josephbloggs

....Clearly envious of others accomplishments sorry you have so little of value to compare against since boozing all night must the best you can do......

Wow, you got that spot on. Seems like being the bestest most fastest "my dad's bigger than your dad" engineering guru in the world, you are also a genius at reading people.

What part of this topic does this address??

It addresses the fact that I read through an entire thread - that was started merely to inform people of an event at Bira - and you kept popping up telling the world how you are faster than everyone else, you've done more than anyone else, you are better than everyone else, that it became incredibly tedious and boring.

Quite frankly, even if it was all true, the fact that a grown man (I'm assuming?) feels the need to constantly brag, boast, make claims about what he's acheived (which is better than what other people are doing even though they were making no boastful claims), on an anonymous forum is really quite sad and pathetic. Most people grow out of that when they enter their teens.

You ruined what was quite an interesting and good natured thread.

Waste of band width and oxygen......

But at least I only used a little bit. Your tedious boasts are hogging half the internet.

drone.....drone.....drone...........I've won in every drive configuration and that includes the first time I drove a Mercedes 190E in a 4 hour enduro against 2 V8's and a turbo Porsche 944S2 as just a few of the notable standouts on a first time track and the first time in th....etc........etc........drone.....drone.....me me me........drone...

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I always buy fuel with my UK credit card. I park up, get out, ask if they take credit cards, and then stand over the attended while he fuels up. Using a credit card means less money I need to bring into the country. Reason for standing over him is to:

1. ensure he puts the right fuel in.
2. they don't scam me for fuel.
3. put drugs behind the fuel cover flap.

My God, it must be terrible to go through life being that paranoid.

When you get a shirt dry cleaned do you follow them to the machine and stand over them till it's finished in case they put drugs into the pocket?

When you go to the supermarket do you stand over the bag packer in case he puts some heroin in with your cornflakes?

What if you shake hands with someone and he palms some ecstasy tabs to you? Best not shake hands with people, or get a friend to stand over them when you do it.

And be careful in Emporium when buying grapes. The guy at the weigh-in counter could be out to SCAM YOU by putting in the code for seedless grapes rather than the cheaper variety you've selected! And there could be some crack cocaine going in there too - don't forget to stand over him!!

Sheesh.

I must have been incredibly lucky. I've lived here for 15 years and have never had drugs put behind my filler cap, up my exhaust, under my windscreen wipers or anywhere else, and I've bought a lot of petrol in that time! Careless of me not to check though - no idea how I've got away scot-free for so long.

i would imagine this one comes from one of the large beverage companies already established in thailand. i haven't tried it but it's probably terrible.

Oh my word, even for TV this is a gem of pointlessness. You could have just written, "I know nothing about this beverage, where it comes from, who it's made by, or what it tastes like". Seriously, why bother replying to something you know nothing about? I'm just curious.

Best TUK TUK i even seen!

Another nice one, seen in Bangkok in front of Nana Hotel... The red number on the license plate hint to private use.

That belongs to the Robin Hood pub (corner of Sukhumvit 33/1).

Do you have permissions and permits to shoot the movie in the first place ? These are needed.

My God these forums really are full of wannabe know-it-all bellends.

The guy is nowhere near shooting a movie, he is merely working on ideas for one and asking for a bit of advice. And every one here who obviously knows better jumps down his throat. Negative, petty and sad.

And as for the people picking on his English.....has it ever occured to you English might not be his first language? Really, get a life.

Golf GTIs, VW Beetles (1.89 million baht - cheap!), Audis, Mercs, Porsches of various kinds, Ferrari F430, all out in the open with the prices stuck on them, and all of them significantly cheaper than the official cars. He said something about importing them directly himself and there being no middleman therefore he can sell cheaper, but a million baht (or more) cheaper? Hmmmm.

I was at the show as well, checking out the Lotuses (Lotii?) which are tempting. Was also looking at TTs and SLKs.

