MoonRiverOasis

trans,

You are preaching to the converted, i don't dare even want to think about the money ive spent purchasing and modding vehicles. However, talk of speeds of 180km/h (50 metres per second) in a vigo or fortuner on a road open to the public where somchai on his wave, grandad on his bicycle & any countless number of stray animals, potholes & so forth is really just stupid stuff.

I can't see anyone here saying they generally like to "hang out" at 180km/hr in their PPV, so not sure where you're shooting from? Reality as T/A says, HP is just one of those things that's in your blood, or it's not. If you must, consider it a safety offensive, given the shorter amount of time it takes to overtake on 2-way roads, thus substantially reducing the chances of a head-on

That said, have you ever driven on highways like the one's arouind around Uttaradit? Those who have can complete the next sentence ;P

In closing, we're not all schoolkids jacked up on hormones and w/out skills and common sense. There's a time and a place for everything..

Not sure how you got on with this, but I stumbled across this today:

http://www.anumutgroup.com/product.php?id_product=655

For those not following the link, its'a 200L *talking* fuel vending machine. Yes, talking

Not cheap though

I concur - the only pickup that I have trouble losing in my (mildly modded) 2.5L Pajero Sport GT is the Navara 6MT.

As for stock figures, here's some numbers for PPV's (pickups will do better due to power:weight and MT) pulled from a Thai motoring journo who does *very* in-depth tests:

0-100 KM/Hr - average of 4 runs

Fortuner 2.7V 4AT 4X4: 15.12

Fortuner 3.0V 4AT 4X4: 13.28

Fortuner 3.0V 4AT 4X2: 12.71

G-Wagon 2.8 4AT 4X4: 17.33

Pajero Sport 3.2 4AT 4X4: 13.91

Pajero Sport 2.5 4AT 4X2: 15.11

Ford Everest 2.5 AT 4X2: 16.05

Mind you, getting off the line is not the Automatic, 2000KG PPV's forte - the performance once you're actually underway belies these numbers..

Have you measured your 0-100 time yet?

My PJS shaves several seconds off the best times in the list here

Niiiiice!

The car and the plates came out well too

Sorry you're so misinformed, you know me?? I have a certification and credentials to match to go with soon with a work permit for exactly my specialty in this field, so sorry for you...JFYI I am the OP....

http://www.boi.go.th/english/how/legal_iss...n_investors.asp

What is considered a "Professional Engineer" in terms of a car restoration?? I plan to do the work myself and I'm far more professional in that regard then any locals, so how does that work?

I'm sure the OP means an engineer with legally recognizable credentials here in Thailand - which unfortunately exlcudes yourself, no matter how well endowed your credentials may be..

I have it and in terms of savings I believe it's worth it but in terms of vehicle wear and tear the jury is still out from my point of view, admittedly I'm not fully up to specs on it yet though it's a new adventure.

Your information about the start up is new to me, so intended only as a learning process I'm curious to know how exactly would it be detrimental to get a hotter fire upon cold start? Can you tell me what damage that is supposed to create?

Conclusion.......I have plenty of my own questions to answer on this one before I can answer conclusively..

You appear to have gone from a relative LPG novice, to the LPG master awfully quickly there warp

OK, benefit of the doubt - you probably have a several decades of technical expertise in other areas which have allowed to you come up to speed quickly on LPG (the same goes for me with commonrail engines I guess), but another reality is that although Katabeachbum is not a native English speaker, the guy does know a thing or two about pretty much most of the topics discussed here too..

If we all consider ourselves professionals, should we not present ourselves that way? Just some food for thought..

Peace

Maybe they will bring out a Landcruiser in Thailand

It's already here (and has been for a long time), thanks to the grey market..

Prices start around 3.3M for the Prado, or 6.4M for the real deal - hence why Toyota Thailand don't bother importing it themselves

Have owned 2 fortuners and always been a fan. But I think it's just about had enough incarnations, and like the Yaris and Vios (both excellent) it's time to put them to bed and upgrade. Especially the dynamics.

Unlike a lot of European cars, e.g Golf and Porsche. Japanese cars need to refreshed more often.

Hard for the Fortuner since it's been a winner, and competitors don't seem to cut it. But for the price I think it's time for a change.

