andrewrooney

Dealers make ALL their money on finance, save up for a month and buy 2nd hand, then save for another 5 months and buy new. New Wave is about 34k still, I think. Had mine 5 years still looks and rides brand new.

Agreed. If you can pay cash you end up saving a lot of money, and you can put the book in your name without any hassles.

You see, there is a way.

As an option they could provide eligible bikes with those wireless Easy Pass devices (motorcycle specific, kind of like in Singapore) and dedicate (or build one) gate at every plaza for the bikes only.

Having an easy pass would rule out the possibility of counterfeit stickers, etc. and would speed up the payment process as it's not so easy to fish for change in your pocket while wearing riding gloves.

There always is a way - at least theoretically. But it would be a very long way and many things to do before it could happen imo.

Even if you limit it too new big bikes over 650cc (it would raise a lot of trouble by owners of older and smaller bikes, but OK lets forget this for a moment), how do you want to make sure, that the brakes still work in, lets say, 5 years? Its just a matter of time till there are some unsafe big bikes on tollroads/highways. You know what some thais like to do with their bikes, they modify it till you cannot see what it once was. So you need some kind of reliable regulary checks (e.g. TÜV, or similar) and a reliable control systems (e.g. Police).

If you change laws its better to first think about consequences. Its not just laziness that nothing changes, its the state this country is in that makes any changes so difficult.

Your argument about working brakes/unsafe vehicles would also apply equally to cars, pickup trucks etc. Why single out bikes?

http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2015/03/11/officials-consider-banning-kids-motorbikes

To improve road safety officials are considering making it illegal for children under 6 to ride on a motorcycle.

The move comes as Thailand tries to come to grips with its high mortality from road accidents. More than 10 percent of children involved in road accidents end up dying, and most cases involve them riding on a motorcycle, according to Office of The Consumer Protection Board.

Some children also fall asleep during the ride and fall from the vehicle.

Some are opposed to the idea, pointing out that motorcycles may be the only transportation available to many impoverished families.

The organization is also considering enforcing a warning sticker on new motorcycles sold in shops (just like cigarettes). The message will be “Drivers could die if not wearing a helmet,” Voice TV reported.

Seems like a better approach would be to simply enforce helmets for kids. As mentioned, some places people don't really have any other transportation options.

That last bit about warning stickers is interesting; my CBR300 had a sticker on the tank with a similar message. "You can die or be crippled if you don't wear a helmet," or something along those lines.

Lots of whining and semi-literate rants by red-shirts here - but not a single argument against any of the points made in the article.

If you people had made similar criticisms against the dirty Pheu-Thai cronies and their ego-driven, power crazy master then I might have the slightest shred of respect for your opinion. But you didn't.

This article hits the nail on the head and you find the truth very uncomfortable.

So, according to your logic, anybody who disagrees with military government is automatically a red shirt? That's a pretty ridiculous assumption to make.

Wouldn't it be a novel idea in Government schools taught properly in the first place.

Fantastic idea!

Not going to happen, of course, but fantastic idea!

Thanks all- (ex) wife veto'd the motorbike (she has more sense than me obviously) so we're flying now........

You divorced her just because she won't go on a motorbike with you?

I ride the Z250 at the moment, awesome bike for the city

i would say appalling for the city - because of the constant clutch slipping and gear changes.......PCX 150 is the king in the city.....

Have ridden the PCX in the city too, the Z is the better bike - more power, safer, better brakes etc. etc.

If the Z250 is a better bike in the city than a PCX 150, then i'm a jam doughnut (with cream on top).......

What flavor jam?

Thai driving licence questions here. Not all, but enough.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/732938-take-the-new-thai-driving-test-online/

This helped me also..

http://thailaws.com/law/t_laws/tlaw0140_5.pdf.

You dont need to remember fine amounts.. Remember where you can and cant do U turns and headlights on in fog etc, parking distances from train tracks etc..

Understand the stupid cartoon drawings before you go..

That was one of the weird questions that came up for me: Where is it illegal to make a U turn? There were several options, most of which seemed bad places to U turn, but the correct answer was always "at an intersection."

The other one that tripped me up was "which picture demonstrates correct parking?"

The pictures were tiny and hard to make out, but the 'correct parking' option was the one that showed the car stopped in the left lane.

Then of course there's the infamous "tank used for warfare" question...

They're pretty good if you throw in some chopped green onions, some cabbage, maybe an egg. High in sodium, but what isn't around here...

I haven't ridden them but I was at the Kawasaki dealer on Ramkamhaeng the other day and saw the Z300 for the first time. Definitely a good looking bike.

One thing to keep in mind, besides just the power difference, is that the Z300 has ABS, while the old Z250 doesn't.

I wouldn't risk riding around on an invoice bike. If you live far enough out in the sticks the police might not really care, but you won't be able to insure it, and if you ride somewhere like Bangkok, Pattaya, etc. there's a good chance the cops will fine you or even confiscate the bike. It's worth it to get a bike with a legit green book, unless you just want it for a track bike as mentioned above.

Probably another PCX 150, unless something better comes out, but I'm sticking with Honda. I hate gears, same with a car. Imagine riding a bike with gears through the busy roads of Bangkok.

I ride a bike with gears through Bangkok every day, and I love it!