Anyhoo, a few things to bear in mind. F1 is a big dealer and they advertise on one2car a lot- in fact I can see those two Audis you mention on there and they are about 500-600k under what others are advertising, which of course is a bit inflated from the real sale price. I'm shopping for cars now and have been doing some price comparisons- their other cars, for example the Mini, is in line with market prices so not sure what's going on with those TTSs. A few things to check are:

- whether or not the car really is a 2010 model. It may be a 2009 that has been registered in 2010

- whether or not the car is actually a TTS or is a rebadged TT

- whether the title is for a 2010 Audi TTS or another car (this is a problem with many Mitsu Evos)

Not sure if you're in a position to finance the deal, but if you are then the financing company will check out everything for you as they themselves don't want to take a car onto their books where the car's value has been exaggerated.

Hi Crash,

That's a good point about checking the model year. It could well be a 2009 model - it's still a "new" car technically. Will look into that.

Maybe I wasn't too clear but the model he's offering me is a TT, not a TTS, so there's no trickery going on there. (He does offer the TTS as well but that is 3.5 million - elsewhere in the show I saw a TTS for 3.9m. Officially I think it's over 5 million.) So, to reiterate, it's a TT but with the S-Line trim (which is maybe where I wasn't clear), quattro 4WD rather than the base level FWD, and it has an ABT power upgrade to 260hp.

Again that's a good point about the title. I'm all too aware of the Evo comparison because I looked at getting one of those a few years ago (from Wattana cars on Petchaburi Road) but ran a mile when I found out it would be registered as a normal Lancer, plus he only offered a one-month warranty. Instead I bought an official Subaru WRX.

He did mention finance options from a 3rd party finance company at 2.25% APR (can't remember the name of the finance company but I remember he said it was attached to Siam Commercial Bank), so like you say surely they wouldn't get involved it there was anything fishy??

Hmmmmm.

Again - as you also saw yourself - he was displaying all this out in the open at a major show. If there was anything obviously illegal then surely all Audi, or Mercedes or whoever would do would be to simply send someone to the show, note the serial number while looking under the bonnet and then report him to the authorities for illegally making a false customs declaration.

He was obviously unwilling to explain how it could be so cheap.

The only reason it can be that cheap without being stolen goods is that the guy didn't pay tax on the cars (eg. smuggled).

What could happen down the line is when you go to register the vehicle, the revenue department will ask you for additional (or all) tax.

The seller will make away like a bandit as the "tax" you should pay through him is no more than pure profit.

Another scenario could be that the cars he is selling are rejects from the manufacturer and he managed to get his hands on them under the manufacturers impression he would salvage parts, then destroy the vehicle on their behalf (less likely scenario though).

The risk is that he'll make sales for the next 9 months or so, and then his business is mysteriously gone with perhaps only a cell phone number to call.

Maybe note down all serial numbers of the car, double check with customs or other relevant authority before purchase.

Normally, when someone gives you a deal cloak & dagger style, you most likely are being taken for a ride.

But then again, he might be legit. You could ask when he started selling these cheap cars and who bought them. Ask to see registration papers that have gone through 100%.

Check, check and then double check everything.

Edit: I forgot about the obvious warranty repairs. Who does them? Where? Do you get full warranty from the brand locally?

Thanks for the replies so far everyone.

I should point out that the cloak and dagger aspect of it isn't quite so cloak and daggery when you consider he had a huge stand at this well organised and prestigious car show, with a wide selection of cars on display all with prices prominently displayed. If he was doing anything illegal wouldn't this be a bit brazen? (Yes I know this is Thailand, but even so...)

Golf GTIs, VW Beetles (1.89 million baht - cheap!), Audis, Mercs, Porsches of various kinds, Ferrari F430, all out in the open with the prices stuck on them, and all of them significantly cheaper than the official cars. He said something about importing them directly himself and there being no middleman therefore he can sell cheaper, but a million baht (or more) cheaper? Hmmmm.

