caphant

The ranger 3.2 chilli orange looks great, definately considering it to replace truck. just hope it doesnt take too long to come.

I noticed that my query about specs in engish didn't get a response but fortunately I've found a PDF in english

Here you can find specs at end of informative/marketing brochure http://brochures.hon...rochure_14.aspx#

Exactly wouldnt be an audience, needs to be a pop soap best illustrated by the celebrity challenge of the modestly priced car around the circuit, There are a few good shows on discovery turbo which keep me entertained. I remember the horse power cable package overseas 10 years back which was fantastic with 5 channels talking facts and requiring the viewer to know more than how to merely operate a car....oh well

as crash safety in the previous dmax/colorado, ford ranger/maz bt50 and nissan navara is pretty poor and likely to take a bite through your legs as shown in crash offset tests.

How do the 2010 Chevrolet Colorado 3.0 LT Z71 4dr 4wd AT model compare with the 2008 Isuzu D-Max 3.0 VGS 4dr 4wd AT? I believe at the time both were the top model (or very close to it) for the respective brands.

colorado is a rebadged dmax. regarding the engines and specs you can find those here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isuzu_D-Max Both the colorado/dmax and the navara are the only pre-2011 trucks I can drive confortably, though the triton and vigo are more rigid and would fare better in an accident.

Back in the early 90s, Top Gear was ace. It's been on a steady decline since. Watched the Christmas India special. Somehow it's still getting worse.

same with fifth gear that show has fallen off though I do like Tiff. agreed the 90s were great for both shows now its more about script, pop culture and not enough about cars, amazing how the whole premise of the shows is fast getting lost. No different than bands which make it and then sell out to the masses, most guys still enjoy cars but not many can even change oil or a tyre so its likely these days all this decline is necessary to reach the audience

Buying a truck given diesel efficiency/reliability and high ground clearence definately the most practical choice for LOS, id go with the triton or vigo if you arent considering the newer generation trucks as crash safety in the previous dmax/colorado, ford ranger/maz bt50 and nissan navara is pretty poor and likely to take a bite through your legs as shown in crash offset tests. Safety is an afterthought here in thailand and airbags are taxed luxuries so while the sales man in ford proudly states the outgoing ford focus has a 5 star safety rating he fails to attribute that score to the 6-8 airbags in european/american models not present in the LOS ones which have a mere 2 only in the top models, I love drive and own classic cars in thailand with a seatbelt being my best and only safety measure, but if i was to get a truck or was to buy a soul less a-b car id definately have safety in front of my mind.

I have seen jazzes for low 300-320k for the idsi and 340up for the vtec, all with less than 120k, some with half that. these little cars usually dont rack up highway miles like you see on larger civics and accords of the same year. In my experience the price asked online or listed in papers is very much a sellers fantasy price and the vehicle can be got for less. Private sellers always better since buyers need to account for that 50-100k baht markup the dealer slaps on top when locating and lowballing a desperate private seller or as is auction car. With the flood and all the issues culicine listed above, its usually a better idea to buy new as cars retain much resale value especially whilst model is still current and give you the peace of mind a warantee affords.

Riding a bike can be a good way to get yourself killed in thailand for people with limited experience or driving big bikes, I enjoy bikes and i have still have 2 of them but it really isnt a great idea for the majority of roads, small towns up country is fine and familiar roads in your area, so regardless of your confidence in balance i think your making a sound decision opting for a 4 wheels.

regarding the jazz, buying new is fine as depreciation sometimes doesnt make buying second hand worth it especially for honda and toyotas. also if your fine getting the first generation jazz you can find those for well under 400k. The new jazz looks and drives better but i didnt mind the old one as a city runabout....as transam said poor ground clearence for the jazz, new civic etc means these arent great out of urban spaces.

Looks are definately subjective, what isnt is the ride in the back, very poor like the ford everest, i dont get carsick or have vertigo but i definately was nauseas after being in the back an hour or so, rear leaf spring suspension and body roll did me in, youll need to grab complementary vomit bags from the airplanes to offer 3rd row passengers.

Although here in Aus.

Of course id recommend buying a japanese B segment sedan or a ford focus c segment as fuel economy will be better also have servicing centers and retain a decent resale but worth a mention to illustrate how even in LOS there are great preowned deals other than korean and difficult to service european makes, An aussie mate is going to buy a CHEVY LUMINA (Holden commodore vz) next year when he moves to thailand, RWD smooth v6 makes this attractive option over japanese fwd cars, i test drove it back in 2006 and liked it a lot minus hard plastic dash which reminded me of a mitsubishi ultima but for the asking price of 2million baht it wasnt even a consideration though at current 500k prices my friend is absolutely sold as he also does not like fwd cars.

