MoonRiverOasis

If you're not concerned about resale value, it's a great choice in it's segment IMHO. Well built, well featured, nicely styled and keenly priced.

dont want to be forking out for a new motor and changing gearboxes or something a few thousand KM in .

Mitsubishi's come with a 5 year/150,000KM warranty so that'd probably be something for the next onwer to worry about

So is it any better than the Civics performance wise?

Is that a trick question? Seriously, how could it not be - even in 2.0L form the Civic is downright pedestrian.

That's amazing... unfortunately i still don't fee like my car has that level of reflection. Can I put an additional polish or maybe second coat of wax to improve it? Thanks for the Scratch X tips, I really wish they'd put that level of detail on the bottle rather than the "apply then wipe off" brief instructions they have

In much the same way as painting, the end result of polishing/waxing can be very dependant on the level of surface preparation you put in. In order to get the best results it's vital that you're working with a super clean surface to begin with - that's where clay bars and chemical cleaners come in. No matter how well or often you wash your car, it's impossible to remove all of the contaminants - well, impossible without putting in so much pressure that you'd be damaging the surface..

I'd imagine that it's baked on pollutants and/or build-ups of old wax that are effecting your results. Wax deteriorates faster is some areas than others, and loses it's clarity over time. Old wax also inhibits the ability of new polish/wax to get into the surface too (after all, that's what it's for - creating a sealed protective layer).

The 7-step system is really all I can recommend as a guaranteed way to achieve the best possible result.

I recently discussed this topic with another member here, probably easier just to link you in than go through it all again

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Swirl-Marks-...ob-t351841.html

Here ya go MRO......

Thanks CDNinKS

Looks great! - I have to concede I prefer the white garnish now Might have to proceed with my plan to get the whole rear bumper sprayed and see what difference that makes..

BTW, I couldn't resist the temptation anymore so installed the RaceChip Pro yesterday:

Out of the box the difference was very noticeable - considerably more push as it comes on boost. But then I started reading about the tuning options for it - there's 2 rotary dials you can access by removing the back cover - one for "effeciency", the other for "bandwidth" (the manual while nicely presented, has been translated from German to English fairly poorly). So I started wondering what an extra "1.5 effeciency" would do....

So I added 1.5, then 3.0, then 4.5.. (with a ~10KM test run each time) and I can tell you that after adding an extra 6.0 "effeciency" units, the thing is almost stupidly powerful

Even with 6 people in the PJ last night it was pinning us all back in the chairs under accelaration I'm still yet to play with the "bandwidth" adjustment, but I'm really hopeful that control will be able to move the powerband down in the rev range a bit - the way it storms into power as it comes on boost at 1,800 RPM or so is a little uncivilized right now... But tons of fun I must admit

No black smoke, check engine lights or anything of the sort so far either BTW. So far, so good..

Received the parts today. As MRO states, pretty straight forward installation. However a few comments.

1) I found that they only supplied 2 of the 3M primer wipes and they dried out faster than I was able to cover the required areas.

2) The rear garnish had no 3M tape supplied at all, luckily I had some high bond 3M tape on hand.

3) The paint, although pearl white, does not match exactly with the Mitsu factory color.

4) The instructions do not show that you need to drill a hole in the rear mud flap to fasten the lower end with the screw.

Other than that, I'm pleased with the result.

Well., some good and bad news there unfortunately..

1. I also only received 2x primers (one with the skirts, one with the garnish), but didn't have any problems with them drying out - I did mark the areas with a pencil, clean with isopropyl alchohol first, then hit up all of the areas to be primed on one session though. I could imagine it'd evaporate pretty quickly if you approached it on a piece-by-piece basis - perhaps that's what happened?

2. Mine had the 3M tape pre-applied, same as the skirts. strange.

3. There's always going to be a little "luck of the draw" with pre-painted parts. The last time I needed parts painted in Thailand the body shop had some swatch cards with 6 different variations on the factory paint code for the car (Toyota White in that case BTW). The differences were only very slight - in fact both I and the body shop guys had troubles deciding between 3 of the shades in the swatches, so I guess this is always going to be the case.

4. I skipped the drilling bit. Feels rock-solid without it - time will tell though I guess

BTW MRO, I ordered the crank guard in white, will post pics of that when I get them installed.

6555-0555 and 9027-2411 would translate as:

+66 2 6555 0555 and +66 2 9027 2411

Carryboy products are available practically everywhere - it may just be best to get your friends in TH to pop into a local accessories shop on your behalf (they're everwhere), for e.g. Max Auto Plus (Makro's auto chain) which have locations all over the country:

http://www.maxautoplus.com/

This google search should net you some vendors & prices:

http://www.google.co.th/search?hl=en&c...carryboy+CB-552

You say that you've had some auto detailing shops have a go at it - do you know what they actually tried though? If they've used a cutting compound without effect, that would indicate that the clear coat layer has been properly destroyed - in which case a respray will be the only option.

