On The Cusp Of Ordering A Sportivo Iii

[corkman]

Hi All,

I know this topic has been done to death, but I would like an up-to-date opinion.

My wife made some preliminary enquires the other day about the Sportivo III - and from what I can gather the salesman more or less said "no extras". From what I have read before, these seems a bit tight..... but we live in changing times . I know some people are good at "bargaining". I am not one of them. So I would like to know at what point am I being paranoid, and at what point is the dealer giving himself a good deal.

I am walking in, with no trade in, 25% deposit, and I have all my paperwork in order and should have no problems getting finance.

So, should I automatically get things like registration, insurance, etc.?

As a secondary question - car finance / interest rates. Are the interest rates typically fixed / variable / or otherwise, and is there anything in particualr I should watch out for?

Many thanks.

CM

[fredob43]

When I got my Sportivo 11. All I was offered was free No: plate's that was at two place's. The third one gave me nearly 45 thousand's bt worth of goodies. But I paid cash. H/P I dont know. I think it's a case of look around and where you are. I had to go 150km to get the deal.

[CGW]

Contrary to common belief, dealer will make more money if you finance as they get a good kick back from the finance company, so you should be able to negotiate more freebies!

[John 1]

I ordered in October delivery will be January so you can see if there back log why would they give much away. All I will get is window tint and a few chrome pieces that's it. this is samui

[MoonRiverOasis]

There's always at least 4-5% of discount play in new Thai made vehicles, but it can be difficult to negotiate the full amount of this, especially at the moment seeing as Toyota salespeople are having a record month due to the Motor Expo. As another poster suggested, shop around - you may find dealers outside of BKK (whose sales reps weren't at the show) are more willing to do deals..

Also make sure that the dealer you're negotiating with has the vehicle in-stock so you don't waste your time negotiating a great deal on car you have to then wait 3 or more months for.

As for finance, it probably works a little different than what you're used to. All car loans in Thailand are based on pre-calculated, flat-rate loans with fixed repayments. Interest is not calculated based on the remaining capital owed so extra payments have no effect on interest payable, and If paying out early a 50% discount on the remaining interest due is all you'll save.

As with any car finance, rates start high and are always negotiable. Best rates achievable ATM are in the low 1% range, average rates in the low 2% range and bad rates 2.7+%.

[John 1]

Don't forget you are ordering a Sportivo 111 so this is a special order so will be surprised if the show room has one unless it was a cancelled order. If you have to wait 3 months from now it would be best to wait till March as there might be some changes to the model might be lucky they might put a 5 speed auto in.

[MoonRiverOasis]

Don't forget you are ordering a Sportivo 111 so this is a special order so will be surprised if the show room has one unless it was a cancelled order. If you have to wait 3 months from now it would be best to wait till March as there might be some changes to the model might be lucky they might put a 5 speed auto in.

There's always a dealer that has it in-stock, it just takes some phone work. Every car I've bought so far has had the same "you'll have to wait 6-12 weeks", and every time I've found a dealer with stock and willing to do a good deal

[fredob43]

Don't forget you are ordering a Sportivo 111 so this is a special order so will be surprised if the show room has one unless it was a cancelled order. If you have to wait 3 months from now it would be best to wait till March as there might be some changes to the model might be lucky they might put a 5 speed auto in.

Remember that they are a limited addition, wait till March and you more than likely wont get one. There are lot's of peep's that want a Sportivo 111 as they missed out on the 11. Deal's ??? your having to wait 3 month's + now. Why should they give deal's. When I ordered mine got it in less than two week's. Was one of the first to get it so they did a deal later peep's were willing to give back hander's and still didn't get it. Supply and demand.

[elrey]

Three letters for you --- PJS :-)

[fredob43]

Three letters for you --- PJS :-)

Only if your desperate. "14 word's for you" Look at the quality of the driver's seat on PJS compared to the Sportivo.

[corkman]

Well, I pretty much gathered that it would be a case of "think of yourself luck you're getting one"....... oh well...... so would they be more inclined to give me a "deal" on a non-spotivo?

As far as a PJS - I take it that you mean pajero sport? I did about 2000km in one of them recently - it would not hold a candle to the fortuner. The fortuner is bigger, more comfortable (both seats and ride), better equiped, and quieter. I'd honestly rather the entry level fortuner than the top of the range PJS. I am not saying the PJS is a bad car...... just the fortuner is better, in my opinion.

