BKKBike09

Ban Krud along to Bangsaphan Noi - between Prachuab and Chumporn. Some bits of Chumporn (Tung wua laen) are pretty relaxing. Or try Upper NE on the Mekong; somewhere between Nakorn Panom up around to Bueng Kan.

He's from the Amatayakul family so I'd guess has a life and a ton of assets in the USA. Any idea why there's suddenly a slew of renunciations? Since there aren't many obvious Western foreign family names in that list, doesn't look like it's Luuk Khrueng kids being made to pick. I assume all the countries - Austria, Singapore, Taiwan, S Korea etc - are ones that only allow single nationality. I'm surprised there aren't more Chinese (PRC) cases there. Coming soon, perhaps ...

"locking it and getting pump-food is something you can't do with an ICEV?" - not while you're actually at the pump filling your car up, which would be the comparison to make with an EV being charged. Say it takes 5 mins to fill up/pay, then you go and park and get some grub which takes you another 25-30 mins. How is that any different from plugging in an EV at a charger and leaving it there for 30-35 mins while you get a bite to eat etc? "Why not focus on the things that are great about EVs rather than pretending the relatively short range, and long "fuel" times are never inconvenient?" - I'm not 'pretending' about anything. If you read my posts in this thread you'll see I'm on the fence about EV practicality for regular long distance use. Having used an EV for 6 months now as a daily ride it's clear that, for my mainly urban use, I've saved time by not having to fill up with petrol every week or so. It's certainly more convenient in that respect than my ICE car.

If I'm going to be near car for a while I don't like to do that here in rainy season. Which I guess wasn't an issue in the Middle East (although I can see a sandstorm blasting fine sand into the interior through even a small window opening).

It's not available on the Thai models (at least not yet). The manual (copied from Aus/NZ version) actually has said it has it all along, but it never has. It would be very useful. I just did a 52 km trip that used 10.1 kw which would equate to a range of just over 300 km. Probably used so much power because it was on the highway and I had the a/c on full power coolest setting for 10 minutes before that to try and cool car down after 5 hours in the sun. Like an <deleted> oven inside. My office parking card actually deformed in the interior heat (clipped under the sun visor) despite me using one of those tinfoil type reflectors inside the car, held in place by the visors.

Maybe the owner was getting something to eat? Who knows? I agree that sitting at a charger for 30-40 mins sounds tedious but one of the good things about EVs is that you can lock them while charging and go find something to eat. Or, get a coffee and then sit in the car with the a/c on while charging and catch up on emails etc. The charging app will tell you how much the car has charged in real time so you don't need to keep going back to check.

If you did central Bangkok to central Chiang Mai in 7 hours including stops you must have hammered it. You should apply for a job as an interprovincial bus driver here. If I was going to do that in my EV I'd drive between 110-120 kmh and I'd aim to charge somewhere after about 250 km. I'd pre-book at a PTT station roughly that distance from start point. Have a coffee and let it charge for 30 mins or so. Then do the same after about another 250 km. At 110-120 kmh on the highway the BYD range is around 350 km. Total cost for charging - say 90 kWh ( 2 x 45 sessions) at THB 7.5 / kWh so THB 675. Time wise, I'd reckon on BKK-CM being around 8-9 hours including stops. Now, if I had to do it as quickly as possible, I'd take my petrol-powered car (2.0L Turbocharged) Then I'd be going quite a bit faster than 110-120 kmh. But it would take at least a full tank (50 litres plus) because it runs anything from 5-15 km/l. I prefer to use Benzine 95 which is around THB 45 / litre. So fuel cost of at least THB 2,250. Probably also have to factor in 2 or 3 THB 500 speeding tickets ...

I assume they do, in either English or Chinese. I've turned all that stuff off though. Audio volume / source / phone etc can all be changed through steering wheel buttons, which is what I like. The a/c is a bit of a pain because it's only adjustable through the touch screen, but it's pretty straightforward.

Book 'Em, Danno.

If you're not busy and it's only small spots, an old credit card, a hairdryer and elbow grease will work too.

