What is the car model year in Thailand? Date car is Manufactured or Date first Registered?

[Thomas J]

In the USA the manufacturer sets the model year.  There is a cut off typically in August or September and cars built after that model year changeover get their title issued in the "new" model year.  So you can have two cars on the sales lot both with Zero miles and identical to each other.  However one was built in June 2020 and the other September 2020.  The one in June will come with a title showing ownership in the car as a 2020 model while the one in September will show ownership title stating it is a 2021 model year.  

What is the standard in Thailand.  If a car is built in 2019 lets say June but by the time it is shipped to the dealer and eventually sold it is now February 2020 and the first time it is registered it is 2020.  Is that car a 2019 or a 2020?   Obviously the older the "model year" the less the car is worth even assuming all other features, and mileage of the cars are identical. 

[canopus1969]

Model year is the year made - Registration can be weeks/months even years after the car is made

[richard_smith237]

Model Year or Year of Manufacture (MY) ???

 

Both can be read from the VIN: 

 

- 4th VIN character (letter) represents the Month of manufacture.

- 5th & 6th characters (numbers) represent the year of manufacture.

- 10th VIN character (letter) represents the Model year.

 

You can find out with online VIN checkers. 

 

Also note that ’some’ care sales are less than forthcoming with the truth and are often tricky. They will lie to you, tell you an MY2018 car is a 2020 car because that is the year it was registered. 

 

[Note: VINs do not include the letters I (i), O (o), Q (q), U (u) or Z (z), or the number 0, so that they will not be confused with similar looking numbers/letters]

Edited May 31, 2021 by richard_smith237

[Thomas J]

7 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

- 4th VIN character (letter) represents the Month of manufacture.

- 5th & 6th characters (numbers) represent the year of manufacture.

- 10th VIN character (letter) represents the Model year.

So I understand.  if  a car is manufactured lets say in November 2020.  However it is sold for the first time in February 2021.  Is that car a 2021 Model Year?  

Perhaps I understand what you say if the manufacturer changes "model years" lets say the first of October each year.  A car built in September 2020 would show as a 2020 model year but one built in November 2020 would be a 2021 model year even if both cars were sold in January 2021 on the same date? 

[stubuzz]

The model year and date of manufacture will not change.

However, a car made in 2021 could be registered in 2022 or 2023. This will be shown in blue book.

Note: Many people will sell the car on the registered year!

[Road Warrior]

every vehicle i have bought is last year model regardless 

[jackdd]

The blue book will state the "model year", but afaik that's simply the year in which the car was built.

So if for example the manufacturer built the old model in the first half of the year, then made a model upgrade and built the new model in the second half of the year, then both of those cars will state the same "model year" in the blue book.

[Jitar]

The model year concept seems to be an American marketing strategy that s interpreted differently outside the US.  As others comment, in Thailand the year of manufacture and / or year of first registration are generally used.  Both are useful but incomplete. 

 

The year of manufacture is more significant for resale value and for the specifications of the vehicle, however minor and major  model changes can be introduced at any time during the year.  This is why used car value and specification references often cite the model code or date range of manufacture.  

 

The year of registration gives an indication of use but can be significantly distorted in Thailand with red plates and grey imports. 

 

Car dealers of coarse tend to use either date to give the best result for them.  

[MartinL]

I got the registration docs. for my new bike yesterday. 

 

VIN shows it was manufactured in 2019 which is entered in the Green Book. Registration date is May 2021.

 

There have been no model updates for that bike model until a little earlier this year so a 2019 bike is identical to a late 2020 bike.

[thoengthaied]

In Europe manufacturers start building new models for the next year in the last quarter of the current year. They could have major changes or very minor changes to the current model, but ARE different. Those newly manufactured cars will be the next year's "model year". 

[Rampant Rabbit]

On 6/4/2021 at 8:57 AM, MartinL said:

I got the registration docs. for my new bike yesterday. 

 

VIN shows it was manufactured in 2019 which is entered in the Green Book. Registration date is May 2021.

 

There have been no model updates for that bike model until a little earlier this year so a 2019 bike is identical to a late 2020 bike.

