Bangkok Traffic And Thai Police..

[neverdie]

He should also get onto his Motorcycle dealer and confirm with them that all the paperwork has been processed & start hounding them to the whereabouts of his plate. Its exactly what I did and I think the dealer got sick of me ringing every second day & I cant remember how long it took for the plate to arrive, but it wasnt 28 days, although I have heard of it taking months.

Was told 5 working days for plate. But it took 2 weeks to have the plates in my hands.

Yeah well the OP stated yesterday was 11 days, so if I was him I would go and get in the dealers face a bit. If the dealer didnt put all the paperwork thru on the day of the deal or after it could slow things up.

Apply the old NOISY rusty wheel gets the most oil theory.

I think mine took a little longer than yours travelmate, but the plate turned up only a few days after I started hastling the dealer, strangly enuf.

[Travelmate]

He should also get onto his Motorcycle dealer and confirm with them that all the paperwork has been processed & start hounding them to the whereabouts of his plate. Its exactly what I did and I think the dealer got sick of me ringing every second day & I cant remember how long it took for the plate to arrive, but it wasnt 28 days, although I have heard of it taking months.

Was told 5 working days for plate. But it took 2 weeks to have the plates in my hands.

Yeah well the OP stated yesterday was 11 days, so if I was him I would go and get in the dealers face a bit. If the dealer didnt put all the paperwork thru on the day of the deal or after it could slow things up.

Apply the old NOISY rusty wheel gets the most oil theory.

I think mine took a little longer than yours travelmate, but the plate turned up only a few days after I started hastling the dealer, strangly enuf.

I was very happy and shocked to have it within 2 weeks.

My other bike took 8 months! And that was with constant bickering & harassment .

[hansnl]

Driving with no number plates.....Doh!!

When I was in Khon Kaen visiting friends I rented a bike from one of the rental shops near the hotel and it had no plates whatsoever. I asked the owner about this and he said no problem so I rode it around for days and was never stopped.

Interestingly, my friend recently told me there are 12 year old kids driving cars to school in Khon Kaen.

Ahhhhhhh.......Khon Kaen

All true!

[LivinLOS]

FYI, there are no red plates for motorcycles in Bangkok.

You are allowed to ride without a plate as long as you carry proof of registration and insurance. There is a time limit to this exemption and I am not sure how long it is. I think the all wise Neverdie said 28 days and he is never wrong.

But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job.

As to riding without a plate being legal.. I doubt it personally.. Tolerated maybe, which in Thailand means much the same thing, but legal ?? No I dont reckon so.. I know down here you dont get any chance on the road without a plate.. They pull you in and your going to have a LOT of problems (depending on mood as ever) and all new bikes come with a dealer red plate on day 1. You just cant ride without one, which makes no sense if they are 'legal' for 28 days.

[samran]

My experience in 14 years on BKK roads is this. Drive well, and within the rules, and they won't bother you. Just like they don't at home unless you are in the wrong.

what country are you living in?

I live in Thailand as well. It just seems that it is a different 'Thailand' to what most TV posters live in.

Who knows, maybe I am charmed...

[thaicbr]

Samran.... maybe you are Thai!

[samran]

Samran.... maybe you are Thai!

to look at me you wouldn't know!

[BigBikeBKK]

My experience in 14 years on BKK roads is this. Drive well, and within the rules, and they won't bother you. Just like they don't at home unless you are in the wrong.

what country are you living in?

I live in Thailand as well. It just seems that it is a different 'Thailand' to what most TV posters live in.

Who knows, maybe I am charmed...

Attitude goes a long way with the BiB.

What you drive / ride also influences their actions / reactions.

When we used to drive a Benz the BiB would never ever mess with us.

(The theory, as explained to me by Thais, goes like this: If you have the money to drive a Benz or other expensive car, the chances are you have some important connections and friends in high places and the BiB don't want to risk getting black listed by hassling the wrong person) Make sense in a crazy Thai way, doesn't it?

Since we got rid of the Benz in favor of a Toyota Vigo I've noticed that we do occasionally get stopped by the BiB, but I've only ever paid fines when I've done something wrong. When I've done nothing wrong I just sit there and smile and once they realize they can't get any money out of me they always let me go.

