Hey guys - hope all is well,

me and the mrs are after buying a scooter, and we are new to hua hin (and thailand for me) so not sure on the best places to look etc...

what is the best way to buy a motorbike round here? we may get second hand, or may go for new......

can anyone recommend any good places / garages to go and have a look at a good selection of new and used bikes, and a place that has fair prices?

also, do any of the local newspapers / magazines / websites offer a good selection of bikes?

back home, buying privately through a private ad in a paper is normally cheaper, though there is no come back if the bike is a stinker.....

any tips for buying in the LOS ??

Buy new. The Thais do.

My missus says "how do you know something isn't fifth hand?"

Go to a dealer of your choice - maybe Yamaha and Honda and see what they offer. Prices are fairly fixed - negotiation is about 'extras'.

You will probably be told that Farang cannot buy. You can (subject to certain conditions) and certainly should if your cash is being used.

They have auctions all over thailand.I've talked to people who have bought used ones,never had A problem.

Test 1 for used bike --- what is the age i.e how old.

This year is 2554, so check the Green book, or photocopy of same. They always have it somewhere.

They may tell you, 2 years old or 3 years old, or whatever. Most of the time they are lying.

e.g. 3 years old would be 2551 in the book.Almost invariably you will find it is, it is 49 or 50.

Once you establish the lying pattern, you know all the rest is bagwan.

Having said all that, you can actually get good value here, if you know bikes.

Good luck and happy travels

get a new one if you can afford it. Is there any Suzuki dealer in Hua Hin? If not Yamaha square or Honda dealer. Choose a bike with injection engine. easy to start and less fuel consumption.

Used, if dealer have them they are usually repos.

Service book states when its sold new, reg book states only when it is registered, which may be one or 3 years later

choose a bike able to carry your weight. small bikes 130 Kg, larger auto bikes 180 kg, better tyres, larger brakes dual rear shocks, longer wheelbase

to learn more about Thai auto bikes, read up in the Bike Forum

and get yourself Thai drivers lisence, less hazzle with Police and makes your Insurance valid

Buy new. The Thais do.

You will probably be told that Farang cannot buy. You can (subject to certain conditions) and certainly should if your cash is being used.

I have bought two new honda scooters, both belong to me ; for that, the honda shop in Cha am told me to have a paper from the police station, with the guarantee of a thai people , who came with me to the police station .

Come with your passeport, and the thai man ( or woman ) with I.D card

I came back with the paper to the honda shop, and all the papers are with my name.

Honda scooters are very good, no bad surprises.

Buy new. The Thais do.

You will probably be told that Farang cannot buy. You can (subject to certain conditions) and certainly should if your cash is being used.

I have bought two new honda scooters, both belong to me ; for that, the honda shop in Cha am told me to have a paper from the police station, with the guarantee of a thai people , who came with me to the police station .

Come with your passeport, and the thai man ( or woman ) with I.D card

I came back with the paper to the honda shop, and all the papers are with my name.

Honda scooters are very good, no bad surprises.

od info, as I have bought a dusin new cars and 2 dusin new bikes.

DLT (Department of Land Transportation) requires passport with any valid permit to stay and Certificate of Residence to register vehicle in foreigners name. Certificate of Residence can be issued by local Immigration or foreigners Embassy. Hua Hin Immigration requires 1 photo for each certificate and 500 baht, no reciept

I told the story as it happened to me at the Honda shop in Cha am; I don't know how it works somewhere else; I forgot to say that I have an O-A visa, may be it helps.

I told the story as it happened to me at the Honda shop in Cha am; I don't know how it works somewhere else; I forgot to say that I have an O-A visa, may be it helps.

as said any valid permit to stay is accepted, that includes entry stamp, permit to stay stamp or any visa, so your Non O does not change anything

so you are claiming your name and passportnumber is in your green reg books as owner, without having presented certificate of residence (or replacing WP or yellow housebook) to DLT?

so you are claiming your name and passportnumber is in your green reg books as owner, without having presented certificate of residence (or replacing WP or yellow housebook) to DLT?

