PattayaDavid

I've only been living here full time for the past two years, however I have noticed that the number of cars and trucks being driven on the roads throughout Pattaya have grown substantially. I live on the east side of Sukhumvit and it is getting more and more difficult (and dangerous) trying to cross Sukhumvit to the west. Also, traffic on interconnecting roads such as Pattaya Tai and Pattaya Klang have slowed to a snails pace. You don't even want to be driving on Sukhumvit or any of these other roads when schools get out or when people get off work.

It is possible that tourism has decreased a bit in Pattaya, however I think that is true Thailand wide. With all of the trouble in the south, Thaksin's removal from office by a military coup, the worldwide press has not spoken well of Thailand and many countries governments are advising that there citizens to avoid Thailand. Yes, tourism has most probably decreased especially this past high season, but the total number of people living and working here appears to be steadily increasing in my humble opinion. I for one truly wishes that the traffic level would return to that of two year ago or better yet, even earlier.

Dave, I think an oil change every 5k is over kill, but ultimately your choice, where are you from? back home do you work with k' or m's, and how often do you service back home? I think that 10k is over kill, but I do it so the service history is kept to, so as to get top price when I decide to sell!!!!

I know where you are coming from, back in the states I used to change both oil and filter at 5,000 miles on all of my vehicles, however I did use Mobile 1 synthetic oil.  I also changed the oil and filter myself, avoiding the high cost of the dealership service.  This did not void the warranty, just keep the receipts as proof in the event you ever had to make a warranty claim concerning the engine.  

It is my opinion, in Thailand and in many European countries, having your vehicle serviced at the dealership and being able to present a servi

e book is imparitive particularly

for resale purposes.  Also in Thailand, the dealers seem very quick in their avoidance of warranty claims.  They tend to look for the smallest infraction in order to void honoring a warranty claim so this forces vehicle own

rs to use their service departments

throughout the vehicle warranty period.

I was considering the 5,000 km oil and filter changes based on recommendations by others and by the fact that I have never owned a diesel engine powered vehicle before so I figured that I would go with the flow. I figured that I would change the oil and filter myself at every other oil change to save some money.  One thing I have noted here is that the price of both oil and filter are very expensive as compared to the U.S. In the U.S., I'm used to shopping the papers for sales and can usually find my oil of choice (Mobile I) at a significant discount.  Seven liter

 of synthetic oil in Thailand will cost

you near 2,000 baht at local stores and nearly 3,000 baht from Toyota.  I may reconsider and go with the scheduled 10,000 km (6,000 mile) change intervals.  I still have not decided on conventional or synthetic motor oil, however I still have another 9,000 km to figure that out.

Thanks,

Pattaya Dave

Toyota oil is made by Esso. All premium oils are fine as long as you follow spec. Ther's no real way of doing it outside dealership because of your warranty. After your warranty is finished you can go anywhere for your oil.

Thanks for the info Hakku.  I'm thinking about changing my oil and filter every 5,000 km, alternating with Toyota, so I'll still meet my Toyota service requirements.  When I was at Toyota yesterday, I as

ed what

brand of oil they used and the viscosity.  The service tech could only tell me that they used Toyota branded oil, basically he didn't have a clue who supplied it to Toyota.  He also showed me in their service book that they use 10W-30 viscosity on their conventional oil.  Synthetic oil was shown as 20W50, but he s

id that this was for petrol engines.  

He said that diesel engines are supplied with 5W-SL synthetic oil, whatever that means.  One gallon + 2 liters of conventional oil costs 698 b

ht and for synthetic oil the

for the same amount of oil was , I think, 2,698 or 2,898 baht.  For the time being, I believe I will remain with the conventional oil, changing both oil and filter every 5,000 km.

Pattaya Dave

The only thing I don't like about Opera is that I can't highlight and copy a web page then paste it elsewhere as it is displayed on the webpage. When I highlight a webpage then copy it into, lets say into a Microsoft Word document, it is displayed in a text format. Also, when I highlight a webpage, the pictures aren't highlighted and cannot be copied along with the text. I'm sure I was able to do this in earlier versions of Opera before I upgraded to versions 8 and 9.

For now, when I need to copy an entire webpage for pasting elsewhere, I have to open the webpage in Internet Explorer. Can anyone tell me what is wrong with my Opera application and how to correct the copy and paste problem?

Pattaya Dave

I haven't tried FedEx or DHL in Thailand as yet, but I have used the Post Office EMS service with mixed results. I have sent numerous documents to the U.S. and the arrival time has ranged from one week to as many as five weeks. Arrival is supposed to only take five days.