[elrey]

hmm, i guess it's a matter of opinion, but i find my Montero Sport (PJS in Thailand) to be a very, very good value, I looked at the Captiva and just adding up in my head the value of the car in itself, the Mitsu wins it...

surely the fortuner is no slacker, but again, the value for the mitsu made my decision clearer, and no regrets to this day, even when i roll next to a fortuner or a captiva at a stoplight, they look up at me, not the other way around...

I'm sure the rear seat passengers dizzy from the ride of their fortuners are wondering what they're missing too..

[fredob43]

hmm, i guess it's a matter of opinion, but i find my Montero Sport (PJS in Thailand) to be a very, very good value, I looked at the Captiva and just adding up in my head the value of the car in itself, the Mitsu wins it...

surely the fortuner is no slacker, but again, the value for the mitsu made my decision clearer, and no regrets to this day, even when i roll next to a fortuner or a captiva at a stoplight, they look up at me, not the other way around...

I'm sure the rear seat passengers dizzy from the ride of their fortuners are wondering what they're missing too..

And say why did he buy one of those when he could have got one of these. Hint, maybe you roll because of the PJS's soggy suspension.

If you go for a cheaper model you will get a better deal. They start at just over 1 mil; But the G manual cheapest, now only come's with the 2.5 have had a go and they, I think are a litttle under powered.

[SantiSuk]

Same same. Got only a 10k discount when I bought mine 18 months ago. Had to go to Bangkok dealer for that. Ubon/SiSaket offered list price and 3 month waits only.

[elrey]

Hmmm, my suspension not soggy at all, and power at 2.5 is all the power i need, really for city streets and highways, I've gotten nothing but complements specially from friends who own fortuners, one actually traded in his for a Mitsu,

the only thing i feel bad about really is the 4 speed auto transmission, which i understand will be addressed by the coming new model...

again, opinions vary, but no issues on power or suspension on mine

[fredob43]

Hmmm, my suspension not soggy at all, and power at 2.5 is all the power i need, really for city streets and highways, I've gotten nothing but complements specially from friends who own fortuners, one actually traded in his for a Mitsu,

the only thing i feel bad about really is the 4 speed auto transmission, which i understand will be addressed by the coming new model...

again, opinions vary, but no issues on power or suspension on mine

I didn't say the 2.5 PJS was under powered I said the Fortuner was. As far as the suspension go's just go look at your PJS and measure the distance between the top of tyre and wheel arch. Then do the same on a Fortuner, not Sportivo as even lower. The gap is not there to put a large suit case in, even though you could, it's there as a take up for the wheel's. Then think back to the 2CV and how that leaned on corner's. If you dont believe me just get yourself behind a PJS on a bendy road at speed, and say to yourself that's what mine is doing. Then do the same with a Fortuner. Soft, soggy!!!! As I said in a previous post where I live there not called a Pajero but a Pissa. In a strate line great, smooth, maybe slightly better on bumpy road's than a Fortuner. But on bend's like the tower.

[corkman]

I don't think the Pajero is a bad car, on the contrary I quite like it - but for me, the extra cost of the fortuner is worth it.

Main reasons:

1. I think it drives better, and corners better as others have said

2. For your money, you get VSC, which is a life saver in an SUV on a highway if you need to avoid something at speed. real difference cetween say

3. It is considerably bigger - particularly when using the 3rd row of seats. In the fortuner, the boot is limited but still usable. In the pajero, it is useless (but the pajero does have a better seat folding system when not using row 3). Its also easier to get in and out of the 3rd row, and the 3rd row is quite comfortable, relatively.

You also get a couple of nice features in the fortuner such as rear A/C vents, reversing sensors (which I hate but the mrs likes), and that sort of thing.

Truth be told - I am leaning away from the sportivo..... paying a premium and waiting for months is just a bit of a turn off (it is definitely the nicest though, and while the navi is technically the range topper, the sportivo is definitely the nicest).

Can anyone tell me - what is the benefit of the sportivo suspension? In the past (in saloon cars) I have always favoured the "comfort" setting rather than the "sport" when it comes to suspension..... taking the looks and toys out, is there any real difference between say the sportivo and the 3.0V 4x4? Apart from the 100,000 THB price difference, I get the impression that there might be lots of more "goodies" on offer worth 30, 40, or even 50,000 THB, so the cost difference is more like 130-150,000k and porbably a few weeks versus a few months........

[MoonRiverOasis]

I don't think the Pajero is a bad car, on the contrary I quite like it - but for me, the extra cost of the fortuner is worth it.

