Cost Of Cars Here In Thailand

[Moonfruit]

I just spent a good hour on the UK Autotrader website looking at the price of cars, comparing as ive just picked up a new Camry and was wondering what the costs would be for the same or something similar in England.

Well, here it is.

total costs here was around 20,000GBP, list price. Monthly installments are 18,000THB over 5 years. Insurance 25,000THB/year, Road tax im not sure as dealer paid it but i know its not much from experience.

To give you an idea im 30 yars old, married with 2 kids. A general kinda guy.

Now, in the UK, for insurance the cheapest quote ive got is 1,350 quid. (Albeit thats for Honda Accord, same spec as my Camry here. They dont do Camry in UK).

Monthly repayments are (cheapest loan quote, at 6.9% APr. Some companies wanted over 8.5% APR!) 396GBP over 5 years.

I dread to think what road tax is in the UK these days, but im dam_n sure it will be large multiples of what we pay here in Thailand.

So, bearing in mind these costs, i've finally figured out that though the initial purchase cost of cars may be higher here, when you factor in everything else, then dam_n they are way cheaper.

I would never buy a Camry back home, but here its just a sensible choice and for 20,000 Quid, you dont get a much better vehicle.

So, i will be jumping form the naysayers camp now. Im dam_n happy!

[JimsKnight]

25,000 baht for car insurance is pricey. I was paying 12,000 baht for full insurance on a VW minibus.

Is that thai insurance the first class type or the standard Third party fire and theft type that you are paying?

[Moonfruit]

Thats first class insurance on a sedan car.

From experience with all my other cars i know that it is in the right ballpark.

[chanchao]

Excellent post.

And you haven't factored in maintenance / repair costs yet, AND (especially) resale value. Because maintenance and repairs are so much cheaper, the resale value is *FAR* higher. Or alternatively you could keep driving it, enjoying low maintenance cost and zero risk of hitting that 'major' repair that would effectively write off the car.

[Thaiboxer]

Cars here are WAY overpriced compared to the States, despite the fact that they're assembled here too. Maintenance is MUCH cheaper though in terms of labor rates/parts (for Japanese models that is). A lot of folks just keep their cars running for years on end rather than trying to trade them in for newer models. This is especially true for pickups...those little diesel trucks run forever and are very dependable. Most of the new cars sold here today aren't built very strong and those that are cost way more than even the average expat can afford.

[initiala4]

I think if the cars here arent overprice there would be a hel_l lot more traffic here!

[stateman]

Cars here are WAY overpriced compared to the States, despite the fact that they're assembled here too. Maintenance is MUCH cheaper though in terms of labor rates/parts (for Japanese models that is). A lot of folks just keep their cars running for years on end rather than trying to trade them in for newer models. This is especially true for pickups...those little diesel trucks run forever and are very dependable. Most of the new cars sold here today aren't built very strong and those that are cost way more than even the average expat can afford.

Second this!

[Moonfruit]

Cars here are WAY overpriced compared to the States, despite the fact that they're assembled here too. Maintenance is MUCH cheaper though in terms of labor rates/parts (for Japanese models that is). A lot of folks just keep their cars running for years on end rather than trying to trade them in for newer models. This is especially true for pickups...those little diesel trucks run forever and are very dependable. Most of the new cars sold here today aren't built very strong and those that are cost way more than even the average expat can afford.

Second this!

The same can be said of any car built these days as opposed to such things like the over-engineered Merc's of yesteryear.

Just as an example (though its not available in UK) i will come back to the Camry. A 2002 model in the UK is still around 9000 GBP if you are looking to buy used. Here they atart at around 20,000 GBP. So, that would indicate at least a similer ballpark starting price when new.

I know this is not true for all cars, or even most cars, but when you really look into it, and are not looking at the higher end Mercs, BMWs and other, more expensive exotica then the prices arent as high as you would have initially thought. Especially when taking into account, as mentioned above maintenence and resale values.

[Moonfruit]

Cars here are WAY overpriced compared to the States, despite the fact that they're assembled here too. Maintenance is MUCH cheaper though in terms of labor rates/parts (for Japanese models that is). A lot of folks just keep their cars running for years on end rather than trying to trade them in for newer models. This is especially true for pickups...those little diesel trucks run forever and are very dependable. Most of the new cars sold here today aren't built very strong and those that are cost way more than even the average expat can afford.

Just another quick thought. You are lucky guys in the states, for sure. Motors there are way cheaper than in the UK to start with.

[JimsKnight]

G. Brown (PM) has decided that all motorists are killing the planet and so has jacked up the road taxes and petrol prices to boot!

Cars are very cheap to buy, IF you buy 2nd hand. They are all expensive as <deleted> to run in the UK so the cheaper the better!

I struggle with a 2.0L Mondeo 16V and the skys the limit when the fancy sports cars come along!

[Plus]

I remember a debate in the newspapers on the price of new Yaris/Vios. The conclusion was that Thai models offer better specs for the same price (new).

Camry has a bigger engine and so is taxed higher here.

The OP didn't mention how much new Accord costs in the UK, here they price them exactly the same as Camry.

Cars in the UK are more expensive that in continental Europe or the US, as someone mentioned.

Thailand has about two cars per ten people, Europeans eight to twelve. They also three times more road space per person than Thais.

Traffic congestion here is not because there are too many cars, it's because there aren't enough roads.

Poor construction quality means they spend all the money on repairing these heavily used roads instead of expanding road network. Companies in road construction business make a fortune on this neverending build-repair circle.

[LivinLOS]

New cars are not whats expensive here, its the second hand market that seems really silly to me !!

A woman was here the other day and said her mate was selling a car, when I did the numbers on how much cash she wanted plus the outstanding payments she was looking to profit on owning it !!

Look at the under 300k range of cars, most would not get 50k back in the UK !! If you just want a cheap runabout you have to look long and hard to find anything.

[torrenova]

New cars are not whats expensive here, its the second hand market that seems really silly to me !!

A woman was here the other day and said her mate was selling a car, when I did the numbers on how much cash she wanted plus the outstanding payments she was looking to profit on owning it !!

Look at the under 300k range of cars, most would not get 50k back in the UK !! If you just want a cheap runabout you have to look long and hard to find anything.

And that is why a new small car at around Bt600k is often a better deal than an older car.

[corkscrew]

Cars here are WAY overpriced compared to the States, despite the fact that they're assembled here too. Maintenance is MUCH cheaper though in terms of labor rates/parts (for Japanese models that is). A lot of folks just keep their cars running for years on end rather than trying to trade them in for newer models. This is especially true for pickups...those little diesel trucks run forever and are very dependable. Most of the new cars sold here today aren't built very strong and those that are cost way more than even the average expat can afford.

Our two Bangkok cars cost more than our two Florida cars.

[Thaiboxer]

I'm not surprised Corkscrew...a Benz like the one in your avatar could be purchased for less in Florida than here. I'm not sure about labor charges for a Benz here; would assume you have to have a dealership work on it as it's not just an "old beater" like we have which doesn't require much mechanical expertise.

I remember my Dad saying that the going hourly labor rate was $50. Sometime back in 2000/2001 it was up to $65

plus the tax, plus any markup on parts! Places like Pep Boys had package deals where you could have both front brake pads changed for $99. I used to buy the pads for $20 at Discount Auto Parts and my dad and I changed them ourselves. I also changed my own oil for about $8 instead of paying $25 for Jiffy Lube to do it.