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Riding in Thailand - any precautions?

Barnabe

By Barnabe
in Motorcycles in Thailand

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maximillian Advanced Member

maximillian

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Went on a three week motorbike trip from South Thailand to North Thailand and to the East.

Almost daily I had one or two "close calls". I wasn't racing, rather travelling at ease and as careful as can be. Glad I survived.

Finally gave up big bikes as most of the time one has a Diesel fume exhausting vehicle in front. Overtake and get the next Diesel fumes and so on and so on. Not what I call fun.

Don't take the license thing too easy. Get a Thai DL, it's cheap and easy. Oh, and an accident insurance as well, please. Good luck.

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JaiLai Gold Member

JaiLai

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Best advise.


Your a bit of a drama queen aren’t you treacle?

You’re totally exaggerating regarding the fumes, it happens yes but very easy to avoid if you know how to drive.

There’s dangers involved with every mode of transport whether you’re in control or at the hands of others, you just have to manage it correctly.




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Kinnock Gold Member

Kinnock

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10 minutes ago, Anythingleft? said:

Poor blokes probably wishing he never asked now lol..

Sent from my SM-G900F using Tapatalk
 

If you want someone to tell you what a good idea it is, then don't ask TV members ..... ask your Thai Girlfriend and she'll say "up to you". :smile:

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DILLIGAD Gold Member

DILLIGAD

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From the todays Thailand News section:
 
“Every two days, an Australian dies in Thailand,” she said. “The roads there are the second-deadliest in the world, yet tourists get on a motorbike with no experience and ride along without a helmet or even shoes.”

As of this week, I believe Thailand has now beaten Libya to the prestigious first position worldwide. Finally a ‘hub’ for something truthful.


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craigt3365 Star Member

craigt3365

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2 hours ago, CLW said:
2 hours ago, Foozool said:
With 150cc to issan, 
With a 150cc bike ? 
You must be a brave manemoji779.png️emoji615.png️

Where is the problem? 150cc is enough for one person, especially for beginner

The tires are super small.  A bit of sand, a small crack in the road...bang...

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craigt3365 Star Member

craigt3365

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6 minutes ago, CLW said:
11 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:
The tires are super small.  A bit of sand, a small crack in the road...bang...

How small? You mean diameter or width?

Mainly width.  I've seen some scooters with tires about the size of a bike....going 80kph.

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CLW Gold Member

CLW

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Went on a three week motorbike trip from South Thailand to North Thailand and to the East.
Almost daily I had one or two "close calls". I wasn't racing, rather travelling at ease and as careful as can be. Glad I survived.
Finally gave up big bikes as most of the time one has a Diesel fume exhausting vehicle in front. Overtake and get the next Diesel fumes and so on and so on. Not what I call fun.
Don't take the license thing too easy. Get a Thai DL, it's cheap and easy. Oh, and an accident insurance as well, please. Good luck.
Sounds like you used the main road/highways.
I did several trips from Bangkok to northeast and east with not much traffic on the road.
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JaiLai Gold Member

JaiLai

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Sounds like you used the main road/highways.
I did several trips from Bangkok to northeast and east with not much traffic on the road.


It’s a trade off, although the smaller single lane roads are quieter they’re usually in worse condition plus you’ll get a lot of trucks and farm vehicles on them doing as they wish.

Much more scenic though, chance to see real Thailand, good and bad.


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CLW Gold Member

CLW

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Any tips on how to plan such trips?
Reading about trip reports on here and GT rider. It gives you an impression of some possible routes and their condition.
For the road system in Thailand as you might have noticed they all have numbers.
The more digits, the smaller the road.
For example all the highways have one digit number and go to 4 digits for provincial or local roads.
For route planning I mostly use Osm for Android and a in ear headset.
Sometimes also Google my maps and export the file.
You have many options for route planning tools tough.
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Familyonthemove Gold Member

Familyonthemove

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19 minutes ago, CLW said:
24 minutes ago, craigt3365 said:
The tires are super small.  A bit of sand, a small crack in the road...bang...

How small? You mean diameter or width?

It's the diameter that's important for poor roads.  There's a reason dual sport and adventure bikes have 21 inch front wheels. I know some people ride Vespas across deserts, but they're crazy.

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Foozool Explorer Member

Foozool

Posted
Posted (edited)
3 hours ago, CLW said:
4 hours ago, Foozool said:
With 150cc to issan, 
With a 150cc bike ? 
You must be a brave manemoji779.png️emoji615.png️

Where is the problem? 150cc is enough for one person, especially for beginner

Ok.

You may lose control by trucks passing by. Not really stable at high peed. It will do the job, but what about the risks. 

I even don't do that with a 300cc. 

Good luck. 

 

 

Edited by Foozool
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Anythingleft? Senior Member

Anythingleft?

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Not true anymore. They do random roadside urine tests all around Esan. Day and night.
 
 
They can still manage to be pleasant and do their job can't they? Is it just the fact that they are enforcing regulations you find unpleasant? Not sure what your point is to be fair

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CLW Gold Member

CLW

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Ok.
You may lose control by trucks passing by. Not really stable at high peed. It will do the job, but what about the risks. 
I even don't do that with a 300cc. 
Good luck. 
 
