Electric Vehicles in Thailand

[digbeth]

On 7/1/2024 at 8:26 AM, motdaeng said:

according to this youtube video, zeekr will start selling cars on september 11, 2024.

the company's aim is to sell about 500 cars per month. in my opinion, that is just too optimistic!

i wonder where they will open branches ... only in bangkok or ...

 

i love the zeekr 001, one of the best looking ev car. at the motor show, i was impressed with the zeekr 007.

unfortunately, both models are not right-hand drive at the moment.

 

 

 

Took the missus to see the Volvo EX30 in emsphere shopping mall, Zeekr X happens to be across the isle, the sales guys not very attentive, understandably it's not for sale yet and no information on price available, even at substantial discount over the equivalent volvo model and more premium materials it's a hard sell on the name alone

[Pib]

22 minutes ago, digbeth said:

 

I thought with the new rules, the newer policy without comprehensive cover on the battery would be offered for less premiums, and the full comprehensive cover would still be available, but looks like many insurers are steering people towards the new style policy with gradual decrease in battery coverage for the age 

 

There will be a battery depreciation schedule for the battery under the new rule....however, the insurance company is suppose to also offer a rider (i.e., pay an extra premium) to where the owner can still continue to ensure for 100%.

 

 

https://insightplus.bakermckenzie.com/bm/financial-institutions_1/thailand-first-official-battery-electric-vehicles-insurance-policy

[digbeth]

31 minutes ago, Pib said:

 

There will be a battery depreciation schedule for the battery under the new rule....however, the insurance company is suppose to also offer a rider (i.e., pay an extra premium) to where the owner can still continue to ensure for 100%.

 

https://insightplus.bakermckenzie.com/bm/financial-institutions_1/thailand-first-official-battery-electric-vehicles-insurance-policy

 

 

I  hope they base the depreciation off the initial value and not market price at time of replacement 

[Bandersnatch]

MG4 X-power

 

Had a test drive today. The Green looks really fantastic in the flesh. The interior is basically the same as the standard car so is a bit of a letdown. The battery is also the same 62kWh

 

Driving: on paper it has the same 3.8seconds 0-100km as my BYD Seal performance, but it didn’t feel as quick. It was certainly quick enough and very chuckable. 
 

Compared to the standard MG4 that I have driven before (which I felt was a bit underpowered) It has stiffened suspension which improved handling but made for a bumpy ride.

 

I know I am comparing it to a much more expensive car, but it was no where near as refined or quiet inside as my seal.

 

However, if I was considering spending 900k on an MG4 I would definitely stump up another 300k for the X-power

 

 

 

 

 

[Yellowtail]

1 hour ago, digbeth said:

 

I  hope they base the depreciation off the initial value and not market price at time of replacement 

You can hope all you like, but that is not likely to happen. 

[Yellowtail]

8 minutes ago, Bandersnatch said:

MG4 X-power

 

Had a test drive today. The Green looks really fantastic in the flesh. The interior is basically the same as the standard car so is a bit of a letdown. The battery is also the same 62kWh

 

Driving: on paper it has the same 3.8seconds 0-100km as my BYD Seal performance, but it didn’t feel as quick. It was certainly quick enough and very chuckable. 
 

Compared to the standard MG4 that I have driven before (which I felt was a bit underpowered) It has stiffened suspension which improved handling but made for a bumpy ride.

 

I know I am comparing it to a much more expensive car, but it was no where near as refined or quiet inside as my seal.

 

However, if I was considering spending 900k on an MG4 I would definitely stump up another 300k for the X-power

 

 

 

 

 

I have seen the green, it is nice. 

[JBChiangRai]

52 minutes ago, Yellowtail said:

I have seen the green, it is nice. 

 

My aged lady friend has it in Green, I think it's the only colour available in Thailand.

 

It also has Alcantara seats which is a nice upgrade, but otherwise pretty much identical inside.  It's very much a hot hatch with a very tight chassis and until the Cyberster is launched, the fastest car MG has ever made in its 100 year history.

[KhunLA]

27 minutes ago, JBChiangRai said:

until the Cyberster is launched, the fastest car MG has ever made in its 100 year history.

Wait till he sees that ... 

 

MG, finally coming of age 

[Bandersnatch]

Hello Thailand, meet the Fully electric pickup truck from Geely

 

Full story: https://www.riddara.com/newsroom/20240327

 

https://www.riddara.com/newsroom/20240327
 

 

[josephbloggs]

2 hours ago, Bandersnatch said:

Hello Thailand, meet the Fully electric pickup truck from Geely

 

Full story: https://www.riddara.com/newsroom/20240327

 

https://www.riddara.com/newsroom/20240327
 

 

 

The front end reminds me of a Mitsubishi Triton........and that is not a good thing to be reminded of.

