Is This The Most Expensive Puncture In Thailand?

[lardy]

The deal with my new BMW 320D was that I had completely free service and maintenace for 3 years, including rescue from anywhere in Thailand, with the exception of tyres and batteries.

Not surprising

Two days ago, I was driving home and a message came up on my dashboard to the effect that one of my "run flat" tyres had lost pressure.

Being a run flat, I continued my journey home. The next morning I drove down to the nearest gas station and had the guy put some air in the offending tyre. He then pointed out that as fast as he inflated it through the valve, it was leaking out again through a large split in the wall of the tyre next to the rim.

So off to Bridgestone in Pattaya, where I was told the tyre was beyond repair, but that amazingly, they had a replacement in stock. My joy sooned turned to horror, when they informed me that the tyre would put me back a whopping 9,300 Baht.

This has got to be the most expensive puncture I have ever had, and probably for most of you. The car has only done 3,000 kms.

Serves me right for thinking I could drive low profile tyres through a bunch of pot holes.

Although they had the right tyre in stock, they had obviously never put one on a car, as it took no less than 8 workers almost an hour to work out how to get the old tyre off and the new one on. The was in spite of - or maybe because of - state of the art equipment. Even the big boss came out to supervise, so in a way, you could say I got my money's worth in entertainment

I'm thinking of buying an SUV for use on the pot holed roads,and keep the BM for the good roads

Bmw seem to fit these on many of their models now, Ive got them on a 100 series in the UK and I hate them price here for a new one is about 8000 baht and they cannot be repaired, Id rather have a spare.

[percy2]

what do Mazda have? I don't want to buy a model that's nearing the end of it's life,

The Mazda Tribute and Ford Escape are still sold here.......... but as far as I understand the replacements will not come to Thailand,,?

Last year the Tribute was replaced with the CX7, the Escape was replaced early this year with the Ford XMax = 5cylinder 2.5 DTCi or a 1,8 or 2lt petrol version.

So what is left if not the Toyota [soon to be replaced] or the CRV... The NEW Mitsubshi G-Wagon just arrived but as big as the Toyota, The 4x4 MU-7 is the same size.... The NEW Suziki Grand Vitra ?

Isn't there a new Escape out?

I thought I'd seen one that looked like a baby Range Rover.

Cheers

[quiksilva]

Not sure about the Ford but Mobi there are another two options out there. Im looking at the new Mitsu Spacewagons and Volvo XC90's (with my preference for the latter right now) both look great.

[PattayaDavid]

I can understand BMW not warranting the tires; they don't do that even in the United States, however your tires should be warrantied by the tire manufacturer, normally for 1 year or mileage whichever comes first.

[percy2]

Not sure about the Ford but Mobi there are another two options out there. Im looking at the new Mitsu Spacewagons and Volvo XC90's (with my preference for the latter right now) both look great.

I like the XC90 , but isn't it a bit long in the tooth now, is there a new one out soon?

Same with the SW.

Two fine cars though.

Cheers

[percy2]

I can understand BMW not warranting the tires; they don't do that even in the United States, however your tires should be warrantied by the tire manufacturer, normally for 1 year or mileage whichever comes first.

I'd never even considered the possibility that there could be warranty on a tire.

Not saying your wrong.

Cheers

[skippybangkok]

I'm thinking of buying an SUV for use on the pot holed roads,and keep the BM for the good roads

Think again - Large SUV tired can cost 15k baht or more a pop !

[Plus]

We don't have large SUVs in Thailand, regular Michelins/Bridgestones go for about 5k.

[percy2]

Hummers and Range Rovers count as large to me.

Cheers

[Mobi]

skippybangkok:

Think again - Large SUV tires can cost 15k baht or more a pop !

We don't have large SUVs in Thailand, regular Michelins/Bridgestones go for about 5k.

I'm sure I bought 4 new tyres for my Escape a few years back for around 16K.

In any case the point is that if you get a puncture in a conventional tyre, you don't necessarily have to replace it, and, more to the point, I never had any puncture in my two SUV's during 5 years of driving on Thailand's pot holed roads!

It's the nature of low profile 'run flat' tyres that make them susceptible to bad roads.

