I was looking at BYD Dolphin and also some other hybrid cars (not many options at that price)

 

But what would you buy now sub 800K baht? No preference to EV, Petrol, or Hybrid. 

For the last 30 years I've only bought Toyotas, and I'm quite happy with that decision. 

Where do you live? Out here where potholes can be 8 inches deep, I'd suggest an entry level truck.

5 minutes ago, Ben Zioner said:

Where do you live? Out here where potholes can be 8 inches deep, I'd suggest an entry level truck.

i live out in Chiang Mai but mostly just driving in the city. we have a chev captiva at home too and nissan Terra which i could borrow from my Brother in law if needed for bad roads

First choice Toyota.

2nd choice Honda.

6 minutes ago, tigerbeer said:

mostly just driving in the city.

Small compact car is pretty handy in the city 

I'd use the 800k as a deposit on a Raptor !

Honda Jazz or City. Jazz is better and a little cheaper.

2 minutes ago, novacova said:

First choice Toyota.

2nd choice Honda.

Honda hasn't let me down. I have a CRV and a Jazz. However the latter is clearly unsuitable for local roads and I should replace it with an HRV. But the Thai RD gives us incentives to limit spending in LOS, so I might just sell it and live with the CRV only.

16 minutes ago, tigerbeer said:

i live out in Chiang Mai but mostly just driving in the city. we have a chev captiva at home too and nissan Terra which i could borrow from my Brother in law if needed for bad roads

If it’s mostly for city driving, I would go for the Dolphin standard range. Chiang Mai traffic can be pretty bad and the traffic lights take a long time to change. Sitting in a quiet EV with air con running and not burning fuel ($) and not emitting fumes is an attractive option. Furthermore. the fuel savings mount up very quickly, even more so if you have solar at home. The charging infrastructure in CM is also excellent. 
 

The Dolphin is around 700k. For the money, the build quality is excellent. The infotainment system works very well and the OEM sat nav is among the best I’ve come across except for the repeated speed warnings which I can’t seem to turn off. It has has wireless Android Auto (not sure about Apple CarPlay) so you can use Google maps or Waze if you prefer. Spotify app is preinstalled but very easy to add whatever apps you like. I installed Google Home to be able to easily close and open my electric gate without having to fumble for the remote control. 
 

I thought I would miss the physical buttons and switches to control the aircon thermostat and fan speed but it is actually easier to just tell the AI to set the temperature and fan speed. Same with opening and closing all the windows. The extended range has seat ventilation for both front seats; I believe the standard range does too. Very comfortable for 5 adults as there isn’t a transmission tunnel. The floor is completely flat. 
 

Costs nothing to go for a test drive. If you’ve never driven an EV before, it’s a great experience.

Without a doubt any MG.....

Toyota Yaris, excellent quality. 

560,000bt

1200cc.

Toyota yaris or vios, or a Honda jazz. Honda jazz is super nice for parking and you would be surprised how much space there is to move things if putting the back seats down as well.

Mitsubishi Mirage.

Good little worker.

Nippy (1300cc engine) and very easy to park.

Bought it for the wife in 2012 and lots of friends etc drove it as well.

No problems at all with it and the only time that it saw a garage was for the annual service.

Just sold it a month ago (wife has passed on) for 140,000 THB

18 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

Honda Jazz or City. Jazz is better and a little cheaper.

They no longer make the Jazz. It has been replaced by a City hatchback but much smaller enngine. BTW I love my Jazz, but will eventually replace it with an SUV or pick-up as they are better suited to the upcountry roads. 

It depends on intended usage but I quite liked the Mazda 2 I had a passenger ride in.  Admittedly it was a fairly posh one. 

 

Not that I would buy it as it has an automatic gearbox.

29 minutes ago, novacova said:

Small compact car is pretty handy in the city 

Agree, that's why I bought my Suzuki Swift more than 10 years ago now, and it's been great. Having said that, I did drive from Phuket to Hua Hin a while back, with an Aussie friend on board and it was a good and comfortable ride.