An important factor to me is resale value

resale obviously not good on the lumina since the 189-1.99m car has now depreciated into your price range after 6 yrs, also will be difficult to sell fast in thailand but most of the value has already been shed making it an absolute steal for anyone wanting a larger RWD car which doesnt look like everything else on the road yet can still be readily serviced at chevy unlike the audis, vws and other bargain cars lacking support.

Been driving the motorway last few days late night/early morning and see large lorries carrying the new ranger didnt get close enough to see if it said 2.2 on the side flare but im assuming they were all the 2.2L's, also saw old focuses being transported, and lots of isuzu dmaxs, mitsubishi triton 4drs and pajero sports. was hoping things were getting back to normal supply/logistics wise.....

was going to bump warpspeeds thread but it was closed, heres another exotic crash from today....guess the bloke should of had those complementary driving lessons first!

http://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/motoring/6177438/Newly-won-494-000-Lamborghini-crashed

I would buy a preowned car for under 600k and get a lot more car than whats on offer for 600k new.

Nope pickups arent as likely to be pulled over in my experience, red or unique paint jobs and out of province plates and of course a foreigners face are more likely to get the attention of coppers waiting outside toll booths. good tinted windows seem to help too as being a foreigner will also increase your chances of being flagged down. This is why i prefer not to park waiting for red lights on far left side of road when on a nice bike. dont make it easy for the predators to single you out from the pack of cars and bikes.

would everyone advise scrapping for a bmw/nissan as mentioned here or try and re-furb?

Im not advising to undertake an engine swap, im just stating that it is possible as others commented on swaps. remember you would lose the 4x4 capabilities of the car and thus would not be advisable in my oppinion as the zuki sidekick has a nice 4L which is missing on softroaders, its a fun drive like the carribean as an offroad plaything especially if jacked up, though this will increase the care needed driving into corners like the carribean stock. i used wide tires coupled with 3.5" spacers to enhance stability. all of this is unnecessay for a daily driver as the car is fine. If you have the efi 1.6 16valve suzuki engine its not a power house but it will move that light car well considering its used to move the heavier 4dr, id cut the cat off and let the engine breath eaiser for a few hps. and 140k km is not high if genuine, if you chose not to overhaul it, im sure you can order a replacement of that engine through a shop.

Yes the zuki sidekick is a nice looking mini suv with a very spacious cabin up front, i have some aftermarket kit for the 2door if interested. the 1.6 carbie was thirsty and didnt provide much power and mine was a manual, the 16 valve efi was much better. I ended up putting a bmw engine in one, not much space to put an engine in there though so youll be limited unless you plan on addressing the firewall, a nissan sr20 will fit i was considering the nissan ca18det at first. goodluck

Still going to buy the ford everest, but selling another car next week and looking for a 4 dr sedan for purchase next month, ive seen some accords at tents for 900k-1mill, but id rather buy from a private seller and would pay a premium for low kms, I am only interested in the 2.4 non-navigation models, thanks. :jap:

BTW: I need non-navi model because i will be installing an aftermarket 2din stereo with a metradash kit which will clean up that messy button layout.

sadly unwilling to consider a european or lexus in thailand because of pricey and limited servicing, test drove the 3 D seg sedans yesterday but the camry barely fits and the teana doesnt even come with telescopic adjust (also cautious about teana j32 nosediving in depreciation like the j31 did. Honda accord is the only one which fits me good, naturally id prefer rwd but i think the crown athlete or mark x will also have the same lack of servicing (though i will contact toyota to see if they can service it) but didnt see any lexus corner in patters toyota dealership like they supposibly have up in CM and down in phuket. just currious where do toyota alteezas (is200s) get serviced at lexus or toyota, would of been great to slip one or a harrier into a toyota dealership or acura legend into a honda dealership and get affordable servicing on a better fit& finish car.

one2car has the best interface and most listings but most are the big tent 2nd hand sellers,

some private sellers do list on http://www.taladrod..../Home/Home.aspx

The trouble is most if the best "bells and whistles" are not available on 2.2 models, even Wildtrac models

Will have to wait a year or so for stuff like hill descent control and curtain airbags to appear in any 2.2 model.

yeah. safety just isnt a priority for thailand, 4 airbags on thai cruze instead of 8-10 on cruzes in other markets was suprised the outgoing ford focus also has only 2 front airbags and no side ones, never really cared till i saw some vdos online showing the dummies heads crashing onto the bonnets of incomming cars in side impact tests especially for sedans which ride lower

heres an example

So far, only 4X4 A/T available for delivery in less than 2 months is Nissan Navara.

