Buying An Almera. Seems Very Cheap.... Too Cheap.

[stevenl]

Interesting follow up.

The wife has been in contact with the manager and gotten some clear answers.

Pricing is as follows:

Manual:

So 85k down and 5651p/m for 6 years it is.

If I were you I would get this in writing, and don't forget them to confirm there will be no end payment to get to outright own the car.

[rixalex]

So with secondhand values of cars in Thailand and a final payment based on that leasing in this country wouldn't be good ?

As long as one is fully aware of what the deal actually is, and is happy with it then sure.

Even the second set of communications with them they were very unclear and not really willing to give the specific facts of the deal, passing off each question with that 'it's a very good deal' and payments are 'up to you'. Before finally admitting under hard questioning that one does indeed not own the car after the seven years of payments.

Personally we wouldn't be happy with paying 380k for a 429k car and not actually owning it in anyway when finished paying for it. Unless you then buy it at the used car value of it in cash, probably 200k+.

I don't like the sound of the people you are dealing with. You mentioned about seeing the car in a Big C. Have you actually gone to your local Nissan dealership? When i bought an Almera last year, the saleslady, when showing the various payment schemes available, told me in no uncertain terms to ignore Nissan Easy Pay. When i persisted to ask questions about it, attracted as i was by the thought of easy paying, she just mentioned the word lease and that was all i needed to hear. Seems a shame that the people you have spoken to haven't given you the same sort of advice.

By the way, it's a great car for what it is and you'll be very happy. Ignore all the silly comments, as you have been, about engine size. Small engines have come a long way in the last decade or so.

[anon210]

Interesting follow up.

The wife has been in contact with the manager and gotten some clear answers.

Pricing is as follows:

Manual:

So 85k down and 5651p/m for 6 years it is.

I don't think that is the full picture. I am sure there is an additional payment due. In fact the total amount due is 746.000 and not 613.000 as you seem to think.

http://www.nissan.co.th/en/Finance/~/media/Files/Nissan/Asia%20Pacific/Thailand/NLTH%20price%20list/NLTH%20Pricelist%20Feb%202013.pdf

As someone said, I believe they are not being very transparent or truthful with you.You are almost paying the cost of two Almeras to lease it!

[Carib]

Sounds like you will be asked at the end of these payments if you want to buy (lease) another car, or pay a final sum to own the one you have leased.

If something sounds to good to be true, it usually is..........

Edited March 15, 2013 by Carib

[Almera]

BTW, my above is not 'Easy Pay' leasing.

It is finance to own it.

As in the brochure: 85,800 down. 5651 p/m for 72 months (6 years). Total: 492,672 for a car listed as 429,000.

The original dealings and unclear answers were from an idiot sales lady, we have since been dealing directly with the sales manager, where we have been getting clear answers as to the different financing payments.

For us it makes sense to pay 85k now and save 100k or whatever in overall payments, than paying only 25 or 50k now but paying substantially more over the whole period.

[Almera]

Sounds like you will be asked at the end of these payments if you want to buy (lease) another car, or pay a final sum to own the one you have leased.

If something sounds to good to be true, it usually is..........

Have you read the whole thread or only the first few posts?

I suspect the latter.

[Carib]

Sounds like you will be asked at the end of these payments if you want to buy (lease) another car, or pay a final sum to own the one you have leased.

If something sounds to good to be true, it usually is..........

Have you read the whole thread or only the first few posts?

I suspect the latter.

You are wrong, but good luck with the "lease"..

[Almera]

The finance deal (to own it) that we'll probably go for, and find quite reasonable.

Total: 492,672.

[Almera]

Sounds like you will be asked at the end of these payments if you want to buy (lease) another car, or pay a final sum to own the one you have leased.

If something sounds to good to be true, it usually is..........

Have you read the whole thread or only the first few posts?

I suspect the latter.

You are wrong, but good luck with the "lease"..

So you are saying that their financing options are in fact the same as the leasing options? That they don't have any financing options to buy a car via monthly payments that don't have a follow on payment to own it at the end, that you can in fact only lease it?

Interesting to see you back this up.

