Next month Customs Auction 300 cars Union Auctions handling it and for the next 2 years including eAuction and Smartphone bidding so that should put a spanner in the works of any chummy Customs/Car traders partnerships providing the reserves are realistic of course.

Here luxury cars are judged by whether they attract a 'luxury car tax' or not when imported and then the similar locally assembled cars.

So this means here in the upside down world of Thailand, Mini, Puegeot, Citroen, VW, fully imported various SUVs/minivans from Toyota etc are all considered luxury cars. that's alongside Benz, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Jaguar, Rolls etc.

Whereas a European might not even consider most of these luxury at all, and would say Aston Martin, Porsche etc - but it is what it is here.

Bear in mind a little tiny Mini or a Golf GTI is close on the same price as a BMW 320D.

Anyone who considers a GTR or the lexus cars to not be a luxury car simply because it's not Japanese has obviously seen the performance stats of a Nissan GTR which is super car territory in terms of performance, and with HP is supercar territory in terms of price here since it is imported fully assembled and with that HP pays a fair wad of tax.

Seems like the grey importers must have got the hump with people buying direct. Note the only way this can happen is if the customs department facilitates it anyway, so there must be some rather serious faces in the office at the ports in Bangkok this morning.

Note as yet, no mention of anyone in the customs department being transferred to an inactive position.

It takes time to agree on a scapegoat. And one has to be certain an untouchable doesn't get implicated.

Toyota , Nissan or volkswagen are far to be Luxury cars ..... was thinking about Rolls royce , Ferrari , lamborghini etc ....

They had to set an example because their superior was pushing them about, as he wanted the attention of the case.

It took some time to find a low-so importer who's connections weren't too high up the ladder, so they can close the investigation now and turn a blind eye to the big guy's ( read their superiors) who import the multi million level cars.

Now we are just waiting for a picture in the news of Naam and his car!

i don't think Farangs exist who buy a grey import without the customs clearance documents. to the best of my knowledge that kind of business is reserved for Thais with "connections".

besides... no registration/blue book for any imported car without the above-mentioned documents.

You would be surprised if you knew what's going on at that showroom on sukhumvit opposite Pattaya klang road.

Now we are just waiting for a picture in the news of Naam and his car!

i don't think Farangs exist who buy a grey import without the customs clearance documents. to the best of my knowledge that kind of business is reserved for Thais with "connections".

 

besides... no registration/blue book for any imported car without the above-mentioned documents.

I know of one. Bought a high end Merc and had to hastily leave the Kingdom after a check was made on the cars documents. It's thought someone grassed him up over a business deal.

Thing is he could easily afford the 'official' price but is such a cheapskate he had to go the dubius import route.

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Note as yet, no mention of anyone in the customs department being transferred to an inactive position.

Perhaps some of them will be forced to skip driving their Mercedes and BMWs for a while, and instead drive one of the confiscated "LUXURY" Toyotas, Nissans or VW.... Now that would be a SERIOUS punishment!

Here luxury cars are judged by whether they attract a 'luxury car tax' or not when imported and then the similar locally assembled cars.

So this means here in the upside down world of Thailand, Mini, Puegeot, Citroen, VW, fully imported various SUVs/minivans from Toyota etc are all considered luxury cars. that's alongside Benz, BMW, Audi, Lexus, Jaguar, Rolls etc.

Whereas a European might not even consider most of these luxury at all, and would say Aston Martin, Porsche etc - but it is what it is here.

Bear in mind a little tiny Mini or a Golf GTI is close on the same price as a BMW 320D.

Anyone who considers a GTR or the lexus cars to not be a luxury car simply because it's not Japanese has obviously seen the performance stats of a Nissan GTR which is super car territory in terms of performance, and with HP is supercar territory in terms of price here since it is imported fully assembled and with that HP pays a fair wad of tax.

Engine size wins. Hybrid Cayennes and diesel BMWs and mercd come out reasonably at only 175%+ tax

Nice new additions to the blue lights.

possibly customs knew all along of the cars arriving and waited until now to follow up ( 13 new cars for customs officials)

Off topic posts and replies have been removed.