I was considering the navara because it looks like a truck and has generous accomodations inside the cabin, not sure if nissan has got its act together but considering the poor crash safety which irrespective of the airbag deployment delay issue is still as poor as the previous dmax/colorado pickup.

heres a clip on the nissan navara

Im sitting on the fence right next to you as far as wanting a 4dr 4x4 pickup truck, i dont mind manual but probably will go with auto as ill want the top trim level. I think any pickup available soon because of the delays is going to bilk customers by offering minimal incentives due to little competition.... guess im gonna have to wait till april or whenever to buy a truck .

You read my mind, but be carefull about 2nd hand as I have been to a lot of dealers and lots cleaning up watermarks and painting and spraying underneath to hide flood damage!

Cheers, yes i can imagine the used car market which was always a risk to the unwary buyer will now be an even more cautious proposition given the flooding, check this thread about flood damaged cars

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/512950-flood-damaged-cars/page__p__4853748__fromsearch__1#entry4853748

I'm sure they all would have loved to take more advantage of it, just as they would have back when the Tsunami hit.. Mitsu did OK out of it all, and Nissan is picking up some market share too..

In the case of Ford, they simply don't have the stock to service the demand, especially demand from Australia (which is where all the 3.2's have gone). The mistake there was not managing their South African engine manufacturing properly - they went for a balance of 3.2L and 2.2L, but should have just gone hard on the 3.2L to satisfy the early adopter demand, IMHO. The 2.2L should have been kept in waiting as a lower-cost offering for when the value-oriented buyers started noticing the model.

In the case of Chevy, it's pretty clear there's two things at play there 1) They're using the TH market to iron-out the new Colorado product before launching it elsewhere - Australia, which (again) will be the largest market for it, still won't be getting it for a few more months even though it was launched in Thailand before the T6 Ranger - if that doesn't tell you the product isn't yet properly sorted I don't know what does 2) Isuzu D-Max production (which happens at GM TH) is currently taking a good chunk of the production line time - but in that case they're using a tried and proven engine design, so no need to step on the brakes..

As for Toyota doing any price-slashing, I wouldn't hold my breath this time.. Unlike Ford which can afford to take a loss in TH in order to gain market share, they no longer can. They have a massive dealer network to support now (almost twice the size it was back when they were selling the Sportrider). I would expect IMV2 to be brought forward rather than IMV1 being dragged out and discounted...

Yeah I wasnt familiar with how ford leverages its other production facility but having read what you clearly outlined i agree completely, the early adopters are going to pay the premium and Ford's strategy of under allocating sufficient 3.2 production for the Thai market is a real shame, that being said if i only had a set number of 3.2L id also send them to australia where the return will be higher, im sure they are seeing some of that price disparity between the 1.2 mil in thailand and the 1.8 or something i read they will sell in australia when someone exposed the marketing slip

Hearing about the ironing out production issues on the new platform makes me a little hesistant to dive in there once they get released, have to admit whilst im disapointed even the 2.8L 4x4 crew cab ltz doesnt come with side airbags, but with its inclusion of features not available on similarly priced 2.2L ford they have done a good job pricing it so competitively and it might very well swing me in there favor. especially since im somewhat indifferent to depreciation if its a truck as ill keep it for getting supplies, its the cruze which id buy second hand after 3 years (if i was to consider it....unlikely unless an ss trim is available with potent diesel)...

The dmax if competitive might be an option since im somewhat indifferent about power for the truck, ill be looking to the everest or some other ppv to be my daily driver. wasnt impressed with the dealership i poped in to check the dmax which had identical cabin to the chev but had to check my reflection to know i wasnt a ghost, absolutely no eye contact or service.... guess i shouldnt wear sandles next time i go into an isuzu dealership even with nice clothes on

I agree about toyota, i remember how the fortuner despite being understated inside sharing an innova interior really made a bold statement and was a quantum leap foward when comparing it to the predecessor which imo brought the ppv class up from a stationwagon esk to something which is a genuine alternative to softroaders like the crv and escape....yes the buyers will be different but a lot of people in the market for either will at least consider both the crossover and ppv offerings in a way they wouldnt before....to this end, im hoping the imv2 will be as groundbreaking unlike the new crv for example. we shall see.....

