steveromagnino

Regarding the Sansiri PACE deal, as far as I know, NIMIT like many developments has a loan attached to it. Often banks want a ring fenced firm wholly owned by the developer which has the express purpose of doing that development, not only for tax purpose and so on, but also so for example, the operations of Dean & DeLuka (which CITI is the lender) would not be able to take down NIMIT (which SBC is lending on).  It is both for the protection of the lender, the developer and even the buyer.  Also, if something weird happens, such as an act of god, insurance claim etc, each project is ring fenced from the others....but of course, there is the aspect of the buyer being possibly screwed over if the subsidiary goes bust while the parent is fine -in the case of wholly owned publically listed firms this is not so common.  What is more relevant for buyers of NIMIT is the reverse situation, parent goes bust (let's say due to Dean and deluka) taking down the subsidiary with it.  

In the case of NIMIT, I do not know if NIMIT sits within a holding firm, MahaNakhon does because the exit strategy for the 3 pieces (hotel, retail, residences) is different, as already seen when PACE sold shares of the hotel and retail to Apollo, whereas the residences obviously is another component that needs to end up with the buyers.

What Sansiri are planning to do (and the queue to buy NIMIT is quite long) is to buy the project either the project or the holding company including the project only, all the sales contracts, the commitments to the buyers, the commitment to the designers and main contractor, and pay a price for the land, construction, EIA permit, construction so far, money received so far, which is about say 20% of the sales value (guessing).  They will then finish the project, collect the other 80% from the customers (another 15% in installments, 65% on transfer), pay the rest of the construction costs, any final defect mgt, etc, and the owners will get their condos.  In Sansiri's case they also want to be handling resales, value engineer the development where they can, maybe even try to buy back units from skeptical owners and resale, NIMIT is a pretty special location after all.

TRogers maybe I misunderstand, but the vast majority of owners I know are HOPING that Sansiri will buy it, they are looking at an immediate bump to their property price if Sansiri buys, because it becomes a Sansiri project.  The idea of owners suing someone, and under what basis, I have no idea how someone could claim to be a wronged party except for a delay, which would mean suing PACE, who since they have no money (which is why they are selling) would be completely counterproductive as it would slow it down even more and possibly kill the Sansiri deal.  Anyhow, a delay is already laid out in the sale and purchase agreement and probably has not right to claim against.  There probably is a right to assignment. On the other hand, if Sansiri fails to deliver to the quality and standard...then you can sue....and that's a worthwhile thing to do.  If another developer buys NIMIT, then maybe it won't be nearly as prestigious, I know that they are not in the bidding round, but let's take a developer with a less (ahem) stellar reputation, that would be something the owners might really not like...but again, they can't do much about it unless it says in their contract that THEY SIGNED, that they have some rights.  I doubt they do. 

This has happened before, with Origin and Proud for park 24.  With Raimon Land and Kudu I think the firm was.  There are more. 

So how does Sansiri value NIMIT? Sansiri will analyse it simply, same as origin did with Park 24 basically by looking at the money they get in (the 65%), the money they still have to pay out (cost to complete), discount by their WACC, estimate their required margin, and do a simple cashflow analysis and an estimate of the hidden troubles plus the benefits of value engineering, there were at least 5, maybe 10 firms who bid on NIMIT and Sansiri were the chosen ones, they all value the same way.  I think Sansiri also want to buy units at MHNK, but that one is more simple, same approach though, of course those ones are almost complete.  Any loans on the property I would imagine PACE has to repay using the cash raised from the sale, and then if Sansiri decides to borrow again, they do in their own name against the collateral (a project and the underlying land) which is listed in the disclaimer by law for each development.

Benefit for PACE is getting money now to pay SCB and creditors, keep running Dean and DeLuca I guess.  Benefit for Sansiri is acquiring a go project, already passed EIA, in a prime location, where sales and marketing is already done, much lower risk.  Only question is what price to pay, that's why they sign an LOI or MOU, do due diligence, and then finalize the offer, knowing if they don't want NIMIT, someone else, one of their competitors will take it.