The Thai police think nothing of setting up random checkpoints here and there to stop motorcyclists to check for helmets, license, insurance and registration. Probably looking for drugs too. These checkpoints are everywhere and if you know you've done nothing wrong you can stop, show them your documents, and be on your way. If you're not 100% legit it's usually pretty easy to just ride on by. I've never been chased, though sometimes they give me a nice pat on the back as I ride on by, which though an armored motorcycle jacket feels like nothing.

Every once in a while a brave copper steps out into your lane and stands right in front of you so that you have to stop or run him over. I choose to stop I think this has happened to me twice- both times for not riding in the left lane. One time I bs'd my way through telling the guy ROT TIT MAAK MAAK! He just laughed and waved me on. The other time I paid the guy 100 Baht. No big deal.

Oh yeah- and I got busted for riding over the flyover from Rama III to Asoke and it took 200 Baht and a bag of popcorn that time. Oh- and I got the coppers name and phone number because he wants me to get him some Motorola Walkie Talkies the next time I'm stateside. In other words, now he and his buddies know me. I scratch their back, they scratch mine. TiT

[neverdie]

FYI, there are no red plates for motorcycles in Bangkok.

You are allowed to ride without a plate as long as you carry proof of registration and insurance. There is a time limit to this exemption and I am not sure how long it is. I think the all wise Neverdie said 28 days and he is never wrong.

But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job.

As to riding without a plate being legal.. I doubt it personally.. Tolerated maybe, which in Thailand means much the same thing, but legal ?? No I dont reckon so.. I know down here you dont get any chance on the road without a plate.. They pull you in and your going to have a LOT of problems (depending on mood as ever) and all new bikes come with a dealer red plate on day 1. You just cant ride without one, which makes no sense if they are 'legal' for 28 days.

LivinLos,

Sorry old mate, but you are completely INCORRECT. If you take yourself down to a MOTORCYCLE dealer and pay for a NEW motorcycle 100% payment in cash....You will NOT get a red plate. Your first plate issued will be the normal type one.

If you were familiar with laws you would understand that when legislators write laws they also include 'exemptions' to these laws. So you will see by my previous post that there is or should I say 'was' (2 years ago) an exemption for motorcycles purchased as I previously described that allowed them to be used in daylight hours without the plate for the first 28 days. I was told to make sure I carried all my paperwork to prove I fell into that cateogry.

All the bikes you see running around with red plates from new are financed jobbies, they are everywhere, didnt you know that you can buy a new scooter from 399 down & financed for 200 years .

I usually don't just make things up as I go along for the hel_l of it & let me tell you for the few weeks I rode without a plate, I was pulled up heaps of times, I actually use to carry a copy of the paperwork in my top pocket, I was NEVER written up for it & I can recall on several occassions that this happened, the BIB were real hungry

[dave_boo]

neverdie is right; up in NakWan I'm still running my financed Ninja on its red plates....what is it, some 10 months later?

[piewarmer]

I asked a Honda motorbike dealer here in Chiang Mai to sell me an new bike

for cash, 2000b deposit, the rest when I pick it up with white plates fitted.

They were not interested.

[tuktukracer]

FYI, there are no red plates for motorcycles in Bangkok.

You are allowed to ride without a plate as long as you carry proof of registration and insurance. There is a time limit to this exemption and I am not sure how long it is. I think the all wise Neverdie said 28 days and he is never wrong.

But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job.

As to riding without a plate being legal.. I doubt it personally.. Tolerated maybe, which in Thailand means much the same thing, but legal ?? No I dont reckon so.. I know down here you dont get any chance on the road without a plate.. They pull you in and your going to have a LOT of problems (depending on mood as ever) and all new bikes come with a dealer red plate on day 1. You just cant ride without one, which makes no sense if they are 'legal' for 28 days.

LivinLos,

Sorry old mate, but you are completely INCORRECT. If you take yourself down to a MOTORCYCLE dealer and pay for a NEW motorcycle 100% payment in cash....You will NOT get a red plate. Your first plate issued will be the normal type one.

If you were familiar with laws you would understand that when legislators write laws they also include 'exemptions' to these laws. So you will see by my previous post that there is or should I say 'was' (2 years ago) an exemption for motorcycles purchased as I previously described that allowed them to be used in daylight hours without the plate for the first 28 days. I was told to make sure I carried all my paperwork to prove I fell into that cateogry.