Since I just got my 1,000 km service this afternoon, I've filled my truck's tank only once thus far and calculated 9 kpl, mostly city driving in Pattaya. I expect (hope) to get better mileage as my engine breaks in and loosens up a bit. I'm planning a trip to Issan soon and am looking forward to see what mileage I get on the trip.

Pattaya Dave

At 1,000km they changed oil & filter (asked me first, in fact they always ask me first if I want it changed...), I ended up 3,500 lighter (but I do specify their best oil), same at 10,000km, at 20,000 I had the fuel system flushed/injectors cleaned, 4,200 odd lighter, I can go to my local Caltax and change oil & filter for 1000 odd (but then don't get my service card swiped, and the oil is not Synthetic), I'm sure they are ripping me off, but my wife always questions the price, and they are adamant we are being charged fairly......

Edit...

Just dug out my last invoice,

Oil per Gallon 1,830.00

Oil per Ltr 416.00

Oil filter 220.00

Fuel/injector flush 820.00

Oil Capacity 7ltrs

All in all my last service cost me 4,795.74 inc tax. Looking at it its still cheaper than England, and I always get first class service with them. Guess they always ask me about the oil because they know its expensive, so want to check before pouring it in....

The 1.000 km check and oil replacement was free of charge in my case, I didnot have the filter changed

I think it maybe a good idea to have it done at 5.000 km before I go for my advised 10.000 km check

J

I just had my Vigo 3.0d 1,000 km check performed this afternoon and the service was also free of charge, however the oil was not replaced.  I don't have my English owners/service manual as yet, but the service representative told me that the oil and filter are not changed at the 1,000 km check unless requeste

 by the owner and it's not free of charge.

Pattaya Dave 

replacement is not performed as part of the

LoveDaBlues is correct, insurance offered by Toyota is not standard throughout the country. hel_l, the two Toyota dealerships here in Pattaya don't even offer insurance from the same company. Never assume that anything in Thailand is standard throughout the Kingdom, try visiting a few different immigration offices and you will know exactly what I mean.

REALLY TOYOTA DO NOT OFFER INSURANCE in pattaya when one buy a new car? if you buy it cash full ammount i wud understand that but when one is buying in downpayment 1st class insurance is copolsory, just incase of accident toyota will get money back from the car if ist crecked...

and correct what emperor_tud comment, total ass if i may say so, but what im try to say that whole issue is bit off the road, that basically promote drunk driving, kind of insurance advertising,, We quarantine when you drive drunk and have your car crecked, you will get full refund..."

he was using V insurance company...you know what it is...

Thanks Lusifer.  I just bought my new Vigo 5 weeks ago from one of the Toyota Dealerships in Pattaya.  I purchased V insurance through them.  Actually, they took me down to the V insurance office to complete the transaction.  V insurance company offers a special (reduced rate, slightly reduced coverage) plan for new Toyota buyers.  By the way, the other Toyota Dealership in Pattaya offers Liberty Mutual.

It's my understanding that the THAICOM satellites do not broadcast in HD, however if I am mistaken, someone please correct me as I would like to view HD satellite TV also.

LoveDaBlues is correct, insurance offered by Toyota is not standard throughout the country. hel_l, the two Toyota dealerships here in Pattaya don't even offer insurance from the same company. Never assume that anything in Thailand is standard throughout the Kingdom, try visiting a few different immigration offices and you will know exactly what I mean.

Hi

Lived here for long time but this really got me thinking..

this happen to one of my "friends"

he had fortuner 1yr old driving from Isaan to Bkk,, during the night hrs he was speeding and hit back side of fully loaded Truck after wards estimated speed from police abt 90KM/H, fortuner totally wrecked, guy unconcious flew off from the car, did not wear seatbelt and best of all more that 3.3per mill Blood alcohol (Determent from blood test in the hospital) guy survived, some small bruises on him, back pain, but alive.

His Insurance Company got all police, hospital report, and 3months later he got call from them and insurance company paid 800.000THB from his fortuner, no jail, no courts, did not even had to pay that truck.... insurance company simple pay the money to his bank account

what you know,, one is thinking that i have heard almost everything from here, then came this one....what can i say AMAZING THAILAND

You left out one very important fact, what was the name of his insurance company, I want to sign-up?

One more try.

I live on one of the housing compounds off of Wat Bunyasamphan Road (Soi Khaw Noi).  One of the reasons why I purchased here was the fact that the compound had it's own underground water supply.  I had previously heard that the Pattaya city water supply was sub

tandard.  Stories of low water pressure and at times, no water helped to solidify my decision to live on a comp

und which provided it's own water

supply to it's occupants. 

