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Buying a car on tourist visa (only 8 months in thailand)

sweetserenity

By sweetserenity
in Thailand Motor Discussion

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sweetserenity Senior Member

sweetserenity

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Hi, im planning to get a thai driver license from scratch when thailand reopens in january(hopefully) and i was planning to buy a car, i just have a question though.

 

With the tourist visa its only possible to stay in thailand in a 8-9 month period per year unless i take the flight to somewhere else and come back, but im not going to do that as i prefer to go vietnam for 3-4 months instead. So my question is. Where can i park my car in 4 months where i wont be in thailand? and is this even safe thing to do?

 

Thanks in advance

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jackdd Platinum Member

jackdd

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11 hours ago, sweetserenity said:

when thailand reopens in january(hopefully)

I'm 99% sure that this won't happen

 

11 hours ago, sweetserenity said:

Where can i park my car in 4 months where i wont be in thailand? and is this even safe thing to do?

If you buy a new car you will probably also get first class insurance, so if the car gets stolen the insurance will pay for it.

I would recommend to park it at a friend's house or condo.

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Airalee Gold Member

Airalee

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I doubt you’ll find a place to park it for ฿300/month as suggested above.  Ibis Styles hotel across from the Sukhumvit 71 intersection had a sign up offering parking spots for ฿1,500/month about 6 months ago.

 

You’ll need a certificate of residency in order to get a license and also to transfer ownership of the vehicle so you might be better off just signing a 12 month lease on a condo with parking.

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sweetserenity Senior Member

sweetserenity

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7 minutes ago, Airalee said:

I doubt you’ll find a place to park it for ฿300/month as suggested above.  Ibis Styles hotel across from the Sukhumvit 71 intersection had a sign up offering parking spots for ฿1,500/month about 6 months ago.

 

You’ll need a certificate of residency in order to get a license and also to transfer ownership of the vehicle so you might be better off just signing a 12 month lease on a condo with parking.

I wouldnt mind paying 1,500 baht per month tbh, is that offer normal? Also what if the car gets stolen and i have insurance, how would that work out? would they pay me insurance immediately or how does the process go? 

 

Also certificate of residency is just the rent paper right?

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Airalee Gold Member

Airalee

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2 minutes ago, sweetserenity said:

I wouldnt mind paying 1,500 baht per month tbh, is that offer normal? Also what if the car gets stolen and i have insurance, how would that work out? would they pay me insurance immediately or how does the process go? 

 

Also certificate of residency is just the rent paper right?

Certificate of residency is obtained by using your rental contract (at least it was for me).  You can either get it at immigration (with a 2 week wait from what I understand) or have an affidavit notarized at your embassy (I went this route via the US embassy).

 

As far as wether or not Ibis’ offer was “normal”...dunno.  You’ll be better served by contacting them directly.  I just remember seeing the sign up for a while.

 

Can’t say what the insurance process is either because thankfully, I haven’t needed to use it.

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recom273 Platinum Member

recom273

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I doubt it’s exclusive to my city - there are plenty of places down here to park cars, you don’t need to trouble a mate to keep it at his condo. 
 

There isn’t enough parking space in the soi or the carport - so quite a few of these covered car parks have sprung up. The price is reasonable, less than 1000b a month I think, less for longer arrangements.

 

They aren’t manned 24/7 but all have lots of cameras and high fences. My neighbor seems to have no issues leaving his car for a month or two at a time when he works offshore. 

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LukKrueng Gold Member

LukKrueng

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5 hours ago, Airalee said:

You might also want to consider long term car rental.  I had a friend who used to do that as it saved him from all the headaches and hoops to jump through.

Best suggestion so far.

Being a tourist means you won't have much time to find any great deal on used cars, and same for selling it when you leave. Thailand is not like Australia/ New Zealand/ Europe where many backpackers buy cars for traveling and there's a market for that (well, used to be before covid).

If you rent a car on a monthly basis you won't have to worry about that and about parking it while away for few months. 

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sweetserenity Senior Member

sweetserenity

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3 hours ago, LukKrueng said:

Best suggestion so far.

Being a tourist means you won't have much time to find any great deal on used cars, and same for selling it when you leave. Thailand is not like Australia/ New Zealand/ Europe where many backpackers buy cars for traveling and there's a market for that (well, used to be before covid).

If you rent a car on a monthly basis you won't have to worry about that and about parking it while away for few months. 

I just heard many horror stories about renting a car. Do you know of any "rent a used car" companies that rents them cheap? and would this save me money on the longterm? 

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LukKrueng Gold Member

LukKrueng

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9 hours ago, sweetserenity said:

I just heard many horror stories about renting a car. Do you know of any "rent a used car" companies that rents them cheap? and would this save me money on the longterm? 

There are many small local places that rent cars, but personally I would go for one of the big companies that have branches all over the place. It will still be cheaper than the difference between the price you'd buy and the price you'd sell the car

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sweetserenity Senior Member

sweetserenity

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1 minute ago, LukKrueng said:

There are many small local places that rent cars, but personally I would go for one of the big companies that have branches all over the place. It will still be cheaper than the difference between the price you'd buy and the price you'd sell the car

Is it possible to buy a car for 2k$? if so, how much can i resell it for if so? and would it be easy?

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LukKrueng Gold Member

LukKrueng

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2 minutes ago, sweetserenity said:

Is it possible to buy a car for 2k$? if so, how much can i resell it for if so? and would it be easy?

Yes, you could find a car for this price. Will it be good enough for traveling long and far? Probably not. Cars are not cheap here. If that's your budget for traveling you better go by public transportation

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sweetserenity Senior Member

sweetserenity

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Just now, LukKrueng said:

Yes, you could find a car for this price. Will it be good enough for traveling long and far? Probably not. Cars are not cheap here. If that's your budget for traveling you better go by public transportation

Im not looking to travel long and far, max 1-2hours per day or so just to drive for fun, how much do you think i can resell it for? and will this idea save me money in long term compared to renting a car?

