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Ancient Future

This may have been done already, apologies if it has, but I went looking for the thread where I lifted this link ผลà¸�ารค้นหารถมืà¸[at]สà¸[at]ง ยี่ห้à¸[at] NISSAN รุ่น SUNNY โฉม FF(ปี82-93)
& couldn't find the thread (apologies also for not being able to give credit to the originator of this link).

Anyway I needed a car & not much money available but I got my car for 72,000Baht. It's not perfect of course. Got it last week with an indicated 281,000km on it, it's a 1992 Mazda 626. I was looking for something smaller/more economical but shopping in Udon Thani & being impatient I didn't have a lot of choice. Got it from a dealer who is supposed to be fixing the odd thing that I could find wrong with it. Asking price was 80,000B. At the moment I'm waiting for a new clock & rev counter that they've ordered as the ones fitted (broken) were unrepairable. Or maybe uneconomic to repair.

So I thought that it may be encouraging for some to know that cheap (for Thailand) cars are out there & that if I found one there must be others out there. So feel free to add any similar etc. If there's enough interest I'll post on any repairs I have to make. If I get through the year without any major expenditure then this purchase has been a success for me. It's currently being used on 3x a week trips into Udon making 160km for a round trip. Also next week heading to Nong Khai.









It came with the Playboy numberplate surrounds... not fitted by me!

Bangyai

Plenty of cars out there for less than 100,000 and not all rubbish by any means. Your link is to the Nissan Sunny FF page. I bought one of these for 59,000 complete with mag wheels ( ooooooo ). Drove it for nearly two years with no problems except a leaky radiator and new tyres. Never let me down even on several long trips up country and down to the coast.
Finaly sold it with no problems for a mere 49,000 baht. That was a mistake as several neighbors turned up later with in 55,000 cash ready to hand over.

Bought my current car for 129,000 baht, owned it for nearly 4 years although I have splashed out on it with a new respray,( 8500 ) mag wheels ( 2000 part exchange ) and spoiler ( 2000 ). No worries with it despite now having over 200,000 on the clock.

The only thing I would say is that if you are buying an old car you need to know a bit about cars and whats going to be cheap to repair , and what isn't

Here's my old banger ( again ) :

IceSpike

Thanks for the Link.
My Boy wants the Fortuneeeer.
A Grand ol Sunny looks like a better choice.
Cheers.

Marmite the Dog

I thought about getting an old car, but the prices are a joke. At least with a new one you know what you're getting.

Latindancer

Looks like you got a good deal, Ancient Future.
If anyone else is on the lookout, the first thing I used to tell people to look for in a used car was whether it had coolant (usually green) in the radiator/cooling system. If not, or if it has been diluted or dirty for too long, corrosion caused by electrolysis sets in, necessitating possible expensive head repairs soonish. I have done so many cylinder head jobs where this was the cause.......

Ancient Future

^^^ Nice looking car Bangyai. Given your like for Nissan's it may well have been you that posted the link originally!

Ancient Future

^^ Thanks Latindancer. That's a tip I wasn't aware of. I'm not the greatest mechanically & was relying on the low cost labour rate helping me out if I had any problems. Living where I am the suspension is getting a hammering & it may be there that I need to spend money due to the state of the roads - if they can be called roads...

rickschoppers

Agree with you Marmite. Used cars are silly money in Thailand and I am still looking into the Honda Brio. I have already rulled out the Nissan March and Mazda 2.

Bung

281 000 klms, get ready to replace the engine and everything else. that is a lot of milage for a petrol engined car, especially if it was Thai owned. But you may be lucky. That's the thing, you just don't know what your getting. Still at least they didn't wind the clock back to 100 000 klm's which is what they normally do. Unless yours had 300 000 + on it of course.....

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Fahn Cahn's

Bangyai

Its true that secondhand prices are high but on the plus side you benefit from that yourself when it comes time to sell on. If you buy a new car you can expect slow but inexorable depreciation. The same applies to secondhand cars only a few years old around the 300,000 baht mark. However, with a reasonable old banger like AF's , the car has pretty well fallen to as low as its going to get provided you don't let it deteriorate any further. Always plenty of poor people around looking for some cheap wheels ....... me being one of them

Where older cars really can't compete is on fuel consumption. The newer eco cars are very frugal and you might expect to get double the mileage out of an equivelent amount of petrol. Petrol prices have just dropped so my banger has been given a reprieve from resale although its not too greedy at about 15k per litre. Brios are pretty cheap though so might have a test drive one day.

Bettyboo

I just couldn't do it... I know we're living here and have to deal with the local realities, but I just cannot come to terms with buying a piece of shite for massive money...