No idea how this in any way indicates Thai real estate bubble is bursting, given that NIMIT is almost sold out.  Its a cashflow problem from a developer who has got in the food business, and the food business has taken them down.  Nimit is almost sold out and a totally viable project, hence why other developers want to buy it.

Good, I hope there are no appeals against the ruling.

Great news!

While this looks surprisingly like justice, the fact that the charges were laid in the first place proves this government is as bad as all others before it.

The charges were laid during the previous government...

The article states that "The complaint related to an article published by on the Phuketwan website in July last year." - if that is the case, then the charges were laid under the current government.

Interesting, that. In July last year, all branches of the armed forces might have though they were in the driving seat at that stage. It turns out that only one is.

Again, read the thread - this relates to a news article in 2013 that was reprinted, and the original charges were filed in the Yingluck government era. However, I for one see ZERO BENEFIT in having the government of the day being able to step in whenever they want and squash or support legal actions - the judiciary, the executive and the legislature should not be able to lean on eachother to get what they want.

Of course...in this case the evidence was pretty questionable from the beginning, but it is not the place of the PM to act as the judge here. Imagine what a precedent that would create for actions like corruption etc. You can trace a lot of Thailand's problems to the way a former PM leaned on the judiciary to issue a favourable decision in the asset concealment case.

Very happy to see a just decision handed down in this case though :-).

The trial against former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, Defendant No.1, is temporarily suspended as he is in exile.

There is a significant difference between trial in absentia and sentencing in absentia.

It seems that for a trial to start the accused must have been to court at least once to acknowledge the charges and be able to say "not guilty" (or guilty if they feel like it).

I believe this to be correct; the defendant must appear in court to hear the charges s/he is facing, and to respond. Thereafter they may not appear or send a representative and the trial can continue even if they flee.

The reason why Thaksin so poorly played this one out, was because he believed that once the Samak govt was in power, he could come back and 'do a Lance Armstrong' where he could lean on the judiciary to accept his version of what happened, and tilt the playing field; a not guilty verdict would then restore his reputation and allow him to work his way through the other more dangerous charges after (there were about 17 from memory).

The charge he was convicted for was similar to KTB; it was land owned by the FIDF (govt agency) and went up for tender. He leaned on his 'mates' in the property industry for the land in Rachada so only his pals would bid for it at low prices to rig the bidding process, his wife tendered the winning bid around 1/3 of what it had previously been valued at , and enabling what appeared to be a technically legal bid which at the time, then benefited very quickly from changes in zoning which enabled the plot to have a highrise on it instead of just houses. What a coincidence. At the time, the opposition did not have enough votes to censure him on this, but it was clearly unacceptable to have the PM's wife buying up state assets and the Constitution is clear on this:

"Any State official shall not carry out the following acts:

being a party to or having interest in a contract made with a Government agency where such State official performs duties in the capacity as State official who has the power to conduct supervision, control, inspection or legal proceedings"

Now....if we look back we will know that he appeared in this case, because he was quite sure he would not be found guilty; he called into question the right of the court to question him; he alledgedly appeared to offer a bribe via his lawyers (3 of his lawyers were caught trying to bribe the judges) in the infamous pastrygate, and he genuinely likely believed that because his wife was the buyer, he was far enough away that he could ride out the trial bruised but not guilty; he also believed that since there were no other developers willing to say they were coerced not to bid, he could show that the state didn't really seem to be worse off as a result. Once he realized he would lose, he fled, and he further failed to appear for any of the other trials.

So he got convicted for this one, and the trials for the other ones can't start until he reappears, if ever. In this respect, he's like the Samut Prakarn godfather Vatana Asavahame (actually also a friend of Thaksin) who also faced similar trial with the corruption relating to the wastewater treatment plant land acquisition, where the very honest Vatana somehow managed to make enormous profits through buying the land that would end up within the plant then onselling to the govt - he was also stupid enough to let the trial begin before fleeing to Cambodia from memory, to avoid the 23 year sentence. His son more recently is well known for beating up his wife Janie, and is the first politician in a while to actually go to jail, 11/2 years I think is the term for election fraud.

So...first lesson of being a politician....have another passport ready so you can't be brought back to Thailand.