All the bikes you see running around with red plates from new are financed jobbies, they are everywhere, didnt you know that you can buy a new scooter from 399 down & financed for 200 years .

I usually don't just make things up as I go along for the hel_l of it & let me tell you for the few weeks I rode without a plate, I was pulled up heaps of times, I actually use to carry a copy of the paperwork in my top pocket, I was NEVER written up for it & I can recall on several occassions that this happened, the BIB were real hungry

I paid for my Ninja in cash and they gave me a red plate to put until the proppa white one turned up about 8 weeks later. Guess it varies from place to place?

[BigBikeBKK]

I paid for my Ninja in cash and they gave me a red plate to put until the proppa white one turned up about 8 weeks later. Guess it varies from place to place?

I guess you didn't buy your Ninjette in Bangkok because there are no red plates for bikes in the Big Mango.

[RusticCharm]

After stopping all the time for the uniformed mafia when I first bought my previous bike, an S2R 1000, I simply got fed-up with all the bullshit with this 'no riding in the right lane', 200 Bt etc.

Now I simply don't stop.

[LivinLOS]

FYI, there are no red plates for motorcycles in Bangkok.

You are allowed to ride without a plate as long as you carry proof of registration and insurance. There is a time limit to this exemption and I am not sure how long it is. I think the all wise Neverdie said 28 days and he is never wrong.

But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job.

As to riding without a plate being legal.. I doubt it personally.. Tolerated maybe, which in Thailand means much the same thing, but legal ?? No I dont reckon so.. I know down here you dont get any chance on the road without a plate.. They pull you in and your going to have a LOT of problems (depending on mood as ever) and all new bikes come with a dealer red plate on day 1. You just cant ride without one, which makes no sense if they are 'legal' for 28 days.

LivinLos,

Sorry old mate, but you are completely INCORRECT. If you take yourself down to a MOTORCYCLE dealer and pay for a NEW motorcycle 100% payment in cash....You will NOT get a red plate. Your first plate issued will be the normal type one.

If you were familiar with laws you would understand that when legislators write laws they also include 'exemptions' to these laws. So you will see by my previous post that there is or should I say 'was' (2 years ago) an exemption for motorcycles purchased as I previously described that allowed them to be used in daylight hours without the plate for the first 28 days. I was told to make sure I carried all my paperwork to prove I fell into that cateogry.

All the bikes you see running around with red plates from new are financed jobbies, they are everywhere, didnt you know that you can buy a new scooter from 399 down & financed for 200 years .

I usually don't just make things up as I go along for the hel_l of it & let me tell you for the few weeks I rode without a plate, I was pulled up heaps of times, I actually use to carry a copy of the paperwork in my top pocket, I was NEVER written up for it & I can recall on several occassions that this happened, the BIB were real hungry

Sorry but your doing that thing of assuming what happens in one place happens in another.. Thailand simply doesnt have hard and fast rules.

Maybe you can clear up why my missus has a red plated bike, fully cash paid for, waiting for its plate ?? Thats impossible in your world !! No finance and on a red.

As I am saying.. On Phuket, they really dont tolerate unplated bikes.. You buy a new bike you get a red plate, then the real plate comes some weeks later.. Cash or credit, red plate is applied.

I got the impression the red plate belongs to the dealership.. Tho I dont know the facts of this.

[LivinLOS]

FYI, there are no red plates for motorcycles in Bangkok.

You are allowed to ride without a plate as long as you carry proof of registration and insurance. There is a time limit to this exemption and I am not sure how long it is. I think the all wise Neverdie said 28 days and he is never wrong.

But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job.

As to riding without a plate being legal.. I doubt it personally.. Tolerated maybe, which in Thailand means much the same thing, but legal ?? No I dont reckon so.. I know down here you dont get any chance on the road without a plate.. They pull you in and your going to have a LOT of problems (depending on mood as ever) and all new bikes come with a dealer red plate on day 1. You just cant ride without one, which makes no sense if they are 'legal' for 28 days.

LivinLos,

Sorry old mate, but you are completely INCORRECT. If you take yourself down to a MOTORCYCLE dealer and pay for a NEW motorcycle 100% payment in cash....You will NOT get a red plate. Your first plate issued will be the normal type one.