Edit: He said they came with a full warranty for one year but I don't know any more detail than that (ie. is it valid at the dealers? Does he service them at his showroom?)

"Is a buyer likely to run into any trouble some time down the line?"

YES

Hi Powderpuff,

Could you elaborate on that please?

Hi guys,

I'm in the market for a new Audi TT. Buying from Audi they are over 4 million. But I was speaking to the guy at F1 Auto at the motor show at Impact on Saturday and he is selling them - brand new with S-Line spec, quattro 4WD and an ABT upgrade - for 2.99 million. He was obviously unwilling to explain how it could be so cheap. He also has A6 3.0 TDIs for 2.99m, and a brand new Cayenne Hybrid is 5.99 million. Ridiculously cheap prices (for Thailand). He offers a 1-year warranty.

Is this legit or are there some dodgy mis-declared import shenanigans going on? F1 Auto seems to be a big company with a large flashy showroom - it's not some tinpot shed.

Is a buyer likely to run into any trouble some time down the line or is there nothing to worry about? You know what they say - if something sounds too good to be true....

Any input appreciated.

I use True and have their 8Mbps package. I know True get some stick but I have no complaints at all - I am very happy with their service and I often get speeds beyond that.

I regularly play PS3 online (COD, Uncharted 2) and never have any issues (apart from other people being better than me and generally dying alot).

It's around 1,100 or 1,200 baht a month, I can't remember exactly.

Hi,

I don't know about TMB but you can register for Bangkok Bank's internet banking from their ATM machines. I did it recently and it's very quick and simple - no need for any documents. I'd recommend just doing it that way.

See here.

Buy an old company (over 2 years).

Many for sale

Should be around 30.000 baht for a shell company.

Then you can get extension of stay right away.

Not true, unless the company has been actively trading in the previous years, with sufficient turn over to satisfy immigration that the company will be able to pay for the foreign employee(s).

Rule of thumb is that turnover should be at least a year's worth of salary for the foreign employee (12 X 50000 = 600,000).

Which would be unlikely with a shell company sold at 30,000 Baht!

Additionally I do not trust buying "second hand" companies, there is simply no way to check whether they have debts or not. They might have bought stuff on 90 days credit, you might get bitten in the behind!

So considering this rule, does that mean that NO start-up company can employ foreigners without them faffing around with re-newable three month non-immigrant Bs for two years? Is there any difference depending on the size of the company? The capital investment in this case (in total, not from me) will be in the region of 100 million baht. Does that not have any bearing at all? Also, I have been living and working here legally, paying all my taxes, with a series of one (sometimes two) year visas and WPs for 13+ years. Is this taken into account at all?

I should point out that we will not be buying a shell company but will be setting one up from scratch, although with a local partner who already owns several established and successful companies.

Again, thanks for the replies, keep them coming!

If you are purely an investor and don't work at the company you don't need a WP. If you invest more then 10 million baht you can get a visa and extensions based on your investment.

If you do work at the comapny, even signing papers would be considered working, you would need a WP. I understand it is a new to form company, so for the first 2 years you will need to stay on multiple non-B visas, as for 1 yearly extensions the company would need to show tax paper over the last 2 years.

Hi Mario,

Thanks for the reply. Very interesting. As I will certainly be working there I will need a WP then, that's fine. But I wasn't aware of the two year tax thing. Does that mean that I (and any other foreigners we might employ) will have to leave the country every three months to renew our non-immigrant Bs, or can it be done from inside the country once you've initially entered on one?

Hi folks,

I have lived and worked here for numerous years as an employee of a Thai company. I don't have Thai residency as I have never got round to applying. I am leaving my current job to join a start-up company in which I will also be a registered shareholder/investor.

After I leave my present company will I have to leave the country and apply for a non Immigrant B back in the UK (or wherever)? Are the rules for work permit applications different if you are in investor in the company too? I have been told that maybe you don't even need one but I find that hard to believe. Is the process any different at all?

I would appreciate any repliues or any information anyone can share with me on this topic.

Thank you.