ClareQuilty

Take it to one of the shops that do a lot of insurance work, they are generally pretty good at repairing them and generally pretty reasonable.

Might be a good time to consider biting the bullet and re-spraying the whole car.

I was thinking of trying to find a smaller type shop, as those bigger very professional-type shops might turn up their nose or overcharge. I'm looking for the cheapest option.

About re-spraying, I think that's prohibitively expensive, no? I heard like 20-30,000, if I remember rightly. The value of this car is negligible.

I'm considering replacing the plastic front 'bumper' on my ancient KE70 Toyota Corolla (yes, a few did have 'modern' plastic bumpers, I think just on the final year or two the car was sold in Thailand, early 1980s), and possibly getting a few other minor touch-ups done. Basically my front bumper was partially destroyed in an accident, but the fender was only slightly bent, and the headlight was barely effected at all. I also have a hole in the left side of the back bumper where it bends around to the lower part of the rear quarter panel from an unrelated mishap.

I'm wondering if any of our members have had a bumper on an older car replaced or rebuilt in Thailand, and how much something like that might cost. I don't know if they would have to find an extant bumper in a junkyard (perhaps difficult on a 30 year old car), or if they could sort of mold something 'new' in a rough approximation of the original.

I'm looking to spend very little, but the car - which looked pretty tolerable just a couple of years ago - does look pretty unpresentable at the faculty nowadays next to all the Thai ajarns brand new Altises and Civics.

1980???

Many cars not even had head rests and reel seat belts at that time. Hard to compare with today and todays traffic.

In the USA headrests and seat belts were required to be installed on new cars from about 1968 (however modern retractable seatbelts weren't the norm till the early 1970s - 'three point' belts were required from 1974 on), and headrests from 1969 on But you're quite right that some older used cars in 1980 had no belts or headrests - nowadays those would be in a museum I guess.

1980???

Many cars not even had head rests and reel seat belts at that time. Hard to compare with today and todays traffic.

In the USA headrests and seat belts were required to be installed on new cars from about 1968 (however modern retractable seatbelts weren't the norm till the early 1970s - 'three point' belts were required from 1974 on), and headrests from 1969 on But you're quite right that some older used cars in 1980 had no belts or headrests - nowadays those would be in a museum I guess.

Not my town, but Maha Sarkham is 400 thb...one of the few times I've ever been without a helmet.

Nah, its 200 baht - that's what the students pay, and what I paid the one or two times I didn't just get 'waved through' in the years I've lived in Maha Sarakahm. He just cheated you, unless he got you 200 for the no helmet and an extra 200 for not having a Thai motorbike driver's license.

In fact I've always been told by Thais that all such fines are the same throughout the nation, as the police are a standardized, national organization here (unlike back in the USA). Local government means almost nothing in centralized Thailand.

Thai students are tired of being brainwashed ( when just a light rinse would do)

After all this is what 'education' is the world round, nothing specifically Thai about that. That said, those of us who work in education would be a lot better off if the Ministry would 'go offline' entirely (close up shop), that's for sure.

I used to be a Cadillac driver back in the US, and that thing is definitely not my style. I liked the big, heavy, simple rear-wheel drive DeVilles of the 70s and Fleetwood Broughams of the 80s. Reliable, low-tech, cast iron engine, mass and comfort. No one will ever see the like again.

Been driving the bike now for a week or two, and I think 'what the heck' - it runs and drives. There's no need to worry about a little smoke (though it can really smoke people out behind me at the stoplights as we wait - always good for a laugh when the farang has the worst bike or car in the traffic).

RWD

Yes, quite! As old and incredibly decrepit as it is, this is a real car.

Anyway, thanks all, I got it back today, fixed. No sound, everything good.

He used a machine that spins the wheels to determine it was the bearings in the rear wheel on the accident side, how that happened I don't know. I'm having a terrible time trying to figure out the bill which is in front of me - it is in Thai - but looks like:

Oil filter - 250

Oil - 600

Gear oil? - 150

labor - 250

And the final item is 500 baht with loads of Thai writing, so I'm guessing that's the new bearing... sounds cheap, but then most things are on this car. Total bill with engine and gear old change, and as he put it 'tightening up the driveshaft' was 1,750 baht.

