Pattaya Dave

Driving home today around 6:00 PM today, I made the right turn off Pattaya Klang onto Sukhumvit with the intent to turn left into Soi Khaw Noi. Luckily I saw the long line of traffic in the far left lane (at least 25 cars, not including the second line that formed in the lane to the right) and quickly pulled over to get in line. It took me almost 30 minutes from this point to get across the train tracks. The BIB were not directing traffic, instead they were just standing on the corner watching the whole mess. It seemed that when the traffic light turned green, the line didn't move at all, but once the light turned red, everyone started to move closer. I suspect that when the light turns green, only a few cars are able to pass through the light, instead having to wait for all of the motorbikes which had assembled at the head of the line when the light was red. Anyway, not looking too good so far.

Mobi - we posted just at the same time.

I should have pointed out that i am specifically interested in software that will allow me to make DVD's to watch on the TV through my standard DVD player.

I've downloaded Lost season 5.

It's in VOB format.

I then use a 3rd party converter to convert them into avi format.

Nero has managed to then burn some of them onto a DVD successfully and i can watch them perfectly well on my TV using a standard DVD player.

Each episode is 45 mins long and i just prefer to watch it on the TV.

Are you sure CDBurner XP cannot make DVDs to watch on the TV ?

I use Nero 7.9 Ultimate or Premium, whatever it is called. Generally, when I download TV programing, I always opt for avi formats and download them using Utorrent. Once downloaded, I usually select, make data CD or make data DVD, depending on file size, and follow the directions dragging the program files into the program. I have yet to have a problem playing these avi files on my home DVD player. Sometimes, when I downolad multiple file programming from YouTube, I will use Nero Vision to consolidate the multiple files on to DVD because some of my friends have older DVD players that won't play the programming from a Data CD/DVD. The Data CD/DVD format uses less space to save the files than using the regular DVD movie format used in Nero Vision because of different compression methods. I can put around 12 hour long episodes on one Data DVD format, but only around 2 to 3 episodes in normal DVD format.

Precise statistics are almost certainly unavailable,however personal observations suggest that the more frequent transgression is 120,119,118,117 and so on,vehicles flashing through red lights up to 10 seconds after the change from green.

The greatest risk for disaster occurs when the two transgressions happen simultaneously---helps keep mortuary attendents in business.

My thoughts exactly; you beat me to it (lol).

I wasn't impressed with SP1 as it created more problems than it solved. I wish they would fix the stability problems in Windows Explorer and Media Player and the random shutdowns that happen in my laptop.

I have similar problems with Windows Explorer crashing on my laptop using Vista Home Premium 32-bit. It seems that after every startup, all of my system restore points are gone. I use Vista Home Premium 64-bit on my desktop computer and have experienced no problems at all. I'm quite sure that when I eventually upgrade to Windows 7, I will opt for the 64-bit version; hopefully it will be more stable, similar to the 64-bit Vista version.

I seldom, if ever, use Windows Media Player so I can't comment on it's reliability.

I find that Easy Video Downloader is one of the easiest to use with YouTube. You can check the box to download High Quality (HQ) videos in YouTube only. I generally downoad YouTube videos in .avi format, but there are other formats to choose from. Easy Video Downloader is freeware and works very well.

In the past few weeks here in Pattaya, I have experienced ATM's from several banks, (Bangkok Bank and Siam Commercial Bank), applying an additional 150 baht charge for ATM withdrawals made on foreign bank accounts. After making your withdrawal request, a message will appear notifying you of the 150 baht charge and asking if you accept this charge. Of course, I also select "No" and end my transaction; 150 baht is an excessive charge for an ATM fee. It's bad enough that I already have to pay transaction feels on the other end of the transaction. I haven't tried accessed all of the banks as yet, but found that K-Bank is not imposing the 150 baht charge, at least not for the moment, however I fear that this may be coming soon.

Is this a new banking policy soon to be implimented throughout Thailand? Has anyone else experienced this new charge?

Pattaya Dave

G,day Dave,

I have just recently purchased a Vigo Prerunner 2wd Double cab. Had it in for its first 1000k service.. Asked about an oil change and was advised that first change should be at the 5000k service. I looked at my (english ) service book

and it states that first oil change @ 5000k. then every 10,000k after that..?

cheers,

lesdunbar

PS The english service book cost Baht 674 including vat. from my local Toyota dealer.

