Drawn by the allure, very high-end sports cars are seeing repeat buyers in Singapore
By SAMUEL EE
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RECESSION or no, the lure of a sports car is too strong for some people to resist, especially when a limited edition model is dangled in front of them. This may explain why 10 of them have placed orders for the latest Lamborghini at $1.558 million each. And most are current or former Lambo owners.
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| IN THE SPOTLIGHT The Lamborghini Murcielago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce was shown in January at a private viewing at St Regis hotel |
In fact, it seems to be a trend for repeat customers to buy high-end cars during these economically challenging times.
In general, business may have slowed over the past few months. But in the high-end sports car market, most players say demand has remained 'stable'. And for top-of-the-range models, they say the buyers are usually former owners.
For example, Lamborghini Singapore says that 70 per cent of those who have ordered the new limited edition Murcielago LP 670-4 SuperVeloce are not only Lambo customers, but Murcielago drivers.
Lamborghini also has a smaller sports car, the Gallardo. Unlike the top-end Murcielago, an entry-level Gallardo starts at $898,000. Last year, Lamborghini Singapore registered a record 49 units, 60 per cent of them the Gallardo model.
As for the SuperVeloce, the distributor of the Italian exotica showed it in January at a private viewing at St Regis hotel. It is a lightweight version of the previous LP640 and has a 6.5-litre V12 engine with 670hp that propels it from zero to 100 kmh in just 3.2 seconds. The car is limited to 350 units worldwide, with the first example arriving here in June.
'The SuperVeloce is more powerful, lighter and faster. It looks very different because of the carbon fibre and it's a limited edition model. For Lamborghini owners, it is the ultimate Murcielago,' says Lamborghini Singapore managing director Melvin Goh, explaining the car's allure.
Over at Porsche, the repeat buyer story is the same - but only for high-end models. The German sports car maker offers models starting from $232,888. But it is the most expensive units - costing $650,000 to $850,0000 - that are largely bought by traditional Porsche customers.
'At Porsche, we have both new and old customers. But the top-of-the-line models like the 911 Turbo and the 911 GT2 are more likely to be bought by people who are already familiar with the Porsche brand,' said a senior executive with authorised distributor Stuttgart Auto.
According to the general manager of a super luxury marque, buyers who already have a brand of car tend to want to replace it if there is something newer.
'These so-called traditional buyers are usually what we call old money,' he said. 'They are more insulated against the financial storm than other car buyers, and it so happens that they are already existing owners of top brands.'
The managing director of Aston Martin Lagonda (SEA), Derek McCully, agrees. 'Repeat customers are a norm, especially when there is a new model or upgrades,' he said, adding that this is not necessarily true for Aston Martin during the current economic downturn. 'Whether it's old or new money, if it's available, they will buy a new model if it is appealing,' he pointed out.
At Ferrari, a marketing manager with distributor Hong Seh Motors said that he has not seen a trend during this economic crisis so far. 'Our buyers are evenly split between new and old customers.'
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