We have already been told there is a fee at the end to own it.

Approx 1,700b to have it transferred to our name.

Edited March 15, 2013 by Almera

[stevenl]

Interesting follow up.

The wife has been in contact with the manager and gotten some clear answers.

Pricing is as follows:

Manual:

So 85k down and 5651p/m for 6 years it is.

I don't think that is the full picture. I am sure there is an additional payment due. In fact the total amount due is 746.000 and not 613.000 as you seem to think.

http://www.nissan.co.th/en/Finance/~/media/Files/Nissan/Asia%20Pacific/Thailand/NLTH%20price%20list/NLTH%20Pricelist%20Feb%202013.pdf

As someone said, I believe they are not being very transparent or truthful with you.You are almost paying the cost of two Almeras to lease it!

According to your own link it is what the OP says: 20% down, 85k, followed by 72 payments of 5,651, which seems to be a standard finance construction offered by Nissan.

I expect there to be also VAT on the interest though, so the 5,651 might end up higher.

[stevenl]

Sounds like you will be asked at the end of these payments if you want to buy (lease) another car, or pay a final sum to own the one you have leased.

If something sounds to good to be true, it usually is..........

Have you read the whole thread or only the first few posts?

I suspect the latter.

You are wrong, but good luck with the "lease"..

Easypay is in the link provided the following column, so Almera is really talking about finance, not leasing.

[yannic]

the financing options are not the same as the leasing options.

with your financing option you will be paying an interest of 14.7 % that's a lot. Of course if you do not have the whole money it will be the only option. I would of course try to make a bigger downpayment or pay it back in a shorter time. If you go for the 48 month you will only pay interest of around 8 % but then of course the installments are a bit higher.

On the other hand I would not go fo a financing of more then around 5 years for a car in Bangkok. It may not last that long but you still have to pay until the bitter end.

The two right columns (Nissan Easy Pay) are leasing the left columns 48, 60 and 72 are financing. In financing that is all you pay in leasing they do not state the last payment to cheat the people who are not smart enough to understand.

Edited March 15, 2013 by yannic

[Almera]

I expect there to be also VAT on the interest though, so the 5,651 might end up higher.

Thanks, that is one thing to ask today.

[rixalex]

I expect there to be also VAT on the interest though, so the 5,651 might end up higher.

Thanks, that is one thing to ask today.

To repeat the question, who exactly are you dealing with?

[Almera]

the financing options are not the same as the leasing options.

On the other hand I would not go fo a financing of more then around 5 years for a car in Bangkok. It may not last that long but you still have to pay until the bitter end.

Thanks for the info.

It really won't be driven in BKK at all. We live in the Northern suburbs, my bike is my daily commuter into the city. This is really just a twice weekly shopper and twice-monthly drive to Ayuthaya or similar. I doubt it will ever go much above 100kph.

After 5 years of riding my bike through BKK every day, I have absolutely no inclination to ever go in there in a car.

[Almera]

I expect there to be also VAT on the interest though, so the 5,651 might end up higher.

Thanks, that is one thing to ask today.

To repeat the question, who exactly are you dealing with?

Sorry, sales manager of the Nissan dealership close to Big C in Lam Luk Ka.

Edited March 15, 2013 by Almera

[rixalex]

I expect there to be also VAT on the interest though, so the 5,651 might end up higher.

Thanks, that is one thing to ask today.

To repeat the question, who exactly are you dealing with?

Sorry, sales manager of the Nissan dealership close to Big C in Lam Luk Ka.

OK. To be honest, after your experience, i would have been inclined to at least pop into another dealership and just see if there is any difference in treatment. Don't forget, you'll be seeing quite a lot of these people with servicing and such. Not as if there isn't a great choice of dealerships in Bangkok. Just my thought.

[Almera]

^ Absolutely.

we'll also be stopping off at the Toyota and Honda dealerships along the way with our Nissan brochure in had to see if they want to cut some deals (unlikely, but no harm in a stop off.) on their cheapy mini salons.

