Any questions regarding about taxis? Post them here

last SG · 2005-11-27T21:32:49+00:00

comfort coronas were never repainted into the new dark blue livery

Volvo Olympian SG

as above Wink Wink

hseochin SG

I'm doing a little survey here & any feedback most welcome !

Please state the following;
1. Make & model of taxi
2. Annual mileage
3. Type of gearbox i.e. manual/automatic & how many speeds
4. Mileage between overhaul & replacement of gearbox, final drive gear etc.
5. Mileage between tyre replacement/rotation & when tyres start to become
noisy/vibrasive

Volvo Olympian SG

Please Do as stated above and also come to the 'Newcomers'Guide on taxis'if u want to more about the models.

hseochin SG

I learnt from my regular taxi driver the following info but as he's not fully sure of the technical details, that's why i'm doing this survey to hopefully get a wider input of data so as to know if his taxi is a normal, above or below average case.

My regular taxi details, based from what i checked myself & from what the driver told me;

M-B E 250 W210
Annual mileage averaging 300000 km
Automatic 5-speed gearbox

(Below as heard from driver)
Gearbox overhauled or changed after 600000 km
Final drive gear overhauled or changed after 1000000 km
Forgotten about data on tyres.

Any input in the above format most welcomed !

Originally posted by Volvo Olympian:

Please Do as stated above and also come to the [b]'Newcomers'Guide on taxis'if u want to more about the models.[/b]

slacker001 SG

Hi guys just wondering if any of you would know what the performance of the taxis are like? I’m assuming a lot of torque from the diesel engines since the acceleration seems quite strong; also how about the brakes since they stop without engine brake without much effort. Lastly about their handling characteristics, since they look real hefty.

105090 SG

me too.. m wondering.. especially when the taxis accelerates from gear 1 to gear 2.. very loud!

hseochin SG

In performance; for the M-B taxis here i'll put it as on par if not superior to most petrol engined cars anywhere !! For the Toyota & Nissan taxis, i'll put it as roughly on par with an M-B Vito or Sprinter van or minibus. The Renault Trafic & Opel Vivadi too likely !

In braking, as most taxis are cars braking performance not expected to be very different from non-taxi cars !

Handling, the M-B taxis i'll put as top class & the Japanese lot so-so class only.

hseochin SG

If it's the Japanese & London taxis doing that, then it's loud only but not much 'bite' !! Their primitive engines behave like that.

hseochin SG

Just got an update on taxi performance from my regular driver recently.

He tested his old E 250 taxi (with 5-speed automatic gear) & managed to 195 km/h. But ran out of road so he said & couldn't go further ! I'll say the acceleration's slower compared to the new models so took longer to pickup so left with less road to use.

Since upgrading to the Euro-4 E 220 for 3 months already & having covered some 75000 km so far, he also tested his new taxi for speed & reached 220 km/h with 'sports car' like performance so he tells me. This time enough road left to attain the speed unlike with the old model !

Interesting to see how this new Skoda taxi would compare in the company of the E 220 ?

105090 SG

Shocked how he test the speed? on a test circuit?

yeah, m optimistic bout the Skoda, but had yet to see any..

SBS9828X SG

Closed PIE Laughing

hseochin SG

Test done on normal road in Singapore.
Believe to be same place many years ago where a M-B Unimog truck was ever driven @ 80 km/h in reverse gear !

I saw 1 or 2 Skoda taxis here so far, both in Orchard Road area.

SGEMP SG

In the past, I had heard of this:

LTA had stipulations pertaining to the expansion of the new taxi companies.

AT the rate of 500 new taxis/yr.

----------------------------------------------------

Actually is the stipulation true and still ongoing?

Also, I believed that this is the reason why many idling taxis in the garages.

105090 SG

not really true. just that each operator must have a minimum number of vehicles in its fleet, irregardless of if they are idle or not.
I think the minimum number is 400 or 500 taxis per operator. As you can see, SMRT only has 1000+ cabs but it is around for so many years. Wink .
Another factor is competition. Transcab actually ha sa waiting list for its cabs, but others like SMRT, are facing shortages of hirers instead

Note that idle taxis also means that Road Taxes still had to be paid etc etc.

Destroy_forums SG

may i noe wats the estimated average montly income of a taxi driver ? Razz

SBS9889U SG

How often do cabs go for maintenance?

Volvo Olympian SG

I Think Poolman knows it.

105090 SG

The estimate is about $30~$100 per day if a cabby is behind the wheels for about 12-15hours per day. In short, income varies from $1500 to $3000+

Poolman's income is on the upper limit Wink

Do not forget to deduct Diesel and daily Vehicle Rental ($90)

There is a scheme which lets cabbies has a fixed income. More details can be found here.

SBS3572Y SG

May i know how much does cabbies pays for Diesel per litre?
Heard its cheaper if they pump at ComfortDelgro's diesel stations in depots, ComfortDelgro Engineering. but how much do they pay NETT?
note: diesel is now $1.07 per litre at pump (retail before discount)

105090 SG

Originally posted by SBS3572Y:
[b]May i know how much does cabbies pays for Diesel per litre?
Heard its cheaper if they pump at ComfortDelgro's diesel stations in depots, ComfortDelgro Engineering. but how much do they pay NETT?
note: diesel is now $1.07 per litre at pump (retail before discount)[/b]

Cabbies (ComfortDelgro) who pumps at ComfortDelgro Engineering diesel kiosks gets 11cents off per litre. The cabbies may also pump at SBS Transit bus depots.

Silvercab drivers gets 15% discount on Power Diesel at all Caltex service stations. So again, depends on current pump prices. Note that other public vehicles gets 10% off Diesel vs 15% for silvercab.

ExxonMobil Smiles Taxi Card Holders gets 22% Off Diesel at selected pumps.

Thats all i know.. gota ask Poolman Smile