50% import surcharge extended to Dec 31 — did anyone expect a price drop?

The government has extended the 50% CID surcharge on vehicle imports to 31 December 2026, even though Customs had already blown past its full-year revenue target by late October, largely on the back of vehicle tax collections. At the same time, dealers say new car sales have sunk to a 9-month low thanks to the 60% down payment rule and tighter loan-to-value limits. One side says Treasury can't let go of vehicle taxes right now since they're doing the heavy lifting on the budget, surcharge or not. The other side says keeping the surcharge AND the tight financing rules together is overkill — demand is already dead, so what exactly is the surcharge still protecting? If buyers can't get financing anyway, is the extra 50% just extra pain with no purpose, or is it the only thing stopping a flood of imports the country genuinely can't absorb once financing eases up again? Did this extension change your plans, or push you to buy now before December just in case? ජනතාවට හිතෙන්නේ රේගු බද්ද අයින් කරන්න ඕන කියලද, නැත්නම් රජයට සල්ලි ඕනද?