Pib

@JBChiangRai Do current BYD vehicles still come with the "free periodic maintenance/service" for 8 yrs/160K km? That is, when it's time for the 1 year/20K Km periodic checkup, 2 year, 3 year, etc., checkup those checkups are free; or is there now a charge for these periodic checkups (except maybe the 3 mo./5K km courtesy checkup) like in most other countries?

You might want to consider the "self-employment" method and pay SSA taxes that way. Might be a way to rack-up one more SS credit. But of course working in Thailand requires a work permit. Beyond what below SSA and IRS weblinks say "I know nothing!" as Sgt Schutz of Hogan's Hero's use to say. https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10022.pdf https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/self-employment-tax-social-security-and-medicare-taxes

Yeap...wife's IDD SSA payment posted to her Bkk Bk acct a little before 10am/today/6Jan.

For folks using IDD to a Thai bank the payment will post over the next day or two.....the holidays has just slowed things down. Today/5 Jan was the first day back to work for "headquarters type bank folk....Bank of Thailand folk".....no doubt "non-ACH" incoming foreign payments are backlogged in the Thai banking system. Personally, I wouldn't waste any phone calls or visits to your Thai bank asking "where is my "IDD" SSA/mil retirement/VA payment" as you'll just get a "I don't know, maybe tomorrow, etc., type answer." Give it a few more days.

Ditto for my wife who gets her SSA via IDD to Bkk Bk. It will probably show-up on 6 Jan.

What have you been getting "real world range-wise" with your Seal....and is your Seal an 82KWH with RWD version or another version? Thanks.

The charger location this lady was using was at CentralWorld Mall in the Bangkok Siam area. This charging location is called Zeekr Power using the Evolt charging network app. It's one 400KW DC charger with two charging connectors with that 400KW max most likely limited to 200KW max per connector (see 2nd pic below). This location also has two AC 22KW charging connectors right next to the DC charger. I determined this from looking at the charger number on the display (#294157) and also the lady's original Facebook post which also shows the charger number again on a placard. There are also 9 Tesla 250KW max superchargers at this CentralWorld Mall but in a different parking level. Anyway, I wouldn't say "...Thailand is simply not ready for EV prime- time..." based on one charger at a mall in central Bangkok not putting out its maximum KW rating for some reason. Plus there area about a gazillion Youtube videos of people in many different countries having some kind of charging issue....like not getting the KW output they think they should be getting. Thailand has LOTS of DC chargers along major highways--sure, not enough yet in all locations especially when you start going north of Bangkok---but still a lot and more being added every day especially by PTT, Spark, and others. So far in my Thailand travels I haven't had any problems in finding an available DC charger pretty easily.

Wow....how time flies! The M6 Extended was listed for Bt849K during the Motor Expo and thru 31 Dec 2025. Will be interesting to see what the price for 2026 will "actually" turn out to be. But I don't expect to see any updated pricing until at least 5 Jan 2026 when everyone will be back to work after the holidays.

See below ThaiRath newspaper 23 Dec 2025 article for full story...partial quote below. 2026 prices shown below are probably the new "retail" prices before any promotion price reduction. https://en.thairath.co.th/news/auto/2903610 BYD is reducing electric vehicle prices in the final stretch of 2025 before prices increase in 2026 after the EV 3.0 scheme ends, which means vehicles will no longer receive the government's 150,000 baht subsidy. On 23 Dec 2025, Revo Automotive Co., Ltd., part of the Revo Group and the official distributor and after-sales service provider for BYD and DENZA new energy vehicles in Thailand, announced that electric vehicle prices in Thailand will need to rise in 2026 to levels higher than current prices. This is because the EV 3.0 scheme will end, meaning BYD DOLPHIN and BYD ATTO 3 models produced at BYD's Thailand factory will no longer receive the maximum 150,000 baht subsidy from EV 3.0, but will instead get a maximum of 50,000 baht subsidy under the EV 3.5 scheme. Meanwhile, BYD SEAL, BYD M6, BYD SEALION 7, and DENZA D9 will lose the maximum government subsidy of 75,000 baht and will face an increased excise tax rate raised by 2% to a total of 10%.