Edited August 5, 2008 by Mobi

[mikethevigoman]

Run flat just means that it will stay on the rim and not cause a major accident. you numb nuts! not that you can carry on driving.

its not mousse. any way thats probably way cheaper than back in the west.

Also if you got enough money to buy an suv to run around Thailands crappy roads you got enough for a new tyre that you knackered by keeping on driving. as i said you numb nuts.

Wrong !,.. Runflats can be driven on, however there is a distance/speed limit,.ill bet the split that ruined the tyre was caused by just that,. so numbnuts will still apply !

[percy2]

They are not 100% though , the blow out I described was in a 4x4 truck.

Cheers

[mikethevigoman]

I used to own an Escape (3 litre petrol) some years ago, when they were generally thought to be better than the old CRV. I was quite pleased with it and travelled all over Thailand in it. The brakes were superb, but it didn't have a lot of "oomph" and quite noisy at high speeds. Headlights were awful. It's reaching the end of it's model life and I certainly wouldn't buy one now.

The Fortuner (3 litre diesel)was great fun and went like the wind with the diesel turbo, and boy could I pack the people in. It was also much quieter than the Escape, and more economical. It was the first diesel I have ever owned and I became a convert. Downside: the brakes were a bit iffy - sometimes you had to pump them to avoid skidding - and some of the safety features are a bit suspect - like air bags not opening in a crash. Anyway too big for the wife.

So I'm open to all suggestions - what do Mazda have? I don't want to buy a model that's nearing the end of it's life, and have plenty of time as I won't be buying until the end of the year - assuming we're still married

Percy,You're probably right about the X3 - I was only kidding, anyway. My wife is a hair dresser, but she aint having one of those

You probably wont like it Mobi but ill bet the wife likes the new suzuki suv, my wife loved it ( although she dosent know a suzuki from a ferrari ! Edited August 5, 2008 by mikethevigoman

[Mobi]

Run flat just means that it will stay on the rim and not cause a major accident. you numb nuts! not that you can carry on driving.

its not mousse. any way thats probably way cheaper than back in the west.

Also if you got enough money to buy an suv to run around Thailands crappy roads you got enough for a new tyre that you knackered by keeping on driving. as i said you numb nuts.

Wrong !,.. Runflats can be driven on, however there is a distance/speed limit,.ill bet the split that ruined the tyre was caused by just that,. so numbnuts will still apply !

In that case will you please explain why the handbook, the BMW General manager (a farang), the BMW service manger and just about Uncle Tom Cobbly an'all have stated that it is perfectly in order to drive on a BMW runflat punctured tyre for a distance of up to 200kms. In fact there was a detailed message on my computer console telling me that I could continue to drive carefully at a speed not exceeding 50 kms/Hr.

I have already stated that it was late at night and I did indeed drive slowly and carefully to my home and thence to the nearest tyre centre the following morning - a distance not exceeding 30 kms.

Pray explain to me why I am a numbnuts, and pray explain what I should have done to avoid being a numbnuts?

[stingray]

All this new technology, about run flat and low profile tires, makes everything so expensives. Therefore middle class people don't buy cars like Beamers anymore. They just can't afford it. I my self loved the old Beamers as i had a 635 CSi Alpina in my home country. But today i prefere my 3 liter Nissan Cedric, which never gives my any suprises or major troubles and it still a luxury car with plenty of power.

[Plus]

Hummers and Range Rovers count as large to me.

And we don't have them here, in a sense you'll never see them on the roads.

...it is perfectly in order to drive on a BMW runflat punctured tyre for a distance of up to 200kms...

Hmm, but does it say what happens after that - do they garantee they can be repaired or is it 200km and good bye.

[Heng]

Hummers and Range Rovers count as large to me.

And we don't have them here, in a sense you'll never see them on the roads.

I have seen a few, at least 3 Hummers here on the hill in Pattaya, and there always seems to be one or two in the lot at various gent's clubs (Piano, Sherbet, etc.) on Ekkamai in BKK. Sure there are more. But yeah, you don't see a lot of them understandably.

