introducing, Fiona
the driver

law/bba student by day,
team triXie driver by night;
proud owner & driver of fiona 24/7;
evc #152 since 2007;
member of fiat.sg since 2008

more about me

the ride

fiona
opel combo cdti 1.7

performance mods:
1. feline
2. hurricane air filter
3. boost gauge
4. tuning box
5. a'pexi turbo timer
6. boost valve controller

aesthetic:
1. blue led interior (rear)
2. blue led interior (cockpit)
3. curtain (rear)
4. carmat
5. white led map light
6. silver bumper mesh grill
7. infratint tinting
8. phillips x-treme power front bulbs

the plans

1. dyno

the miles

previous tank
travelled: 639km
drank: 39
16.3km/l

the credits

Designer: Sillyclock
Image Hosted by: Photobucket
Brushes:+ + + +
skin taken from blogskins.

the history

September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
May 2008
June 2008
July 2008
August 2008
September 2008

its here!

alright!

the arrival of my new baby, fiona! and because words fail me, here she is in all her black sapphire glory~



a standard low front angle view *is it a trademark triXie shot?


and the i dont know what im doing angle.
isnt she a beauty?

posted on Friday, September 28, 2007 @ 8:04 AM

counting down

financing has been approved and my combo's ETA is: 26/09


i can hardly wait. it is an excitement mixed with trepidation of the huge investment involved. but still, i cant wait to sit in my own ride and start the engine. in another week or less, i will no longer be at the mercy of the public transport demons. :)


meanwhile, COE has gone up by approx 900 bucks and with an impending COE quota cut of 22% for Light Goods Vehicles (LGVs), plus the possible entry of japanese euro IV diesel models, im guessing that COE will move north.


*car geek talk alert*


now, in case you were wondering what COE has to do with me, with me having bought my combo already; the answer is that it affects my resale value. now note that what i am abt to say ONLY APPLIES TO COMMERCIAL VEHICLES. when COE goes up, new vehicles cost more and this leads to second hand dealers pricing their stock more expensively regardless of their COE value. this is because they can charge more and it will still appear relatively value for money. so when i attempt to sell my vehicle, i can bargain for a better price! so unlike cars, which residual value is dependent on its own un-used COE amidst other factors; 2nd hand van prices move up and down with current COE prices while remaining largely unaffected by their own COE value!


*ok. end of geek talk.*


im also thinking of names for my combo. most apparent choice to me as of now is fiona (the name of my mini-z). well, if anyone has any suggestions, do let me know. to inspire you guys, and for the car snobs out there who normally take no heed of vans, here is a pic to show you guys how my combo wld look like. only that mine is in black sapphire of course.



posted on Thursday, September 20, 2007 @ 7:22 AM

neither, it's combo ftw!!!

just as i had my heart set on the go, i remembered maverick frm biz school who drives a combo and decided to drop him a sms. and he strongly advised me to get the combo.

so i popped by to look at the combo with my dad. and boy was it impressive! but nothing was more impressive than the amount of financial commitment involved. at slightly over 43 grand, it was priced in the same league as cars.

then came the lengthy discussion with my parents. while i was slightly in awe of the combo's powess, i still thought it too pricey. ultimately, the safety factor swung heavily in favour of the combo. the abs and 4 disc brakes made it the best candidate, in my parents' opinion. especially since i have never driven anything sans abs or 4 discs brakes on a regular basis before.

and so, in an amazing twist, i am in fact buying the first eurovan i had thought of!

anyway, i have booked the vehicle. here's hoping my financing gets approved ASAP and COE skyrockets tmr!

posted on Tuesday, September 18, 2007 @ 4:40 AM

go or goo?

decisions. decisions. decisions.

after a weekend at dealerships, im stuck with a tough choice.

my heart says the go. frankly, it's not hard to see why. suv-ish looks, cool interior and better proportions. 100cc more. more torque and more power. it looks and goes better.

but my head says the goo. the price is better, longer warranty, it's renault, free labour + parts for the 3 free servicings, 24hr service center. it makes economic sense.

im praying for a miracle this friday, either the goo being a freaking fantastic drive or the SE for the go gives me an irresistable deal. -fingers crossed-

posted on Tuesday, September 11, 2007 @ 6:41 AM

getting up to speed

i did mention i was undertaking a project of massive proportions; literally so, in this case. :p

anyway, the past week's hunt for my ride has been nothing short of a learning experience. here's a quick update on what has taken place, in chronological order of sorts:

1. started out with hopes of purchasing a kangoo with less approx 4 years left for around $10k.
2. hunted down vans on sgcarmart and the papers
3. realised that i ought to research the models and recalled evc forums
4. read and realised kangoo and early models of eurovans are problematic
5. dad decided to chip and help by providing tons of info
6. shelved idea to buy old van and decided to search for 1st hand vans instead
7. decided i really liked looks of combo
8. called the showrooms, found out combo went for $41k!!!
9. combo is out! and found out price for berlingo reasonable - BUT no ABS
10. distracted by low prices of budget cars
11. COE shot up, budget cars are out, new vans prob so too
12. back to square 1. 2nd hand vans - but prob the newer models.

phew. that was a mouthful!

posted on Saturday, September 8, 2007 @ 1:02 AM