What do they do on the 1000k check? You're correct in that I don't have the English Service Book as yet, it should arrive in another 2 weeks or so. I made my Toyota Dealership throw in the English Service Book and Owners Manual as part of the purchase contract.

Ok, my initial post is still applicable, as far as future services are concerned beginning at 5000k.

Pattaya Dave

I'm coming up soon for the first oil change at 1000km on my new Toyota Vigo D4D. I was curious as to the quality and choices of oil and brand name available at the Toyota Dealership for the diesel engine. Is there a selection of oil brands, viscosities and quality available or is there only a choice of one, whatever the dealer decides to use? Is the oil and viscosity and brand supplied through the dealerships standard throughout Thailand? I ask this because I may not always be able to return to the same dealership in the event that I am travelling.

I live in Pattaya and I am most interested in the service provided at the two Pattaya area dealerships. Also, I would like to hear from those who live in Pattaya whether they have a preference of the service performed at one Toyota Dealership over the other and why.

Since I do travel, I would also like to hear of Toyota dealerships in other cities concerning oil changes and service.

Bottom line, I would like to start out with the same oil brand, viscosity and quality of oil and maintain this consistency throughout the life of the engine.

Thanks,

Pattaya Dave

I appreciate all of the input from the forum members, however I am still a bit confused as to the start and end points of the new road. Will the road merge into Sukhumvit at both ends such as at a newly formed intersection with lights (I hope) or will they end at one of the many Soi's running perpendicular into Sukhumvit?

I agree with many of you, why no bridges? It is getting more and more difficult and dangerous to cross Sukhumvit when entering Sukhumvit Road from any of the Soi's east of Sukhumvit.

Also, do any of you remember seeing or reading concerning the construction of this road when it was still in the planning stages? It seems that any major construction plans that go on in Pattaya is done behind closed door with no input from the public instead of in open hearings as is done in some cases in the west.

Even if there are no bridges built across Sukhumvit Road, I guess the road will have some, if little, benefit, however lets all be honest here, when most of us leave our homes located on the east side of Sukhumvit, our destination is to some location on the west side of Sukhumvit therefore we will still have the same problem trying to cross Sukhumvit. The real downer is that roads such as Pattaya South, Central and North do not continue eastward across Sukhumvit. If they did, this new road would be a godsend.

Thanks,

Pattaya Dave

TOT is not a popular option! I haven't beeen able to check hotmail or yahoo for two weeks plus it's so unreliable that I need to go to dial up half the time!!

I've had TOT for about one year now and I've definitely had my ups and downs with them, but since the undersea cable break a month or so ago, it has been more reliable. Unfortunately, the performance is not linear. Some periods of the day or night the download and upload speeds are in the very good category, but there are other times of the day or night, such as now, that the upload and download speeds are much slower and sometimes slows down to a halt for a short period of time and only rate as fair. I just did 5 consecutive speed checks, one after another, using http://speedtest.thaivisa.com/ and experienced the following results:

Download kbps: 318, 297, 419, 424, 409

Upload kbps: 386, 398, 386, 386, 399

As I said, the above results were taken from a slow period (2100 hrs.). At peak periods, the download speed ranges in the mid to upper 700's kbps with the download speed in the low to mid 400's kbps.

Pattaya Dave

I apologize if this topic has already been discussed, but I searched a bit for it and couldn't find any reference to it. I live off Soi Khaw Noi, east of Sukumvit Road and have noticed the new road construction along the east side of the north/south running railroad tracks. I was curious if anyone had any interesting information concerning this road such as:

1. Has anyone seen or read anything concerning the intended plan for this road?

2. Where does it begin and end?

3. Is it a two-lane or 4-lane road?

4. When is it supposed to be completed?

5. Was the purpose of the road to alleviate the increased congestion on Sukumvit Road?

6. Will there be any bridges built over Sukumvit Road linking this road and roads west of Sukumvit such as Pattaya South, Central or North?

