? Finding a place that’s closer to your place of work. That way, you don’t have to commute long in a vehicle. 🙂
True
A car is definitely a huge liability. I used not to have one…until I married one of those Filipinas who cannot even walk around the block. I remember while in my wife’s barangay people would rather flag down a tricycle or use their own sasakyan than walk 300 mt to the palengke
Filipinos do not have a habit of walking. We would rather drive or ride than to walk. Which is a bit of a pity because I used to walk a lot in Hong Kong and Taiwan, and managed to keep a better figure. That’s why we get fat quite easily. We eat too much pork, don’t like to exercise, and take a car everywhere!
That’s uncomfortably true. Here in Europe people walk a lot more and often there is no alternatives as bus stops are usually hundreds of meters if not kilometers away from home and using a car is too expensive and often unpractical