I have a green book ( in phonetic : bai koo meu jot tabian ), I suppose it's the one you are speaking about:

page 5 (owner of the vehicule : jao korng rot ): my name, passport number, birthdate, and my adress

thanks for all the replies guys.... really helpful stuff

i did lots of reading on the net last night and everyone seemed to say that hondas were the best and most reliable..... also read that cha am was cheaper for new bikes, so had a look up there today

spoke to a couple of garages and it seemed that to buy used (mainly repo's) it wasnt much cheaper than buying new...... ie honda scoopy 1 year old...... 40,000b, and new 44,500b on the road

which is a bit of a saving, but there is only a 3 month warranty on the used bike, but 2 or 3 years on the new bike

then for additional 1,500B we could get 2 years theft insurance

so far, this seems to be the best deal we have found....... scoopy's do look a bit of a girls bike, but if we can find one without the stickers all over it, then i reckon we could be go

thanks for all the replies guys.... really helpful stuff

i did lots of reading on the net last night and everyone seemed to say that hondas were the best and most reliable..... also read that cha am was cheaper for new bikes, so had a look up there today

spoke to a couple of garages and it seemed that to buy used (mainly repo's) it wasnt much cheaper than buying new...... ie honda scoopy 1 year old...... 40,000b, and new 44,500b on the road

which is a bit of a saving, but there is only a 3 month warranty on the used bike, but 2 or 3 years on the new bike

then for additional 1,500B we could get 2 years theft insurance

so far, this seems to be the best deal we have found....... scoopy's do look a bit of a girls bike, but if we can find one without the stickers all over it, then i reckon we could be go

or get a click, same bike, different plastic panels

or have shop remove all stickers from scoopie

thanks for all the replies guys.... really helpful stuff

i did lots of reading on the net last night and everyone seemed to say that hondas were the best and most reliable..... also read that cha am was cheaper for new bikes, so had a look up there today

spoke to a couple of garages and it seemed that to buy used (mainly repo's) it wasnt much cheaper than buying new...... ie honda scoopy 1 year old...... 40,000b, and new 44,500b on the road

which is a bit of a saving, but there is only a 3 month warranty on the used bike, but 2 or 3 years on the new bike

then for additional 1,500B we could get 2 years theft insurance

so far, this seems to be the best deal we have found....... scoopy's do look a bit of a girls bike, but if we can find one without the stickers all over it, then i reckon we could be go

or get a click, same bike, different plastic panels

or have shop remove all stickers from scoopie

I think the Scoopy is air cooled and the Click liquid cooled and so might be better in the heat?

thanks for all the replies guys.... really helpful stuff

i did lots of reading on the net last night and everyone seemed to say that hondas were the best and most reliable..... also read that cha am was cheaper for new bikes, so had a look up there today

spoke to a couple of garages and it seemed that to buy used (mainly repo's) it wasnt much cheaper than buying new...... ie honda scoopy 1 year old...... 40,000b, and new 44,500b on the road

which is a bit of a saving, but there is only a 3 month warranty on the used bike, but 2 or 3 years on the new bike

then for additional 1,500B we could get 2 years theft insurance

so far, this seems to be the best deal we have found....... scoopy's do look a bit of a girls bike, but if we can find one without the stickers all over it, then i reckon we could be go

or get a click, same bike, different plastic panels

or have shop remove all stickers from scoopie

I think the Scoopy is air cooled and the Click liquid cooled and so might be better in the heat?

same engine, same auto, same frame, same bike, different plastics and lights

thanks for all the replies guys.... really helpful stuff

i did lots of reading on the net last night and everyone seemed to say that hondas were the best and most reliable..... also read that cha am was cheaper for new bikes, so had a look up there today

spoke to a couple of garages and it seemed that to buy used (mainly repo's) it wasnt much cheaper than buying new...... ie honda scoopy 1 year old...... 40,000b, and new 44,500b on the road

which is a bit of a saving, but there is only a 3 month warranty on the used bike, but 2 or 3 years on the new bike

then for additional 1,500B we could get 2 years theft insurance

so far, this seems to be the best deal we have found....... scoopy's do look a bit of a girls bike, but if we can find one without the stickers all over it, then i reckon we could be go

or get a click, same bike, different plastic panels

or have shop remove all stickers from scoopie

I think the Scoopy is air cooled and the Click liquid cooled and so might be better in the heat?

same engine, same auto, same frame, same bike, different plastics and lights

still, the Scoopy is for girls (especially the pink ones!!) LOL