Where does insurance come into this to fix your car? I presume you have Class1 insurance.

If not can we assume he does for any comments for my knowledge please?

No I have the minimal insurance. The car is about 28 years old I guess, and the value maybe 35,000 baht.

Are you kidding?...you want to go back there?...for what?

Its the only big city within driving distance, funcat - I really have no choice but to go there someday.

Sorry. I take it the noise was there before the balancing ? Did they hit the wheel as well and how hard ? Is the bumper lose, maybe flapping or forced onto the tyre under air pressure ? What speed does the noise start at ? VIsible damage on the tyre ? Did they change the tyre ? Is there a plastic wheel arch liner lose ?

The tire is fine - I just got the car back from the repair shop where they balanced and aligned the wheel, checked the tire, and made sure nothing was touching the tire.

However it is true some parts of the bumper are now just plastic sticking out with a rough edge - not 'mobile' though, quite solid, so I'm sure they aren't touching anything. Could be vibrating slightly in the wind at speed (which for me is like 30-40 kph.)

After my recent accident which impacted my left front bumper area, I had a vibration and slight 'pull to the left' presumably coming from the left front tire.

I just got the car back today after re-balancing and re-alignment, and it neither vibrates nor 'pulls', but there is a tell-tale 'roooom roooom' noise coming from the left front.

Any guesses? Could it be the wheel bearings? It seems to me unlikely the 'frame' or uni-body structure of the car was bent, as it was only a motorbike which hit me, and the car does track 'true' down the road now.

At the OP: think you did right, but I would recommend you not to settle for the 'written down phonenumbers' but ask for a report from police. Will cost you 20 Baht, but is worth it, just to make sure everything has been reported properly.

And no, no reason at all to leave the country.

Yes, stevenl, you have an excellent point - and this was the one remaining detail I have considered to change. I have thought of going back to Khon Kaen to make an official police report. However I've been delayed in doing so because of classes and waiting to have the car back. I'm also just a little nervous to show my face in that town for at least a few weeks, for fear of revenge from the gang (my car is VERY easy to identify).

Your not alone & it looks like a Thai Person has developed a product

That both reduces heat perceived & repels water too

http://www.facebook....123623017763731

dam_n I just paid 190 baht for a 'new' seat for an old Honda Tena that had a couple of rips in its seat - I could've bought this cover instead.

Stop it stop it clarequilty, Just like watching Frank Cannon or the Rockford files your taking me back to the time when a car just moved without any noise, vibration, or harshness. even the quality cars of today like the top model Camry do not move with the same lack of harshness, I have a feeling its down to weight ? those old cars were not called Yank Tanks for no reason, I think today although we have modern suspension technology the cars just do not have the weight therefore bounce around at the slightest pot hole. unfortunately my theory goes right out the window when you think about old French cars like the Renault 4 and Citroen 2 CV

Lets face it, my friend, the main trajectory of human society and its fruits is downward.

Does anyone think I should flee the country or prepare to flee the country due to this incident?

I won't go into too much detail, but I was just recently hit by a motorbike when a large gang of bikers - I'd estimate about 100 - went the wrong way and 'played chicken' with me around midnight - driving at high speed at my car and then swerving to either side, as is the practice of these teenaged gangs. I was on a major road, almost a highway, going maybe 40kph I guess. I slowed down as quickly as I could and had nearly come to a stop, but one of them just drove straight into the left corner of my car at speed and went flying, damaging my bumper quite a lot! It was a hard hit, and I feared he might've been badly hurt or worse.

I really can't figure out why he did that, unless it was that there was such a mass of them that he couldn't turn - because his friends had accidentally boxed him in.

I didn't feel comfortable stopping - thought it might be dangerous in a crowd of 100 young toughs - so drove on just another couple of blocks to the next large restaurant with a lot of people. Stopping there I explained what happened to the owner, security guard, and various customers who came out (my car was making a bit of noise because the plastic cover had been pushed back, rubbing the tire, so I drew attention). They all advised me to go straight home and not go back to the scene or call the police, saying those boys were on ya-ba, crazy, and dangerous.

