I am in the process of purchasing my first vehicle in Thailand, and aside from the sticker shock that all Farang experience the first time around, it was unsettling to find out that there was no reliable source to check values on used cars - a fact that has been alluded to before on this forum.

Well, I just had a surprise at my insurance agent's office. I am buying a 2007 2-door Toyota Vigo from a dealer. The agent told me that Thai banks that offer auto loans maintain their own databases on used car values. The agent checked the car I wanted to buy and told me that I was paying as much as 60,000 baht too much!

Granted, this is not the NADA blue book; as the agent cautioned, every bank has their own database and they may not necessarily agree with each other. But it certainly makes me feel that this whole business of buying a used car here does not have to be a matter of stabbing in the dark.

Has anybody out there ever used these bank databases? If so, did you find them reliable? I'd be very interested to hear from anybody who knows more about this. At this point I want to go to the dealer and cancel the transaction - I only put down a 3,000 baht deposit.

No Kelley Blue Book here - in Thailand the equivelent is RedBook (from Oz). Used car valuations can be purchased for 100 THB online: https://www.redbookasiapacific.com/rbcert/index.php?lang=en&cc=th

You may try Thanachart Bluebook online, it is free but only in Thai language.

Personally I just go with my gut, having a good working knowledge of cars and a history here, if it tests out ok and is priced in line with many similar models listed on websites for example then a "guideline" is not necessary, the car may be worth more or less depending on that personal assessment.