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              Thailand Scams & things to watch

for on your driving vacation in

Thailand & Pattaya

Bangkok & driving in thailand is fun and most of the time one can enjoy themselves but underneath you still must be careful. Heres a few hints on what can happen and what to beware of if you own a car or bike in Thailand and travelling up and down the country.

 

BUYING A CAR :

For a foreigner to buy a car you must have a letter from your embassy if you do not have a one year visa. You also need to have letter from Immigration and for this you need 2 photos; copy of your house lease and landlords ID and House Registration; your passport and copies of visa pages and ID copy.Once you have the letter from immigration normally free of charge you then buy your car and take the car to the reg office with the owners book, copy of his ID & Hose reg and Power of attorney form if he isn't going to assist plus he or she has filled out change of wonership form for you. If not registered for a while then you have to pay backtaxes and Insurance --most reg depts have insurance company available there.

BUYING A CAR & WHAT TO LOOK FOR:

For a foreigner take a Thai with you but check if nice paint the car hasn't been filled with plastibond. If new grill etc check for signs of a repaint. Even ask to put thru a test at B =Quik if you think the underneath needs new ball joints etc. and always check for leaks and if the oil has been changed. Make sure the reg book shows both the numbers for chassis and engine and are correct. Paint jobs are cheap in Thailand as are body work. Make sure battery not too old and look at the clutch fluid etc heights. If low then check underneath the car for tell tale signs or leaks. If you have mechanic friend to go over with you even better. Just remember cars are dear in thailand and theres many to choose from so always ask for a discount. make sure the spare tyre is Ok and you have jack and wheel, brace. You can even buy a Thai car mag in any bookshop so then you get a feeling for the price you want to pay for. Have change of ownership form with you and power of attorney so your Thai friend can do the change over.

BUYING A CAR USING YOUR COMPANY:

For a foreigner you can buy a car on credit finance Ok but you must have a Thai to guarantee you. Its easy and terms are good. GE MONEY Finance company is an excellent company to deal with but you need to have copies of company papers under 3 months old; company stamp, work permit copies up to page 6; house reg; landlords ID and house reg just in case; and of course the thai guarantors details and then you can buy the car on a deposit that suites you. For instance a car costing 260,000 baht deposit 100,000 baht the payments are around 1094 baht a month and interest around 6,000 baht in total but again remember everything is tax deductible on your Company so keep receipts including gas receipts. You can pay off early and then sustain a credit rating. Not a silly move if you intend to make a yearly profit. Most popular are the Honda Jazz, Toyota Corollas, Vigo, etc.

BUYING A PICKUP:

When you buy a pickup check to see if you have a jack; wheel brace; handle and also that you have spare whel and the lever to drop your spare wheel if underneath. Garages are inclind to tighten the nuts so tight you will never get the wheels off when you get a puncture so call into a tyre service garage and get them to loosen your wheels nuts then hand tighten yourself. This was then easy to undo. Also chain your spare wheel underneath -- some years ago in Chiangmai some foreign friends lost their spare wheels overnight 1 week after they bought new pickups so be warned --spare wheels can be sold for good profit. Buy the common pickup eg Isuzu spacecab; Toyota Hilux, Vigo, Toyota tiger, Nissan and you won;t have a headache with parts.

PATTAYA SCAMS:

WATCH OUT WHEN YOU HIRE A MOTORCYCLE in Pattaya as the old scams of renting you a bike then stealing it back off you. Only hire from a Hotel you are staying at or reputable hirag place and carry your own chain or lock if you have not got good lockup. If stoln they will want the equivalent of what the bike is worth so be careful. This is an old scam thats back in vogue again

RIP OFF GARAGES NEAR CHONBURI:

Travelling in Thailand in your car can be a head ache if such things as the leadlights go. Make sure you stop only where you see many cars being fixed and not at garages who have no vehicles showing. The reason is maybe they will rip you. A garage on the left side travelling south from Chonburi tried it on us. Our pickup had one headlight not working properly. They took the lights & grill out and lucky I knew about cars and asked them to test the wires which they did. Wires OK. The boys ripped the fuses out and thats where the change happened to us we think --a dud put in as I noticed the boy was very rough. The garage said we needed a new lens on the Isuzu cost 1300 baht (not in stock) nor even bulbs even though they said they were a light-electrical shop as well as garage. We clicked as no cars being fixed??? Once we saw the lens rip we told them to put back on and we would take to Isuzu. THEY HESITATED NOT WANTING TO put back on. They said they could run a wire from one light to the other headlight cost 1000 baht. That was enough -- they put the lights back not even trying another bulb and wanted 150 baht for 1 fuse. This garage for your interest is opposite the Krung Thai Bank and Jet gas station called TATORN SERVICE garage - names all in Thai (tyres repairs etc) facing Pattaya travelling to Pattaya 3-4 kms out of Chonburi its on the left. See pics but for your interest do not stop here for Thais or farangs..

