Harry and Stephane Boswell's 2006 Toyota Prius has travelled further by sea than by land.
Open Access Article Originally Published: June 11, 2007
Well, at least that's what Harry and Stephanie Boswell believe.
And why, you might ask, do they believe that? How many 2006 Toyota Priuses do you know of that have been shipped from Japan to England and then from England to Malaysia? They believe theirs is likely the first Prius to be imported into their newly adopted home -- they moved from cold and damp England to retire in warm and humid Malaysia several years ago and simply love it there.
Boswell tells EV World that he could have bought a right-hand drive Prius in Japan, but he couldn't read the Kanji-based displays. And since Malaysia follows the British and Japanese custom of driving on the right side of the road (not in a moral or political sense, mind you), he couldn't import one from North America. That left the only option buying one in England, which had already made the journey by container ship from Japan, and having it reshipped back to Southeast Asia. Stephanie has calculated the sea voyages total at 22,513 miles before they even sat in the car.
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So, besides paying retail for the car, plus the original shipping and import duties into the UK, the Boswell's then had to pay shipping charges to Malaysia and that country's rather stiff import duties. But they sound delighted by their decision -- though Harry tells me that Stephanie grumbled a bit -- and provided us not only with a picture of their car, but also a detailed accounting of its performance after some 2,300 miles in the tropics. He notes that petrol (gasoline) in Malaysia is equivalent to 28p per liter in the UK or about $2.08 gallon in U.S. terms. Petrol in the UK is now around $7.40 per U.S. gallon. Harry loves to remind his friends how much more affordable it is to retire to Malaysia, assuming you can get used to the humidity, monsoon rains, bugs and tropical snakes.
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Harry's Quarter Million RM Prius
Prices paid for Prius T-Spirit with Navigation and Park Assist.
UK retail price less tax $ 35,563.98
Shipping to Malaysia Port Klang via Singapore $2,039.26
Malaysian import duty, import tax and car tax $33,655.86
Import agents fees $428.54
Flat bed transporter for 120 miles to Melaka $130.39
Government vehicle identification, anti-smuggling test $24.34
Registration, road tax and number plates $170.95
Comprehensive insurance for two persons $745.25
Total price $ 72,758.57 or £ 36,927.594 or RM 251,105.832
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Before the Boswell's ordered their Prius -- which is a bit of a risk since there is no warranty and no Toyota dealers in Malaysia set up to
handle repairs of the car -- they built one of the first environmentally-responsible homes in Malaysia, called the CoolTek house. It includes insulated lightweight block construction, white metal roof, double thermal windows and passive solar cooling to help reduce the home's electrical energy load. Next month Harry expects another 'first' when solar voltaic cells on the roof start to provide all there electricity needs. The house is visible in the background of the above photo.
Here are the performance specs of the vehicle to date:
- New Toyota Prius has just completed 2,312 miles from new. Lifetime mpg at this point is 61.68. (Almost 22kms/litre)
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Reader Comments
4 comments so far...
27-Jun-2007
56871
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Things that make you go, hmmmm, oaky so he bought a hybrid had it shipped from japan to england and then to malaysia. He bought the hybrid why? 'cause he wanted to limit his carbon footprint? Oh, boy!
Posted by: S Baker
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09-Sep-2007
58165
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I think UMW Toyota Malaysia start selling now though.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8361103@N05/
Posted by: Thomas Chong
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16-Aug-2007
57702
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GREAT !
He is very SMART to drive Toyota Prius, it is good to the environment ; everybody should drive one because we should save the world, reduce carbon emission.
I love this car ! very quiet, lots of owners get 20 - 22 km in 1 litre of gasoline.
The style is good except rear design.
Toyota is very intelligent to manufacture this car.
Posted by: Richare Lam
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31-Aug-2007
58056
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Most expensive in terms of pollution required to deliver to owner? Or taxes paid?
Why not modify a Japanese Prius? No warranty to void. I a world of Prius technology lovers, they did not ask how to switch Kanji display to English mode or just buy only display module in English.
Maybe they were willing to go the extra miles to have most expensive Prius for status only?
In USA a $11000 Toyota Yaris is much greener than a $22000 Prius. Same in Asia.
Posted by: Eric Lee Elliott
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