I know pickups are workhorses and people don't necessarily care about the looks (I mean people are buying Cybertrucks), but for me I would prefer one that isn't ugly.

[vinny41]

On 7/2/2024 at 8:59 PM, Pib said:

Well, actually the Bangkok Post article helped to clear things up somewhat and Tokio Marine tried to clarify things.    Basically Tokio Marince is saying new and renewal policies will be subject to the new EV insurance polices the Thai govt approved effective 1 July 2024 (or maybe it was 1 June) where rates will be based on driving records vs just a standard rate of a good driver, drivers "must" be be named on the policy (up to 5 drivers), driving records of those named driver can affect rates, etc.  Just stricter rules comparied to govt rules regarding ICEV vehicle policies.   

 

Yes, all Thai insurance companies will adjust their EV policies to the new Thai govt rules....and actually the new rules give insurance more lattide in how they can write vehicle policies for EV.   No doubt in my mind EV policy rates will go up somewhat with the Thai govt's blessing.  It really gives insurance companies the government go-ahead/blessig to institute some changes in vehicle insurance coverage and rates that insurance companies have long lobbied for.

 

And in some earlier articles/crossfeed on the subject of EV policies changes it was said some of these EV policy changes (like the requirement to name all drivers on a policy) may find their way into ICEV policies in the near future because you know companies love to raise policy rates whenever they get the chance. 

BP has since updated their article its now the same as other article

Tokio Marine Safety Insurance announced on Tuesday that its current insurance premiums would “temporarily” not apply to new EV customers, including those who own transferred cars, as it would consider new premium rates on a case-by-case basis.

The new rules for EV insurance kicked in 1st June not July 1st

OIC have stated there is 23 insurance companies that provide EV insurance and the OIC has not received any offical notifications from the 2 insurance companies that are rumored to longer want to offer EV insurance to new customers

 

Edited July 4 by vinny41
add

[Issanman]

Sep 22, 1977

 

 

[BKKBike09]

On 7/1/2024 at 2:25 PM, marino28 said:

I'm not here to argue. I'm a car enthusiast and I'm interested in electric vehicles.

I'm glad if you got a great deal, but I notice that the drop in prices is unprecedented in the history of the automobile. That's all.

 

Yep. BYD are now getting stick from many customers who have suddenly seen their THB 1.2 million vehicle sold for THB 340K less. You're correct to say it's unprecedented. The only such massive discounting i can recall in Thailand was when Chevrolet said sayonara and sold Captiva's for half price. But they didn't care about unhappy customers since they were abandoning the Thai market.

 

Be interesting to see how the insurance companies react: will they continue insuring the pre-price slash vehicles for what will be above market values, or will they say "too bad - your car is now worth THB 700K for insurance" even though the owner is still on the hook for finance at THB 1.2 mil? Not a good position to be in if the re-valued car is deemed an insurance write off, which is more likely if it's value has been greatly reduced.

 

Right now I'd be better off getting my Atto totalled, collecting the THB 960K total loss insurance and buying a new one! I really like the car but not that impressed by BYD's strategy here. Of course, if they have say 1,000 very unhappy customers but the new prices add 100,000 new customers, why would they care?

[Alotoftravel]

Maybe BYD business model is moving towards the printer and its cartridges where the money is in the spare parts and the insurance gets stiffed for it .

 

 

 

 

[metisdead]

A troll post contravening our Community Standards has been removed.

[motdaeng]

On 7/1/2024 at 8:25 PM, marino28 said:

I'm not here to argue. I'm a car enthusiast and I'm interested in electric vehicles.

I'm glad if you got a great deal, but I notice that the drop in prices is unprecedented in the history of the automobile. That's all.

 

to reduce prices like this is not the wisest move from byd. i understand why customers are upset.

 

some thoughts:

the current situation in the car industry is unprecedented. it affects not only electric vehicles but also ice vehicles. prices for new and used cars are falling. byd entered thailand as one of the first car companies to offer good bev cars at a decent price. but now, there are a few other players in the same category, so byd reacted by reducing prices. byd now also has a factory in thailand, and in the next few months, they will bring new models to the thai market. another reason for the price reduction is that the cost of batteries is still falling, as predicted!

