After finding out how much money my colleague saved over the years just by pumping petrol in Johor Bahru, I decided to start pumping petrol in JB too.
But the problem is, I've not travelled into Malaysia in a motorcycle or a car for a long time, especially not since the new custom buildings were erected. I have no idea where to pump and where to u-turn.
Undeterred, the girlfriend and I took the plunge and rode in late one night.
The first thing we realised was humps, speed humps, lots of them. You must go through at least 20 speed humps before reaching Johor Bahru. Some of the humps were not even coloured. I went through a few humps quite aggressively; I was so worried that my front rim will dent.
The next thing was not knowing where to turn back. So I devised a cleaver plan to just follow the Singaporean cars from the petrol kiosk. Unfortunately, the one that we followed was not going back to Singapore. The girlfriend and I nearly ended up on the highway to Kuala Lumpur because the roads were dark and there wasn't seem to be any legitimate u-turns around.
I decided to tag along my colleague to pump petrol last Monday evening. Now I know where's the petrol kiosks, u-turns, money changer and where to have food!
So, how much do I actually save every trip I make?
Assume:
- RON 95 (Singapore) = RON 97 (Malaysia)
- Price today: S$2.04/litre vs S$1.1847/litre (RM2.9/litre) (Exchage rate 0.4085)
Source: http://www.petrolwatch.com.sg/
- Distance (to and fro): 28Kkm (estimate)
- Fuel Consumption: 17km/litre
I made a trip this afternoon and the bill came up to RM26.62 (S$10.87).
26.62/2.9 = 9.1793litres
The same amount of petrol would have cost me (in Singapore):
9.1793 x 2.04 = 18.725772
85% (Esso Smile + Citibank Card discount) x 18.725772 = $15.92
Price of trip: 28/17x1.1847 = $1.95
Total amount saved: $15.92 - $10.87 - $1.95 = $3.13.
I only save S$3.13 everytime I pump petrol in Johor Bahru. Either I need a bigger fuel tank or I need the currency difference to be greater.