[rixalex]

^ Absolutely.

we'll also be stopping off at the Toyota and Honda dealerships along the way with our Nissan brochure in had to see if they want to cut some deals (unlikely, but no harm in a stop off.) on their cheapy mini salons.

Actually i didn't mean different manufacturer's showrooms, although of course that's always a good idea.

I think you'll struggle to find anything that comes close to the Almera in terms of value for money. I actually meant going to a different Nissan dealership. They are privately owned and so the service you get from one, can be vastly different from the service you get from another.

[Almera]

^ That's exactly what I meant.

Going around to different Nissan dealerships while stopping off in other manufacturer's dealerships to have a gander and see if there's anything offered competitively.

Wife will ask about the VAT added to the monthly payment today.

[yannic]

After 5 years of riding my bike through BKK every day, I have absolutely no inclination to ever go in there in a car.

what kind of bike you are using? I mean I am the same I use my bike daily and my car only on the weekend or so. I have a KLX250 and I am very happy with the bike. My Captiva is mainly used for family trips or going shopping. In the last 7 years I have gone a lot of kms on the bike and only a few kms with the car.

[Almera]

^ CBR250 for my daily commuting around the city, and having fun.

[Almera]

Stopped off in another dealer for a look.

Besides 20% down there is also a fee of 9000 baht for registration, tax etc.

Is this the norm?

[stevenl]

Stopped off in another dealer for a look.

Besides 20% down there is also a fee of 9000 baht for registration, tax etc.

Is this the norm?

Depends on the negotiations, this will sometimes be included in the price, together with window film, insurance, etc.

If buying on finance they earn more, so you can negotiate more.

[BuffaloRescue]

I just bought one on hire purchase.

100,000 down and then 11k a month.

Id suggest getting the auto. The whole point of the almera is the CVT gears that are meant to help you save fuel.

With 2 people plus luggage had absolutely no problem driving chiang mai > udon thani. Hardly got above 3,000 rpm and most of the time its sat comfortably at under 2,000 and doing over 20 km/liter. Thats just touching the gas.. and doing 90-100 km/hr.

I went up in the mountains.. right up to Soi Mae Salong which is one of the highest points in Thailand. Didnt go over 4,000 rpm but if i had 4 people in the car i feel it would need to wind up a lot more

Driving in Thailand.. forget about going fast and having powerful car. You need to drive slowly and bloody carefully!

The car is a bit ugly. White or silver ones look OK. The inside trim is really cheap and nasty looking and there are a few rattles in the dash which i find annoying. The aircon doest seem to clean the air well, when stuck behind a smokey truck you can smell it

Cant comment on its reliability but it does come with 3 year warantee. Ill probably sell it in 3 years and buy a bad boy pickup truck which is what i really wanted but couldnt afford.

Edited March 15, 2013 by BuffaloRescue

[Almera]

Thanks for the nice review.

What are the ins and outs of your deal, if you don't mind me asking.

Edited March 15, 2013 by Almera

[BuffaloRescue]

Thanks for the nice review.

What are the ins and outs of your deal, if you don't mind me asking.

Not sure exactly i just signed it.. er.

Its the same deal all of the nissan shops offer. We called about 5.. all exactly the same. Sorry dont have the details here. Wife organised it.

I bought it in Chiang Rai. They organised the finance within 2 days and then we picked the car up.. very fast

Edited March 15, 2013 by BuffaloRescue

[BuffaloRescue]

Averaged 21.1km/liter chiang mai > udon using 95 gasohol

If you use the engine in "bursts".. you can do 25+ km/litre but not sure its really a sensible way to drive

Edited March 15, 2013 by BuffaloRescue

[rixalex]

Id suggest getting the auto. The whole point of the almera is the CVT gears that are meant to help you save fuel.

I agree about getting the auto, but i don't agree you should get the auto to save fuel. CVT is more fuel efficient than other types of auto, but it can't compete with manual.

[rixalex]

The inside trim is really cheap and nasty looking and there are a few rattles in the dash which i find annoying.

As far as the trim is concerned, i think it depends what you compare it with. Compare it with a more expensive Vios or City and it looks cheap, compare it with a similarly priced Brio and it looks very solid.