Oh, and I don't support the Camry, I just think it's better than the Accord - which isn't hard because I think the Accord is noisy, bumpy, underpowered, overpriced steaming pile of shit The Teana completely outclasses them both IMHO, subjective styling aside of course...

Yes the accord has its exhaust manifold near the cabin whereas the cam has its to the front, also i believe the noise suppresion in the engine bay is inferior to the camry but this can be done easily with aftermarket....i think the accord looks a lot better than the camry, like an angry star wars storm trooper helmut and very european, inside the dash on the camry is bland i dont like the buttons all over the accord and the lack of a touch interface which i feel will be addressed in the new model. I wouldnt mind the noise though if i got the v6 3.5, and seeing how prices have fallen from a rediculous just shy of 3mil to 1.4-1.6 on one2car, its worth a look perhaps in a year or 2 time. but agree i love the teana, the electric ottomon on passenger side is a great touch, would allow me to enjoy my music and the gf to sleep.... happy driving!

izu and chev have already broken the 1 million baht barrier, no need to be chicken

Oh geez i didnt know the chev were over 1mil, thought the top spec 2.8 was still a tank of gas shy of 1mil! Either way if isuzu and chev keep the pricing competitive and most importantly make their trucks AVAILABLE.... i know this was frustrating for you too, hence your new red mazda2, how do you like it?

You do paint a rosy picture MRO it might have been a 2010 model Fortuner but first registered in 2011. But as you say very little reduction in price.

Ever seen the episodes of Top Gear where they've done forensic analysis on the used cars they've just bought? scary, LOL.

Yes i saw an episode where they examined some e30 or e36 and had some csi's comb through and what they found was really discusting. Im not a germaphobe but i definately dont follow the instructions when it comes to escalator safety, not going to hold the escalator handle under any circumstances having seen a documentary on pathogens and the nasties which flourish on handrails, atm buttons, elevator buttons and sink taps. I use my key or knuckles in public spaces never the digits.

Well, Chevy have 'unveiled' the Trailblazer back in Dubai, but the fact that they didn't choose to show a concept at the BKK Motor Expo (which ends today BTW) tells me it's a long way away from production. If it were more imminent there's absolutely no way they would have missed the oppty to pimp the crap out of it and get everyone to put their PJS and Fortuner orders on-hold - they chose not to show it because it's so far away, and they'd prefer everyone buy the diesel Craptiva now instead of holding off their purchasing decisions for another year.

I would not be surprised at all if the next-gen Everest hits the market at around the same time as the Trailblazer, which I would expect to be Q4 2012 or Q1 2013.

The problem then is, the next-gen Pajero Sport and the all-new Nissan Pathfinder (which we will actually get in TH this time) are due to launch in 2013, and Toyota's IMV2 based next-gen Fortuner, which is said to be a 2014 model could perhaps arrive much sooner than that, if these pesky tier-2's are able to keep on chipping away at Toyota's market share..

So when do you stop waiting for the next big thing?

Lol at the craptiva stab, I was somewhat impressed with the facelift over the previous one had a more substantial feel when i drove it....but at its 1.7 price its too dear id consider it for 1.1-1.2 though.

yes the dubai unveiling made me believe the Trailblazer would be made available prior to the eventual release of the everest which i have yet to even see. Unfortunately not back to attend the motorshow and assumed it would of been displayed there as it was in Dubai. I agree completely, the lack of showing is to promote the captiva which is already in its mature stage of model life cycle and im assuming people looking to buy a captiva which GM must be trying to reap more return on before the trailblazer starts cannabilizing sales. Im just confused why the tier 2s are not exploiting the post flood push for high riding vehicles coupled with a tech advantage relative to the competition who given toyotas complacency in doing next to nothing to tweak the IMV till the IMVII is released in a couple years... its definately at ford and chevs detriment to wait it out however because as you said if the ford everest and chev are out not long before toyota releases IMV2 or we get the pathfinder i may wait it out more if their offering is superior. I think if ford/chev can sell off their ppv's before toyota at least shows pre-production media of the new vehicle or unveil at a show then this will hurt sales. That being said, toyota wouldnt want to hurt fortuner sales and will probably just reduce the "toyota tier 1 tax" and throw attractive financing and bundles with it to move them out till the last minute as they did in 04 with the sportrider. I remember staff eventually conceding that a new model was on the horizon but the new lights of the sportrider from 2002-2004 made the car beautiful and the new one will not be as attractive! ended up buying the escape for its v6 and handling.