How come your child is in an advanced maths programme anyway? And how well is he/she doing in the programme? IMHO people are either good at maths or not; tutoring helps with the basic stuff, but once it becomes more advanced it's hard to keep up. You don't say where you live or what your financial circumstances are but - as has been suggested - maybe look at other school options. If you're in Bangkok I'd look at some of the bi-lingual schools or a private Thai school, particularly say a Buddhist teachings based one like Thawsi (which is an excellent school). Your wife can save face with family and friends by telling them that your child is now at X or Y private school etc. The getting up early and going to bed late is par for the course. Personally I think subjecting small kids to a daily 2-hour school run is horrendous, but many parents accept it. Another option is to insist that your child take up an extracurricular activity that isn't learning-based. These days, having good grades from a good school isn't all that counts (although I have to concede that in Thailand it is still seen as very important, even if the person has no ability to think critically). Seems to me that your wife has latched on to a simplistic 'child is good at maths so must do maths'. But if it turns out that your child is good at ice skating or painting or whatever, she may well turn her focus to success in that.

If the casino (integrated resort) plans get off the ground and Pattaya is selected as a location, it will get a massive boost. Bangkok Airways is taking the lead on developing UTP and in fact recently (May) announced they're putting another USD 135 million into the development company. (https://weblink.set.or.th/dat/news/202305/1219NWS250520231853130099E.pdf) The Bangkok Airways owners (Prasarttong-Osoth family) are hugely influential so I'd suspect that they have the inside track on a lot of things. But right now, yes, UTP is pretty dead. I fly regularly in their airspace and you can almost hear the tumbleweed on the Approach freq. They've still got the decaying TG A-340's parked there, as well as a couple of A-380s and B747s.

How do you know she's at work all day? Serious question, not trolling. And during the day where is your son? Kindergarten? Could you look after him on your own and work at the same time? While you may be able to leave the apartment and take your son with you, you won't be able to leave Thailand without the consent of the mother. What's your immigration status? If it was me, I'd consult a lawyer about options. I'd also go to local police station and file a report about the abuse / violence. At the very least there is then a formal record of your allegations/concerns. Good luck.

Some random thoughts after 6 months / 7500 km of BYD Atto 3 ownership (the 'Extended Range' one). Generally-speaking I like the car and would recommend to anyone looking to buy an EV that doesn't cost too much and has reasonable performance and range. Build quality and materials are good and nothing has broken yet / started rattling / leaking etc. Around town (Bangkok) it's way more comfortable and relaxing to drive than my other car (a Scirocco). Only need to charge every week or so and I would say the published range estimate of 420 km is not unrealistic for urban driving. On the highway it's still comfortable and relaxing but wallows in corners and doesn't track very well on poor highway surfaces. I'm hoping it will be improved with better tyres and a suspension upgrade. However the instant torque is great for overtaking. At sustained speeds of 110-120 kmh the range goes down considerably. I just made a quick trip to Jomtien and back: started with 95% battery and got home showing 15% and range 78km. Trip was total 300 km so basically 40% battery to do 150 km. My sense of usable range for Atto 3 Extended Range at reasonable highway speeds (110-120) is 350 km; this also tallies with the average battery consumption figure of around 17-18 kwh/100km on the highway. Around town it's around 14-15. It's important to note that the range displayed is the 'theoretical' range, not real-time adjusted based on actual use. In some markets there's an option to select a real-time estimate, but not here. Dumb. I nearly alway leave the drive mode in Sport; I've tried highway trips using Normal and Eco and don't think it makes much difference to range/consumption. I would be nervous trying to do this (a 300 km trip) in the 100K cheaper 50kw Atto. I don't really see the point of buying this model: the more battery capacity in an EV the better. Plus I expect second-hand demand will be heavily focused on the bigger battery model, especially in a couple of years when even 60 kw will seem like 'entry-level'.

Come now. Who said this was about The Orange One? What about Bush vs Gore in 2000, an election that Gore likely won, but which had the Supreme Court decide (just) that it was Bush. Back on topic - looking more and more like Pita is going to be left out in the cold, so baht may weaken further.

"critically low blood pressure" followed by an appendectomy - perforated appendix that had been leaking for some time, hence post op sepsis?

Some mistake here, surely? SHE won't drive her Merc, her driver (ie conscript) will.

Remember that many people who don't die from Covid also don't post.

