CARS are the new kuehs selling, well, like hotcakes, at the Hari Raya bazaar next to the Geylang Serai Temporary Market along Sims Avenue this year.

Car dealers have set up shop at this popular festive bazaar, where normally people go to spend tens of dollars on cookies, traditional Malay costumes and home decorations.

But now, they are spending tens of thousands of dollars on cars at bazaars as well, and more than 90 cars have been sold at this one since it opened on Sept 13. The brands include Toyota, Honda, Suzuki and Geely.

One of the car distributors rubbing its hands with glee is Sport Auto, which carries the Chinese brand Geely. It sold more than 50 cars priced between $25,999 for an off-peak car with COE and $42,999 for a normal car with COE, in its first week at the sprawling bazaar.

This is double the rate of car sales at its showroom in Ubi Close for the same period.

While cars have been sold at a few Hari Raya bazaars since six years ago, this is the first time they are available at the Geylang Serai bazaar, and on such a large scale, according to bazaar organisers.

There are five car dealers peddling their wheels at this bazaar.

Over at another Hari Raya fair next to Tanjong Katong Complex, there are four. And at a separate bazaar within the Malay Village compound nearby, there are three.

Mr Alan Toh, 50, managing director of Lilian Tan Trade Fair, who was in charge of leasing out the stores at the Geylang Serai bazaar, says the car dealers were the ones who approached him for store units at the fair.

Mr Adrian Toh, 40, manager of Sport Auto, says the company rented a stall at the bazaar for the first time to create brand awareness among visitors.

"I was only hoping to sell enough cars to cover the rent initially, but the overwhelming sales took me by complete surprise."

For Madam Ida Rohana, a new car was not on her Hari Raya shopping list for home decorations when she visited the Geylang Serai bazaar last week. However, she left the fair the proud owner of a Geely CK car that cost $42,999, with COE.

"I'd been planning for two months to buy a car for my business, but I'd no time to stop by a showroom. While I wasn't expecting cars to be on sale at the bazaar, it certainly helped me kill two birds with one stone," says the 42-year-old who is a partner in a cosmetic services business.

She adds: "With the car, I'll now also be able to drive my family to Johor Baru to visit relatives on Hari Raya Puasa."

Car dealers point to the fanfare of the Geylang Serai bazaar for their buoyant car sales.

Mr Toh of Sport Auto, which carries only Geely, says that a handful of the transactions inked were probably egged on by the whole celebratory bustle at the fair and the hope of snagging a bazaar bargain.

Sport Auto is offering almost $1,000 worth of freebies, such as free car insurance for a year and a one-month free instalment, to every customer.

Another happy car salesman is Mr Don Tan, 28, manager of Teck Wei Auto Trading, which carries Toyota, Honda and Suzuki.

He says: "The grand scale of this bazaar is drawing such large crowds that we're selling three times more cars here than at our permanent showroom in the Malay Village over the same period of time."

While there are no figures available on visitor numbers to the bazaar, Mr Salleh Abu Talib, 54, a member of this bazaar committee for the last 10 years, says the fair has been particularly busy on weekends and stays open an hour later because of the crowds, closing only at 1am.

Indeed, the bazaar, run by the Kampong Ubi-Kembangan Citizens Consultative Committee, is back with a bigger bang this year.

For the first time, the month-long bazaar kicked off with a fireworks display costing $8,000. It also boasts 250 stalls, 70 more than last year.

Cultural performances like nasyid, a form of religious singing, are also being introduced to the bazaar for the first time this year.