Main reasons:

1. I think it drives better, and corners better as others have said

2. For your money, you get VSC, which is a life saver in an SUV on a highway if you need to avoid something at speed. real difference cetween say

3. It is considerably bigger - particularly when using the 3rd row of seats. In the fortuner, the boot is limited but still usable. In the pajero, it is useless (but the pajero does have a better seat folding system when not using row 3). Its also easier to get in and out of the 3rd row, and the 3rd row is quite comfortable, relatively.

You also get a couple of nice features in the fortuner such as rear A/C vents, reversing sensors (which I hate but the mrs likes), and that sort of thing.

Truth be told - I am leaning away from the sportivo..... paying a premium and waiting for months is just a bit of a turn off (it is definitely the nicest though, and while the navi is technically the range topper, the sportivo is definitely the nicest).

Can anyone tell me - what is the benefit of the sportivo suspension? In the past (in saloon cars) I have always favoured the "comfort" setting rather than the "sport" when it comes to suspension..... taking the looks and toys out, is there any real difference between say the sportivo and the 3.0V 4x4? Apart from the 100,000 THB price difference, I get the impression that there might be lots of more "goodies" on offer worth 30, 40, or even 50,000 THB, so the cost difference is more like 130-150,000k and porbably a few weeks versus a few months........

The Sportivo suspension uses stiffer springs and TRD dampers, which result in a substantially firmer ride but with less body roll. If you're looking for comfort I would suggest one of the models with normal suspension would probably suit you best - give them a test drive and you'll definitely notice the difference in ride quality. Outside of the TRD suspension on Sportivo, the differences between all 3.0L Fortuners are down to cosmetic body kits, some interior trims and the stereo/GPS - the drivetrain remains the same for them all.

Just as a side note, the Pajero Sport does actually have rear A/C, Reversing sensors etc. In fact the only feature available on Fortuner that's not on the PJS is VSC, (and there's a possibility that may be changing next month with the PJS minor change).

[fredob43]

I don't think the Pajero is a bad car, on the contrary I quite like it - but for me, the extra cost of the fortuner is worth it.

Main reasons:

1. I think it drives better, and corners better as others have said

2. For your money, you get VSC, which is a life saver in an SUV on a highway if you need to avoid something at speed. real difference cetween say

3. It is considerably bigger - particularly when using the 3rd row of seats. In the fortuner, the boot is limited but still usable. In the pajero, it is useless (but the pajero does have a better seat folding system when not using row 3). Its also easier to get in and out of the 3rd row, and the 3rd row is quite comfortable, relatively.

You also get a couple of nice features in the fortuner such as rear A/C vents, reversing sensors (which I hate but the mrs likes), and that sort of thing.

Truth be told - I am leaning away from the sportivo..... paying a premium and waiting for months is just a bit of a turn off (it is definitely the nicest though, and while the navi is technically the range topper, the sportivo is definitely the nicest).

Can anyone tell me - what is the benefit of the sportivo suspension? In the past (in saloon cars) I have always favoured the "comfort" setting rather than the "sport" when it comes to suspension..... taking the looks and toys out, is there any real difference between say the sportivo and the 3.0V 4x4? Apart from the 100,000 THB price difference, I get the impression that there might be lots of more "goodies" on offer worth 30, 40, or even 50,000 THB, so the cost difference is more like 130-150,000k and porbably a few weeks versus a few months........

MRO has got it about spot on "as usual" Dont think you can get Sat /Nav on the 3.o V without changing the Hi Fi set up but with the extra cash saved you could put most of the goodie's on + still have some cash over. + only have to wait a couple of week's for delivery. The other + is you can choose the colour. Tip don't go for Black unless you want to clean it every day. As you mentioned the main thing is the VSC Big lump no VSC, NO BUY.

[fredob43]

I don't think the Pajero is a bad car, on the contrary I quite like it - but for me, the extra cost of the fortuner is worth it.

Main reasons:

1. I think it drives better, and corners better as others have said

2. For your money, you get VSC, which is a life saver in an SUV on a highway if you need to avoid something at speed. real difference cetween say

3. It is considerably bigger - particularly when using the 3rd row of seats. In the fortuner, the boot is limited but still usable. In the pajero, it is useless (but the pajero does have a better seat folding system when not using row 3). Its also easier to get in and out of the 3rd row, and the 3rd row is quite comfortable, relatively.

You also get a couple of nice features in the fortuner such as rear A/C vents, reversing sensors (which I hate but the mrs likes), and that sort of thing.

Truth be told - I am leaning away from the sportivo..... paying a premium and waiting for months is just a bit of a turn off (it is definitely the nicest though, and while the navi is technically the range topper, the sportivo is definitely the nicest).