If you were familiar with laws you would understand that when legislators write laws they also include 'exemptions' to these laws. So you will see by my previous post that there is or should I say 'was' (2 years ago) an exemption for motorcycles purchased as I previously described that allowed them to be used in daylight hours without the plate for the first 28 days. I was told to make sure I carried all my paperwork to prove I fell into that cateogry.

All the bikes you see running around with red plates from new are financed jobbies, they are everywhere, didnt you know that you can buy a new scooter from 399 down & financed for 200 years .

I usually don't just make things up as I go along for the hel_l of it & let me tell you for the few weeks I rode without a plate, I was pulled up heaps of times, I actually use to carry a copy of the paperwork in my top pocket, I was NEVER written up for it & I can recall on several occassions that this happened, the BIB were real hungry

I paid for my Ninja in cash and they gave me a red plate to put until the proppa white one turned up about 8 weeks later. Guess it varies from place to place?

OK another one.. So as I said initially.. The question appears to be

"But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job."

When in some provinces you 100% do get them. Riding around Phuket without a plate means you will be lucky to not have the bike impounded, they just dont tolerate it.

[BigBikeBKK]

"But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job."

As stated earlier, there are no red plates for bikes in Bangkok. They do not exist in Bangkok. It's got nothing to do with the dealers so no, it's NOT their job.

If I had to guess I'd say that Bangkok did away with red plates for bikes because they are so often misused. I know lots of guys in other provinces that ride bikes for years on a red plate because they can't or won't get their bikes properly registered.

Don't try that in Bangkok unless you want to kiss your bike goodbye.

Happy Trails!

Tony

[LivinLOS]

"But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job."

As stated earlier, there are no red plates for bikes in Bangkok. They do not exist in Bangkok. It's got nothing to do with the dealers so no, it's NOT their job.

If I had to guess I'd say that Bangkok did away with red plates for bikes because they are so often misused. I know lots of guys in other provinces that ride bikes for years on a red plate because they can't or won't get their bikes properly registered.

Don't try that in Bangkok unless you want to kiss your bike goodbye.

Happy Trails!

Tony

But red plates do exist.. On finance vehicles.. So why is this ??

My understanding of the red plates (and its quite possibly wrong) is the red plate belongs to the dealer.. Its his registered to him, and he cycles it through many bikes one after another when he makes the sale.. I know when vehicle sales are high dealers can run short of red plates, and maybe have a tough time getting more from the government.. I know when this happens they call round their customers trying to get them in ASAP, I also hear Thais like to drive round on red plates as long as possible to show face in the 'new vehicle' syndrome.

Now maybe the finance people lean on the dealers to have the bike plated to provide the insurance ?? Or what ?? Why do finance bikes get them and cash bikes dont ??

But red plates DO exist in BKK.. They just seem unwilling to give them out if you pay cash.. So the question is why ?? Maybe the Gov makes them pay for the plates too much, and they cant get more as many dealers in BKK use all the allotment ?? So become stingy with them.

If you go buy a car cash in BKK do they not give out a red plate to the car ??

[BigBikeBKK]

"But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job."

As stated earlier, there are no red plates for bikes in Bangkok. They do not exist in Bangkok. It's got nothing to do with the dealers so no, it's NOT their job.

If I had to guess I'd say that Bangkok did away with red plates for bikes because they are so often misused. I know lots of guys in other provinces that ride bikes for years on a red plate because they can't or won't get their bikes properly registered.

Don't try that in Bangkok unless you want to kiss your bike goodbye.

Happy Trails!

Tony

But red plates do exist.. On finance vehicles.. So why is this ??

My understanding of the red plates (and its quite possibly wrong) is the red plate belongs to the dealer.. Its his registered to him, and he cycles it through many bikes one after another when he makes the sale.. I know when vehicle sales are high dealers can run short of red plates, and maybe have a tough time getting more from the government.. I know when this happens they call round their customers trying to get them in ASAP, I also hear Thais like to drive round on red plates as long as possible to show face in the 'new vehicle' syndrome.

Now maybe the finance people lean on the dealers to have the bike plated to provide the insurance ?? Or what ?? Why do finance bikes get them and cash bikes dont ??

But red plates DO exist in BKK.. They just seem unwilling to give them out if you pay cash.. So the question is why ?? Maybe the Gov makes them pay for the plates too much, and they cant get more as many dealers in BKK use all the allotment ?? So become stingy with them.

