New models in same price range as last year Vroom Vroom. No, not the sound of those purveyors of prog rock, King Crimson, but rather the dream of almost every male teenager in Egypt, the sound of their own new car revving and raring to go. Most wait for that day with great impatience. The day daddy buys them their first car. The obsession begins early and by the license acquiring age (eighteen in Egypt), the specs of every car, every engine, are indelibly committed to memory. The only impediment is the price, really. But even that has been somewhat circumvented, for in the past few years, the concept of paying by installments has been introduced. Now you can purchase a car by paying a percentage up front and the remainder over several years. However, you end up paying more than the offered price as there is interest to cover. So what's it to be? There are many new models for 2007 and prices are very comparative to 2006. For this article we will be looking at cars whose price ranges from LE 80,000 to LE 120,000. The ever present Toyota Corolla comes in two types, the 1300cc engine and the 1600 cc engine. The former retails for LE 98,500 while the latter just about crosses our threshold selling for LE 122,900. For something more entry level the Yaris is LE 84,900 and the new Avensis is LE 89,900. Toyotas are generally well received in Egypt because of their durability. Another popular choice is the Mitsubishi Lancer. Like the Corolla it also comes in a 1300cc engine or a 1600cc one for LE 88,000 and LE 99,000 respectively. Do bear in mind that these are the prices for the manual gearshift models, for both the Toyotas and Mitsubishis. For automatic transmission, expect to add a few thousand more pounds to these prices. The Honda City is a 1.5 liter car that is superior in its gas mileage. Made specifically for city driving, it will save you quite a bit on gas. The manual version retails at LE 97,500. Hyundai offers two cars in this range, the Matrix (a box-type family car) and Elantra (more of a sleek sedan). The Matrix is for LE 81,900. Add six grand to get it automatic. The Elantra runs for LE 89,900. At LE 95,900, the six grand addition will land you the automatic model. A popular make in Egypt was Daewoo, but because of a GM acquisition, the new models sold in Egypt go under the name Chevrolet. The Optra is sold for exactly the same price as the Elantra, in both the manual and automatic models. The car it has replaced, the Daewoo Nubira, can still be found for a bit below our artificial price range, at LE 74,900. Other models available on the market for 2007 are the Nissan Sunny, at LE89,500 and the Volkswagen Parati for LE 77,500. The Citroen C3 sells for LE84,900 and its 1.6 liter automatic model goes for LE99,900. Finally, the Renault Megane will sell for LE113,000 while the Clio falls at LE77,000. For those whose budgets are under the LE 80,000 range, there are many more affordable cars on the market, usually with lower capacities unless they are of Chinese or Malaysian make. And for those whose budget exceeds LE 120,000, there might be other more determining factors in your choice than price. Vroom Vroom, buckle up.