Can anyone tell me - what is the benefit of the sportivo suspension? In the past (in saloon cars) I have always favoured the "comfort" setting rather than the "sport" when it comes to suspension..... taking the looks and toys out, is there any real difference between say the sportivo and the 3.0V 4x4? Apart from the 100,000 THB price difference, I get the impression that there might be lots of more "goodies" on offer worth 30, 40, or even 50,000 THB, so the cost difference is more like 130-150,000k and porbably a few weeks versus a few months........

MRO has got it about spot on "as usual" Dont think you can get Sat /Nav on the 3.o V without changing the Hi Fi set up but with the extra cash saved you could put most of the goodie's on + still have some cash over. + only have to wait a couple of week's for delivery. The other + is you can choose the colour. Tip don't go for Black unless you want to clean it every day. As you mentioned the main thing is the VSC Big lump no VSC, NO BUY.

Another + is you dont have to have that crappy front wing mirror. The only thing I dislike on the Sportivo.

[John 1]

Yes I agree that front wing mirror looks tacky. I might pull it off and fill the hole I asked could order without they said a definate no.

[fredob43]

Yes I agree that front wing mirror looks tacky. I might pull it off and fill the hole I asked could order without they said a definate no.

Dont bother to take it off. After a few week's you won't even notice it's there. Other than looking Crappy it's bloody useless.

[corkman]

thanks for all the great replies

I was told last night that the current base fortuner design will be changed later this year for an entirely new model has been around for a few years now, is this quite likely, or indeed has it been confirmed?

On that basis, I am almost inclined to get a camry instead, or maybe even an altis, and wait until the new one comes out. I wouldn't "loose" a huge percentage of the value as would in the uk, right?

[MoonRiverOasis]

From slightly inebriated Toyota exec tonight: Fortuner minor change due next month, IMV2 (next gen) may be accelerated from 2014 to as early as 2012/13.

[John 1]

come on MRO feed the Toyota exec some more booze and find out what the minor change is, there's not much more they can add except for 5 speed box not worried about new model in 12/14.

[corkman]

UPDATE - I'm going to go for the 4x2 3.0V instead!

Ok guys - thanks for all your input and discussion etc.

Just been down to a dealer today to start talking about figures etc. and the 4x2 3.0V is a full THB 160,000 cheaper. Having discussed thing with the Mrs. we have concluded that while the Sportivo is certainaly a much nicer looking beast, there is actually nothing in it that we need or especially want and 160k is alot to pay for the looks alone (the 4x4 is wasted on us, we'll never go off road) - we've already got a garmin nuvi thingy which serves our purposes extremely well.

Can anyone give me a good reason not to do this? I realise the Sportivo will have better re-sale value in terms of percentages, but in terms of actual baht the 4x2 isn't going to loose any more and its a smaller wedge to part with in the first instance.

So, I'm going to take it on finance - all the usual terms etc. Same question as previous: Is there anything that I should almost "insist" on in terms of goodies and/or discounts? I am not trading in anything. Straight sale.

Many thanks,

CM.

[fredob43]

What I did when I got my Vigo, is ask for the extra's list and I went through it and ticked most bit's on it, then said that's what I want what are you going to give me. And I got most of them + insurance & tax. Slight difference with the Sportivo, had to bargain hard. But with the lesser model they have more leeway. Ask for the lot they can only say no. Best of luck.

[MoonRiverOasis]

come on MRO feed the Toyota exec some more booze and find out what the minor change is, there's not much more they can add except for 5 speed box not worried about new model in 12/14.

No-one said anything specific, but they couldn't help but verify that they'll have updated range to compete with upcoming market share threats.. Will now more within a couple of weeks I expect.

[fredob43]

come on MRO feed the Toyota exec some more booze and find out what the minor change is, there's not much more they can add except for 5 speed box not worried about new model in 12/14.

No-one said anything specific, but they couldn't help but verify that they'll have updated range to compete with upcoming market share threats.. Will now more within a couple of weeks I expect.

A mate said to me last night that he had been to Toyota's asking about a new vigo, and was told that they are bringing out a new 2.7 diesel sometime in the new year. Haven't seen my contact at Toyota's for some time, so I haven't heard anything. Might be worth a sniff around, on that one. Update later If and when I see my contact.

[DLock]

I went in to Toyota today to buy a Sportivo III and the saleswoman told me that they are no longer making any more and that her entire inventory was allocated.

She didn't even try to sell me a normal Fortuner...which I wouldn't have bought...but at least try.

I was trading in my wife's 3 year old Wish that I bought from the same Dealer.

Did I just get a lazy saleswoman or could this in fact be true?