Very Good Car Painting Job

[brahmburgers]

For too long, I had one of the ugliest pick up trucks in town. Theoretically it was white, but it was a mess, even when the dirt and dust was hosed off it. I finally broke down and decided to get it painted. I had never had a vehicle painted before. I picked a shop in Ban Nam Lat. It's on the left (west side) of the main road, about a mile north of the Mae Fa Luang bridge - left of the village market.

The Thai guy there (I don't know his name) is a cheery fellow, and quoted me Bt.15,000 and stuck with it, even though I asked for a few extras (metal trim placed around the pick up truck bed, etc). I picked an unusual yellow/green color (a.k.a. pea soup).

Anyhow, the news is, I'm pleased as peaches with the paint job. The workers painted every part that was originally painted. They stripped off the old paint, fixed the dings, took out the interior stuff (seats and all), detached the bed of the pick-up, even painted most of the engine compartment without a speck of mistake. They did the bumper black, and the wheels silver. I was totally blown away with the high quality of their work!

Incidentally, why is it that 90% of Thai late-model vehicles are gray? Ok, they're either a shade of gray or silver, depending on semantics. It's particularly prevalent with pick-ups. Ok, if silver is the color of (and the name for) money - then why don't most Thais have a gold-colored vehicle, as gold shouts money even more than silver. Whatever happened to other colors, like red, blue, green, white, black, ....or, to get more daring; purple, mauve, turquoise, champagne, etc? There must be some very big influence for Thais going gray. Maybe the car sellers only get gray colored cars from the factory, who knows? (that's a real question; if anyone thinks they know, please offer suggestions).

Incidentally, studies find that gray/silver colored vehicles are among the least safe on the road, and that orange is safest - because of visibility to others.

My favorite explanation: a farang told me the reason Thais prefer gray for pick-up trucks is they image they're riding their war elephant.

Edited July 5, 2009 by brahmburgers

[ignis]

Thais appear to be very good on bodywork

Many years ago in the UK it was green cars that had the most accidents, followed by grey....

Here my Jazz was Vivid Blue, my present car is Dark Red, and the pickup is that purple blue.

[lukamar]

Grey is a color that doesn't look that dirty even when covered with dust and road grime. White is a great color to keep the car cool but looks like a mud racer all the time, Black just too hot in the tropics. Bright colors are only for Thai bathrooms...LOL

[Flatouthruthefog]

Thais appear to be very good on bodywork

Many years ago in the UK it was green cars that had the most accidents, followed by grey....

Here my Jazz was Vivid Blue, my present car is Dark Red, and the pickup is that purple blue.

Very good, and equivalent to the best possible value here in Chiang Mai.

An outfit called Bodyshop near CM Gate quotes 20,000b for small saloons (sedans), mainly because they normally have twice as much trim to remove and replace as a pick up - specially if the door shut areas are prepped and painted properly. They have stuck to that price for well over 5 years.

A stark difference from some local cowboys who wanted to charge a Swedish chum (obviously all Swedes are millionaires) 100,000b for a simple re-paint of a post war Jeep, already in good condition and of course with virtually no trim!

And we Brits ARE superstitious about green cars (against), as Thais ARE superstitious about grey and silver (for), and for the historic reason quoted here.

What a good thing we don't all like the same things in life, eh?

Last for now, can anyone tell me about the garage on the left as you come south from Mae Sai? They usually have a few old cars for sale. Open fronted large timber (shed-like) place. Good reputation, or the other sort?

[Ajarn]

The reason why most vehicles you see have a similar color is because if you buy a new truck, you are only given a few choices, depending on if you have 4 wheel drive or not. My truck is a dark red because it is a two wheel drive. I wanted a black car, but that meant I would have had to get a 4 wheel drive for 100,000 baht extra..

[angiud]

Remember, you must record the change of your truck color in the car papers.