 

the price reduction (or price war) has many reasons, but i still think byd went one step too far. they could have done it better, not so aggressively.

[Yellowtail]

Car companies cut prices when they have excess inventory, simple as that. Current sales are not meeting projections.  

[digbeth]

44 minutes ago, motdaeng said:

 

to reduce prices like this is not the wisest move from byd. i understand why customers are upset.

 

some thoughts:

the current situation in the car industry is unprecedented. it affects not only electric vehicles but also ice vehicles. prices for new and used cars are falling. byd entered thailand as one of the first car companies to offer good bev cars at a decent price. but now, there are a few other players in the same category, so byd reacted by reducing prices. byd now also has a factory in thailand, and in the next few months, they will bring new models to the thai market. another reason for the price reduction is that the cost of batteries is still falling, as predicted!

 

the price reduction (or price war) has many reasons, but i still think byd went one step too far. they could have done it better, not so aggressively.

 

Price reduction existed for a long time, but with ICE and legacy manufacturers in Thailand, it's usually done and delivered to customers in a more opaque way... say the list price is still 1.2 million but the sales girls are being nice and gave you 100,000baht discounts after haggling with 'freebies' like ting films, maybe if you didn't ask for discounts you don't get any

 

What the Chinse EV and Teslas has introduce is the 'one price' concepts for all dealers, we see this since GWM Havel and Ora dealers fail to keep sales staff as they feel they have less to work with under the one price policy and eventually the dealership closes

 

Keeping the list price the same while offering the later customers more discounts could appease the existing customer who feel they've been short changed of course, but shifting units with new customers are more important 

 

maybe the chinese have to adopt the direct from manufacturer model of selling the cars from the corporate themselves like tesla 

[ElwoodP]

Many bickering and troll posts removed along with replies.

[Bandersnatch]

Lots of comments in the press about “Evil” BYD dropping prices. 

 

I have been following EV prices in Thailand since they were first launched here and I have detected a very clear trend:

 

EVs get cheaper and they get better all the time. 

 

Back in 2018 EVs at the BKK motor show were few and far between.

 

I seriously considered paying ฿2m for a 40kWh Nissan Leaf with CHAdeMO

 

 

In September 2023 I put down a deposit on a 85kWh (gross) BYD Seal which cost ฿1.6m. That car is now ฿1.5m and it will get cheaper.

 

The Seal was better in every way than the Leaf I could have bought and yet I know EVs will be released in Thailand that are better and cheaper than the Seal. I was aware of that when I purchased the car and I am fine with it.

 

 

 

 

[digbeth]

one aspect with the recent price drop is insurance, if you drove home weeks or months before the big discount, your insured value is still the original price what happens if you have a total loss accident after the price drop? the cost of replacement could be less than the insured payout

[JBChiangRai]

7 minutes ago, digbeth said:

one aspect with the recent price drop is insurance, if you drove home weeks or months before the big discount, your insured value is still the original price what happens if you have a total loss accident after the price drop? the cost of replacement could be less than the insured payout

 

I suspect the insurance company might offer to replace it with a new one and pocket the difference.

[vinny41]

BYD, a leader in electric vehicles (EVs), recently slashed prices in Thailand, causing uproar among buyers who purchased at higher rates. Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin urged BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu to address these grievances and protect local consumers. Chuanfu promised to adjust future pricing and support affected customers. However, BYD and its distributor, Rever Automotive, have yet to comment on the fallout, even as the government investigates potential misleading sales practices. 

https://finimize.com/content/byds-discount-drama-stirs-consumer-complaints-in-thailand

 

 

A Byd atto3 owner recently posted on the facebook groups that his car value has dropped B650,000 iin 2 years  excluding interest charges after BYD recent price reductions

he stated that tents unwilling to accept risks of taking EV's until Brands stated no further price reductions

he received one private offer of betweeen B500K-B550K offer subject to viewing when asked why low offer buyer indicated that they weren't sure if BYD would lower there prices again so offer was based on that they would lower their prices

[digbeth]

other way they could have done this tactfully is offer a new 'SKU' model, tweak the battery size or claiming less kwh/range untick a few options/colour and offer it at lower price and claim that no, this is a cheaper new model, not discounted old model 

[Bandersnatch]

All the fossil lovers crowing about EV price cuts in Thailand fail to realize that ICE car prices are not falling making them not only worse than EVs but also now more expensive.

 

 

[transam]

19 minutes ago, Bandersnatch said:

All the fossil lovers crowing about EV price cuts in Thailand fail to realize that ICE car prices are not falling making them not only worse than EVs but also now more expensive.

