Should I Buy A Car/truck In Bkk Before I Head To Cm

[dirtyaz]

I will be arriving in BKK from the US around early June to visit friends and hit the beach before I head up to CM for a teaching job. I plan on buying a car or truck when I get out there before school starts in Aug. I've heard different things about being cheaper and easier to buy a vehicle in BKK and can even get a new vehicle without having to wait months. Can anyone shed some light on the topic, does it really make a difference?

We will be living in the Hang Dong area and I will need to drive from there out into the hills about 10 miles to get to my school. I've been told there is no bus, etc to get out there so I would need it by the start of school and couldn't wait a couple months for delivery.

Thanks

[kaptainrob]

Whilst living in Phuket we ended up buying in BKK as there was so much more choice in the price range ~ 300k baht. I window-shopped online via one2car - took a while to navigate around language/translations, but eventually had 118 x 2002 model Honda Civic Vtec's to sort thru. Narrowed down to a final 6 we flew up and started looking .... and bought #2 on the shortlist.

There are massive stocks of 2nd hand vehicles on sale in CM if you can't find something in BKK. We traded the Civic recently and got a good deal locally, on an Isuzu pick-up.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

New or second hand?

If you're new here then my first thought is that you don't want to deal with this right away, and can also do without the hassle of getting the registration changed from Bangkok to Chiang Mai.

Presumably the school runs a bus or van to pick up kids that you could use for the first week or so, or you can run a small motorcycle (full Auto Moped) cheaply.

While used cars can be a bit cheaper in Bangkok its not a huge difference for common models. And the waiting time applies mostly to newly released models, so again shouldn't be too much of an issue if you're not picky.

Lastly you will need a minimum of 600,000 Baht for a new car, 300,000 used. Yes, That is a lot, but they also keep their value well when you sell again.

[masuk]

If you buy a new car in Chiang Mai, be prepared to wait. I was told there was a 6 month wait for a Suzuki Swift, so my Thai friend phoned around, and we got one within 6 weeks from Kamphaeng Phet.

Mind you, it was one of the class of vehicles which had a government subsidy, and that may have increased the waiting time.

[kaptainrob]

Why buy new? Thai's do so as to get easy finance and insurance. Current tax-rebate has increased sale exponentially. But if paying cash, as most Expats must, far better deals are to be had on good used vehicles @ ~ 50% less than new on say 07/08 models. Comprehensive insurance is readily available via AXA or LMG.