[Devil]

Hi folks, I find it hard to believe that some people post abusive responses to something which is nothing more than chit chat!

But then I was brought up in a house were you kept your mouth shut when you didn't have anything nice and/or informative to say. I guess some people are just strangely different.....or they are complete tools!

Yes Agreed!

[percy2]

Hummers and Range Rovers count as large to me.

And we don't have them here, in a sense you'll never see them on the roads.

They are expensive so not common but they are definitely here.

I see Range Rovers on the road almost daily that and there are two in my buildings garage.

Don't see so many Hummers , but there is an ugly yellow one I see every time I go to Pattaya.

Cheers

[hamishgillan]

hmmm, interesting. I lived in Chiang Mai a couple of years ago and I obtained my Thai drivers licence 'Kon song' up past the tesco lotus hang dong nr the airport.

It was all too easy, I thought as the entire process only took about 4 hrs, and then they shockingly said to me during the driving part of the application why I had not bought my own car to do that in, and I replied that if I had driven to the kon song I would have been driving without a licence!

Anyway, so I got my first 1 year licence and thought it best to hire cars first and found the cheapest places to do that in the small sois, heh heh, but still good new cars.

To get to the point I fairly swiftly crashed all five cars I rented for one reason or another and have since got cold feet about the idea of buying what with all the crazy motorbikes and carts etc. and frequent lane switching.

But may reconsider as not having one is so limited when living here, mabye I'll start with a Honda City or a Yaris, (new of course) and see how it goes.

You guys must be experienced drivers or something.

Have diverted my attention instead to buying/building flashy computers, a far safer and cheaper hobby.

Edited August 5, 2008 by hamishgillan

[Roger_royal]

Hi folks, I find it hard to believe that some people post abusive responses to something which is nothing more than chit chat!

But then I was brought up in a house were you kept your mouth shut when you didn't have anything nice and/or informative to say. I guess some people are just strangely different.....or they are complete tools!

Hi BJS,

I met a couple of those earlier on my post.

[Plus]

Hummers and Range Rovers count as large to me.

And we don't have them here, in a sense you'll never see them on the roads.

They are expensive so not common but they are definitely here.

I see Range Rovers on the road almost daily that and there are two in my buildings garage.

Don't see so many Hummers , but there is an ugly yellow one I see every time I go to Pattaya.

Cheers

The whole luxury segment here makes only about 1% of the market. More than half of it belongs to Benz, a quarter to BMW, then there are Volvos and Audis, and smaller Landrovers.

That leaves "large SUV" share at about 0.0001%, it's easier to spot a Porche, or even an Italian sports car, and Mobi doesn't look like he was aiming for that kind of price.

So tires on his future SUV will be in 5k range, half of his Bimmer's runflats.

[Heng]

Hummers and Range Rovers count as large to me.

And we don't have them here, in a sense you'll never see them on the roads.

They are expensive so not common but they are definitely here.

I see Range Rovers on the road almost daily that and there are two in my buildings garage.

Don't see so many Hummers , but there is an ugly yellow one I see every time I go to Pattaya.

Cheers

The whole luxury segment here makes only about 1% of the market. More than half of it belongs to Benz, a quarter to BMW, then there are Volvos and Audis, and smaller Landrovers.

That leaves "large SUV" share at about 0.0001%, it's easier to spot a Porche, or even an Italian sports car, ...

Especially in the Minburi 'burbs, eh?

[bazmlb]

I would think that the extra safety features you purchased this car for after the last vehicles safety featyures failing to work and it nearly costing a life you would be happy about the run flats working and you not running off the road into a pole, it also possibly saved you having the car off the road with major damage and having to pay an insurance excess, also not claiming for what could have been a bad accident on your insurance policy and your premiums going up.

I kind of see the price for the puncture repair far less than if you had have had an accident so its sounds cheap really and most importantly no one was hurt.

[BSJ]

Heng: You don't want to take your car to get "fixed" only to go in a few days latter to discover the mechanics thumbing through a Suzuki manual "learning" about your car.

Reality check dude, those manuals you will find in all dealerships because they are utterly necessary! If they haven't got the physical manuals then they will have the virtual manuals online.