I'd be thinking second hand, and would add to the list of Frank above:

- A1 (the 185HP variant) - grey market is around this price maybe marginally higher

- Fiat Abarth with the esseesse kit

- MINI Cooper S this money easily gets you an R53 (supercharged) or the R56 pre facelift; may be able to even get a JCW variant; possibly get into a R53 GP which is the true 'giant killer' fun car

- possibly a Volvo V40 hatch new shape these can be had close to this price; very heavy depreciation early on so might be possible to get an early one with medium miles

- Audi TTS 1st generation - don't know a lot about them but would be pretty quick I'd imagine

Of all of these, the easiest deal to do is a Cooper S JCW R53 2006 repulleyed/tuned/new rims/new exhaust/strut or R56 JCW 2007/8 right around this price point; you still have a little left over for mods, MINI must be the manual, and start blatting around and scaring the neighbors.

If you want new, then really the choice is a bit limited to something like a Fiesta S, Suzuki Swift, Mazda 3 (my pick) - all relatively slow yet probably drive quite nicely, but none would I describe as a 'fun car' that you would just want to light up everytime you got behind the wheel.

If we are to include lying/scumbag dopers (like Lewis or Kelly) then obviously Lance Armstrong would be considered among the greatest, and like both Lewis and Kelly, he competed during an era when most of his competitors were also doping in much the same manner. Ali, as a man sure, one of several boxers who fought incredible battles but won some lost some (Sugar Ray, Chavez, Whittaker, Tyson) - so if we are to look at mastery of the sport, then I'm not sure I'd go with the people who I would also rate as ambassadors for the sport.

So first off....mastery of the sport over the course of a career during their peak including dopers (Armstrong) in their era excluding having any positive impact on the world

Michael Jordan - complete dominance in basketball

Floyd Mayweather - complete dominance in boxing against everyone except Castillo #1 (yes, including Pacquiao) - changed the way of management, brought back defense, and is the highest paid athlete

Lance Armstrong - complete dominance in cycling with the winningest record in TdF which I consider to be the toughest sport, despite not being a climber and yes, he did it building a champion team who were almost all taking a boat load of drugs (Indurain was also a drug taker, so was Merckxx widely considered the greatest ever cyclist, Kelly or Roche are both also dopers)

If we look at people whose behavior changed the world and who deserve the highest praise, only Jordan still makes the list

Ali

Jordan

Pele/Don Bradman (I never saw them play) or if someone I saw, then Redgrave, the amazing rower

Honourable mentions

- Jonah Lomu, amazing rugby player

- Bode Miller, amazing skier

- Diesel Noi, amazing Muay Thai fighter

Friend of mine did the bike fitting with Andy/Andrew (the bike zone guy).

From what I understand it was both some measurement and a series of 'better or worse' questions and review, rather than a measurement only and 'this is what you should ride' fitting. My friend has ridden for quite a long time and was super happy with the result, says it is the most comfortable he has ever been. On a tri bike you have a lot of tweaking, so being comfortable is pretty important; I think a road bike or a mountain bike the fit might be slightly less important.

When you consider the bike is worth say 50-200k, a free fitting (if you buy it there) or 3000b for any old bike is a great idea.

saw it recently, still looks like it has a way to go, definitely would be surprised if it is open in Sept (as they promised).

typically like I said, it is different in each shopping center. However one of the driving factors is ground clearance. Try getting a lowered Ferrari up the ramp at a shopping center.

Actually, the reason for it is pretty clear from a shopping mall perspective; the area with the supercars encourages the bigger spending people to be parked in one area with more security and wider carparks; it means (for Paragon and Central Rama 9) that some of the very low sports cars can ensure when they visit that there is somewhere to park (some supercars have a clearance problem); it serves as a mall marketing/advertising benefit (the number of tourists who come and take pics of the cars is sometimes quite a few) while also making sure that jealous 'haters' who might key, dent or damage a nice car are less likely to do so. Since someone spending 10+m on a car is often more willing to spend a bit more cash in the mall, the supercar parking means a quicker time to park and thus more time in the mall. Having had a car keyed before for zero reason, the idea of having access an area to park it where this is less likely would be more appealing for me; hasn't got anything to do with flaunting and everything to do with convenience and security, there is a big difference between driving into Paragon and parking in 2 min....and spending 40 min looking for a park.