Due to the New Year Holidays dealerships/head offices are pretty much on life support....either not open for service or only for minimal service. This will continue until 5 Jan/Monday when life returns to businesses that shutdown/went to minimal staffing & service until 5 Jan. Hopefully the week of 5 Jan we'll start seeing some updates of vehicle websites as to what the new pricing is. OR, while the vehicle manufacturers try to figure-out what promotion(s) in terms of pricing OR freebies to offer they'll just leave old promotions posted from late 2025 which were suppose to end 31 Dec in order to get some customers to visit showrooms to ask about current promotions/pricing. With the next motor show event not occurring until late Mar 2026 and vehicle manufacturers surely realizing many customers are more than willing to wait a few months until then to see what deals are offered, the Jan-mid Mar 2026 period may be a dry spell for vehicle sales. Hopefully some manufacturers will offer some good deals like some unexpected price cuts on selected models, just extending pricing from 31 Dec 2025, more vehicle brands offering a lifetime battery warranty, offering 2 or 3 years of free insurance vs 1 year, etc. None of us really know what latitude vehicle manufacturers have in their pricing (or freebies) even with the ending of higher EV3.0 subsidies. I have no doubt "registrations" for Dec and Jan will be HIGH like in previous years but most of these registrations will be from Dec 2025 sales. Plus, brands like Jaecoo are having some serious "delivery" problems right now. Many social media posts where people have been waiting two months for delivery of their Jaecoo or supposedly their Jaecoo just arrived port but final delivery delayed due to lack of vehicle carriers from port to dealership, etc. Until these deliveries can actually occur "registrations" can not be completed which will cause registrations to "peak" in Jan....maybe peak to the highest level ever recorded due to the late Nov/early Dec 2025 Motor Expo "bookings" success and vehicle delivery delays. A peak that does not represent "Jan sales" but sales from late 2025. So, with upcoming highs/spikes in Dec and Jan "registrations" no one should be fooled into thinking Jan "sales" are still good, that 2026 higher pricing is not hurting sales, etc.

I expect January thru mid March to be lacking in any good promotions as the various vehicle brands try to figure out what pricing their competitors will roll-out. Kinda like poker players trying to figure out what hand the guy across the table has. Plus, I expect in January the dealerships will be working hard in trying to complete sales from end of year bookings, Motor Expo 2025, etc., and probably wouldn't dare offer a better price than offered in Dec 2025 in fear of booking cancellations. I really don't expect to see any good promotions until mid March....just before the Motor Show 2026 which runs 25 Mar - 5 Apr.

Happy New Year...Welcome to 2026. On 18 Dec 2025 there were 145 Spark charger locations as I posted above. Did a count (counted twice) on this New Year's morning and there is now 164 Spark charging locations. Spark charger locations are spouting fast like weeds.

Yes, it appears that what it boils down to. If a person gets confused as to what "previous" tax year means they just need to think "what is today?....whatever today is the "current" tax year. So last year and earlier years is a "previous" tax year.....the year you are currently breathing in is the "current" tax year. Examples: - today is 31 Dec 2025 which is the "current" tax year...the "previous" tax year would be 2024, 2023, etc.- - if we fast forward a little bit and it was 1 Jan 2026 that would now be the "current" tax year...the "previous" tax year would be 2025, 2024, etc. - if we fast forward again and it was 31 Dec 2026 that would be the "current" tax year....the "previous" tax year would be 2025, 2024, etc. Bottom line it's the "old" rule. And since the old rule was not thrown out (unless having a LTR visa) until 1 Jan 2024 and LTR visa first came into effective 1 Sep 2022 then that means the LTR tax exemption advertised with great fanfare wasn't really a benefit at all since the old rule was still in effect for everyone.