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richard_smith237 Star Member

richard_smith237

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Facts: 

 

- You can buy and own a car here on any Visa (even tourist exemption stamp) - i.e. own it with a receipt in your name

- You can register the car at the DLT in your name on any Visa (even tourist exemption stamp) -

- You will need a Affirmation of Residence  (Proof of Address) document to register a car in your name. 

    * Your Embassy may not issue an Affirmation of Residence document without a long term visa (i.e. Non-Imm)     

    * Immigration may not issue a Proof of Address document without having carried out a 90 day report

 

- You can get a 2 year temporary driving licence on any visa and visa exempt

- You will need an Affirmation of Residence document (Proof of Address) to apply for a 2 year temp licence

- You will need a medical cert (from a local clinic) & Copies of passport etc

- You don’t need an IDP if your home licence is in the English language

 

 

 

*Stories that Immigration issue a Proof of Address document without the 90 day report have been noted by a couple of members on ThaiVisa.com (i.e. the document can be obtained from Chiang Mai Immgration for 500b) by taking a utility bill or rental agreement.

 

Best advice is to ensure you secure the Affirmation of Residence or Proof of Address documentation before pulling the trigger and making a purchase. You’ll need 2 original documents as copies are not accepted and you’ll need one each for the car registration and one for the licence. 

 

------------

 

Parking - Leave the car at a friends Condo / house or make an agreement when you move to a Condo that you can leave the car there while you are overseas

 

 

 

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richard_smith237 Star Member

richard_smith237

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28 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

2,000 USD for a car= 60,000 baht you wouldn't get a very good car for that! maybe 15 yrs+ old. ???? as people have said cars are expensive in Thailand. check them out on sites like Baht sold

 

Agreed - cars are very expensive in Thailand for what you get. 

 

Op - have a look at one2car.com  (within your price range: 50,000 to 100,000 baht  / US$1640 - US$3280)

https://www.one2car.com/en/cars-for-sale?max_price=100000&min_price=50000

 

In all probability the car will spend a significant proportion of time in a garage and you’ll be paying more to fix it - you’ll end up getting owned by something you own. 

 

 

 

Regarding saving money on a car: The variables are too many. 

- Will you be able to keep it on the road. 

- Will is break down and will you need to pay to have it towed and repaired. 

 

IF you get a very good deal and buy a half decent car for about 500,000 baht you may be able to sell it for something similar 9 months later - but that a big IF. 

 

Renting a car may be a good idea and will cost you about 15,000 baht per month for a reliable small vehicle. 

Also beware of the pit-falls of rental, i.e. costs for any damage, scratches etc

 

 

 

 

 

 

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sweetserenity Senior Member

sweetserenity

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12 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Agreed - cars are very expensive in Thailand for what you get. 

 

Op - have a look at one2car.com  (within your price range: 50,000 to 100,000 baht  / US$1640 - US$3280)

https://www.one2car.com/en/cars-for-sale?max_price=100000&min_price=50000

 

In all probability the car will spend a significant proportion of time in a garage and you’ll be paying more to fix it - you’ll end up getting owned by something you own. 

 

 

 

Regarding saving money on a car: The variables are too many. 

- Will you be able to keep it on the road. 

- Will is break down and will you need to pay to have it towed and repaired. 

 

IF you get a very good deal and buy a half decent car for about 500,000 baht you may be able to sell it for something similar 9 months later - but that a big IF. 

 

Renting a car may be a good idea and will cost you about 15,000 baht per month for a reliable small vehicle. 

Also beware of the pit-falls of rental, i.e. costs for any damage, scratches etc

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks a lot for this! ive seen some cars in the 60-100k baht range. I have some questions that i hope you could help me with

 

How much does insurance and licensing a plate on a car in that range going to cost per month?

If i am able to not go through any incidents, how much would i end up having to pay for normal repairs?

If i go through an incident will insurance cover it all or?

 

Thanks in advance

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yabbra Senior Member

yabbra

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On 11/9/2020 at 12:16 PM, richard_smith237 said:

Facts: 

 

- You can buy and own a car here on any Visa (even tourist exemption stamp) - i.e. own it with a receipt in your name

- You can register the car at the DLT in your name on any Visa (even tourist exemption stamp) -

- You will need a Affirmation of Residence  (Proof of Address) document to register a car in your name. 

    * Your Embassy may not issue an Affirmation of Residence document without a long term visa (i.e. Non-Imm)     

    * Immigration may not issue a Proof of Address document without having carried out a 90 day report

 

- You can get a 2 year temporary driving licence on any visa and visa exempt

- You will need an Affirmation of Residence document (Proof of Address) to apply for a 2 year temp licence

- You will need a medical cert (from a local clinic) & Copies of passport etc

- You don’t need an IDP if your home licence is in the English language

 

 

 

*Stories that Immigration issue a Proof of Address document without the 90 day report have been noted by a couple of members on ThaiVisa.com (i.e. the document can be obtained from Chiang Mai Immgration for 500b) by taking a utility bill or rental agreement.

 

Best advice is to ensure you secure the Affirmation of Residence or Proof of Address documentation before pulling the trigger and making a purchase. You’ll need 2 original documents as copies are not accepted and you’ll need one each for the car registration and one for the licence. 

 

------------

 

Parking - Leave the car at a friends Condo / house or make an agreement when you move to a Condo that you can leave the car there while you are overseas

 

 

 

 

Just out of interest, do you also need a Certificate of Residence for the car insurance as well?

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