Myvi vs Viva

Below is what I get in my research of Perodua Myvi VS Perodua Viva :

We can assume if you buy a Perodua, you’re most likely going to be a very price-sensitive person. If you haven’t read my previous comparison of the Perodua Myvi and Perodua Viva, please click here to read it first. This blog entry focuses on the financial details if you buy a Perodua Viva or a Perodua Myvi.

First, we look at how much the car would cost in monthly repayments over a period of 3, 5 or 7 years assuming a 10% downpayment and 3.88% interest rate. The two variants of the Viva and Myvi I am using here are the Perodua Viva 1000cc Premium with Airbags and ABS, and the Perodua Myvi 1.3 liter Premium with Airbags and ABS. Both are of the automatic transmission variant with metallic paint.

First, let’s look at how much the two cars cost monthly. Over a 5-year loan which is what most people would take, the difference in monthly repayment between the Viva and the Myvi is about RM91.62 a month, or RM1099.44 a year. Over a 7-year loan, it is RM69.70 a month – or RM836.40 a year. If you think of it in monthly terms, an extra RM91.62 a month gets you an upgrade from A-segment to B-segment, more interior width so the rear bench is more comfortable with 3 people seated, and a smoother 4-cylinder engine that makes more power, together with a better power to weight ratio.

But let’s not forget what upgrading to a bigger 1.3 liter 4-cylinder engine will do – increase your fuel consumption. For this one, it’s a little bit tricky. We’ve got two different km per liter figures to play with – Perodua’s optimum situation claims as well as estimated real life scenarios for the Viva, as well as the average reported fuel consumption for the Myvi from the Myvi owners I’ve asked. We also assume a traveling distance of 1500km a month (50km to and fro work daily, times 30 to factor for other misc traveling during weekdays and weekends), and the current RON97 petrol price of RM1.92 per liter.

Using the optimum fuel consumption calculation – you’ll save RM22.60 a month driving the Viva compared to driving a Perodua Myvi. Using the estimated real life scenario fuel consumption calculation, you’ll save RM31.42 a month. This brings the the amount you have to fork out every month for a Viva to RM1,022.02 a month inclusive of 5-year loan monthly installment and fuel expenditure, and for the Myvi – RM1,145.06. Damn, even though these are supposed to be affordable, these cars are looking pretty expensive to run now. The difference between the Myvi and Viva for a 5-year loan in this case is RM123.04, or RM1476.48 a year.

This is of course, a calculation for the first year where your road tax and insurance premium has already been covered in the purchase price. But let’s just keep things simple for the moment. The Myvi has a higher insured value and a larger engine, thus the two items will be more expensive, further widening that RM123.04 gap but it won’t be too big a difference. In terms of percentage, it’s about a 12 percent difference.

What’s RM123.04, or a savings of 12 percent worth to you? Is it worth the upgrade from the Viva to a Myvi? I’m not here to decide for you, just presenting to you the figures so you can decide for yourself.