It has just come to my attention, through a fault of the compound management, th

t they had been incorrectly reading

the individual water meters and undercharging the occupants.  They have correcte

 this mistake, but now my water bill

has increased 6 or 7 fold.  I have also learned that the compound management charges 25 baht per unit of water.  I'm

not sure, but I have been told that the charge for Pattaya city water is around 10 to 12 baht per unit.

My question, if I were to switch over to Pattaya city water, can I expect to have low water pressure and periods of when I receive no water at all?  My current inlet pressure from the compound water ranges between 25 & 30 PSI then it is boosted to 45 PSI by my own pump system.  What kind of water pressure can I expect from the city water

in the Soi Khaw Noi area north of Sukhumvit Road and will my own pump system sti

l be able to boost the pressure 

to 45 PSI?

Bottom line, should I changeover to Pattaya city water?  Would you?

Thanks,

Pattaya David 

Pattaya Immigration refuse without any leniency or tractability to transfer existing visas in old/full passports to new passports without an original letter request issued by your embassy.

This fact is especially important because:

The British Embassy does not automatically issue such a letter, citing that 'a receipt is adequate'.

It is not.

Thailand doesn't have the market cornered in this area.  My wife was issued a 10-year multiple entry/exit visa

from the U.S. embassy in Bangkok, unlike the 90-day or 1-year visas we are issued here here in Thailand.

Thai passports are only good for years so after my wife renewed her passport, we visited the U.S. embassy

to request that her visa be transferred to her new passport.  To make a long story short, the U.S. embassy won't transfer the visa and neither will the Thai passport office.  Their response, they staple both the old and new passports together so my wife will have to carry both passprts when she is traveling to the U.S. until she renews her visa again.

Can any of you Toyota Fortuner owners tell me how many individual temperature sensors are used by the Digital Climate Control System installed in the "V" model Fortuners?  Also, in possible, can you tell me the location of the temperature sensors?  I would expect to find at least one or two located in the front of the vehicle cabin, one in backseat area and possibly another in the vicinity of the 3rd row seats.  I would hope that the Toyota Owners Manual would provide this information.

Thanks,

Pattaya David

With all of the Fortuner owners in Thailand, is there nobody who has a clue concerning the temperature sensors for the Digital Climate Control System?  I guess I can understand that there are those who don't really care about how their Digital Climate Control System processes data as long as it cools the interior of the vehicle.  I respect their way of thinking, however there has to be at least one or two of you out there who possess the technological curiosity as I do as to how things work.

G,day PattayaDavid,

I have the 3lt diesel engine in my new vigo I.ll check my book again tomorrow and let you know the results,

cheers,

lesdunbar

I don't have my English owners manual as yet.  My Toyota Dealership is claiming that Toyota is having some shortage problems due to their printing source.  I've got a feeling that there may be some discrepancies between the Thai version and the English version of the owners manual.  I've been told, but don't hold me to it, that the English version provided to Thailand Farang residents is basically the same manual supplied with their export model trucks so there may be some errors or discrepancies between the two.  I was looking at the warranty card form that came with my truck which provides for a 3-year, 100,000km warranty and 50,000km labor charge coverage and this paper lists the services at 1,000km, 10,000km and every additional 10,000km until reaching 50,000.  

I don't think it would be such a bad idea to have the first oil and filter changed a bit early at 5,000km to flush out the excess metal particles that are as a result of the initial brea

-in of the engine.

Concerning the use of synthetic oil, I've used Mobil 1 synthetic oil in pretty much all of my past cars, however I did stick with the conventional oil at least through the first oil change and sometimes the second before switching over to the synthetic oil to insure that the engine had fully broken in, valve gear and such fully seating.

Pattaya David

Can any of you Toyota Fortuner owners tell me how many individual temperature sensors are used by the Digital Climate Control System installed in the "V" model Fortuners?  Also, in possible, can you tell me the location of the temperature sensors?  I would expect to find at least one or two located in the front of the vehicle cabin, one in backseat area and possibly another in the vicinity of the 3rd row seats.  I would hope that the Toyota Owners Manual would provide this information.

Thanks,

Pattaya David

I always use Toyota's own Motor Oil SL/CF 5W-40 100% Synthetic, in my Vigo 3.0D4D 4X4. First service @ 1000km then at every 10,000km intervals i.e. 10,000 then 20,000 then 30,000 and so on. One gripe I have though is they sure do charge, so would like some feed back on your Oil & Filter charges, to see if I'm being charged as a Farang.