If you go buy a car cash in BKK do they not give out a red plate to the car ??

Dude you're killin' me!

We're talking about Bangkok and we're talking about bikes. We're not talking about Phuket and we're not talking about cars.

THERE ARE NO RED PLATES FOR BIKES IN BANGKOK. CASH OR FINANCE STILL NO RED PLATE. PERIOD. END OF DISCUSSION.

Ride On!

[LivinLOS]

"But why is it theres no red plates in Bangkok ?? Red plates exist, so is it the dealers cant be bothered, the dealers wont pay to get them, the dealers are rationed them (there is a rationing, heard that from a dealer down here).. But ultimately it IS the dealers job."

As stated earlier, there are no red plates for bikes in Bangkok. They do not exist in Bangkok. It's got nothing to do with the dealers so no, it's NOT their job.

If I had to guess I'd say that Bangkok did away with red plates for bikes because they are so often misused. I know lots of guys in other provinces that ride bikes for years on a red plate because they can't or won't get their bikes properly registered.

Don't try that in Bangkok unless you want to kiss your bike goodbye.

Happy Trails!

Tony

But red plates do exist.. On finance vehicles.. So why is this ??

My understanding of the red plates (and its quite possibly wrong) is the red plate belongs to the dealer.. Its his registered to him, and he cycles it through many bikes one after another when he makes the sale.. I know when vehicle sales are high dealers can run short of red plates, and maybe have a tough time getting more from the government.. I know when this happens they call round their customers trying to get them in ASAP, I also hear Thais like to drive round on red plates as long as possible to show face in the 'new vehicle' syndrome.

Now maybe the finance people lean on the dealers to have the bike plated to provide the insurance ?? Or what ?? Why do finance bikes get them and cash bikes dont ??

But red plates DO exist in BKK.. They just seem unwilling to give them out if you pay cash.. So the question is why ?? Maybe the Gov makes them pay for the plates too much, and they cant get more as many dealers in BKK use all the allotment ?? So become stingy with them.

If you go buy a car cash in BKK do they not give out a red plate to the car ??

Dude you're killin' me!

We're talking about Bangkok and we're talking about bikes. We're not talking about Phuket and we're not talking about cars.

THERE ARE NO RED PLATES FOR BIKES IN BANGKOK. CASH OR FINANCE STILL NO RED PLATE. PERIOD. END OF DISCUSSION.

Ride On!

Well neverdie is saying they do issue red plates on bikes if you pay finance ???

So which is it ??

[thaicbr]

neverdie is not in Bangkok

[LivinLOS]

So what was all the posts a few back about paying 90% of the bike cash and leaving 10% finance so as to get a red plate ??

[BigBikeBKK]

Well neverdie is saying they do issue red plates on bikes if you pay finance ???

So which is it ??

Not in Bangkok.

[tavarich]

Well neverdie is saying they do issue red plates on bikes if you pay finance ???

So which is it ??

Not in Bangkok.

I was wondering if you could relate your experience buying a bike here in BKK.

As for me I paid cash at a fairly large dealer. I got all the paperwork and in the process I had to pay an extra 100 Baht to insure I brought back the "red plate".

I had to wait 4 months to get the regular white plate and my 100 Baht . I did pass the color blind test when I got my D.L. so I know for sure it was a red plate.

[Travelmate]

Well I never got the red plate. And the cops fined me for having a new bike on the road. (plateless)

[gragra]

+1 on getting the paperwork but not the red plate, but -1 on getting fined. I did get pulled over when the bike was new and plateless, but showing the paperwork dispensed with any fines.

This double-standard is mentioned in another thread of a similar nature, concerning licence snatching...

[thaicbr]

Tavarich. What bike was it... I think that it is the Big bike dealers not giving RED plates. but hey i might be wrong.

[neverdie]

neverdie is not in Bangkok

Actually I was referring to when I was in Bangkok and thats where I bought my bike Bangkok, but based on what Tony is saying something must have changed in Bangers since 2007, which wouldnt surprise me at all. I still don't understand tho, why I see so many bikes getting around bangers with red plate.....surely they can't all be visiting bikes to the capital?

I've just had this thread mentioned to me by the scubabudda, i lost track of it last year & of course it has come up again in a new thread

[neverdie]

WOOPS

Edited January 13, 2010 by neverdie