Buying a car - just arrived!

[KhunLA]

3 minutes ago, Joedobbs said:

Not sure yet but I’ll post - will be available at Xmas I think….I’ll check in here.

 

is it an ok car to drive around bangkok and fort road trips in Thailand?

then easy enough to sell when time to leave Thailand?

 

thanks

Yes, we like ours so much, we'll be upgrading to the EV version Dec. hopefully.

 

2020 / 35k kms, if available  & interested at that time. ????

[KhunLA]

Perfect car for us.  More than enough room for all the krap we take with us when O&A.  Since one of the shortest SUVs, great getting around urban area, and parking no harder to find a spot than driving our Mazda2 sedan, as the same size, lengthwise, surprisingly.  Roomier inside, as wider & taller.  Comfy on the highway.

 

Bought late Sept 2020, and we racked up a few kms in 2020:

 

 

During covid, it was great, no tourist, little traffic.  Same for 2021, O&A quite a bit:

 

This year, been hanging around locally, finishing up a house built.  Don't drive the car much locally, unless shopping at Makro or rainy.  Use the E-motorcycle around town.

 

20k the first 6 months

10k the following 12 months

5k the past 6 months

 

Wow, I guess I don't sit behind the keyboard all day for fun ... sorry fellas ... ????

Edited September 18, 2022 by KhunLA

[KhunLA]

dupe

Edited September 18, 2022 by KhunLA

[KhunLA]

41 minutes ago, EricTh said:

Unlike western countries like USA or Canada where there is ample parking space, the parking space in Thailand is pathetic and the roads much narrower.

So it's better to buy smaller cars and not big cars.

We have no problem getting around urban areas & parking:

[richard_smith237]

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

How many CS do you need ...

 

 

 

 

 

How long does it take to charge up another 300km’s equivalent distance /charge at one of these station ???

 

 

[Thunglom]

Owning a car is a lot cheaper than in most expats home countries.

Running costs, repairs fuel labour costs etc are all pleasantly low. Rust is almost unheard of....

 

Buying secondhand - The numbers of second-hand cars on th market has increased exponentially in the last decade as Thailand has changed from an "equipment" market to repeat sales.....

Second-hand vehicles are surprisingly expensive here - the price is dictated by their "investment" return potential and that would keep the prices high.

The old "tent" system has almost died out....there are plenty of second-hand car dealers now who will give you written guarantees etc - mind you Thai customer service and rights are on the whole, pretty dismal.

Many of the official dealerships now run second-hand car businesses as well.

 

As for reliability it rather depends on what kind of vehicle you buy. But based on past history Toyota always get a premium price as they are universally held to be the most reliable in Thailand - there probably is an element of truth in that.

 

I would say by your ideal driving position, you might be best off looking at pickup trucks.

They have been built in Thailand for decades and are pretty universally reliable and easily repairable.

Any car NOT built in Thailand is to be avoided - they came in with duties that doubled or tripled their original price and the spares, service and garage infrastructure is not as good as Thai built cars.

 

If you buy a 1 old car with reasonable mileage, it will safe you over 100,000 baht or more and will still be under makers warranty..

Avoid high mileage if you can and watch out for crashed rebuilds - they are a bit too common as Thai law doesn't really enforce any laws on that.

 

Full insurance about 10 to 20 thousand a year.

Check out the rates of road tax and compulsory insurance on each vehicle - 2 door pick ups USED to be 800 baht against several thousand for a 4 door. As vehicles age the rate of tax is reduced.....

 

 

 

 

Edited September 18, 2022 by Thunglom

[Thunglom]

1 hour ago, KhunLA said:

We have no problem getting around urban areas & parking:

I've owned 2 lifted pickups and  the only problem parking I ever had was in some car parks it was too high to enter especially with the roof rack in place

[KhunLA]

30 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

How long does it take to charge up another 300km’s equivalent distance /charge at one of these station ???

It depends on the type car and charger. 

MG ZS EV ... ~45 mins

 

Edited September 18, 2022 by KhunLA