Note that a good detailer would come prepared with a fair collection of abrasive grades, and would perform patch tests to determine the correct level of cut to start off with. As they worked through the problem they would progressively drop to lower abrasive grades in order to bring the finish back to full gloss - if the auto detailers you went to didn't appear to do this then I'd say it's still worth having a go at.

If you wanted to have a go at repairing the paint yourself, here are some suggestions:

1. If the surface feels rough to the touch, you may have a combination of pitting and bonded contaminant. In this case, I'd recommend starting off with a clay bar. - this will safely and very effectively remove anything above the surface of the paint. Get a kit that includes both the clay and the spray lubricant.

2. Try a chemical paint cleaner - these have zero cut so there's no risk of doing any further damage to the finish. These can be hand applied, but I'd recommend machine application given the severity of the task and the size of the car though. You can buy Meguiars Deep Crystal Paint cleaner online, and can also (sometimes) find it in the bigger department stores like Robinson's and Central.

3. If you see some results with the chemical cleaner (and only if), but there's still areas of visible damage, I'd then recommend trying a diminishing abrasive compound like Scratch X. While this product does have a reasonable amount of cut initially, it breaks down fast so is safe for non-professional use. Again, given the severity of the task I'd recommend machine application. If you go with Scratch X you'll probably need two tubes of the stuff to complete the job.

If the chemical cleaner didn't appear to have much effect, you'll need much more specialized compounds and they'll definitely need machine application - I'd say forget about it being a DIY job.

As for the glass - a concur with the vinegar that's been recommended by others here.

I wouldn't recommend it on the paintwork however.

Edit: I guess it's worth pointing out that a properly professional full-SUV respray only comes in at around 30,000 to 40,000 Baht in Thailand - and would look better than new. You could quite easily spend 10,000 on products and an orbital buffer to do a DIY repair, and there's no guarantee that the damage is minimal enough to be something a DIY would be effective on.. So your best option might just be plenty of smiles and a discrete/friendly conversation with the course manager..

This Jeep was built by "Man by Man Shop" in Ratchaburi and has been featured in a number of magazines.

Here's a link:

http://www.bymanshop.com/manmag.php

Oh no! My evil tease has been revealed!

On the other hand, I also realised the website says "Contact Us". It doesn't say anything about them contacting you. My bad.

5555

Nice to see you're keeping a sense of humor about it

I don't have any recommendations on where to buy I'm afraid, but RunStop is arguably the most popular brand for aftermarket brake upgrade kits in Thailand. They don't have any PJS kits listed, but it would appear they haven't updated their website since 2007.. They do have Triton upgrades listed, so one would assume they'd have some PJS kits by now.

Website: http://www.runstopbj.com/

I got lightening fast repsonses to my emails, though I concede TiT so YMMV

You are right about the response time, sent him an email late last night and the response was here this morning.

Bah, humbug!! I sent email two days ago but no reply yet.

I have no clue what you did to get a reply, but my kind requests including a straight forward hint that I actually want to give them some money in return for their products doesn't seem to do it for this company. Considering I have now sent three (3) emails with the same request, this will soon become a contender for the most ignorant company in Bangkok. One more day and I considering myself having earned the right to tell everybody I know that this is company is a bunch of incompetent twa*s that most likely inherited the business or have billions of baht in the bank and simply doesn't give a bleeding shit about customers.

Amateurs.

Perhaps you should just call them - there's every chance your email has made it's way to their junk email - they are using Hotmail after all.. I guess it wouldn't be a bad idea to check your own junk mail folder too.

There was a piece in the BKK Post yesterday which confirmed that GM are working on their own Pickup/SUV platform, to be released at the same time as the new BT-50 and Ranger platforms - which means towards the end of 2011..

Apparently they're working on new 2.5L and 2.8L Euro 4 diesels to power them, which also supports the general industry "vibe" that 3.0L is soon going to be a thing of past.

Finally took delivery yesterday, and promptly fitted the body kit...

Fitting was pretty straight forward - no surprises and took all of 15 mins including waiting for the 3M primers to cure.

Think I'll get the rear bar sprayed though, I'm not liking the black!

New recoard set as more than 6,600 bookings made in the first 5 days of the 2010 Bangkok Motor Show

The star performer of the show has been Nissan's new eco-car, with sales of 1,000 units in the first 3 "public" days of the show (24-25th of March were 'VIP' only days), with Toyota leading the overall sales race with more than 1,800 units sold.

Revised sales targets for the show, which ends on April 6th, are now 20,000 sales - up around 20% from last year.

If you can supply a name & address for the person who is at fault for the damage (assuming that's not you ), you can claim anything without it having an adverse effect on your no-claims bonus.

However, if you can't do this, the claim will effect your no-claims bonus. whether it's your fault or not - the onus is on you to identify the culprit.

No-claims bonus can vary, but is typically 10% per year, up to a maximum of 60% - applied as a discount to your annual insurance premium.