Depending on the length and quality of this road, it could really be of great benefit in reducing Sukumvit traffic and for those who reside east of Sukumvit Road. I have always felt that a bypass road should be built east of Sukumvit thay bypasses Banglamung, Pattaya and Jomtien. The new highway 7 is a little to far east and other than Highway 36, there are not too many links to it. I would appreciate any information concerning the new road construction since I do live east of Sukumvit and plan to live here for a long time to come.

Thanks,

Pattaya Dave

Melonf,

Just entered the website with no probs. You may want to thrust your lower lip out in a more pronounced pout. Thats what did it 4 me.

Glad to hear that PCN will be back from Monday..........news is the breath of knowledge (Pattaya_Fox 2007)

Well it's Wednesday yet I still cannot reach www.PattayaCityNews.net on my TT&T MaxNet service

However bizarrely the daily stories are being reported on Google News, so the website is viewable elsewhere

What is going on?

I just tried to enter the website myself and it failed. Did you enter at www.PattayaCityNews.net or is there a different web address?

ok thanks, i think the PRERUNNER is the one I looking for

The PRERUNNER is nice and I almost bought one myself, but it is not available with an automatic transmission, only comes with the 5-speed manual. If the manual is your cup of tea then I would highly recommend the PRERUNNER. I went with the double cab (4-door) 4-wheel drive model to get both the ride height and the automatic transmission.

I accept that the Thai police cannot enforce all road regulation all of the time. But I would dearly love to see them enforce just one and that is that everyone has to drive on the left side of the road. Do all the quirky and suicidal things you want to do but please, do it on the left at least.

I think the Thai police are very good at doing what they truly want, money. They are very good and organized at setting up road blocks for when they want to collect under the clipboard supplemental salaries from helmetless motorbike riders or when they setup dummy speed traps or cones in the road to confuse the drivers as to the rules of the road to again, collect the almighty baht. What's funny about this is that they seem to do it around the same times of the month, month in month out. They are also very organized as they impede all traffic so the Princess can blast through all lights and intersections in you yellow beetle.

Don't sell the Thai police short, they could be very efficient at enforcing the traffic laws if they just wanted to do so, but what's the incentive for enforcing the law legitimately, just more work and no payoff. There's been a number of writeup's in the PostBag section of the Bangkok Post recently concerning Thai police corruption.

You'd be better off getting Toyota to fit the OE one if it is a comparible price. Then you would have no warranty issues.

It would be great to purchase it from Toyota, but unfortunately they do not offer it for a Vigo. Only the top of the line "V" model Fortuners have the Digital Climate Control feature. I don't know if the Fortuner unit could be adapted to the Vigo. Even if it could, Toyota dealerships would most likely refuse to perform the installation and I also doubt that it would be covered under warranty since it is not standard OEM for the Vigo.

The parts - both dash and electrics are exactly the same in a Vigo as a Fortuner, it would slot right in.

Of course warranty issues and whether they would actually do it are a completely different issue... but you'd probably be invalidating the warranty by installing the aftermarket version anyway.

If the parts are exactly the same then I'll certainly go and check it out at the Toyota dealership on Monday and ask if the parts can be purchased and installed by Toyota. I'll post my findings next week. In the mean time, the aftermarket version that you saw at the show last year, did it look, other than the fake wood trim, like a quality built product? I haven't actually seen it yet. The local custom shop has ordered one from Bangkok and it should arrive next week sometime. I'm curious to see how many area temperature sensors come with the kit in order to properly cool the cabin area. I'm also interested in how many backup/reverse and front bumper sensors are included in the kit.

You'd be better off getting Toyota to fit the OE one if it is a comparible price. Then you would have no warranty issues.

It would be great to purchase it from Toyota, but unfortunately they do not offer it for a Vigo. Only the top of the line "V" model Fortuners have the Digital Climate Control feature. I don't know if the Fortuner unit could be adapted to the Vigo. Even if it could, Toyota dealerships would most likely refuse to perform the installation and I also doubt that it would be covered under warranty since it is not standard OEM for the Vigo.

North,

I don't know whether you had read my earlier reply or not, but as I had said, Turtle Wax Bug & Tar Remover is pretty good stuff. I have used it for years back in the US for bugs, road tar and tree sap and it's the best thing I have ever used. As far as I am concerned, it sure beats using a cutting compound that is not necessary. the Turtle Wax Bug & Tar Remover disolves/removes the stain with little or no effort and is not harmful to the finish.