Mostly agree, but unfortunately the next IMV platform doesn't come until 2014, which probably means 2015 for the (true) next generation of the Fortuner. It's going to be awfully long in the tooth by then..

Wow, that's a pretty old episode you watched - that was back in 2008 if I'm not mistaken..

Sure power:weight is what it's all about, but I much prefer the way Bugatti massages the ratio, heh Yeah the R500 is fast, but really, you wouldn't want to be seen driving the thing

Err, it would appear the Aperto II is already out:

http://www.toyota.co.th/th/models/fortuner...er2007_spec.asp

Now only 1/4 Million Baht more expensive than it's closest competition! *ouch*

No further insight into the Sportivo III (or even if it exists) yet.

There's some rumours circulating but that's about it - I've heard nothing from a credible source. The rumours say that there's a Sportivo III and an Aperto II coming in September. The rumoured changes don't appear to be too much though I'm afraid - apparently there's a new LCD screen for the audio-visual system and some minor cosmetic changes.

In any case, I'll wait until I hear something from someone I trust - a lot of these rumours are just the result of (sometimes good) guesses on the part of over-enthusiastic people fishing for inside info... I'm not suggesting that's you BTW - I'm referring to the Thai language websites where these types of rumours generally originate from.

Here's a couple of links to explore re: market price for the ES300:

http://taladrod.com/w20/Search/TbRst3.aspx...ll+mk:31+md:141

http://one2car.com/search/search_result.as...1998&Type=1

Unfortunately not many Thai used car dealers list things like service history, mileage or condition, and there's only a very small sample available ATM, but stickers seem to range from 300L to 500K. If you'd like a more definitive valuation of both your current car and the Lexus, it may be worth considering a Redbook valuation for 100 Baht each:

https://www.redbookasiapacific.com/rbcert/i...ng=en&cc=th

whats the story with that website, seems to be based in US but gives prices in B? Obviously the engines aren't in LOS

does anyone know if those prices are reasonable?

cheers

DM

That's the Chiangmai Club website, which is used by various Thai vendors to pimp their wares.. The vendor states that the prices are fully inclusive of shipping and all taxes to Thailand. As for the prices being reasonable, I dunno - ask someone who's modified them in a similar way and gone through the process of importing one to Thailand I guess

I've also never seen anything being towed between provinces (have seen plenty of local-area watercraft towing though), but there's no end of references to it on the Thai language offroad websites etc - e.g. http://www.weekendhobby.com/

I used to maintain a thread on the topic here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Cars-Market-...on-t342022.html

It hasn't been updated for a few weeks now, but it's still relevant I guess.

Are there any Chevrolet Engines here with paperwork?

Sorry to dig up an old thread, but came across this today and thought it might be of relevance to those looking for V8 engines in TH:

http://www.cm-club.com/vb/showthread.php?t=60499

Scroll down past the 1,001 ads to get to the juicy stuff

For those who can't read Thai, note that ราคา xxx000 บาท is the Thai Baht price..

Shell still sell it at selected stations - what you need to look for on the pump is this:

วี-เพาเวอร์ เบนซิน

(V-Power Benzene)

They have an info line you can call to find the nearest station that stocks it: 0-2657-9888

Edit: A quick way to check whether your getting the benzene V-Power rather than the Gasohol type is price: V-Power Benzene is currenty 42.2 Baht/litre vs 35.5 Baht/litre for the gasohol variant.

For that matter, the prices sign board out the front could be your guide - if you see a price in the 40+ baht/litre range, it's pretty certain to be 95 octane benzene.

Also, you can scrub PTT off your list - they haven't sold 95 Benzene since July 2008..

But the usual "panic makers" complaining again

I think you have may me confused for someone else - if not, please show me a single post where I have complained or scaremongered and I will humbly apologize.

In any case, there's has to be a reason why this car has lost 90% of it's new value (the market is never off by that much) - so I stand by my suggestion to have an independant, professional evaluation made of it's condition before moving forward with it.

Given the monster mileage and assumed price, IMHO you'd definitely want a professional opionion on it's current health.

