Overandout Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 I've been looking for a while at getting some 4 wheeled transport, and finally convinced the wife that its a good idea! So, not being a rich expat I can't afford new. In fact I'm limited to about 250k and will have to pay cash due to no Thai guarantor available for finance. I'm pretty savvy about mechanics so the thought of buying used doesn't really bother me, but the choice seems limited once I set my criteria. So I thought I'd put down my ideas and let anyone comment / recommend what I should / shouldn't do! So, the vehicle needs to carry 6 people in relative comfort, seven would be better, but space is needed for a bit of luggage / pushchairs etc. Given my price range I'm keen to avoid auto boxes as they are, in my experience only good for about 10 years / 200k kms max before big bills come along. I'm not keen on 4x4s, due to size, expensive tyres, image, fuel consumption etc, but I could be persuaded if the right one came along. Vans such as Commuters seem to be too big and very high mileage at my price range. So my short list seems to be (with my own evaluation): Seat Alhambra, problem being they all seem to be auto box. Toyota Avanza, but I have heard that they are a bit weak in safety? Suzuki APV, currently the favourite, but only 1600 cc, anyone any experience? Kia Carnival, heard that repairs can be expensive and all seem to be auto Chevy Zafira, bit too small when 7 seater option installed VW Caravelle, would have to be an old one for my price range, and a bit big maybe Merc M class, bit of a big van and not really a Merc anyway Honda Odyssey, not sure if 7 seats? Would have to be an old one also, little boot space There are also the odd Renault, Citroen, and some odd late '90s Japanese mini vans that look OK, but are so rare that I'm worried about spares availability. Anyone got any thoughts on my comments? Have I missed anything obvious as a choice? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace of Pop Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Reckon You need to go Native , Old Truck , cheap n cheerful. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keemapoot Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 This is about as cheap as you're going to find one of these, this one priced at 289,000 Baht. Meets all your requirements. http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1372847 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tingtong Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 you wont have much room for 250.000... first and most, forget the exotics, SEAT, KIA, MERC.... then get realistic....apart from not buying auto gear, the rest of the post i feel is a bit away from what is available really for your bucks. btw, if you buy for transporting thais, for them the back of a pickup is relative confort...and there you go, you might find a decent 2 door pickup for your price range Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 19, 2014 Author Share Posted March 19, 2014 This is about as cheap as you're going to find one of these, this one priced at 289,000 Baht. Meets all your requirements. http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1372847 That's a decent looking 4x4 I'll admit. Looks like only 6 seat belts though. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll add the Everest to my list. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keemapoot Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 This is about as cheap as you're going to find one of these, this one priced at 289,000 Baht. Meets all your requirements. http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1372847 That's a decent looking 4x4 I'll admit. Looks like only 6 seat belts though. Thanks for the suggestion, I'll add the Everest to my list. Yeah, I think it's perfect for you, but it will be hard to get one as cheap as 250. But, quite a few manual tranny models are available on thaicardotcom and check of course 12cardotcom and I already checked dealfish (changed names now). I bought a new one in 2004, top model Auto and really liked it though only kept if for under 3 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edwinchester Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Friend of wifeys recently bought an Isuzu pickup that had the Thairung cabin conversion with three rows of seats. Great condition for 300k. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 19, 2014 Author Share Posted March 19, 2014 you wont have much room for 250.000... first and most, forget the exotics, SEAT, KIA, MERC.... then get realistic....apart from not buying auto gear, the rest of the post i feel is a bit away from what is available really for your bucks. btw, if you buy for transporting thais, for them the back of a pickup is relative confort...and there you go, you might find a decent 2 door pickup for your price range I tend to agree with you about the "exotics" as you call them, but I don't see why you'd say that the rest of my post is unrealistic. The options listed are based on real cars that I have seen on one2car, Taladrod or in the odd car tent that I have looked round. For example, a 2006/2007 APV is around 260k, an Avanza from 2005 about the same. Zafiras can be as low as 200k, but you get what you pay for! Or do you mean that all of them will be piles of scrap for the price? Unfortunately the car is for transporting my family and occasionally my in-laws... my last three cars at home were the E30 325i in my avatar, an E39 528i saloon, and an E39 525i Touring. My In-laws have an E60 525i and an E36 325i..... you could say that I'm loathed to leave BMW behind, but needs must when the devil vomits in your kettle.