Look for the chicken sales & tyres on the left. This is the garage

to stay away from.

& the Jet station & Krung Thai on the opposite side of the road going towards Chonburi.

We will have better pics soon & not a good experience for Thais or foreigners

The story ended when we went to another auto electricain or (Dynamo shop -Thai) and it was a fuse. The previous shop put a dud in??? This happens so remember to carry phone numbers in case of emergency. Also remember to check the garage the cars they have and the tools they have. If no spares and have to get in maybe try another station but watch mechanics or boys working on your cars as they will pull wires out as well as turn your distributor around to get work out of you. If you have had raw deals like us then send to us your expriences. We were lucky we lost 150 baht. The auto shop we know rechecked the car and it cost us 40 baht. 10baht per each fuse so we carry spares now.

 

BEING RIPPED OFF ON YOUR BILL WHEN TRAVELLING:

Prices for MEALS vary on a trip by car up country in thailand. Make sure you car is fully cheaked before a long haul. The best idea is to stop at the big gas stations like Shell, Esso and Caltex, Jet etc as they normally have safe food to eat. You can gas up and then on your journey again. Be careful when theres not many people eating as you may be eating yesterdays food. A good way is look at the tables and check to see if they have clean tables with napkins; toothpicks etc on each table then normally they are OK--every table mena they tak pride. Beware if not as they don't care about customer service and check the food if in buffet mode. Again if many Thai people have stopped then its normally a good shop. Some friends stopped at a place outside of Lampang (driving to Chiangmai before the main hill its on the left side past the last gas station before you hit the Elephephat camp hill) and exactly what happened --the food looked bad but they had a new coffee shop separate but the gas station was closed now with restaurant next door open. We ordered off the menu but it was expensive & my Thai partner was amazed at how littl rice they put on the plate. Notably no serviettes or toothpics on the tables and it was the smallest helping of rice we have ever seen--asked for another one at 10baht for a small bowl???? Things like this you rmember and pass on to others not to stop there.

IF YOUR CAR BREAKS DOWN :

You can get a garage to pick up your car or better still if close to houses ask them for help. Most Thais are friendly and will help you store your car until you can make arrangements to get your car fixed. If you have mechanic work on your car watch them all the time as some will change things & theres many back street inexperienced Thais who will doctor your car. We even had brakes changed in Ayutthaya by a bad garage 10 years ago. Put new brakes on a renault car and they stole them at the garage and put dud ones on?. If you have to take to a garage try to get someone who speaks Thai or telephone somene you know to liase on the phone for you. Again look at the tools they use and if they have many or few. If a few get away from them but ask the prices before you get any fixed or they start dismantling your car. As usual if they are working on cars already then chances are they will be OK but many foreigners have had parts changed on cars or the garages swap the batteries for duds etc so when buying a car make sure you already have a good garage. Over the years we have used 4 different garages in Chiangmai and they all have their faults and the main ones are they do not know the cars themselves and very rarely you will see a feeler guage or a torque wrench to tighten nuts?? very essential.

BEST GARAGE TO HAVE WORK DONE ON YOUR CAR:

If you shop at Tesco Lotus they have the B QUIK car franchise in Bangkok. These guys are good and they will do the work on your car within hours. They will put on a hoist and raise your car then you can ask them to tell you what needs replacing on your car underneath. They will give you a check list of what needs replacing now and also a check list of things you will need to get and even show you. We found them excellent but to date are only in Bangkok. Well worth it as you know they do a good job. If you have your own garage you then have list of parts to buy and you can do this yourself then have your mechanic do -- its cheaper of course but we recommend B-QUIK for instant car repairs. Lets face it in Bangkok and Thailand on the highways you must have a good reliable car and theres many to choose from --just go slow when you choose one but keep away from exotic cars and stick with th Toyotas and Isuzu's..

YOUR EMBASSY:

If staying in Bangkok make sure you list your Embassy tel number into your mobile phone. It may help you

 

NOT JUST BANGKOK ---- - - - CAMBODIA:

Going to Cambodia:

Poipet on the border be careful as many touts who want to take you to the buses. They wait while the driver is having a snooze or not there then allow you to climb on board take your money –no ticket and then the driver comes along and wants you to pay again. It’s a racket so don’t use touts for shortcuts.

Keep up with news in Thailand and safety aspects; what to beware of and the top stories concerning tourists. Thailand can be safe but there are many Thais who want your valuables the easy way. In hot spot tourist towns like Pattaya the crime on tourists is bad so do not wear or display jewelry and valuables. Email for our monthly newsletter or read below & send your stories to us!!!!!!

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       COMBINE YOUR BANGKOK BUSINESS TRIP WITH PLEASURE

	Local services in Thailand = pick up, packing, export formalities
	International services = air- or ocean freight from Thailand to the buyer’s nearest port or airport
	Domestic services at destination = import customs formalities, delivery to door
	Miscellaneous services = fumigation, paperwork, transport insurance, etc.