Nissan Tiida

[Jared]

I took my dying truck to a Nissan garage for probably its last injection of life and whilst I was there had a look at some of the new models. The only car I really liked the look of was the Tiida hatchback. I'm thinking of getting one one on finance with possible 50% deposit paid and the rest payed over a year or 2. I have a few few questions that Im hoping some of you people can help me on.

I would like the car registered in my name and not the wifes, should this be a problem. I think I read somewhere that you need to pay a higher deposit to have the car in your own name. I mentioned this to the sales lady and she said it could go in either name with just a 15% deposit.

Ive read a lot of people on the forum getting all the extras out of the salesman, is this only when you buy the car outright? I will probably go for the top model but as they did not have it in the showroom I'm wondering if the exteriors will already have the extras that I want. Front, back and side skirting. The model on show had a really crap black plastic skirting which didn't do the car any justice and made it look cheap.

Do I need a Thai license to purchase the car? I am legal over here but by using my UK license and international permit?

E20 petrol, has anyone heard of this or used it. They seem to have each model made in a version for this type of petrol, are there any advantages to using this apart from I guess its cheaper? or should I just get the regular model.

Does anyone have any suggestions to alternative cars available in Thailand? I'm not really interested in the Jazz or Yaris.

Thanks

[Moebius87]

Hi Jared,

I purchased a Nissan Tiida over a year ago and it's the only car I've ever sat in that I really liked (I'm used to driving vans). It's very spacious compared to the Toyota Yaris, the Honda Jazz, the Mazda M3 and the Ford Focus. We did a lot of comparisons, but the comfort level in the Tiida is superior (probably because it has the same seats as the Nissan Teana). The back is not as comfortable, but I never sit back there anyway, so it doesn't really bother me.

My wife is Thai, but the car is in my name. No problem with Nissan Leasing, you can get it on the same terms as a Thai person. They didn't ask me for my Thai drivers license, but they did need to see my passport and my work permit... and bank statements for the last six months. It also helped that I had copies of company pay slips to prove gainful employment.

We got the "luxury" package and then negotiated/purchased a few more add-ons like the cargo net and some decent floor mats. I didn't get everything I wanted, but I was pretty happy at the end of the day. The only thing that took a couple of months to get was an English car owner's manual.

I don't know what you mean by "E20" petrol, but I was told that the Tiida would be happy running off either Benzene 95 or Gasohol 95. I used to load a full tank of Benzene to every two or three tanks of Gasohol, but with the price of fuel these days the Tiida hasn't had a whiff of Benzene for a while... and it hasn't degraded performance. Strangely though, every single time I change fuel types, the engine feels "choked" for the first kilometer or three... like it can't burn the fuel properly, but then after that it's fine.

You're lucky that I keep detailed fuel consumption logs... On average I get about 8.91 kms/liter normal city driving. Traffic has pushed this down as low as 7.39 km/liter (over a six day stretch) and as high as about 11.39 kms/liter (again over a period of six days). I've only been tracking this data for 145 days (started this year, 09-Jan-2008). I haven't taken the car out of town yet, and I am absolutely certain that you will get better mileage away from the long narrow parking lots they call roads here in the city center.

It handles beautifully in tight spaces like the claustrophobic parking ramps in most of the Bangkok buildings. Lacks a bit in the energy department, which makes the little overdrive button so very tempting for that extra bit of power. Responds very well, not really a jet on afterburner, but not at all sluggish on overdrive.

I'm waiting for the factory stock tires to wear down and give me an excuse to buy slightly larger tires (I think the wheel well only allows up to 15") and slightly flashier rims, but with prices where they are now... maybe not.

The remote key is a great little feature... you never have to worry about losing your keys or leaving them in the ignition. Just remember to put them in your pocket whenever you decide to go out for a drive. It takes real effort to lock the remote in the car. I haven't even figured out how that could be done as the buttons on the doors won't lock if the remote is inside the vehicle.

Exactly as per the warranty the battery on the car ran out a little over a year and the Tiida was "dead". One year and four days to be exact so watch out for that one. Other than that, I've never had to worry about anything... no filling the radiator with water... just replenish the wiper fluid reservoir... the service center's fees are reasonably priced and they do everything else for your car care needs.

Sorry... I think I've rambled again. If there's anything else I can help answer, please let me know.

Cheers! — Möe

[thairookie]

How much did it cost you ?

Did you compare it with Honda Civic 1.8 ?

[Jared]

Hi Moe

Thanks for the reply, I actually got my new Tiida a few days ago and everything went fine. I managed to get the finance no problem and got some extras for the car including front, back, side skirts and 2 back censors. I didnt know about the overdrive button, I guess Ill have to wait until I get the English manual to fin out about that one. E20 petrol is a new type, apparently better for the environment, I went for my first fill up and used Benzene 95, Im not sure what one is best for the car or what the differences are.

[tartempion]

Hi Jared,

The overdrive button is on "OFF" every time you ignition the car.

You could push that button on hilly roads to avoid the automatic gear to hit 4th speed or overdrive.

The Tiida is E20 ready, if you don't find any fill it with gasohol 95 or E10, price today should be 36.79

from http://www.crma38.com/images/1202271794/Ga..._E..%5B1%5D.pdf it seems Tiida can also run on E10 91 octane at 35.49

E20 should be 35.99

I got an English manual