By the way North, when you bought your truck, did the dealer tell you whether your truck's paint finish was protected from a paint sealant applied by the factory or by the dealer. I only drew blank stares when I asked this question to the dealership in Pattaya. I'm glad that the Turtle Wax Bug & Tar Remover took care of the problem for you. I do have to agree that it is going to take a little more effort to keep the white paint of the Exclusive model looking good versus that of say, a silver painted model, however I am quite satisfied with my truck. The factory leather seats alone are worth the extra cost of the Exclusive model.

Pattaya Dave

Pattaya Dave

Has anyone heard about, seen or have purchased this new Digital Air Conditioner Control Panel produced by EPP Smart Control? It does away with the current rotary control switches present in the Vigo by providing full Digital Operation of the Vigo air conditioning system to include fan speed & direction control, temperature control similar to that of the V model Fortuner. In addition, it includes front & rear bumper sensors for parking and 4 door sensors all in a single color vacuum fluorescent display. Also included is a replacement center console panel available in simulated wood or silver color. The unit can be viewed at the following website.

http://www.epp.co.th/vigo/html/news.html

It appears to be a nice unit if it serves to be dependable and functions as advertised. My main concern is that it may void a portion of the Toyota warranty. I would welcome any feedback you might have. Price is approximately 12,000 baht.

Pattaya Dave

Ps. I think this unit is also available for G model Fortuners

BTW my wife learns new words in English when riding with me, had to explain 'w-anker' in sign language after she heard me use it several times in a short trip to the shops, great fun :D

My missus has learnt "<deleted>"... she nearly pissed herself laughing when I used that phrase the first time...

My wife picked up "as*hole" from listening to me when I am driving. Now, sometimes she beats me to the punch.

I would recommend first that you try something that is formulated specifically for your problem. If the black spots are indeed the result of road tar then I would recommend that you try Turtle Wax's "Bug & Tar Remover" or "Tar & Bug Remover", one or the other. I have found in the past that it works really well for those tough to remove stains from not only bugs and road tar, but also from tree sap and pretty much any other hard to remove stains. I too, have just recently purchased the white Vigo Exclusive, but being only about 2 weeks old with just over 200km on the odometer, it has yet to acquire any stains similar to what you have mentioned. However, I also have a 5 year old black CRV for which I have used the Bug & Tar remover on with good results.

I too, am interested in ideas as to how to protect the paint on my Vigo. I questioned the personnel at the Toyota dealership from where I had purchased my Vigo concerning paint sealant applied at the factory or at the dealership. All I was able to get was blank stares. I had read on the forum that someone had purchased a Vigo or Fortuner Exclusive and as part of his purchase package, received a paint sealant application with free annual renewals for the following 3 years.

Does anyone know if any paint protection or sealant is applied to the Toyota vehicles at the factory prior to delivery to the dealers or whether applied at the dealerships as part of it's preparation prior to being offered for sale?

Pattaya Dave

How dare those evil car dealers try to make a profit!

Unless you already have a buyer lined up for your old car selling privately carries it own set of risks.

As far as the the new car dealer goes, they are in business to make money. If they weren't making some money off you they wouldn't be there to sell you a nice shiny new car and provide service for you.

Do you begrudge you're favorite restaurant for making a profit? When the profit margin of a restaurant meal is much higher

Dealer profit margins on new cars are pretty low. They make more off accessories and finance.

I agree, the profit margins on new cars aren't all that spectacular. New cars sales profits are a product of volume, the more they sell, the more profit the dealer makes. My father was a car salesman in the U.S. for most of his adult life and he always told me that the big profits were made in the used car market. There are much higher profit margins although the volume sold is lower than that of new cars. It's the old adage, buy low and sell high. Having said that, I do agree that the prices offered by the dealer on trade-in here in Thailand is less than what would be offered in the U.S. from my experience.

Pattaya Dave

Thank you Mobi D'Ark for the kind words.

Pattaya Dave,

How was these two plots registered? Company, individual names?