 

Would probably buy another one when/if this one gives up the ghost.

For knocking around town, and short/local out & about, Neta V is hard to beat for 499k

 

I really liked our MG ZS, and that starts @ 689k (4 ICE versions <800k)

 

Though personally, I wouldn't bother with another ICE, and spend the extra 149k baht for the MG ZS EV (949k).  Couldn't go back to an ICEV, or a low sitting sedan.

 

Didn't recommend much, as I haven't owned or peeked at.  Dolphin looks quite nice, as saw one at a charging station.  Same w/Neta V, for the budget minded.

10 minutes ago, In the jungle said:

It depends on intended usage but I quite liked the Mazda 2 I had a passenger ride in.  Admittedly it was a fairly posh one. 

 

Not that I would buy it as it has an automatic gearbox.

I had a Mazda 2 for 5 years which I recently sold to a family friend. Good car for city driving, economical. Problem free except for the last year when the key sensor became defective and Mazda CM couldn’t fix it (car couldn’t start as it couldn’t detect the key. Nothing to do with the batteries, problem eventually solved when we put in a new sensor).

 

Not sure about the newest models but the infotainment system was sad, to say the least. Also nowhere near as comfortable as the Dolphin and you couldn’t fit 3 adults in the back.

What I like about Toyotas is the constant reliability and ease to work on, we have a vios and never have had any issues, though it’s a 2018 model and it’s currently parked in lamphun. What I like most about Honda is the visibility in the driver seat, big windows and large mirrors, we have a city and it’s here with us in cm and I like driving it over the the Toyota though had a couple of minor issues with it, radiator developed a leak last year and the a/c compressor died about three years ago which was surprising being a 2015 model. Wife also prefers driving the Honda city. 

39 minutes ago, roo860 said:

Toyota Yaris, excellent quality. 

560,000bt

1200cc.

How does it go uphill with 4 people in it?

1 hour ago, Ralf001 said:

I'd use the 800k as a deposit on a Raptor !

Don't forget to add some crazy stickers to it. Make it the ultimate lo-so status symbol.

2 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

How does it go uphill with 4 people in it?

 

Fair question.  Better get the GR Yaris then.

Small Toyota or Honda - best value and most reliable.

I would be buying a low mileage secondhand Vios, Mazda 2 or Mitsubishi for 400 - 500K baht, and enjoying the knowledge someone else has had the pleasure of new car depreciation.

It’s been a while since I sat in any of the Hondas and Toyotas mentioned above. Do they have all the modern safety features like lane keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, electronic parking brakes, TPMS, blind spot monitoring, integrated dash cam, automatic tailgate etc etc?

2 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

How does it go uphill with 4 people in it?

How steep of a hill? Also depends on knowing the road and driving style and not putting like mr magoo approaching a steep spot. We took the Toyota up to mae Kampong last year, and there’s a steep spot just before the waterfall, the vios 1.5L made it up the hill with two of us ok, though knowing it was just around the corner, I hammered down on the accelerator in low just in case. 

11 minutes ago, Gweiloman said:

It’s been a while since I sat in any of the Hondas and Toyotas mentioned above. Do they have all the modern safety features like lane keeping assist, adaptive cruise control, electronic parking brakes, TPMS, blind spot monitoring, integrated dash cam, automatic tailgate etc etc?

Surprisingly basic they are, but seeing how these technologies are implemented on other vehicles, most notably EVs, that may not be a such a bad thing. Keep it simple? We're in Thailand after all.

1 hour ago, In the jungle said:

It depends on intended usage but I quite liked the Mazda 2 I had a passenger ride in.  Admittedly it was a fairly posh one. 

There's a posh Mazda 2?

Just now, josephbloggs said:

There's a posh Mazda 2?

 

It had leather seats, aluminium trim and a heads up display.  Quite posh for an eco box.