So:

* If you expect to have an accident every year, go for it.

* If you're not going to renew the insuarance, go for it.

* If you are going to renew the insurance, and don't expect to be making claims each year, figure out what the "damage" will eventually cost you in increased premiums, and work out if it's worthwhile to make the claim from that.

Personally there's no way I'd claim anonymous damage of anything less than 20,000 Baht or so, but I am on the maximum 60% discount and I am insuring 2-3 cars per year.. YMMV!

Well I did it today MoonRiver, all I had was a generic turtle wax polish, scratch x, and a turtle wax wax. The Scratch X seemed oddly ineffective... it wasn't until I applied the polish that the scratches seemed to go away. I had a big problem with lint, as I was using bath towels for the whole project, but I was more concerned with the car's overall appearance rather than the details. It definitely looks shinier and higher-class now, like when I first bought it. I'm wondering, should I apply an additional outer layer of polish on top of the wax each time I wash the car now?

Anyway, this is my first black car and I love it. It's just a cheap little honda but the glossy blackness makes it look so much classier. I'll definitely want to try some of those higher-end Meguiar products someday.

As a sidenote, scientists recently created the "blackest" material yet according to this article. It would be so awesome to have a car made out of that! http://www.world-science.net/othernews/080223_black.htm

Apparently the object on the left is normally seen as 'pitch black' to the naked eye, showing how dark the material on the right must be:

Good to hear

Both Swirl X and Scratch X require a different application method to polishes and waxes. Both of these products are "diminishing abrasives" - fresh from the bottle they have high cutting power, but as you work the product in the abrasives break down until eventually they're almost a straight polish.

The idea with these products is to work a very small area at a time - no bigger than say a quarter of a door panel. Squirt a 10-Baht-Coin sized dollop onto your polishing rag, then work it around the 15" sq. area until your've worked it from cutting to polishing - this equates to about 40-60 seconds of work per section, depending on how serious the defects are. If the swirls/scratches persist, apply it a 2nd time using the same technique. As with a polish, you don't want the product to dry on the surface, so as you finish each section, use a clean buffing cloth to remove the residue.

Here's some photos of a friend's Z3 I worked on a few years back:

50/50 Shot of the hood. The left side is how the car came to me, the right after applying one application of Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner, and one application of Swirl X:

And some after shots:

Here's a couple of shots of my wife's first car These were taken at 2.5 years of age (the day we sold it in fact). This car had the 7-step treatment every 3 months with a monthly wax top-up inbetween, and a weekly wash:

That black you linked to is amazing by the way

Happy April 1st

Did you have the option to have the rear lower garnish in white or silver?

I asked for silver from the get-go, so can't confirm that white is available..

I got lightening fast repsonses to my emails, though I concede TiT so YMMV

Use: Eagle One Wet, Wax. It's the best for black color. Don't buy the "Wax and Polish" from them. Only the Wax.

I was wondering when someone would come in with an alternate recommendation

Eagle One do make some nice products, as do Mother's, Zaino, Chemical Guys etc.. Even Turtle's top-end wax is nice I haven't found a reliable source for any of these in Thailand yet though - do you have any leads?

Just found this: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/specials/n...72&cateid=6

It would seem that Nissan Thailand got caught up in the March release and forgot to finish the X-Trail web pages - there's nothing in English, and even the Thai pages are incomplete..

In any case, there's all of one variant available - you should be able to access some summary info here: http://www.redbookasiapacific.com/th/vehic...S10AU&new=1

I found it!

1. Always stay in control, and be able to stop or avoid other people or objects.

2. People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them.

3. You must not stop where you obstruct a trail, or are not visible from above.

4. Whenever starting downhill or merging into a trail, look uphill and yield to others.

5. Always use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.

6. Observe all posted signs and warnings. Keep off closed trails and out of closed areas.

7. Prior to using any lift, you must have the knowledge and ability to load, ride and unload safely.

8. Know your landing is clear and clear your landing.

Borrowed from here

Before you sit your written exams you are forced to watch a road rules DVD, which is presented in English (quite well too), and answers all of the questions you're going to get presented with in the exam... I can't say I've ever seen an English language road rules book for Thailand though.

Did you have these shipped to you and you are going to install them yourself? Where is this vendor located? I like the looks of all those parts, what about the body side cladding I see on the website? Did you consider those?

Yes, shipped from Bangkok to Chiangmai and will fit myself (nothing to it). All 3M tape/clips were included, along with instructions in Thai+English. The price I quoted earlier included delivery to CM, so you *may* get it a little cheaper in BKK BTW - or may not ;-)

I didn't consider the side body moldings because I'm actually trying to source the Australian version side body strips.. An email to the vendor should get you a quick response though.

I should also say that I was impressed by the service I got too, so have no reservations in recommending them.

There's only one...

The Chevrolet Colorado Z71 3.0L at 796,000 Baht.

http://www.chevroletthailand.com/en/pricing_1.php