Bring in the best cars for our dollar

A customer getting his hair cut at barber shop The Golden Rule Barber Co. in Race Course Road.
A customer getting his hair cut at barber shop The Golden Rule Barber Co. in Race Course Road. PHOTO: BERITA HARIAN FILE

Motoring correspondent Christopher Tan's article about the recent dominance of parallel import sales in the car market is both timely and vital in increasing consumer awareness (Life In A Parallel Universe, Life, Sept 5).

A less well-informed buyer may naturally assume that the main agent will have the best car for the money, but sadly, that is not the case.

Many of our distributors bring in cars from the Asean region, such as Indonesia and Thailand.

Others rely on developing countries such as Mexico, Poland and South Africa.

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This should make the cars cheaper, but instead, we find that we can get the cars cheaper from parallel importers who bring in cars from Japan and Germany, which come with better equipment.

I hope that such articles can push authorised dealers to bring in the best cars.

A First World country such as Singapore, where we pay top dollar for our cars, should not get second-rate choices.

Peter Loon Seng Chee


Good hairdressers hard to come by

Judging from Teo Cheng Wee's picture for his article, Going To A Barber Can Be Hairraising (Life, Sept 6), it seems we subscribe to the same trichological philosophy and aesthetic values.

I do not need to stay out of the country for too long and hence be subject to the whims of a stranger wielding a sharp implement in broad daylight. I also have the good fortune of having found a hairstylist who cuts my hair exactly the way I like it - that is, seriously, boringly conservative.

Teo's hairstylist may be an auntie, but to call mine one would be as wrong as calling Floyd Mayweather frugal. Hailing from Johor Baru, she is young and cute, is nifty with the scissors and does a great job quickly. Most of all, she does an amazing head massage to go with my usual cut and wash.

And the salon is not expensive - I pay $24 for a cut and wash. I am hoping my hairdresser gets permanent residency.

Thanks for baring your soul or, in this case, your scalp.

Colin Lim


Believe me, it is worse for women. I have not gone to a salon for years because all hairdressers tend to do is "recommend" treatments and complain how dry my hair is. (I have long hair.)

Whenever I ask them to cut 5cm off the bottom, I end up invariably with about 13cm off instead.

I do have a suggestion. If they use a cutter on your hair, like they do with my boyfriend's, you could try asking what setting it is on and end up with a kind of recipe "guide" for your hairstyle. For example, "number three on the sides and number five on top". If they use scissors, then you are on your own.

Jenn Tor'ielle


I have an idea: Go for trims more frequently so that you do not need to stress over explaining the style you want. But yes, it is going to be tough on the wallet.

Cynthia Lee


I am fed up of the remarks made by the hairdressers, such as: "Your hair is so curly." or "Your hair is dropping." or "You have dandruff." and "You must use oil. Your hair is very dry."

That is why I do not have a permanent hairdresser. If someone makes a remark, I am never going back there again.

Nazirah Ahmad Abdullah

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on September 19, 2015, with the headline Bring in the best cars for our dollar. Subscribe