Now although I'm now an EV guy with my 2023 BYD Atto...I'm also still an ICE guy with my 2009 Toyota Fortuner.....I'm living on both world for now. But probably in a few years I'll sell my Fortuner and get a 2nd EV and totally be in the EV world. What I find in that ADAC article that tends to make breakdowns look a lot more serious and very frequent for ICEV is approx half of the total breakdowns for both ICE and EV were their 12V battery. You know, the ubiquitous 12V battery that's been around as long as any of us reading this. 12V low voltage batteries, especially lead-acid batteries, simply don't last much longer that 2 to 4 years....it just the nature of lead-acid battery chemistry....they'll can go bad even if lightly used and kept charged. And the new 12V "LFP" batteries last longer but frequently they fail around around the 4 year point...sometimes even sooner when they start showing "swelling" signs. The 12V battery in EV or ICEV is still a reliability issue and causes many roadway/driveway breakdowns in both ICEV and EV....and will continue to cause many breakdowns whether it's in an ICEV with thousands of moving parts or an EV with around 50 moving parts. When excluding the 12V battery breakdowns from the ICE and EV stats it appears around 5 breakdowns per 1000 iCEV and 2 breakdowns for 1000 EV. A person could still jump-up and say look, ICEV breakdown 2.5 times more than EV! Yea, that's right but 5 breakdown per 1000 ICEV is still only 0.5%. I don't know about you, but in my Thailand travels I rarely seen any "car" broke down along the road....but I do frequently see small and large trucks broke down usually for a blown tire because of the heavy loads carried, tires being bald/old, etc. Breakdowns on the road seem to be pretty rare now days for passenger cars and even trucks used mainly as passenger vehicles except when carrying an occasional household item.. BUT, this is not saying ICEV don't have higher "maintenance" problems than EV....problems that still allow the car to be driven but the owner also knows he needs to get it fixed soon/before the next govt inspection requirement. I could go on to give my opinion on "EV maintenance" primarily being a "captured audience" right now in needing to use a dealership repair center due to warranty provisions and replacement parts availability, but that's a discussion for a later time.

See weblink below for full article...partial quote also below. Lots of data/stats in the article. One such stat is: The accident frequency for EVs is 74.8%, compared with 47.2% for ICE vehicles, indicating that EVs are nearly 1.6 times more likely to generate claims.... https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/3165294/ev-insurance-demand-surges-amid-expensive-claims EV insurance demand surges amid expensive claims Underwriting pressure likely to raise premiums PUBLISHED : 29 Dec 2025 at 07:00 WRITER: Nuntawun Polkuamdee Thailand's electric vehicle (EV) insurance market is expanding at an unprecedented pace, tracking rapid growth in EV sales dominated by Chinese brands, which have overtaken Japanese automakers in market share. The strong growth momentum is accompanied by persistent underwriting pressure, with insurers facing loss ratios exceeding 80% and repair costs 50% higher than those for internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, reflecting upward pressure on insurance premiums in 2026. According to data from the Thai General Insurance Association (TGIA) and Thai Insurance Research and Development Co (TIRD), EV insurance risks are significantly higher than those of conventional vehicles, driven by greater accident frequency, more severe damage per claim, and rising exposure to flood-related losses as extreme weather events become more frequent....... ********************************

Yeap the article should have said 27.2% vs 22.7%...transposed the last two numbers. Is putting numbers in the correct sequence really that important? 😀😁😉