I  bought a "new " pick  up  in Novemebr 2018 built end of 2017 October . Blue  book gives  year of manufacture as 2017 first registered on 1stJanuary 2019 the dealer held  back 5  weeks  on registering it and  car tax  runs January to January. Bought another one August 2020 made February 2019.

[Longwood50]

It seems as though there are divergent opinions on what year a car is.  Some dealers advertise a car based on what year it was first registered.  So if the car was built in lets say November 2019 but not sold and registered until 2020 they are calling it a 2020 Model. 

I am from the USA and typically some time in the Fall each year the car companies change over model years.  All new car titles that transfer ownership are then changed to reflect the new model year.  So in the same situation the car built in November 2019 would likely have a 2020 model year stamped in it and be sold in 2020 and recorded as a 2020 car.

In Thailand do all the cars built in 2019 even those built late in the year like December 2019 show as a 2019 car in the book.  

Finally in Thailand what is the correct way to describe the car.  The year stamped in the car book or the year it was first registered. 

[Kwasaki]

Year in the book of course. 

[JAS21]

I think that you will find the correct date in the Service Book.

 

A couple of days ago I saw on Ford Everest Thailand FB Group a two year old vehicle still on a red plate. So it won't have a blue book. 

[wprime]

If the car was built in 2003, imported in 2018, they call it 2018. I'd say the standard here is the blue book date of the first registration.

[Longwood50]

4 minutes ago, wprime said:

If the car was built in 2003, imported in 2018, they call it 2018. I'd say the standard here is the blue book date of the first registration.

Yes, that is why I posted the question.  It would seem that manufacturers would have "model years"  So a car built in late 2019 might be the newer body style, etc compared to the same car built in early 2019.  In the USA the one built early in the year would have a 2019 Title, the one late in the year after the manufacturer changed model years would have a title of 2020.  The year of first registration means nothing.  A dealer could have a car on its lot for 3 years using it as a demo vehicle and not registered.  The fact it was just sold and registered would not make it a current model year car. 

Seems like the car book would be the controlling instrument but cars built late in a calendar year would not have any way of being shipped and sold before the start of the next calendar year.  That is why the USA typically cuts off typically in September or October and cars built after that model changeover date bear the next calendar year.  However when they do that, any features of the next model year are incorporated into the ones built late in the preceding year.  One minor example might be color changes or perhaps different alloy wheels.  Those built early in lets say 2019 get the old style wheels and color options, Those built after lets say October 1, get the newer style wheels and color options. 

Here is Thailand it seems to be a pattern to call the car the year it is first registered even if that car was built some months if not years before.  i saw one car that was labeled a 2018, when I inquired as to why it appeared different than other 2018 models the dealer told me the car was built back in 2015 but only sold in 2018 and that was the older style. 

Seems deceptive. 

 

[jackdd]

We had the same topic not long ago:

 

[bontang]

On 9/2/2021 at 12:53 AM, jackdd said:

When buying a Vehicle anywhere check the year of Manufactured  On the Tag on the bottom of the Drivers side Seat Belt, My friend purchased a New Ford Escape & the dealer sold  the vehicle as 2008 Model. On the Seat belt tag MFG 2006, 

 

 

 

[EVENKEEL]

The green book for my big bike has 2 dates, 2017 and 2561 (2018), I can't read the Thai on it. If you ask a Thai what it says they are confused. They advertised the used bike as a 2018 when I bought it. I'm assuming the 2017 was manufactured date and 2561 was registered date.

[KhaoYai]

Date of first registration and model year are 2 separate things so it depends on what you're asking. A 2019 model registered on 1 January 2020 would officially be a 2020 car.

 

The only thing that would really affect the value is if there have been changes to the model.  Clearly a new model would be more desireable than an old one even if the 2 were registered on the same date.

 

I'm not sure with Thai VIN numbers but European VIN's contain the build year.

Edited September 4, 2021 by KhaoYai

[hotchilli]

On 9/1/2021 at 10:50 AM, Longwood50 said:

Finally in Thailand what is the correct way to describe the car.  The year stamped in the car book or the year it was first registered. 