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com

No company, the two plots of land with house were registered in my Thai wife's name. Our seller/developer weren't turned down from merging the two plots of land, they just told us that they recommended that we wait because they were having a lot of difficulty registering new home purchases in the Thai spouses name after taking their husband's last name. My wife and I have not gone to the Land Office ourselves as yet since we were just told of this today. I just thought that I would run this by the forum members to get some feedback until I had a chance to visit the Land Office in person. Thanks sunbeltasiagroup for your interest.

Pattaya Dave

There is no such law and never was. There was an internal directive not to register land to Thai with foreign spouse; due to marriage joint property laws, because there was no way to allow joint ownership of land when such land could not be owned by a foreigner by law. So the easy way out was to prevent the question coming up was to not allow registration. This directive we rescinded years ago with a procedure that ownership would not be joint property and the Thai would declare money used to belong to them alone and the foreign spouse sign paperwork that he understood the property belongs to Thai spouse alone. Papers are signed and property is registered. Have not heard of any change.

This was my understanding also, I just didn't take the time to go into detail, I guess I should have. My wife and I, along with the Pattaya Land Office, followed this directive to the letter at the time of purchase of our new home, however our seller/developer had told us just this morning that they have run into roadblocks at the Pattaya Land Office recently when trying to register properties of new sales and has told us that they will merge our two deeds into a single deed once this issue has been settled, providing the directive you have outlined for registering sales to Thai spouses who have changed their family name to that of their Farang husband, is restored or remains in effect.

However, hearing of these home registration problems from my seller/developer does leave me with a sense of anxiety and unanswered questions as to the validity of our home ownership. Why would this internal directive now being challenged after a number of years having already passed? Has the new Thai government rescinded or modified this directive?

Pattaya Dave

Does the pump have a thing that looks like an air tank on top with an air valve on it ?

Advise on Make/Model of pump and describe installation in more detail.

Naka.

I too, have this problem occur regularly. I have a small 1,300 liter water storage tank. Next to it is a smaller tank with a pressure guage which is referred to as a pressure tank. Inside, it has a bladder which is, from what I have been told, supposed to maintain or regulate the pressure. Occasionally, this pressure tank fills with water preventing the pressure tank from functioning properly. About every 2 to 3 months, sometimes more often, I have to turn-off the water from entering the pressure tank and drain it. Afterwards, it will function properly until the next time it fills with water again. I never had this problem back in the U.S. and pointed this out to the people who installed the system for me. Their answer, this is what we have to do in Thailand. Maybe the pressure tank is too small, I don't know. In the U.S., my pump was located in the bottom of a submerged well and my pressure tank was substantially larger. In years and years of use, I never had to service the pressure tank, however since my pump was submerged, I may not have noticed the pump cycling on and off. I usually notice it here first when I'm taking a shower as the water pressure constantly changes. I hope I have been of some help.

Pattaya Dave

PS. Also, we have found that when you drain the pressure tank, it is better to remove the pressure guage to allow for better draining, otherwise a vacumn created between the bladder and the upper portion of the tank may cause it to retain some of the water instead of draining completely. Also, we have a water filtering system next to the pressure tank which we are supposed to back flush once a month. We normally drain the pressure tank at the same time we back flush the filter if we remember to do so.

My Thai wife and I purchased a home in Pattaya almost two years ago. We had purchased two pieces of property adjacent to each other for which to build our house. The two properties are located in a compound and had been deeded separately. As part of our contract agreement, the seller/developer had agreed to bear the expense of merging the two deeds into a single deed, but was first told by the land office to first register both deeds separately then they would address the merger of the two deeds into a single one. To date, the two deeds have yet to be merged into one.

Upon contact today with our seller/developer today, we were told that they would indeed take care of merging the two deeds into one, but at the moment they are experiencing difficulty with the registering of any properties that were purchased by Thai women who have previously changed their family name (last name) to that of their Farang husbands. Are they blowing smoke up my ass or is the new Thai government reopening this issue. It was my understanding that the previous law that prevented the ownership of land in Thailand by Thai women who had taken the last name of their Farang husbands had been rescinded or ruled unconstitutional some years ago.

Can anyone shed any light on this subject?

Pattaya Dave