Anyway, I sort of fixed my noisy tire situation by pulling on the plastic, and drove home about an hour away (the tire vibrated a bit on the way, slightly out of balance or alignment I think - shows it was quite a hit!).

When I arrived I immediately roused a couple of English speaking Thai friends (my Thai is rudimentary) and together we called back to the police in the town where it happened. They said nothing had been reported, no complaint made, no hospital reported any death, etc., and just took my and my friend's info and numbers down in case of need of further contact, and as my Thai friends said I 'showed my good faith' by reporting it - making clear I had no intention to run away but rather just not be set upon by a gang. The police told my friend that these types of youths are not very likely to make a report as they tend to fear the police, have drugs on them, etc.

Undercover, I couldn't agree more - grew up driving everything from a 1969 Thunderbird through 1970s Cadillac Devilles and Pontiac Grand Prix to '80s Oldsmobile Delta 88s and Chevrolet Caprices, Lincolns, etc., and what all these had in common was - comfort. You couldn't feel or hear much of anything, you just moved without any noise, vibration, harshness. Other things they had in common - they cost next to nothing and never broke.

One time back in the 1990s I got out of an '82 Caprice I was driving and test drove a VW Golf GTI at a dealership.. I left the good old Caprice idling with the air-con on (it was summer, and we never used to turn our cars off in summer for anything less than a half-hour stop). Well, I test drove the horrible Golf and I never saw such a buzzy, bouncy unpleasant little thing. What a relief to lay back in the big soft cloth bench seat of the Chevy and cruise of in air-conditioned, smooth soft riding comfort. It handled pretty well too, I thought.

Certainly the cost of living has gone up every year, roughly doubling (in my view) since I first came here around the turn of the millenium. Interestingly, farang teachers salaries haven't changed - still about 30,000. The lifestyle this buys nowadays is quite frankly grim, but perhaps the frightful level of unemployment in the West has allowed them more desperate applicants despite the pay cut in real terms.

Maybe the bike will run for another 50,000km while smoking. But does this really makes you happy? Riding a smoking bike to save the costs for a repair?

Yeah, not happy exactly but being a teacher in Thailand means, well, lets just say the meaning of a baht changes... and it gets worse the longer you stay!

CQ, check the crankcase breather... start engine, remove oil filler cap, put your thumb over hole and test for pressure, none means its breathing ok, pressure means that the crankcase breather is blocked

Thanks Lickey, I'll try this. Will oil shoot out on me?

Guys, thanks, but I'm not going to 'strip it down' (or rather, have it stripped down). I don't want to spend much money on it. I was just wondering if the nature of the smoke (lots at low idle, but only a little during normal driving or even when the idle was set quite high) could give a clue as to whether it was the rings or the valve-guides, and also whether anyone could hazard a guess as to how long a small bike engine might run this way.

One guess I had as to why I didn't notice the smoke when I bought it (besides the high idle), was maybe the oil in it was so old and thick (and possibly low), that it didn't smoke as much. I really noticed the smoking after I had the oil changed. Might it be advisable to change it again and put in the thickest oil available?

You've clearly had your ring stretched.

Haha, yeah I guess the ring is worn out. But why does it smoke more at idle than normal operation? And how much longer might I reasonably expect it to last?

...have your man servant sit on it and await your return.

Having a manservant sit on his bulge would be awfully expensive, no doubt.

The other day I bought a Yamaha Fresh motorbike, I guess with the usuall four-stroke 100 or 110 cc Yamaha engine. I have another Fresh which has been fairly reliable, so I bought this one from the same dealer without paying enough attention, and now I see that it smokes intermittently.

It may be smoking a little at all times, but only smokes profusely at LOW idle - real mosquito-fogger effect. The bike doesn't seem drastically different in power from the non-smoking one I have, so I guess it still has some fair degree of compression.

Can anyone guess if this is the ring(s) or the valve? And can anyone advise how long the engine might continue to run with this problem? I hesitate to go for a re-build as the bike's not worth it - a four-stroke rebulid is quite expensive (something like 1,800 baht).