Pretty basic marketing really, and the guards have a good relationship with frequent visitors; they know them by name, are more friendly etc.

The usual approach from most of the malls is to lock down who can park there to be specific brands, and each is a little different, but generally, supercar in Thai security guard training includes: Lamborghini; Ferrari; Lotus; Porsche; Maserati; Aston Martin; Bentley; Rolls Royce; McLaren - usually excludes Lexus, BMW, Benz for the most part but not always. Weird cars like a Ferrari Abarth, Alfa Romeo 4C etc might or might not get in, and likewise even though a Porsche Macaan really is a trumped up CRV, it might get in (equally it might not). In the case of Paragon, a number of these car brands are tenants also, so it helps to bring traffic to their stores and a simple tangible benefit.

It isn't the car owners asking for it, it is a response from the mall owners to welcome richer clients; exactly the same as a hotel who let's the nice fancy cars park out the front of the hotel (and sends the more average basic cars to the back parking lot). Like a club; the doorman lets you in to sit in the VIP area and jump the queue or not based on how you look and so forth; how good looking people get offered better seats and free drinks at a club or restaurant as 'eye candy' for everyone else.

visit newminisociety.com if you can read Thai. For servicing use Sooper Workshop on Petchburi Road; you might be able to pick up a JCW supercharger, but depends; if you have the 2005/6 facelift model (slightly more horsepower) then that's good as it has a better ECU tune with more splutters and pops than the 2004 model. I presume you know that you should:

- change the supercharger pulley Alta and various local suppliers can do instant +15% HP

- change to a lightened flywheel

- improved sparkplugs

- change the bushings and check the steering column

- put a strut across the front engine bay, and definitely make sure you have either struts or cones on the top of the suspension towers at the front as they are prone to bending and mushrooming; you want it to be 'tight'

- change the exhaust - can buy 2nd hand from Arquay/Alta/Bola/etc online sometimes or buy over the net

- change the air intake and put a box around it

- ECU tune (I never did this because it means you start to be stuck running premium fuel - prefer being able to still use Shell VPower Nitro

If you want a tow bar for your car, let me know, I have one that I took off (for a bike rack) will sell to you cheap as I don't have the R53 no more ;_( Great little cars and drive a lot better than the R56; I believe the new F56 is a major step forward but nothing is as fun as the supercharge roar which is fantastic on a modified R53.

I would run a separate GPS unit, as the dash has such a weird shape; no doubt you could do it ,but easier to just run a separate detachable unit anyhow.

cloud seeding is proven in science and anyone who doesn't understand it can read how it works; basically you introduce heavy particles generally various types of inert salts like silver iodide causing water particles to fall as rain in a set sequence; it is used for USA ski resorts, areas where there is limited rain, and in Thailand. China around Beijing were able to control the weather for the Olympics using cloud seeding ahead of time, and use cloud seeding to create a bump in the water supply for that area (since it is otherwise very dry).

It requires specific conditions to be successful; it has to be cloudy, but not raining; you cannot make it rain out of nothing - this is why you cannot cloud seed in the desert.

This is not an idea that might or might not work. It is a fact proven numerous times based on basic scientific principles that cloud seeding causes rain when you do it in the right conditions (some humidity, no rain falling). However, the cost is high for the benefit gained.

http://www.coloradoindependent.com/144449/as-flood-waters-recede-ski-areas-step-up-cloud-seeding-efforts

Example of seeding by one of the world's premier ski destinations (one of literally thousands of stories about how they have used this technology to prevent bad seasons in the last 20+ years).

The general understanding of what happened was this, which is why it is likely that Anna doesn't want it to go to court.

- there is a witness who attested she was speeding/racing with the motorcycle, prior to the crash

- she 'disappeared' and conveniently therefore managed to avoid a drunk driving charge (which would have meant no insurance at all, as well as likely criminal liability and jail time) but her conduct was not exactly acceptable

- if it goes to court, and there is some investigation that links her to the motorcycle who gives evidence or can be linked to her, which isn't that hard to do, then there is a smoking gun of negligence and one side might give up the other side. It is also possible that a cop might comment that they were somehow coerced into letting her go without testing her first (cops are not known for standing up for their principles) - so a lot of moving parts and any of them fail and she is looking at serious consequences.