Same as HDRIDER said, how much did they charge you per liter for the oil and how much did they charge for the filter?  Did Toyota change your oil and filter at the 1000km service?  There seems to be some confusion as to whether it is changed or not, some do and some do not.  Also, lesdunbar said that he was advised by Toyota and that his English service book stated that there is a 5,000km service. Possibly, he has the petrol engine instead of the diesel engine or his service book may have indicated a 5,000km service for the petrol engine instead. I've just turned 600km on my Vigo so I'm doing the research ahead of time.

Pattaya David

They check all the fluids and the filter adn check the bolts and screws if everything is still steady, no need to replace the filter at 1.000 KM is my opinion.

next stop would be at 10.000 as they advised me haven't taken a look in the manual yet

but a little bit surprised that you come up with 5.000 for the next check

J

Thanks Jimbo. I don't remember where I got the information concerning a 5,000 km service. I thought that I had seen it on a chart at the dealership; I may have gotten it confused with a different model vehicle.

I would still like to find out what brands of oil, viscosity and quality of oil is available at the Toyota dealerships such as, do they offer synthetic oils as a selection.

Also, I would like to know if these selections are available throughout the Toyota dealership in Thailand in the event that I am not near my local dealership when a service check comes due.

I guess I need to make a visit to my Toyota dealership to find out first hand what they have to offer, however that may or may not help me too much concerning other Toyota dealerships.

Pattaya David

I too, will be interested to hear what the Toyota Manager tells you since I have the very same truck except in white color. I see that you had purchased your truck recently since you still have the red tag on it. I purchased mine on February 2nd. I certainly hope you will post whatever information you find out. If it is a brake caliper change, I hope there is a specific model number or name that I can check on inspection to see if mine is the same. I would hate to make the Toyota Dealership change my tire just to see if it fits or not.

Pattaya David

Made me wonder if the owner had ever eating a BBQ restaurant.

I ordered iced tea, and to my great surprise it was real homemade southern iced tea. But, they served in a 10 ounce beer glass filled to the top with ice. You got about 5 ounces of iced tea. Well, the waitress pointed at the glass asking if I wanted more and I shook my head yes. She brought me another one and rang it up on the bill. Any self respecting BBQ restaurants serves huge glass of refillable iced tea, so this was a big disappointment. Again, made me wonder if the owner has ever been in a BBQ restaurant.

You silly Billy.

I have been to LOTS of excellent BBQ restaurants all across the US that didn't have "free iced tea". You do realize that not all of us are from Sh*t-kicker Arkansas (Ar kan saw ) - right?

I've yet to visit the Great American Rib Company, actually this is the first I've heard of it reading this post, however I have eaten at Bob's Barbeque & Grill located on South Pattaya Road just north of the 3rd Road Junction and they do serve free ice tea refills with their meals. Bob's Barbeque & Grill may not be as fancy as the Great American Rib Company, however I am quite fond of Bob's ribs. I will try the ribs at the Great American Rib Company in the near future, thanks for bringing another great restaurant to our attention.

I think the Great American Rib Company is slowly putting Bob's out of business.

It is probable that Bob is losing business, but his saving grace may be that he will soon setup operation in the Carre-Four food court.

Made me wonder if the owner had ever eating a BBQ restaurant.

I ordered iced tea, and to my great surprise it was real homemade southern iced tea. But, they served in a 10 ounce beer glass filled to the top with ice. You got about 5 ounces of iced tea. Well, the waitress pointed at the glass asking if I wanted more and I shook my head yes. She brought me another one and rang it up on the bill. Any self respecting BBQ restaurants serves huge glass of refillable iced tea, so this was a big disappointment. Again, made me wonder if the owner has ever been in a BBQ restaurant.

You silly Billy.

I have been to LOTS of excellent BBQ restaurants all across the US that didn't have "free iced tea". You do realize that not all of us are from Sh*t-kicker Arkansas (Ar kan saw ) - right?

I've yet to visit the Great American Rib Company, actually this is the first I've heard of it reading this post, however I have eaten at Bob's Barbeque & Grill located on South Pattaya Road just north of the 3rd Road Junction and they do serve free ice tea refills with their meals.  Bob's Barbeque & Grill may not be as fancy as the Great American Rib Company, however I am quite fond of Bob's ribs.  I will try the ribs at the Great American Rib Company in the near future, thanks for bringing another great restaurant to our attention.