Not going to knock your choice, though, automatic vs. gears really just comes down to personal preference.

Just bought two bottles of Leo from the old Chinese lady downstairs. Situation normal.

He didn't use his arch enemies excuse of 'It was an honest mistake'.

I don't think Prayuth would ever admit to making a mistake. He'd probably just get angry and yell at a reporter or something.

If he was just on the grounds of government house, is that considered a public road or not?

If he went on any public roads, fine him 500 baht.

I haven't been posting on here for a long time but I have to say I've found your posts very informative. Definitely understand, I get sick of internet drama pretty easily myself. That's the reason I spend more time on this section of the forum than the rest of TV combined... it's mostly more informative/lower grief. I see what you mean about the direction of things though. Good luck in the future.

Got an official fine once, coming off of Krung Thon bridge going East into Dusit. After you come off the bridge there's a lane that goes straight which is for buses only. Everyone else is supposed to turn to the left.

I went straight and got stopped by a very no-nonsense cop who was stopping everybody, writing tickets with no discussion and taking licenses. He wrote me a ticket for 500 baht and I had to go to the station to get my license back.

The funny thing was, the cops at the station were way friendlier than the guy giving out tickets. They told me that the cop who wrote the ticket was kind of renowned for being an uptight prick, and even agreed to reduce the fine to 300 baht.

If you're here for a short period of time (60 days? 90 days? I can't remember, perhaps someone else can clarify) you're allowed to use your home country's license. If you're here longer, you're supposed to get a Thai license.

As for your travel insurance, you should check with your insurance company as policies probably vary.

Buy a CB500.

They are under 500cc I think.

Ride fast, sans helmet and against traffic, very exciting at any cc.

Get some flame decals => pure excitement.

How many posts have you started trying to figure out what bike you want?

Maybe start a post about the best color?

That would be exciting.

"How many posts have a started trying to figure out what bike you want?" You tell me I don't recall any.

What I should have added is that I have zero experience on anything other than a few smallish Hondas and wondered what the other three had to offer? Unlike buying a car it isn't possible to try anything out here and most KK dealers have a very limited range of bigger bikes to even sit on.

The R3 looks nice, but is there anything else that has the upright riding position of the CB and perhaps with more than a token pillion seat? Yes, the CB500 does look good and think the local dealer has one to look at too.

I assume that none of the big 4 produce a cruiser style bike, a bit like the old Phantom, which was an easy bike to ride slowly and apart from the complete lack of torque/power was good 2 up.

Someone made a point on another thread that buying a new bike only to find it boring means you will lose a big chunk of money when you sell and suggested a secondhand CBR250 instead. I know two people who bought a CBR250 and then looked to sell immediately and both bikes ran fine.

Kawa is coming out with the Z300. Naked version of the Ninja 300, should have a more upright seating position. Unfortunately it will likely have the same tiny pillion seat as its predecessor.

After 8 years of no tax it's going to be a major pain in the ass to get the green book sorted. I was once in a similar situation with a second hand KR150 I bought from a local mechanic. Tax hadn't been paid in 6 years. When I went to the DLT they told me I needed to first go to the last place it was registered (in my case Bang Khun Tien), pay all the back taxes there and they would give me a letter saying the taxes had been paid. Then I needed to take that letter to the main DLT in Jatujak and get a new green book issued. As I didn't have two free days to run all over Bangkok, and the bike might not have passed inspection anyway, I simply didn't bother.

"Exciting" "boring" and "passion" are all pretty relative. What makes you passionate about a bike? Is the CB300 boring because it's not powerful enough, because a lot of other people have the exact same bike, because you find the design too plain, or?

You say you want under 500cc, Ninja 300 might be more exciting but personally I don't think it would be a good choice if you normally ride with a passenger (she won't be comfortable on that postage stamp sized pillion seat). Yamaha R3 is coming out soon, that might be worth looking at. Those are really the only two choices under 500cc I can think of that could be "more exciting" than the CBR/CB300 in my opinion.

You're right, of course. It's an outdated law that assumes every bike on the road is a 50cc Super Cub.

Unfortunately there's not really anything we can do about it. My approach is to ignore the law, ride in whichever lane I think is best, and be happy that fines are so low. Three years of daily riding in Bangkok I've only had to pay for this right lane nonsense one time. 200 baht in three years is pretty good, so I'm not going to let it worry me.

They brought this upon themselves. A high percentage of teachers failed exams (implemented by the government) in their own field of teaching. How can they deliver any kind of quality education to the kids?

Do you think that reflects on the teachers, or on the people writing the exams? If the exams are anything like the standardized tests students take, or the test to get a driver's license, they could well be full of ridiculous, irrelevant, unclear questions.

You seem to be assuming that my Wave doesn't have those things already.

And 1/2 the plastic taken off to reduce weight?

Now we're talking. The chain guard is also long-gone (obviously), and I've covered the entire thing with green LEDs (which give the best gain in hp).

I for one would never condone unsafe riding but in this case, maybe a half helmet will shave off further ounces as opposed to a full face with internal visor and pinlock?

I'm currently using a plastic construction worker's helmet I bought as part of a Halloween costume last October. It is extremely light, and if I look straight down at the ground it is also very aerodynamic.