It's very interesting in how EV3.0 closure is impacting some end-of-year promotion pricing. There is a BIG push among some EV manufacturers to "complete" a sale "payment-wise" by 31 Dec 2025 to ensure the EV can complete DLT registration by 31 Jan 2026; otherwise, the vehicle manufacturer will not receive the higher EV3.0 subsidy ....will get the lower EV3.5 subsidy instead. A prime example is the Omada-Jaecoo EV delivery issue ongoing right now where the company is not able to delivery EVs from seaport to dealerships in time for all orders to complete sale by 31 Dec 2025 with ensuring registration by 31 Jan 2026. Apparently the lack of enough vehicle carriers from seaport to dealerships is the main problem combined with the holidays down period (and probably Omada-Jaecoo being overwhelmed with more orders than planned/expected). So Omada-Jaecoo is asking customers to complete payment by 31 Dec 2025 via approved financing or cash payment "AND" come pickup their EV at the seaport in Chonburi province between 28-30 Dec 2025. And apparently for those who were financing with little or no down payment Jaecoo is recommending the customer make at least a Bt100K down payment immediately which will ensure immediate financing approval due to some special deal between Jaecoo and finance companies/banks. Been quite a few stories regarding this issue....and Omada-Jaecoo customers are lighting-up Facebook pages asking the company if the price they booked at over the last few weeks is going to be honored or is it going to increase by Bt40K if financing can not be approved by 31 Dec 2025, etc. And many who received their Omada-Jaecoo vehicle over the past few months are complaining about still not receiving some of the freebies they were suppose to get like upgraded carpet, vehicle to load adapter, window tinting, etc. Seems Omada-Jaecoo sales success over the past few months has overwhelmed the company is some ways. This weblink gives a pretty good description in English of the current issue: https://www.thaiautonews.net/omoda-jaecoo-customers-asked-to-pick-up-vehicles-at-shipyard/

I never thought I would hear of the day a "white" model of any car would not be readily available since about half of the vehicles on Thailand roads are white. White is like the national car color for Thailand. 😃

I think Thai traffic regulations limit speed to 80kmh due to safety reasons "until the roadway is declared fully operational/fully open." So, until the motorway is declared fully operational I expect the 80kmh speed limit will remain.

Based on above the only "BIG" impact will be for EVs not imported from a country that does not have a 0% import/customs duty due to Free Trade Agreement (FTA)....countries like Japan, EU countries, US, etc. Since the great majority of EVs sold in Thailand are imported from/made in China a 0% import/customs tax applies in 2026 just like in 2025 and before under the Thailand-China FTA...it will be business as usual. However, for those countries like Japan, EU countries, etc., that do not have an EV 0% FTA with Thailand then EV import taxes will return to much higher rates unless they signed-up to EV3.5 provisions....some did sign-up; some didn't. So, the Import Duties changes will give China a bigger advantage over some other countries like Japan....of course Japanese vehicle manufacturers like Toyota, Honda, Isuzu, Nissan, etc., really don't care about building EVs....they are committed to ICE and HEV. The Excise tax of 2% vs 8% remains the same under EV3.5 in 2026-27 just as under EV3.0 for 2025 and before. So, this is not a player. So, the only significant change for "all" EV vehicle manufacturers will be in subsidies for those companies "that didn't signup with EV3.5 provisions." (note: as mentioned some "not-made-in-China" manufacturers will be whacked with return of higher import duties). Generally that's going to be around a Bt25K subsidy reduction. In the overall price of an EV say costing Bt600K that equates to around a 4% increase....for a Bt1.0M EV that equates to around 2.5%. And I expect EV manufacturers could make such an increase magically disappear with a promotion....a price reduction they had been holding in reserve just for EV3.5 2026 purposes. It's going to be interesting to see 2026 marketing and pricing strategy. And for the first few months of 2026 I think pricing will remain stable with some companies increasing prices by Bt25K-40K but starting around March any increases will disappear with new promotions with the Motor Show 2026 in 25 Mar - 5 Apr 2026. Plus I figure the continuing "low intensity" price war in China will continue to keep a lid on EV prices in Thailand by offsetting reduced subsidies under EV3.5 for 2026-27. But hey, opinions are like you know what---everyone has one.

Whoops...corrected Motor Expo 2025 numbers for BYD. Guess the BYD Motor Expo folks tallying-up bookings can't count too well. See below thaiautonews article which also talks EV3.0/EV3.5 subsidy changes for some BYD models. https://www.thaiautonews.net/byd-extending-lifetime-battery-warranty/

It sounds like you did "not" receive the 1st email from Rever asking you to confirm terms & conditions by clicking an icon within that email.....and then that gave a popup message saying thanks and within 15 business days they will provide final approval/disapproval? Sounds like you did "not" have to go thru/await the 1st email; instead, you went right from the payment/inspection to the final approval/2nd email from Rever. Maybe how fast the process works "after the payment & inspection" depends on the model of the car, year of the car, how many kilometers the car has accumulated, dealership involvement, maybe luck, etc.