The difference is when it was first registered/sold which is the date normally shown

However the manufacture date may be different.

[BKKBike09]

On 9/1/2021 at 3:43 PM, JAS21 said:

I think that you will find the correct date in the Service Book.

 

A couple of days ago I saw on Ford Everest Thailand FB Group a two year old vehicle still on a red plate. So it won't have a blue book. 

Yes. People run cars on red plates for ages so that date of first registration shows as much later than date of purchase. Buy a car today (Sep 2021) but run on a red plate to Jan 2022 and it will be first registered in Jan 2022. Service history will show date of purchase ie Sep 2021 BUT the car could still have been produced a year or more before. This is more often the case with cars not assembled in Thailand so imported as CBU. Engine / chassis number should provide the model year even if not the exact production date. 

[Hitcho56]

Just bought a new Mazda 2 - Picked up on 26.08.2021.( 4 kilometres on clock)  Manufacture date was October 2020 - ( Received a great price & many extra's thrown in) Will know what date entered when i get Blue book in 1-2 ? months time.

[JBChiangRai]

You can't go by either year in the Tabien Rod, the manufacturer service book, i.e. from when the warranty starts is what's important.

 

All cars delivered in January of a year will have a manufactured date of the year before.

 

Of course the other way to do it, is use the oldest date if you're buying and the newest date if you're selling!

[newnative]

     Oh, for the good old days when most USA car models changed their styling every single year.  For a young car buff like me it was very easy to tell one car model year from another.  Sometimes the changes were radical.  A '64 Ford had horizontal headlights and a completely different body from the '65 model with vertical headlights.  Sometimes the changes were more subtle--the '65 Ford vs. the '66 with slight changes to the headlights, grill, and tail lights.   Waiting for the new models to come out--studying 'sneak peaks' in Motor Trend beforehand--was always fun.  

[Xonax]

To me both the first registration date and the model year (especially if any significant changes or upgrades) matters.

I once bought and received a new car on December 28th and the seller promised, that there would no problem with the car having a first registration date in the following year. But after 2 months on red plates, I received the blue book, which clearly stated first registration date as December 28th - the date I had received the car. Having learned from this episode, I will never again buy a car at the end of a year, as it certainly did hurt the value, the day I needed to sell it again. Car buyers in Thailand are looking at the first registration date only, to determine how old a car is, meaning that a matter of just few days, can make the car a year older. On 1st january in any year, all cars will suddenly become a year older.

[actonion]

i bought  my Ford Ranger truck in August 2003 and drove in  on its red plate..... i was in constant contact with the showroom for my black and white plates, a very angry sounding  sales lady said  your black and white plates will be deleivered to you in January, i asked  why wait so long, she replied we are trying to make your truck a younger year lol

Edited September 4, 2021 by actonion

[transam]

5 minutes ago, actonion said:

My current old Ford Ranger truck is registered  and booked at  2003   but the small labels attached to the seat belts  read  2002

When the seat belts were made....????

[Longwood50]

On 6/4/2021 at 10:19 AM, thoengthaied said:

In Europe manufacturers start building new models for the next year in the last quarter of the current year. They could have major changes or very minor changes to the current model, but ARE different. Those newly manufactured cars will be the next year's "model year". 

That is the same as the USA.  The car may be built in 2020 but the title says it is a 2021.  It is indicative of not when the car was physically built but what the manufacturer states is its "model year"  So any of the styling or other features the manufacture deems to be that model year will be in that vehicle.  They may be minor such as LED versus Halogen lighting or it could be a major styling change.   That way makes sense.  

I have seen cars used as demo and customer loaner vehicles at new car dealership some for more than two years.  They are then registered.  That two year old car is not the same in terms of features or value to one built only a few months prior to sale. 

 

[Peterphuket]

It is confusing, I order my car in November 2020, they deliver it to me at 7 January 2021, but the insurance start at 28 December 2020.

In the blue book stay model year 2020, Registration date 26 January 2021, the date I got my white license plate.