- the fleeing the scene crime is almost a certain conviction, as her conduct speaks for itself

AFAIK she carries a British and a Thai passport, she is considered British/Thai actress. This is not ethnicity, this is nationality, I presume most people understand you do not have to be white or grow up there to be British. It is pointed out in the Thai media for whatever reason since Look Krueng movie stars with a completely English name would be likely presumed to be foreigners unless it is stated that they are not; yet to describe her as Thai given her appearance and name would also be equally confusing.

The process is simple - if a settlement can be reached it doesn't go to court. If it goes to court, then it is likely that the witness and her conduct will make it difficult for her to avoid some serious consequences, this is after all a cop, not someone without any name or support. She has destroyed a family, and now the negotiation is what that is worth. It is obvious that someone who earns the kind of money she has made and drives a benz should be able to show and pay more than someone with nothing. Because she is a minor celebrity (previously) it is more newsworthy than someone no one has heard of.

Unlike some others, there is video evidence here, there was at least 1 witness, the person killed was a cop, and so there is not really a way for her to wriggle out. She is not a 'hiso' or anything like that; she is merely a grade B actress with enablers around her trying to help her to get out of the position she has put herself in.

If she had more balanced viewpoint here, she would realize that she destroyed a family, and would pay up to every baht she has given the potential consequence, but perhaps she already forgot what she did and even believes she was just unlucky, not wrong. Some say she prefers to believe that it is acceptable to "allegedly" drive drunk and partly stoned in a race against a friend, kill someone, flee the scene, then pretend to show remorse and try to low ball the settlement to avoid jail time. This is perhaps the bit that makes her image less popular than other celebrities caught in the same position - e.g. Dome, Sonram.

lovely!

Still think about getting another hot hatch...been trying to persuade the GF she needs to embrace a small car rather than a big people moving beast.

The new C-class really is a lovely car, and I would agree, it is probably a better looker than the 3 series....however that said the A250 has its own charm so it really is more for the person who would otherwise consider something like a 1 series, MINI or other hot hatch...and it does everything well in a more modern style than the C or the 3 series. I don't quite buy the argument that a FWD is not a real benz; my impression of the big E and S classes is of a car designed around someone who wants to be driven about and has a combover with gout and one of those old man manbags that looks like a purse :-). The CLA on the other hand I would agree, is not really a 'real benz' because it is trying to be something that is a bit compromised; if you want to drive a hot hatch...well there is a GTI, a Cooper S, BMW 1 series, etc...or the A250.

At the end of the day, if you have real coin, you buy a car you can at least get supercar parking for - Bentley, Maserati, Porsche (aka Menoporsche, known for being the car of desparate 50 year old men), Rolls, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lambo etc. BMW or Benz, really is just simply a very nice automobile with service etc all easy to handle here in Thailand - you want a super car get ready to wait for parts and deal with problems....but the joy or driving it....oh yes. A250 gives you a taste of that driving joy for sure if you can handle the oddities of that gearbox.

I believe the robot building's days are numbered; it is not an efficient use of the site, and the area is so prime that several developers are looking at the site to tear it down and redevelop....so if you like it...then take pictures of it sooner rather than later.

I like the Elephant building a lot, terrible location for it, but quite cool nonetheless. Always thought it would be cool to squirt brown water out the window in the back and take a pic :-)

Of the modern buildings, I think Central Embassy is incredibly overrated and really a scrubbed up fancy turd (even is the shape of a turd) with a slick façade that doesn't work at all in that location (it has no real connection to the street or its environment, and fails completely to understand how Bangkokians view that plot from the street level or BTS). Pano on Rama 3 is a lovely building though.

Too early to comment on most of the rest, but MahaNakhon appears to be the real deal in a World War Z/blade runner sort of a way, while Four Seasons is also a stunning building as is Marque. Really not so impressed with EMquartier in many ways, but the helix Omatosando 'homage' (aka rip off) is quite cool, and the highline 'homage' (aka rip off) to the BTS is pretty awesome; the very cool thing is the garden on the 7th floor; the overall form of the building, well better than nothing, not exactly an amazing building but good nonetheless. The River is a pretty impressive sight at night, as is the Circle Prototype on Petchburi (at night anyhow).

