You and your Thai Wife of 20 years.

[ieincmx]

I was here 2 years back and the bikes and souped up cars seemed to have changed a tad. Maybe i'm remembering it wrong but I thought everyone was on mopeds with the only things standing out being the spider-bikes (like the Suzuki 135s etc). Bikes over 150 were illegal to import whole and most of the cars seemed to be pretty dull.

I come back to Chiang Mai this time round, white boys and Thais are flying around on brand new Yamaha R1s, Fireblades etc. Lots of big Harleys rolling around Nimhanaemin in the early hours. Crews of Imprezas and expensive Jap and German cars tearing it down the streets. The prices for this stuff is more expensive than in a western country.

So question is - what happened? I've asked a few Thais who all tell me that it's because there's a bigger selection available now. I was under the impression that people just didnt have that kind of money.

Has the exchange rate really recovered to the point where these things are easily affordable? Or is Chiang Mai a bit of a rich kids playground?

[TJAN]

I was here 2 years back and the bikes and souped up cars seemed to have changed a tad. Maybe i'm remembering it wrong but I thought everyone was on mopeds with the only things standing out being the spider-bikes (like the Suzuki 135s etc). Bikes over 150 were illegal to import whole and most of the cars seemed to be pretty dull.

I come back to Chiang Mai this time round, white boys and Thais are flying around on brand new Yamaha R1s, Fireblades etc. Lots of big Harleys rolling around Nimhanaemin in the early hours. Crews of Imprezas and expensive Jap and German cars tearing it down the streets. The prices for this stuff is more expensive than in a western country.

So question is - what happened? I've asked a few Thais who all tell me that it's because there's a bigger selection available now. I was under the impression that people just didnt have that kind of money.

Has the exchange rate really recovered to the point where these things are easily affordable? Or is Chiang Mai a bit of a rich kids playground?

Two years ago it was the same as today,I am here for years and no differance.

[wimpy]

?

Two years ago it was the same as today,I am here for years and no differance.

That is not exactly true. Chiang Mai now has factory dealers for big Yamahas, Kawasakis, and Triumphs. The supply of high end machinery has definitely improved.

[cm das]

It's true that in the last 2 years Triumph, Yamaha and Kawasaki dealers have all begun to sell big bikes in Chiang Mai. And the trendy image of Nimmanhemind Rd. continues to grow so it may be attracting more flashy cars and bikes than before (certainly more than 5 years ago). But I agree with TJAN that on the whole things haven't changed that much in terms of the volume of expensive cars & bikes in town, and conspicuous consumption in general.

[PeaceBlondie]

I walked out of the 7-11 out near my rice field last night, and saw a very impressive "rally replica" late model Japanese coupe. I noticed it, and he noticed my silly little CBR150R. But the more I thought about it, I have seen such cars fairly regularly. However, legal big new bikes, as already mentioned, are a great improvement. When I start seeing blower Bentley Mulsannes and new Corvettes, that will be special.

[Pdaz]

I was out cycling around Mapratchan reservoir yesterday arvo and along comes a big white Maserati coupe... Paeng in the West and fooooookin expensib here

And meanwhile on Suhkumvit just past Pattaya Klang there is a showroom full of Ferraris, Porsches and even a couple of Lamboghini Mucialagos... oh and a Ford GT too... Dunno how many they sell but haven't seen the stock change much in the last year or so... Would hate to think how much their stock is worth..

[Sojourner]

More big money coming into Chiang Mai now. The owner of Chang Beer has started buying up hotels in the area. The guy who originated the green tea in a plastic bottle sold out and is now up here investing in realestate. Also, two years ago the law was changed allowing big bore imported bikes into the country with favorable customs duty. The wave of custom Jap cars has been working it's way up here from BKK as well. There's always been big money up here (ex-PM a good example) it's just showing more as their kids are becoming more materialistic.

[ieincmx]

I love big bikes, they look great and are awesome fun to ride. Seems inhumane to have them in Chiang Mai though, never hear them get out of second gear or into the red. The bikes are obviously bought to look cool rather than purely for performance, just a shame the riders never get the thrill of opening them up....or do they - anyone seen any proper high speed antics?

I like it though - more cool stuff on the roads is always good. Takes a brave man to put a beloved vehicle on the roads here if you ask me though, surely scratches and dents are inevitable.

[mnbcm]

High end bikes and cars are nice, but in a city where I see fender benders and accidents almost everyday, I think I'll keep my Honda Dream and throw my money in real estate instead.