BYD has extended the Lifetime Battery Warranty Promotion again....now extended until 31 Jan 2026. See Rever Automotive weblink at bottom which appear on their website around 26 Dec 2025. Apparently they needed to extended the current promotion for various reasons that ends 31 Dec 2025. From looking at Facebook posts a lots of people are still having problems in getting a timely appointment at a BYD dealership to have the battery inspection accomplished. While a person can now go to a dealership and pay Bt5,000 for the warranty until the required physical inspection of the EV/battery is accomplished the warranty can not be finalized...that is, approved or disapproved. If disapproved the person is refunded the Bt5,000). Now I did see one, maybe two FB posts, who got the battery payment "and inspection" accomplished early in Dec and also got final approval from Rever within a week (i.e., got both the Rever email asking the customer to confirm the order terms & conditions and then the 2nd email confirming final approval). Expect these folks got lucky....hit the timing gates just right before thousands of BYD vehicle owners started flooding BYD dealerships with requests to purchase the battery lifetime warranty. In my trek to get the battery warranty starting back in early December very shortly after HQ BYD announced the lifetime battery warranty during the Motor Expo 2025 the dealerships had to await guidance/instructions from HQ BYD (which is Rever Automotive for Thailand) before the dealerships could accept any Bt5K payment or accomplish the required accompanying vehicle/battery inspection). In early December I went to three different dealerships here in Bangkok (to include the one I bought my BYD vehicle at) trying to buy the warranty....but all three couldn't help as they said they were still awaiting guidance/instructions/forms from Rever. Two promised to call me once they get guidance and fortunately the dealership that I bought my BYD vehicle at made me an appointment for Christmas Day as that's the earliest open slot for any type of service in hopes they would have firm guidance from Rever by then to accept and process the battery warranty payment and inspection. Well, fortunately one of those two other dealerships called me several days later with an earlier appointment which I took, but the other dealership never called me as of today/27 Dec. Anyway, I paid for the Bt5000 and also had the inspection accomplished 13 Dec....the dealership mechanic & customer service rep said everything looked fine....and within 3 "business" day I'll get an email from Rever asking me to read & approve the terms and conditions of the warranty by clicking an icon/link within the email (just like how the most recent promotion says). However, I didn't get that Rever email until 23 Dec (7 business days or 10 calendar days later). I clicked the icon within that email accepting the warranty terms & conditions and then below popup message appeared confirming my order and saying within 15 business days (which will be at least 21 calendar days considering weekends & holidays) will provide me with results (i.e., approval or disapproval). As of this post/27 Dec I haven't got that email, but Rever has to around mid January 2026 to meet their 15 business days deadline. Just hope it's not late like their response that was suppose to come within 3 business days but took around 7 business days. Time will tell. Response when clicking icon with Rever email asking a person to confirm warranty terms & conditions. Latest BYD Lifetime Battery Warranty Promotion....appears on the Rever website around 26 Dec 2025. https://www.reverautomotive.com/en/news/byd-battery-lifetime-warranty-package-existing-customers-campaign-extended

I just come back from a groceries run to a Tops Market on the ground floor of Central Pinklao here in western Bangkok. Guess people are already on holiday as there was very little open parking space....just jammed with people driving around and around looking for a parking spot. HOWEVER, there was a row of 12 AC chargers (3 Evolt and 9 Onion) on that ground floor parking....about half of the chargers in use....I pulled into an open Evolt charger slot and began charging. The wife and I then took about 20 steps to enter the mall to do our shopping....31 minutes later we came out...paid Bt32 for the charging session and left. Avoided the parking hassle and got some electrons at the same time. Yeap, some of the charging networks I have registered with I knew I would rarely use them for DC charging on road trips but could make occasional good use of some of their AC slow chargers in traffic jungles such as Bangkok where parking can often be very hard to find especially on weekends and holidays.

Yeap, at this location the ReverSharger is Bt8.0/KWH and the Spark Bt7.9KW/KWH. I expect a lot of people still haven't heard about Spark.