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jitar Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 (edited) Avanza's are pretty small so 6 passengers with luggage would be cramped. Innova is bigger but probably over the budget. The Everest would be better but they are a truck to drive. If a truck is OK with you, old Toyota Sport Rider / 4Runner, Isuzu MU-7 and Mitsubishi G Wagon might go close to the budget. There are 2WD versions of some of these and the diesels are not quick but reasonably frugal. Parts for these pickup based wagons are plentiful, they are pretty tough and easy to repair. Edited March 19, 2014 by Jitar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uwe_rayong Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 <script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script> you wont have much room for 250.000... first and most, forget the exotics, SEAT, KIA, MERC.... then get realistic....apart from not buying auto gear, the rest of the post i feel is a bit away from what is available really for your bucks. btw, if you buy for transporting thais, for them the back of a pickup is relative confort...and there you go, you might find a decent 2 door pickup for your price range you wont have much room for 250.000... first and most, forget the exotics, SEAT, KIA, MERC.... then get realistic....apart from not buying auto gear, the rest of the post i feel is a bit away from what is available really for your bucks. btw, if you buy for transporting thais, for them the back of a pickup is relative confort...and there you go, you might find a decent 2 door pickup for your price range I tend to agree with you about the "exotics" as you call them, but I don't see why you'd say that the rest of my post is unrealistic. The options listed are based on real cars that I have seen on one2car, Taladrod or in the odd car tent that I have looked round. For example, a 2006/2007 APV is around 260k, an Avanza from 2005 about the same. Zafiras can be as low as 200k, but you get what you pay for! Or do you mean that all of them will be piles of scrap for the price? Unfortunately the car is for transporting my family and occasionally my in-laws... my last three cars at home were the E30 325i in my avatar, an E39 528i saloon, and an E39 525i Touring. My In-laws have an E60 525i and an E36 325i..... you could say that I'm loathed to leave BMW behind, but needs must when the devil vomits in your kettle.... If your in-laws usually cruise around in an BMW E60 I recommend to dismiss the idea of buying an old 2 door pickup for the weekly family trips to Tesco and the local Moo Kata Shop I have a feeling your mother in-law does not like to crawl out of the back of a pickup with a hairdo like Don King out of the wind tunnel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 19, 2014 Author Share Posted March 19, 2014 Thanks for the truck suggestions, I might go and take a look at a few. But really, the 4x4s in my budget really are the oldest ones, and most are auto box and as I said I'm not buying a 14 yr old auto. I think I may have to sacrifice space for modernity by looking closer at Avanzas and APVs... At least no-one has come on bashing these models. I guess they are so basic there's not much that can go wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 19, 2014 Author Share Posted March 19, 2014 I have a feeling your mother in-law does not like to crawl out of the back of a pickup with a hairdo like Don King out of the wind tunnel You are extremely perceptive, to the point where it seems like you already know her! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BSJ Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Sounds like you need a VW Mini bus! But getting a decent one at that price would be almost impossible. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
funcat Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 I think that 'keemapoot' may have a good pick here....from my experience the 'G-wagon' will come close second...for Toyota/Isuzu you will need to pay more for the same 'year'... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWMcMurray Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 (edited) Had an Avanza a few years back and as long as you are not really worried about the time it takes to go from 0-60... They are a decent little family 7 seater Nothing special... Mostly plastic interior and not a whole lot of gadgets ... But a decent little barebones family mover One issue is they are quite bouncy on in the rear seats... So Better buckle up... As slight bump could have people hitting their heads if not careful... Although the fix is to use non-stock shocks on the rear to help smooth things out. Some recommend KYB Gas Shock Absorbers or TITAN shock absorbers So as you mention you are a bit handy.. You could probably fix that for a few thousand baht Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Edited March 19, 2014 by CWMcMurray 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jitar Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 I think that 'keemapoot' may have a good pick here....from my experience the 'G-wagon' will come close second...for Toyota/Isuzu you will need to pay more for the same 'year'... Like these 2003 models with manual trans, http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1354728 http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1372648 For similar money, the Avanza would be 2 or 3 years younger, more like a car to drive, probably better in town. The Everest / G Wagon style PPV's are trucks to drive but bigger and probably better on longer trips. Safety performance of the Avanza and PPV's are difficult to compare because they are not sold in many western markets so crash test results are hard to find. Depending on the model, they may not have ABS or airbags. Even the new Avanza manual has no ABS. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aldebaran1981 Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 honda stream and honda odyssey is a good and safe choice toyota wish is good as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 20, 2014 Author Share Posted March 20, 2014 Thanks a lot for broadening my horizons. The G Wagons look reasonable, as does the Everest, but still it means buying older to get a bit bigger. I'll have to look at some examples I think. Good info about the ABS / airbags, I hadn't really even considered that cars were being produced in the 21st C without these features.... that my well be a deciding factor. As far as performance is concerned, people have commented on the trucks and the Avanzas being "not fast", but to be honest "fast" is not in my list of requirements. I don't think that Thailand os the best place for performance vehicles, which explains why I'm happy to pootle around on a CBR 150 after leaving my GSXR behind in Spain. That said, if I do go for an Avanza, it would have to be the 1500cc model, I can't even imagine how slow a 1300cc car would be with 6 people on board ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 20, 2014 Author Share Posted March 20, 2014 honda stream and honda odyssey is a good and safe choice toyota wish is good as well The Stream is a possibility, but only a few below 300k and I think they are 6 seaters only. Also they are 99% auto box, so that would mean breaking my rule of no 10yr autos..... The Wish is beyond budget and also only 6 seater. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aldebaran1981 Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 honda stream and honda odyssey is a good and safe choice toyota wish is good as well The Stream is a possibility, but only a few below 300k and I think they are 6 seaters only. Also they are 99% auto box, so that would mean breaking my rule of no 10yr autos..... The Wish is beyond budget and also only 6 seater. autobox for stream is relatively safe I feel. Just make sure you know how to make pre-purchase auto tranny checks. 4 speed gearboxes are mostly safe. Else, even if it fails, it wouldn't cost much to overhaul the gearbox. Hondas and Toyotas are always safer buys, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMHO Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 This is about as cheap as you're going to find one of these, this one priced at 289,000 Baht. Meets all your requirements. http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1372847 This seems to be the best suggestion so far (nice find keemapoot). Seats 7, cheap to run, and being a Mazda underneath, has good reliability and cheap/easy servicing/parts. Outside of that, I'd suggest looking for a used Thairung Allroader/Adventure 7 seater - built on Isuzu base, so again reliable and cheap to run & fix, just not much brand prestige Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkkjames Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 honda stream and honda odyssey is a good and safe choice toyota wish is good as well The Stream is a possibility, but only a few below 300k and I think they are 6 seaters only. Also they are 99% auto box, so that would mean breaking my rule of no 10yr autos..... The Wish is beyond budget and also only 6 seater. autobox for stream is relatively safe I feel. Just make sure you know how to make pre-purchase auto tranny checks. 4 speed gearboxes are mostly safe. Else, even if it fails, it wouldn't cost much to overhaul the gearbox. Hondas and Toyotas are always safer buys, IMO. yes about the hondas and toyotas, especially if they have been driven into the ground, never serviced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 20, 2014 Author Share Posted March 20, 2014 Just revisited some of the adverts I'd been looking at and the ABS / Airbag issue is a problem... Seems like neither the Suzuki, Avanza nor the Thai Rung have these.... Looks like I have to look at older Japanese or Euro imports to get a car with sufficient safety features..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkkjames Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 Just revisited some of the adverts I'd been looking at and the ABS / Airbag issue is a problem... Seems like neither the Suzuki, Avanza nor the Thai Rung have these.... Looks like I have to look at older Japanese or Euro imports to get a car with sufficient safety features..... these are from tents but a bunch of choices in your price range http://one2car.com/search/Search_Result.aspx?Price1=200000&Price2=400000&Type=3%2c6&&Price3=200000&Price4=250000&xPriceLV=3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 20, 2014 Author Share Posted March 20, 2014 Thanks, that's pretty much the same search that I'd been doing (which is why I'd missed the 4x4 style options). There's a couple of Citroens in there, but again, old auto boxes..... Alhambra still looking good if I ignore the auto box issue also. I will have to make a decision about newer cars without ABS / Airbags (not keen on that really) or older cars with better safety but probably higher repair costs in the short term. Again, thanks to all. If I eventually buy anything I'll let you all know! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ignis Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 Well within Budget, manual, ABS, Airbags......... Petrol or Diesel more expensive on this site... http://one2car.com/NISSAN_BIG-M%20FRONTIER1-2/A06140028 but better pictures Diesel one and newer on a cheaper website http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1377996 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ignis Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 The Suzuki Grand Vitara XL7 is a 7 seater, but is a Suzuki and hold there price, so would be hard pushed to find one of the 7 seater for anywhere near your budget Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Overandout Posted March 20, 2014 Author Share Posted March 20, 2014 Well within Budget, manual, ABS, Airbags......... Petrol or Diesel more expensive on this site... http://one2car.com/NISSAN_BIG-M%20FRONTIER1-2/A06140028 but better pictures Diesel one and newer on a cheaper website http://www.taladrod.com/w20/Search/CarDet40.aspx?cib=1377996 Looks good! Plenty to choose from as you say! Haven't seen any petrol versions but I'm not that bothered about using a diesel to be honest. Added the list for sure. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aldebaran1981 Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 are the cars on talarod cheaper? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ignis Posted March 20, 2014 Share Posted March 20, 2014 are the cars on talarod cheaper? Private Adverts for cars or anything tend to be cheaper than the big Tent sellers, there are many sites advertising private sales, even this one has Classified section Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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