Take any model from any make and I can guarantee in it's life there will be dozens of warnings and 100's of bulletins sent out in the model cycle. That's the only valid reason to return to the dealer for service! To ensure the correct part is fitted....unless of course your friend's with the dealer principle anyway!

Reality check dude, just about any problem, they shouldn't STILL be looking for the problem after a few days.

Hi Heng, generally 'NO'. But there are exceptions to the norm. Sometime it can be a glitch in the electronics or sometimes it can be an errant screw, bolt or washer somewhere in the car. And sometimes the problem can be non-existent at parking speed but it will show up at 80mph on the freeway....or vis versa!

[aussiebebe]

I am green with envy, reading about 9300baht BMW tires. I always knew that European cars cost silly money, but I had no idea.

[Heng]

Heng: You don't want to take your car to get "fixed" only to go in a few days latter to discover the mechanics thumbing through a Suzuki manual "learning" about your car.

Reality check dude, those manuals you will find in all dealerships because they are utterly necessary! If they haven't got the physical manuals then they will have the virtual manuals online.

Take any model from any make and I can guarantee in it's life there will be dozens of warnings and 100's of bulletins sent out in the model cycle. That's the only valid reason to return to the dealer for service! To ensure the correct part is fitted....unless of course your friend's with the dealer principle anyway!

Reality check dude, just about any problem, they shouldn't STILL be looking for the problem after a few days.

Hi Heng, generally 'NO'. But there are exceptions to the norm. Sometime it can be a glitch in the electronics or sometimes it can be an errant screw, bolt or washer somewhere in the car. And sometimes the problem can be non-existent at parking speed but it will show up at 80mph on the freeway....or vis versa!

hola BSJ, I was playfully trash talking a third tier brand (in cars anyway... perhaps as good as 2nd tier in motorcycles). The scenario I had pictured was: Suzuki service centers few and far between, car owner then opts to go to one of those "all purpose/all car brands serviced garages," mechanics at said "garage" are not AS familiar with the brand as they are with better selling brands. Car owner goes in a few days later and the mechanics are still trying to figure it all out. Yes, you are correct, and I know that the 'behind the scenes' manuals are quite necessary and required for authorized service centers, not only for cars, but pretty much all "complex" machinery.

Edited August 5, 2008 by Heng

[mikethevigoman]

I love the look of the new SUZUKI GRAND VITARA

Looks like it's worth a closer look.

Anyone happen to know if there is a dealer in or near Pattaya? The list of dealers on the website is in Thai.

its on the corner of the mitsubishi dealership opposite mcdonalds almost on sukomvit,.

[mikethevigoman]

Run flat just means that it will stay on the rim and not cause a major accident. you numb nuts! not that you can carry on driving.

its not mousse. any way thats probably way cheaper than back in the west.

Also if you got enough money to buy an suv to run around Thailands crappy roads you got enough for a new tyre that you knackered by keeping on driving. as i said you numb nuts.

Wrong !,.. Runflats can be driven on, however there is a distance/speed limit,.ill bet the split that ruined the tyre was caused by just that,. so numbnuts will still apply !

In that case will you please explain why the handbook, the BMW General manager (a farang), the BMW service manger and just about Uncle Tom Cobbly an'all have stated that it is perfectly in order to drive on a BMW runflat punctured tyre for a distance of up to 200kms. In fact there was a detailed message on my computer console telling me that I could continue to drive carefully at a speed not exceeding 50 kms/Hr.

I have already stated that it was late at night and I did indeed drive slowly and carefully to my home and thence to the nearest tyre centre the following morning - a distance not exceeding 30 kms.

Pray explain to me why I am a numbnuts, and pray explain what I should have done to avoid being a numbnuts?

im only jesting, however in reality with a low profile tyre deflated somewhat ( in get you home mode ) it must be susceptibable to potholes even more and this is possibly how it got the split in, it does seem a waste though if one puncture finishes them off,.

[mikethevigoman]

Off subject slightly,but does anyone remember them dunlop denovo run flats that came with the datsun 280zx in 1980 ? i had one, the tyres were awful and were over a 100 pounds a pop back then, and they would never balance !