I really like the little house at Asia Teaque near the ferris wheel; it is direlect, but in a city where everything old gets torn down and made new, the opportunity to see such a prime location still with an original shack....it is pretty cool to me.

not so expensive but still the same price as painting a complete car... so it's clearly ridiculous to pay for that scam...

the higher quality ones you pay for a spray, then every month or so you get a slight amount ground back and it lasts about 3 or 5 years.

You still need to wash the car, it does not stop that, and most of the glass coatings are not stone chip resistant, but it makes the wash/wax process faster and also gives the car that really shiny look which would be very difficult to achieve otherwise.

For 30,000b around about, it isn't so expensive.

I don't clean my own car (I probably should but consider it a bit of a waste of my time given my salary and what else I could use the time for) and I like it to look shiny and nice. 30,000 payment once.....it gets cleaned (washed, vacuumed, polished) I think either 36 or 60 times over 5 years with 2 sprays and a noticeable difference in the paint sheen. Since that is included in the original price, the average price per clean works out at 500-700b. I think it is 60 times but to be honest, I didn't really look too closely as the cost of the glass coating wasn't paid by me, it was paid by the car brand when they sold me the car.

When I cannot be bothered to go the place where I got the coating, and I get it washed somewhere else, the car comes out looking substantially more shiny than it did without the coating.

I am not sure I would be able to paint my car for 30,000b anywhere in Thailand - but maybe. Certainly would not include cleaning it 60 times though.

It's a lovely car, and IMHO not particularly expensive for what you get; cannot compare a car like this to a Mazda 3 (the A180 is the closer 'cousin' to a Mazda 3) and the spec inside is quite nice, the car is fairly quick (as in 0-100 in sub 7 seconds). Given the price difference if you want the HP then get the A250 and if you don't then get the A180; fiddling around and rechipping etc is kind of a pain and possibly not worth the effort (except to rechip the A250 upwards :-) for the difference in price 2nd hand. Make sure you buy a Benz Thailand car (ask the seller is it an authorized dealer car or a grey car, they will usually tell you straight out which one it is ).

No point to compare prices in UK/Germany, as we are not there and if you want to buy something cheap in Thailand, then buy a pickup.

The only thing is the gearbox, which is a dual clutch, so it tends to drive more like a manual without a clutch than a slushbox, try test driving it and you will find the system just doesn't work as well as the VW equivalent. This was the reason I didn't get one, but I understand the ECU has been improved since the beginning though.

The ride is firm, but the Mazda 3 is fairly firm too if running low profile tires, and IMHO the car is sufficiently engaging that this is not a problem at all. I don't own one but I own cars similar to it and have test driven it for an extended period before. I don't find it too firm, but that's comparing it to cars like a MINI or a Scirocco - it is definitely a lot firmer than a GLA etc, and IMHO drives better as a result but spme people would find it quite firm; I think most of the Benz Thailand spec ones have an ability to adjust the dampers from sport to normal but I can't quite remember on that.

I think the A is a much better looking car than the CLA from most angles, as the CLA is a little small to have that coupe profile and has IMHO a crazily low roofline particularly in the rear seat; the A has a bit more space for headroom.

Due to the lack of popularity of hot hatches here, the A250 seems to depreciate a little more than the C class as well as the A180, at least in the first 1-2 years, so buying 2nd hand you get the benefit of that. If you compare to a MINI Cooper S (similar performance and price) the A250 really is quite good value by comparison.

the higher quality ones you pay for a spray, then every month or so you get a slight amount ground back and it lasts about 3 or 5 years.

You still need to wash the car, it does not stop that, and most of the glass coatings are not stone chip resistant, but it makes the wash/wax process faster and also gives the car that really shiny look which would be very difficult to achieve otherwise.

For 30,000b around about, it isn't so expensive.