How were Issan business men able to scrape so much cash together? Surely it's not cars for rice?

Toyotas and Nissans are hardly luxury cars.

Nissan skyline GTR's etc are luxury sports cars.

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That ^^^^^^

What would one cost here ? A 370z is 5.3 MB now lets here someone say £114,000 isn't luxury in the UK.

How were Issan business men able to scrape so much cash together? Surely it's not cars for rice?

They didn't.

Now we are just waiting for a picture in the news of Naam and his car!

i don't think Farangs exist who buy a grey import without the customs clearance documents. to the best of my knowledge that kind of business is reserved for Thais with "connections".

besides... no registration/blue book for any imported car without the above-mentioned documents.

Russian mafia ?

Toyota , Nissan or volkswagen are far to be Luxury cars ..... was thinking about Rolls royce , Ferrari , lamborghini etc ....

little do you know about Volkswagen.

Vee haf wayz of making you walk......

A few years ago, wasn't there a photo and article in the Bangkok Post, about the son of a high level customs official, proudly displaying his car collection?'

not related is very different from irrelevant.

Toyota , Nissan or volkswagen are far to be Luxury cars ..... was thinking about Rolls royce , Ferrari , lamborghini etc ....

little do you know about Volkswagen.

Vee haf wayz of making you walk......

Or crawl around like a Beetle.

The 13 confiscated cars include 5 Mercedes-Benz, 1 BMW, 2 Toyotas, 3 Nissans, and a Volkswagen.

So, which one is the 13th?

it didn't count as it was a Tata.

Don't need to go so far to find smuggled cars. Just go to those grey market dealerships on Rama 9. Or look in any car magazine for ads. Duuuuuh.

Don't need to go so far to find smuggled cars. Just go to those grey market dealerships on Rama 9. Or look in any car magazine for ads. Duuuuuh.

I see there are tons of youtube videos and online photos of these people and their super cars.

Love to show off.

Don't need to go so far to find smuggled cars. Just go to those grey market dealerships on Rama 9. Or look in any car magazine for ads. Duuuuuh.

I see there are tons of youtube videos and online photos of these people and their super cars.

Love to show off.

Not all the grey dealers are smuggling.

The 13 confiscated cars include 5 Mercedes-Benz, 1 BMW, 2 Toyotas, 3 Nissans, and a Volkswagen.

So, which one is the 13th?

They seem almost apologetic about including the Volkswagen (poor thing) - probably an Isuzu!!!

The 13 confiscated cars include 5 Mercedes-Benz, 1 BMW, 2 Toyotas, 3 Nissans, and a Volkswagen.

So, which one is the 13th?

They seem almost apologetic about including the Volkswagen (poor thing) - probably an Isuzu!!!

I bet Volkswagen loves the term, luxury for a beetle. I would guess the imported car wasn't a phaeton.

Looking to buy a nice car, which importer do you recommend ?

:-)

The 13 confiscated cars include 5 Mercedes-Benz, 1 BMW, 2 Toyotas, 3 Nissans, and a Volkswagen.

So, which one is the 13th?

I would have thought that the use of the word 'include' suffices here.

The 13 confiscated cars include 5 Mercedes-Benz, 1 BMW, 2 Toyotas, 3 Nissans, and a Volkswagen.

So, which one is the 13th?

I would have thought that the use of the word 'include' suffices here.

So, what is wrong with wanting to know which is the 13th?

The 13 confiscated cars include 5 Mercedes-Benz, 1 BMW, 2 Toyotas, 3 Nissans, and a Volkswagen.

So, which one is the 13th?

I would have thought that the use of the word 'include' suffices here.

An absurd way of using an "include" construction by listing all a part from one.

Don't need to go so far to find smuggled cars. Just go to those grey market dealerships on Rama 9. Or look in any car magazine for ads. Duuuuuh.

I see there are tons of youtube videos and online photos of these people and their super cars.

Love to show off.

Not all the grey dealers are smuggling.

Which ones are not?