 

 

But you lot are keeping your fingers crossed that you don't get that very expensive battery replacement turning up......😝

Don't tell me, it won't happen.......😂

Here's an interesting read....

 

https://www.businessinsider.com/electric-car-battery-cost-replacement-repair-expenses-tesla-evs-2023-10#:~:text=EV batteries are costly to,range between %245%2C000 and %2420%2C000.

[vinny41]

4 hours ago, Bandersnatch said:

All the fossil lovers crowing about EV price cuts in Thailand fail to realize that ICE car prices are not falling making them not only worse than EVs but also now more expensive.

 

 

I don't see anyone on this thread crowing other EV price cuts for the majority of people 2nd largest investment they will ever make after property is in vehicles, anyone that buys a car knows their vehicle will devalue over a number of years what they don't expect is that the vehicle manufacturer will acclerated that devaluation in a very short period of time

EV owners in facebook groups are predicting that EV insurance coverage will increase by at least 30% next year

Example currently you have 2 EV owners where they have seen their vehicles lose value to huge price cuts and are unable to sell without incurring a huge loss and left owing hundreds of thousands to finance companies

EV owner 1 they are travelling in a unfamiliar area and parks their vehicle in a area that is known for flooding

end result capital amount returned by insurance companie as full replacement of battery and associated parts exceed 70% of the capital amount

EV owner 2 they park their vehicle in a area that they know floods 

Both owners will have their capital amount refunded

End result EV insurance premiums will increase

[KhunLA]

Our MG ZS has gone on sale a few times, since purchasing, but less than 10%.  Our insured value is still a tad more than the sale price, the few times it has gone on sale.

 

Be interesting if and when the upgraded model comes out, on a different battery platform.  Though TBO, I like the idea of ours, repairable, if ever needed, by module.

 

I have a lot more faith in LFP batteries in MGs, than the EV haters, and really don't expect any issues.  If none within the first 10+ years, we'll  be quite happy. Knocking on 20 yrs would be even better.

 

A 10 yr old ICEV isn't worth anything to me, and I wouldn't want one.

 

Add the petrol savings of 40-55k baht a year, from our ZS, and their certainly isn't anything to regret if it crapped out 10ish years later.   Especially if the battery is still usable for the solar system.

 

Our Mazda 2 didn't even last 200k kms, and daughter was happy to get 70k for the POS.  Hope our past Vios s faired better.  Would think our MG ZS ICE version would be worth much after 10 years, no matter the condition it's in.  Maybe 20+ yrs, as a classic collector's item.

 

Please ... don't need anyone telling me their 'xxx' is still excellent after 20 yrs & 1M kms.  Save it, as it's a forum of BS artist.  I've had plenty of cars, and none making it much further than 200 kms, if that.  Had cars 15-20, even one 25 yrs old, 1950 Buick in 1975.

Edited July 7 by KhunLA

[ExpatOilWorker]

8 hours ago, vinny41 said:

BYD, a leader in electric vehicles (EVs), recently slashed prices in Thailand, causing uproar among buyers who purchased at higher rates. Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin urged BYD CEO Wang Chuanfu to address these grievances and protect local consumers. Chuanfu promised to adjust future pricing and support affected customers. However, BYD and its distributor, Rever Automotive, have yet to comment on the fallout, even as the government investigates potential misleading sales practices. 

https://finimize.com/content/byds-discount-drama-stirs-consumer-complaints-in-thailand

 

 

A Byd atto3 owner recently posted on the facebook groups that his car value has dropped B650,000 iin 2 years  excluding interest charges after BYD recent price reductions

he stated that tents unwilling to accept risks of taking EV's until Brands stated no further price reductions

he received one private offer of betweeen B500K-B550K offer subject to viewing when asked why low offer buyer indicated that they weren't sure if BYD would lower there prices again so offer was based on that they would lower their prices

Welcome to the Chinese way of doing business. If the customers ain't kicking and screaming after a sale, the Chinese feel they have left money on the table.

BYD knows exactly what they are doing and don't give a damn about Thai buyers.

 

[ExpatOilWorker]

On 7/1/2024 at 4:03 PM, Bandersnatch said:

I could have made an even worse financial deal and bought a fossil instead, try selling that in a few years time when everyone is driving EVs 

Currently about 1% of registered cars in Thailand 🇹🇭 are EVs, while the other 99% are ICEs, including hybrids.

Are these "everyone" in the room with us now?