There's now a few companies specializing in unbiased used car testing in BKK - this is the only one that has an English language website AFAIK: http://www.testcar.co.th/english.benefits.php

wasnt there a scam going, where a car importer had a expensive ferrari minus the engine imported,and was charged a lower tax rate as it was deemed car parts, they then imported the engine, excise dept caught on and had the whole car crushed

Yes there was, but their scam was importing them with some key (read expensive) electronics removed, then letting it fall foul with customs where it'd move on the auctions and they'd buy it back for a snip. Then put the electronics back in them of course

The one you're referring to was crushed by Earthmoving equipment, and was widely televised. Kinda heartbreaking I must admit..

The Innova is based on the Hilux engine and chassis, so mechanically it's fine - that Indonesian styling is a matter of personal preference though

Some other options (in new cars) are:

* Thairung Allroader - based on the 2.5L TD Chevrolet Colorado. Launched in March this year at 799,000 Baht. Some info here

* Mitsubishi Pajero Sport GLS - 2.5L TD RWD 7 seater. The GLS misses out on a passenger airbag, leather chairs and uprated audio system, but is still great value at 969,000 Baht. 2008 and early 2009 models can be found used for < 800,000 Baht.

* Toyota Avanza - based on the Yaris/Vios drivetrain. An admittedly small 7-seater for sure, but a 7-seater nonetheless Prices start from just 570,000 Baht making it the best baht-per-bum on the market.

As for the fiesta, would there be rear disc kit available for it? I noted it has rear drums, even on the top model (hope I'm wrong). Also there seems to be a performance kit available for it in the UK (to give over 140 hp). Wonder if that would be available here at a later date? That should make it a pretty quick car. Actually its already quick (based on some youtube videos of a manual version, the 0-100, 0-400 times are similar, or a little quicker than a civic 2.0!)

Apart from resale, I don't see why anyone would buy a jazz instead of the fiesta. Really wanna see the diesel version here too sometime!

There's currently no rear disc kit on the local market of course, but the aftermarket will no doubt fill the void once/if sales have hit critical mass though - the same goes for body styling kits and other accessories. The Thai aftermarket usually starts delivering products around 6-12 months after initial car deliveries begin.

The popular UK performance kits (140HP Mountune, 150HP Pumaspeed) and the Ford Sweden 170HP supercharger kit will all have to wait until they have ECU remaps that'll work with the (Thai debut) 6-speed powershift box. Unfortunately I don't have any info at all on if/when UK and European Fiesta's will be getting the DSG however (nor do Puma or Mountune BTW).

The only other reason you'd buy a Jazz over a Fiesta (outside of resale as you pointed out) would be interior space and versatility - nothing touches the Jazz on that point. Why you'd buy a Mazda2 or Yaris over a Fiesta is a much better argument to have, hehe

Cars in Thailand are so boring. <snip>

I think the consumers here just don't know how to demand better quality and wider range of products.

Thailand has 500K new vehicle sales per year (of which ~50% are pickups) with a ~62M population, in a country where you need 100+ dealerships to have a proper dealer network - these just aren't the kind of statistics that give you any freedom in your product mix unfortunately. Couple that with nonsensical excise taxes, and the fact that the overwhelming majority of sales happen at the absolute bottom of the market, and there's just simply no way to make a business case for a more diverse product mix

By comparison, Australia with just ~22M population buys 1M new vehicles/year. USA with 310M population is now approaching 10M sales per year. I don't have the latest stats for Japan handy ATM, but last time I looked they were about the same volume as the USA, but with just a 127M population.

You are clearly an intellectual on these matters and from reading your previous posts to fellow members out there I think it's a fair conclusion that you simply know what you are talking about. For this reason, if you have bought a Fiesta, I am inclined to follow suit and do the same (wanted one anyway).

I'm willing to buy the product on it's merit, and am also willing to take the resale hit. Don't let me make any decisions for you though!

Now I just have to persuade the other half to break the traditional ranks of Thai society and go with the Ford. If I let her pick the colour this might soften her reluctance slightly .

On that front, it may be worthwhile scoping out the Ford dealerships within range, and only talking her to the best presented of them all.. It also may not be a bad idea to pre-arm her with some retorts for the inevitable jibes she'll get from her Thai friends as well - while that sounds like a joke, it was a strategy that worked well for me when I (buddha forbid) bought a Mitsubishi

Note to Thaivisa: Moon for an admin position.

Appreciate the plug, but I'm pretty certain my professional skillset would be misplaced here