Here is a UK car (and the UK is expensive!) for the same money (same Mazda 626):


MAZDA 626 1.8 GXi, 5 Doors, Manual, Hatchback, Petrol, 2001 Y Reg , Metallic Blue. Air conditioning, ABS, Electric mirrors, Electric windows, Immobiliser, Power assisted steering, Remote locking, Driver airbag, Passenger airbag, Side airbags, Radio/Cassette, Traction control, 12 Months MOT, Full service history, Alloy wheels, Colour coding - Body, Remote Central Locking, Central locking, Service History, Radio/CD, Anti theft system.. Insurance Group:7, a very spacious family car offering a large boot space,,and low maintenance costs,sold with 12 months mot and a parts and labour warranty,click on our website to view 50 more quality used .vehicles or give us a cll!!,all details are approx, finance available. p/x welcome, £1,695



MAZDA 626 2.0 TD GXI 5DR A/C SH 2 OWNER TAX&TESTED, 5 Doors, Manual, Estate, Diesel, 117,000 miles, MOT-04-2012, 2 Owners, TAX 31/08/2011, CAMBELT CHANGED AT 60K AND 85K BY MAZDA DEALERS, LAST SERVICED AT 116,911 AND NEW PADS/DISCS,very goood spec, Electric mirrors, 3x3 point rear seat belts, Adjustable seats, Adjustable steering column/wheel, Cloth upholstery, Colour coding - Body, Driver airbag, Electric windows, Remote locking, ABS, Air conditioning, Electric sunroof, Front armrest, Folding rear seats, Immobiliser, Passenger airbag, Rear armrest, Roof rails, Radio/Cassette, Side airbags, Rear headrests, Steel wheels, Body coloured bumpers, Drivers airbag, Electric door mirrors, Front electric windows, Remote central locking, Alarm, Steering wheel rake adjustment, Front head restraints, Rear wiper, Heated door mirrors, Height adjustable drivers seat, PAS, Steering wheel reach adjustment, Rear electric windows. Insurance Group:9E, HPI CHECKED,WARRANTED MILEAGE , FINANCE AVAILABLE,2KEYS,DRIVE SUPERB,1ST TO SEE WILL BUY ,,,,,,,,,, £1,350 p/x

From dealers, you could probably find one privately for a fair few hundred pounds less.

Anyways, OP, good luck with the motor, hope it runs well for you.

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How do I post these pictures???

forreachingme

Be ready to spend another 100'000 THb for repairs after few miles when buying such !

steevee

On Taladrod.com one of the search parameters is cars under 100,000B

Marmite the Dog

I showed comparison prices to the Midget the other day. She couldn't believe how cheap 2nd hand cars are in a proper country.

She wants to buy a new Fiesta. I said she'd better start saving then!

Bangyai

Yes, the last option on the right :

«×éÍ¢ÒÂöºéÒ¹ ÃÇ´àÃçÇ.»ÅÍ´ÀÑÂ

That Sentra could be yours for only 29,000 baht

Bettyboo

^^ Me mum bought a new Fiesta about 6 years ago, in Valencia, she reckons it's worth nothing now... Here, even being a ford (), it'd be retaining over half its original value...

The Fiesta is nice, buy her one you miserable old git! (Something nice to visit her gig in... )

isanmick

I had 1 of those mazda 626's it did over 500,000 km's before the head gasket went.

Latindancer

That's pretty good going ! Were they kilometres done on the highway, or around town ? Highway Ks are much less stressful on the car.

Marmite the Dog

I couldn't care what it's resale value would be. I buy a car that's the best for me, not to be a sheeple and buy a silver Vigo or Jazz.

Anyway, if she wants me to buy it, she'll have a long wait.

Chairman Mao

I actually clicked on that, after a second when the audio track came on automatically it was closed. Far better than just clicking 'mute'.

Can't stand websites that do that.

isanmick

I don't know what it did in its early days. I bought it off my brother for AUS$800 which I won on the Adelaide Cup. It had already done 280,000kms when I bought it. I mainly just used it to drive to work which is only 25 mins drive at mainly 60km/h but did a few trips a year to Coffs Harbour which is about 500km. Had it up to 170km/h and still had more. Great car, I would buy 1 with 200,000+ on the clock no worries.

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Chairman Mao

It being Thailand I'd be put off buying any second-hand vehicle, given somchai and his experts mates have probably tried to bore it out and max the engine for more power.

With the poor disparity between used and new, I'd only go new here. No doubt there's some good ones out there, but the % of buggered up ones would be a lot higher than in the west, at a guess.

If you're stuck on a budget, you're probably not going to be too happy with putting money into a money-pit clapper every month, which may well be the case.

jandajoy

We got an old Hilux ute, diesel 3-4 years ago. We paid 170,000 if memory serves. The bloody thing was about 15 years old.

BUT

It's been perfect.

Regular maintenance, a few long runs and generally sound.

Jeremy Clarksons mob failed to kill one so it can't be that bad.

isanmick

^^ yep, bugger driving something out of the show room and loosing 1,000's of baht in depreciation.

rickschoppers

I am amazed how many are willing to pay the inflated prices for a second had car in Thailand. These cars sell for nothing in other countries and if the only excuse is money, be sure and keep track of what you spend over a few years. In most cases, other than JJ, you will shell out K's of baht for repairs which is more than what a new car would cost you. As already mentioned, the fuel consumption will also not be as good which will be money out of your pocket.
Again, there are always the exceptions, but you never know how second hand cars are maintained unless you see all the receipts for work done by the original owner. It is a gamble, but if you do not have the money to buy a cheap eco car, then I guess you will have to take your chances. I do like classic cars, but what you find in Thailand are not really what I consider "classic", they are just old.