Personal choice. I wouldn't bother if I was healthy and under 50. My personal experience: healthy mid 50s; 2 AZ shots in 2021 (one in UK, one here); caught Delta September that year 3 months after second shot. Very mild (no cough, runny nose, low grade fever for 2 days). Had another AZ shot in November that year only so I could get 2 doses on my UK record, so only had to show one vax document for travel (remember those days ...) Caught it again three weeks ago (positive ATK tests couple of days apart). Even milder than first time.

No prescription required. I didn't find any of the topical gels (Voltaren, Reparil, various local brands) made any difference to pain/swelling from an MCL knee injury. Voltaren tablets however ... 1 tablet completely removed all pain and discomfort for about 24 hours. But as noted in other posts not recommended for long-term use. I still get some discomfort. Usually I just do stretching exercises and use cold or hot compress, but if it's really sore then maybe a tablet. That said, an ibuprofen still works quite well, if not quite as well as a voltaren tablet.

I've still got the Atlas Batman tyres on my Atto. Have done about 4000 km since I got it in January. They're okay, but I don't have much confidence in them as far as overall grip is concerned. It's very easy to make them chirp with a heavy foot below 50 or so kmh. You can hustle the Atto along quite nicely but the stock tyres and suspension are not intended for aggressive driving. I'm waiting to upgrade the suspension before doing anything about the tyres. I've not noticed them being particularly noisy.

Maybe because it's hot season across much of SE Asia so more people gravitate to aircon environments? In Europe it's spring so more people spend more time outside? Plus people do tend to spend more time in big family groups in SE Asia.

On this specific point - not a representative sample but 10 years ago I bought a small one-bed condo in a 'good' soi in the Ekamai area. In 10 years I'd say it's 'officially' gone up in value maybe 30-35%; it cost 100,000 / sqm when I bought it. If I sold it now I'd be happy with 20-25%. But I suspect I might have to wait a long time to sell.

All comes down to budget and long-term plans. If you can afford to spend a million USD to buy a luxury riverside condo, that will probably appreciate and also - crucially - be easy to sell. Loads of wealthy Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodians, Burmese looking to offshore cash in Bangkok property. But they want high-end. Houses can make even more money because of the underlying land value, but of course more challenging for foreigners to own. If your budget is USD 200,000, you'll be able to buy very easily. But it could be hard work to sell. If that (or less) is your budget, then I would advise finding somewhere to rent that would sell for your budget, try living there for a year, and then offer to buy if you really like it. Never forget that there is little to no planning / enforcement here. Last thing you want is to buy your dream condo and then, a year later, have the view blocked by another building erected next door. Beware condo buildings in streets with large family houses. Once the parents die, the kids invariably sell the property because they want the money. That's when a new condo on the location becomes distinctly possible. Lang Suan in the 1990s used to be virtually empty of condos; it was all private houses. Now look at it. I would generally suggest buying in older buildings: older buildings usually offer much better value in terms of cost / sqm and are often better built. Surrounding area may also have been developed already. However management of older buildings is sometimes pretty poor, and if the common fund has been run down, there's often no money for cosmetic or more major work to common areas. Buying in Europe to rent would probably be an easier way to keep quick(ish) access to the capital investment. Of course buying to rent these days comes with high interest rates for mortgages unless you're all in for cash. And in case of UK, a slew of impending legislation that makes being a landlord much less attractive.

If you're buying for the long-term, the short-term price fluctuations shouldn't factor into your thinking. Question is: if you buy gold now, where do you think price will be in 5 or 10 years? That said, unless you're buying a significant quantity (say USD 50K), gain (or loss) won't be "retirement here I come money", so ... Personally I think gold (and, though it pains me to say it, bitcoin and ether), could well see a lot of growth over the next 2-3 years as alternatives to the USD. There's just too much debt in US / Europe fuelled by the lowest interest rates for a generation. Then throw in governments printing money for covid relief programmes. Inflation takes off so central banks try to control that by raising rates aggressively ... which then feeds back into all that debt on, say, 10-year repayment terms due 2023/2024 etc. Plus you've now got China pushing more and more direct G2G trade in yuan, circumventing the USD. If you do buy some physical gold, be prepared for the disappointment that a, say, 10 baht gold bar (which will cost you about USD 10K) is underwhelmingly small.