Check out some information here, this developer Raimon Land has a buyer guide which outlines what you need, Sansiri has the same thing (which I have a copy of but it isn't online AFAIK)

http://www.raimonland.com/en/Ourbusiness/BuyerGuide

I would think if LPN want something different (and I own a couple of their units) then you can talk to them once you know what you need to produce, namely the FET, and then it is possible they can reassess what you need to give to them.

never heard the squids creek expression. I gonna start using that.

The other issue is resale. The HRV is going to have good resale, the best of that crop of mini SUVs without doubt (you can see already from the resale prices). Have you looked at an HRV? Lovely car and interior wise pretty decent size.

@Winnie the Kwai you are indeed correct, the reviews of the CX3 suggest it is more sporty and elegant from the outside, meaning it is less practical and spacious on the inside; that makes it closer to the Nissan Juke than the Honda HRV.

It really is a looker though. The Ford Ecosport to me is something I don't get at all; it's a fiesta jacked up, what possible benefit is that? When really the CX3 is basically the same concept from a Mazda 2, but they have made it look a bit better.

^{also very true.}

Fantastic analysis Steveromagnino. I'm in the market to buy probably in the next 12-18 months. I'd love to pick your brain sometime.

As a matter of interest, I'm curious as to how you define a project as failed (e.g. The Met)

If I can add my 2c to this. Firstly, the Thai real estate sector is running on several distinct tracks, and each has its own strengths and weaknesses. I will only talk about Bangkok as I don't know enough about some provincial markets.

sorry for the late reply - anyheeeeow....

I define the Met has having been a bit of a failure in these terms (specific to that building)

- the prices paid by the original purchasers (around 100k+ per sqm) have not increased at the same rate as other similar buildings in other locations and are now below similar category buildings (at the time it was pitched at the top end of the market, now prices are around 140-150k per sqm, and units at The River, etc have moved higher than that)

- the developer has been unable to sell all their units (I think even today they have some remaining) - which is not so great since it was announced from memory in 2005

- the actual building itself has some issues including the facilities getting increasingly rundown, the inability to manage the building for the service fee, leaks etc; because the developer seems to have almost given up you have people with pets, breaches of regulations, lots of units trying to be sold at the same time.....

- the developer is now trying to sell the land adjacent to The Met to another developer to do a highrise

- the actual design itself of both the building and the units is arguably not so good and has probably resulted in the sales problems and facility problems above

I actually think for value for money in today's market is not bad, except for the maintenance downwards spiral. That's why a listed bigger developer tends to be better at the higher end of the market.

This is just my opinion, any questions you have Cabrinha ask away! Not sure I can help but I will try :-)

I think they sold quite ok before, but since the Honda HRV and the Mazda CX3 were announced, the 2nd/3rd tier brands like Subaru, Kia, Nissan are struggling a bit with the XV, Soul and Juke respectively.

The HRV is a generation ahead of the XV really, and the Mazda CX3 is the looker.

hey.

Well your options are not dissimilar to what I was considering a few years back, and the BRZ is IMHO too slow to consider; when a FWD runs circles around it you have to question whether it is worth the money and you need to trash it to get it to accelerate etc.

For maybe similar or less cash, you can get a second hand grey market or authorised manual MINI Cooper S R56 (and there is now the odd F56 kicking around, I know of one F56 slush box Cooper S for 1.9m) or even a GP R56 for around 2.3m or Frankphuket's GP1 R53 for 1.4m - they will keep up with/run circles around the Roc, and most certainly around the BRZ. The F56 supposedly has a much better slush box than the R56 (which was undriveable as an auto).

The Mini is a particularly good FWD also, quite balanced and fun to drive. The Roc there are a few around running more than 300HP here; I am not entirely sure I trust the VW dual clutches if you shunt enough power through them in Thailand's heat, but that's just a personal opinion.

The Benz dual clutch is many steps worse than VW, otherwise I'd suggest an A250 again, 2nd hand ones now available around 1.8m. BMW 116 is too slow, Volvo V40 is quick in a straight line but not as engaging.....so all in all you end up back at a MINI, a Roc (which is 2nd hand and around 1.2m these days), a Golf GTI (basically a Roc with a different body) also 2nd hand.

VW are about to yank the dealership from the current distributor so that's why VW Thailand Thai Yarnyon cannot get stock of much; most are grey market at the moment.