Definately agree about how cars just like buying a tv if you are diilligent and foward looking it can easily lead to decision paralysis and sometimes best to just dive in, I do not find the current PJS attractive but id still buy it for its 5spd tiptronic if i cant get it in manual with upper trim level, problem though is i cannot fit it at all....so my only option is to consider the new gen ppv's which finally offer proper tilt and telescopic adjust... I love being tall but when it comes to cars it really sucks especially in LOS. when renting cars overseas im always having to get larger cars as the economy fuel sipping a-b's id usually get just arent an option for me

Word from around they industry is that T6 Ranger sales in TH are below expectations, explained away by the fact that many are waiting on the 3.2L. That makes total sense to me though - early adopters are rarely base-model buyers... It's an amazingly stupid strategy IMHO - they should have gone hard launching the 3.2L in top level trims only, then introduced the 2.2L as a cheaper, more competitive model once the sunrise period was over and the model started making 'mainstream' traction (which is usually 6-18 months after initial release).

So now they're pulling out the lies so they can get more orders for the 2.2L - dont' forget theese are car salesmen we're talking about

And some side notes....

The Ford boss has been overheard saying he's very confident the Ranger can achieve top-spot in the TH pickup market. There's no way a tier-2 can do that without very attractive prices, super-attractive financing, a monster dealer network, and a f'n crapload of stock (top spot requires 14-16K units/month in TH). So he must be talking in a very future tense In any case, I would expect we're going to see some pretty big movements on the ground in TH from the blue oval over the next few years..

Also on the new Everest - my guess is it's being kept quiet for a few reasons:

1. They've just been learning some very painful lessons about hyping a new model too far in advanced of it's release - few buyers have the patience to wait more than 3-4 months.

2. They will want to see just how much of the tech features in the Chevy concept make it to production (i.e things like the ceiling rack with AC and multiple ipad holders)

3. They will want to have at least some idea of what's in store for the new PJS and Pathfinder, so they can negate them having an surprise edge.

4. The new Escape launch has been pushed back to Q4 2012, so they still have at least 10 months where they need to sell their 2 badly aging designs, so don't need any premmy announcements scuttling their ability to shift these dinosaurs.

Yes its a shame they didnt decide to launch the 3.2 first, they could of helped bolster the ford image by having more truck sales to warrant the grand vision of the rolling out ford dealerships and becoming a tier 1 in LOS. I think fords focus should sell better than the corolla as its superior mechanically and the cabin is substantial, i never liked toyotas use of materials which they hold for their premium lexus devision. just tacky and conservative, i noticed you dislike the accord and favor the camry but i just find the camry to be too much like a corolla especially inside, the camry which shared same motor and platform as es300 back 93-97 model was good (for the time) since then they fell off especially the 2003-2007 camry. Bottomline id like to see toyota work to keep its tier 1, or others to take it away. domestic market here is far too sheltered and its a shame to see ford and other companies blow opportunities to undermine toyota and honda sales.

I agree with your likely pushback on the escape, I saw 20 or so old everests being carted on a few lorries on motorway which highlights the absense of the old model in the local showroom unfortunately didnt equate to a phasing in with the new models, i dont see how anyone could be swayed to buy the old escape model, I got 0% financing, full options and accessories way back in 2005 q1 and the escape is virtually identical today having missed the kuga platform in los. similar to suzuki selling the sj413 carribeans for years and years without changes even when the similar samuri was discontinued overseas due to rollover fears in the media which shifter buyers away in early 90s.

I feel your frustrations, im commited to buying either the everest or some other new gen PPV, the time it takes for ford to get the everest out will mean a loss of sales to others like the trailblazer which will hit the market earlier. same way ford lost KBB to mazda.

that being said ive also decided i will get a new pickup truck asap, im debating whether i trade my current truck in for a 2nd hand nissan navara due to impatience or whether i go for the ford 2.2L (id rather a 3.2L but since im also going to get an everest or some ppv, i dont mind having the lower spec truck) it be nice if the ford 2.2 came with similar creature comforts like power seats etc minus just the powerplant. The problem with ford and many of these companies is noone knows anything, the ranger 3.2L could just appear in the showroom and youd know right after the sales staff themselves know

Im definately not ultra conservative but I wont buy that new bt50 if it was available tmrw as i find the styling VERY unpleasent.

I really would like to get a pickup truck asap, but definately dont fancy waiting till late april to recieve one, im not about to put a deposit down on a truck which gets pushed back, id rather show up to the dealers and pay cash and pick up that day if not within 3 days max.

Id like to know when the 2.2L or 3.2 is really going to be available, saying the 3.2 isnt available till end of 2012 is just stupidity and will push potential customers towards something else.