josephbloggs

Is it just me or is "woke" the most overused term on this form? It is unimaginative and dull. Anything that is potentially good for the planet is "woke". Anyone left of Donald Trump is "woke". If you drive an EV you are "woke" rather than just enjoying the car for the benefits it brings (performance, comfort, technology etc). But no, woke woke woke. Zzzzzzzz.

Righty ho. Of course.

That is nonsense. As motdaeng says the EV owners on here are constantly saying that EVs are not for everyone. If someone comes on here and asks for recommendations for an SUV what is wrong with giving recommendations on a new SUV? The first EV owner to respond gave his opinions on ICEV vehicles and didn't even mention EVs. The rest of the time the EV owners usually only pipe up when someone comes along with totally wrong (mis)information like "There are no charging stations", "EVs are worthless after xxx years", "They always catch fire" or other nonsense. Then the thread can be hijacked but it is never started by the EV owners in my opinion. To use your analogy, imagine if someone asked for restaurant recommendations and someone recommended a great Indian vegan or vegetarian place. Fair enough, take it or leave it. But then if all the meat eaters piled in with lies about vegetarianism or veganism they would be right to point it out. A vegan restaurant is still a restaurant. An EV is still a car. I don't see anyone forcing anything, only the anti-EV brigade forcing their lies down people's throats which may have a negative influence on the OP reflecting on what their choices are.

Ah, I said which one I would "take". If I was being made to pay for them no question: it's the Seal, hands down.

Sorry, I love the Seal, but I would take the GT-R or the AMG GTS. I wouldn't call them "crap" as that just sounds silly. I would take the Seal over the that Golf though - in a heartbeat. But a genuine supercar? Nah, I'd take the supercar.

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Read my earlier reply. The speed limit on this road is 120km/h. An 35+ year old W123 Merc would not be exceeding that. And the article clearly states that after the Merc rear ended a van it was then smashed in to by a following Toyota. Why is reading the article too much for so many posters here? Comment without reading, I don't get it.

Read the thread. It is a nonsense article. Sadly it has already been reposted by outer "new" outlets. There are still priority lanes for first and business class passengers, they are just separate now in a different area in the main immigration zones - they aren't going in the same place as economy passengers. They have basically now just separated first and business class passengers from BOI, monks, fake people in wheelchairs, elderly, pregnant, real people in wheelchairs, APEC card holders and people who are a bit poorly. They have NOT discontinued priority arrivals for business and first class.

I think you're likely right.

Not necessarily. The speed limit on that road is 120 kmh. Hit anything at that speed and you are doing serious damage. Also that is a pretty old Merc - looks like a W123 so over 30 years old; unlikely that would get over 120kmh. Unless he had a high speed blowout it's safe to say it was being driven very badly, but I wouldn't immediately conclude it was over the speed limit.

He's talking about the fuel, not the price of the car.

God this thread has become really really boring.

So basically you still get priority lanes just in the normal passport areas. It is a nothing story. Actually worse, it is an incorrect story.

None of the old posters been here to say they are lying about the numbers?

I don't have as much time as you guys with nothing to do but go through numbers every single day, nor do I really care, but it is clear all vehicle sales are down this year. You are cherry picking that Toyota market share is up? Normally people provide links. How is Toyota's market share for ICEVs compared to their rivals' BEVs? What are the trends? Where is the growth? That should be telling. Sukuzi are leaving Thailand so no-one is buy their celeriacs (only transam seems to like them). They have dropped from 8k units a year to only 1k units. Therefore market share for other ICEV makers increases. Subaru are also exiting Thailand so no one is buying their cars. Trying to claim Toyota are getting stronger is laughable, especially without providing a shred of evidence. Where is your evidence please?

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We were so paranoid about crime that when we finally landed in Rio we hid ATM and credit cards in our socks and only kept minimal cash in our pockets so if we we car jacked or held up we would still have our cards. Then on our first day we went up the mountain to see Christ the Redeemer but didn't take our cameras as that would make us a target for robbery. We felt pretty silly afterwards and of course we didn't have any photos of that amazing view. After that we behaved normally and never felt unsafe for the rest of our three weeks in various parts of Brasil. I did get pickpocketed once in Pelourinho during carnival but I was insanely drunk so was probably a very easy target - that was foolish of me.

I can't tell you about servicing costs as I am still under the five year free servicing period. Ay my last service they even replaced all the brake pads for free which really surprised me as usually that is normal wear and tear and not covered under warranty. Four years ago when I bought mine they were good value for money for the Thai market. Cheaper and much better specced than the equivalent BMW, Audi, Lexus etc. I've never been one to pay a premium for a badge. But definitely now they are overpriced as are many of the other legacy marques. If buying new now I would only go Chinese, and I would only go BEV. BEVs don't work for everyone but they would suit my needs perfectly. Anyway don't want to hijack this thread with irrelevant Volvo talk any more.

Actually if we are talking second hand it probably would have been assembled in Malaysia (as mine was). I think it is only the BEVs that are made in China and the Malaysian factory has now been closed.

That's why I was suggesting a used Volvo. Top of the range low mileage XC90, 321 bhp for a decent price within the OP's budget. Agree that in the current market new Volvos are overpriced, but they are great cars, great spec, not just an "OK" SUV. . A good second hand one with a warranty is worth considering. My XC 40 has a lovely interior, good responsive 2l turbo engine, Harmon / Kardon 13 speaker sound system and more safety tech than you can shake a stick at. A year or so ago I was driving down Sukhumvit at night, I indicated to move to the right lane and immediately my car made warning noises, swung me back to the middle lane and told me it had avoided a collision. At the same time a motorbike went speeding down my right hand side with no lights on. The tech saved his life. Two days ago I was stopped waiting to turn right. All of a sudden the seatbelts pulled me and the other occupants tight, hazard lights went off, and parking brake was applied - it detected I was about to be rear ended - thankfully the car missed, but only just. My friend spent way more on an Audi Q series. Better looking (especially on his 21 inch rims) but lacking in tech, inferior sound system, no self parking, no active safety to speak of. Anyway, would I buy another Volvo today? No. Are they fantastic and well specced cars? Yes. Just that today you can get better value for money with the Chinese brands. I do love the EX30 but I wouldn't buy one for the money now.

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At the risk of going off topic I took a few people to Raffles 11-12 years ago and said they had to try the Singapore Sling as it was the birthplace of the drink, all that history etc. £17 per glass and they just poured them out of a big bottle - they weren't even made fresh and they didn't try to hide the fact they had giant bottles of the stuff pre-made behind the bar. So disappointing. Nearly £100 for five glasses of pre-made rubbish.

I really enjoyed the food when I was there but don't remember a lot of the details of what we ate now, but I do remember eating a lot of Bacalhau, both fishy and non fishy. We were lucky because we met an Argentinian guy in Bangkok who had lived in Rio for 20 years and would be there at the same time as us. Obviously being Argentinian he spoke Spanish but he was also fluent in Portuguese so he just took us to all his favourite local spots, ordered all the food etc. Had some good nights in Help too. Outside of Rio we were on our own. I really loved the Bahia region though, think we stayed in Pelourinho. The carnival there was amazing although getting pickpocketed was less so. Also spent a few nights in Porto Seguro which was also fab. Fond memories of the trip.

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