 
But not for a beginner. It's more likely he'll have a accident because of too much power and the heavy weight of such a big bike.
I prefer a 150cc or 300cc bike for riding alone. Everything over this is useless Especially in Thailand where you can't go fast anyway.
You seem to be obsessed with big cc bikes. That is my opinion.
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Here It Is Apprentice Member

Here It Is

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Just now, CLW said:

But not for a beginner. It's more likely he'll have a accident because of too much power and the heavy weight of such a big bike.
I prefer a 150cc or 300cc bike for riding alone. Everything over this is useless Especially in Thailand where you can't go fast anyway.
You seem to be obsessed with big cc bikes. That is my opinion.

Are you for real?  I thought the thread was about a long haul ride not a run about the local town.  

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chrissables Gold Member

chrissables

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10 minutes ago, Here It Is said:

Are you for real?  I thought the thread was about a long haul ride not a run about the local town.  

I have rode long distance on both a big bike and my PCX, down to the Singapore border was a big bike ride because of the good roads.

 

PCX most of Thailand from Kanchanaburi north including north Laos, the PCX was more fun.

 

Last year in Vietnam 10k + km south to the most northern point and back on a Honda Winner, 150cc.

 

So depending on what your goal is, both sizes of bike are ok.

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Barnabe Advanced Member

Barnabe

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But not for a beginner. It's more likely he'll have a accident because of too much power and the heavy weight of such a big bike.I prefer a 150cc or 300cc bike for riding alone. Everything over this is useless Especially in Thailand where you can't go fast anyway.

You seem to be obsessed with big cc bikes. That is my opinion.

 

This is getting off topic, but I agree with CLW. People in Europe are obsessed with big bikes, to the point that most brands don't offer many sub 500cc versions of their bikes in the EU.

I understand some people might like it, but for me the bike will be too heavy, spend too much fuel and too big for the average European city.

 

For anything else but full motorway riding, even a 125 will be enough, although pretty slow. For motorway riding with lots of cars and especially trucks, 300 is ok.

 

In most non motorways you can barely go above 80 km/h anyway, unless you have a death wish or would like to remain in a wheelchair for the rest of your life. A 300 will easily reach 160, which is enough to overtake any truck in the motorway, and a good 125 can do a sustained 80 km/h with medium effort.

 

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Foozool Explorer Member

Foozool

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Posted
1 hour ago, CLW said:

But not for a beginner. It's more likely he'll have a accident because of too much power and the heavy weight of such a big bike.
I prefer a 150cc or 300cc bike for riding alone. Everything over this is useless Especially in Thailand where you can't go fast anyway.
You seem to be obsessed with big cc bikes. That is my opinion.

Larger engin does not mean higher speed only. There are at least a few different factors involve. Stability,  control, tire sizes, better breaks (discs in rear) and quicker if need to speed up in case.

It is all depends on the rider. I drive scoters locally only. 

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Ro54 Apprentice Member

Ro54

Posted
Posted

Beware, long post!) :-) 

I wrote to much, but don't feel like editing..... :-)

 

 

I had not been driving a 2-wheeler since ny youth, and tried again 40 years later in Jan.2017. An automatic scooter was not for me, I like driving manually, and feel I have more control going downhill.  Got my A licence during the summer in my home country, mainly because of insurance issues(had A1= 125cc). Bought a CB300F, and drove from Phuket to Ao Nang, with my wife on the pillow. a 1 cylinder engine resulted in lots of gear shifts on the main roads. Upgraded to 500X, which has enough power for 2 persons.

As far as I can see, car drivers are more polite when they see a big bike compared to a scooter. The most dangerous vehichles are the vans, buses and tuk-tuks.We always drive with good helmets(Bath >10 000,- Shark), jeans and jacket with armour and gloves(half gloves, I know it would have been better with full gloves, but, man, the heat...)

Have been doing several trips 250-300 km's in Thailand, and I think cardrivers in Scandinavia behave worse... except the fact that in Thailand you have to expect the unexpected....  I'm planning visiting Hua Hin by   bike next month..on the bike..

The 500X is not very heavy (<190kg), and the 2 cylinders behaves better in the traffic. Less gear shifts, more stable, etc. I would definately stay away from R- bikes in Thailand...

In Scandinavia, we're riding a 2001 600GSXR, rode one 950km trip this summer ++. 4 cylinders, enough power, and a more bent riding position... Not as nimble as the 500X, but a very good tourer...incredible seat.

Well I may have strayed away from the OP, but I feel a lot safer on a bigger bike down here, but would not ride a bigger than 500-700cc cause it would be a bit to much for daily trips to the market. 

I would also advice the OP to get a licence , as the training brought up a lot of forgotten stuff: dead angle(always check x 2 before you turn, etc.), positioning in the road, among others.

And yes, we are insured!

Summary:

1. Licence

2. Insurance

3. Safety( helmet, armoured jacket/pants, gloves, shoes

4.Ride training

5. Eyes open, expect always the unexpected

6. Avoid nightdriving

7.Drink enough water!

 

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