Gonzo

I have only driven my new 2010 Vios for 4 days now and so far I am very happy with it. If I had to buy a car tomorrow, with the 5 different cars I had on my original short list available, the Honda Jazz, City, Civic, the Toyota Vios and Vigo, I would not hesitate to buy the same car I purchased. It handles very well, has plenty of room inside for a compact car, uses little fuel, looks better than the previous Vios models and the interior of the car is a lot better than what I first thought. My first choice was the Honda Jazz, but it was not available at short notice. The Honda Jazz is p

On the way back, we took the white Baht bus outside the Toyota dealer on Sukhumvit, which turned right into Naklua after a few hundred metres, where a standard blue Baht bus was waiting haf way on the street from Sukhumvit to Naklua Road. All the passengers were transferred to the blue baht bus at no charge and then went all the way to the Pattaya Thai, Pratumnak Road intersection, where we caught the Jomtien Baht bus outside the school. One poster previously said to check out the Mazda 3. I replied I did not like the bubble looks of it. That is the Mazda 2 I was referring to. This evenin

I have driven a friend's Toyota Vios a few times for short distances, say from Soi 8 On Jomtien Beach Road to Big C on Sukhumvit, via Soi Wat Boon and then to Friendship supermarket on Pattaya Thai, to buy a few more items or to visit Tukcom, parking inside the nearby temple complex for 10 baht Getting in and out of a Vios is certainly easier and the car drives well. I have heard people complain about getting a sore back, after driving for longer distances. In Australia I would have probably bought a Toyota Camry. The Toyota Camry in Thailand is more than twice the price of a Vios here in

Last Tuesday, I bought a new Toyota Vios 1,5 E/AT silver metallic, which will be delivered on Friday afternoon. That was not my first choice, but one of the cars available at short notice at the Thaiyont Chonburi Toyota CO.LTD, Pattaya dealer, on the left side of Sukhumvit Road, 3 or 4 kilometres from Pattaya Nua, driving towards Pattaya. The car cost THB 616500, including registration and the fee for the red number plates, THB 3500, which will be refunded, when I change back to normal number plates. That will make the total cost of the car THB 613 000. I paid a THB 6500cash deposit and p

Thanks for your interesting and useful post. I am probably wrong about the Honda Jazz being discontinued. It is more likely the 2010 model has not been released as yet in Thailand. There is a new car shown on the Internet, called Honda Fit. It looks similar to the Honda Jazz. Maybe they just changed the name? I rang a friend in Australia a while ago. He is a qualified auto mechanic and is full of praise of the Honda Jazz. He owns a Toyota Landcruiser 4-wheel drive, which is a necessity as he drives on bush roads you would not believe, when he goes fishing in flooded areas outside of Darwin. He

Not a problem. Thanks for you interest and trying to help me find the right car.

Hi Doolish, what are the hassles of putting the car in your own name? I know having to go to Immigration can be a bit of a nuisance. I think I can handle their disposition and unfriendly faces for a couple of hours. As long as I only have to deal with their officious behaviour, full of self-importance now and then, it's alright. Getting the doctor's certificate is a bit of a joke. The clinic I visit hardly ever has the doctor attending his place. The two girls attending the reception only ring him when it is absolutely necessary. When I ask for a doctor's certificate, they open a drawe

The Honda jazz seems to be discontinued. The last model I could find is from 2009. Most of the cars mentioned can be seen in our condo complex and there are quite a a few Honda Jazz models. It seems to be a very small car with very little loading space in the back to put you shopping. I prefer to buy a sedan. A 4-door utility with an additional carry boy would be an even better option, I guess.

Martin, I was afraid that could be the case. I will still give it a try as you suggested. My weight varies from 85 to 88 kilos, so I am not over the normal weight limit. If I have any problems getting in or out of the Honda City, I will buy the Honda Cicic or a Toyota Vios, or whatever there is available without a long waiting period. The Honda cars are just nicer looking, so I will try the Honda dealer first. It is encouraging, that you only had to wait one week to get you car as well. I will pay cash, so there won't be the need of a work permit or an income statement. Thanks for the input. I

Many people are saying the Mazda 2 and 3 are better cars. I don't like the bubble shape of the Mazda cars.

Locul Yokul, You got this one wrong mate. The Honda City is a smaller car and has a 1.5 litre engine. The price of the Honda City starts at around THB 600 000. The Honda Civic is a larger car with a 1.6 litre engine and starts at around THB 800 00, I was told by a Thai woman down below in the car park. She bought the new 2010 model a few days ago, naturally on hire purchase. She bought a black Honda Civic straight from the show room and it took only 4 days before the car was delivered. I hope I will be so lucky, but there is no way I will buy a black car. I don't understand the Thai love affai

The last time I came on a tourist visa was 10 years ago. I have been getting a Non Immigrant O multiple entry visa ever since, which is good for up to 15 month, if you time it right. I prefer the visa runs every 90 days to the hassles with the officious Thai Immigration officials at Soi 5. I do two trips to my home in Australia twice a year, which count as visa runs as well and do another 2 visa runs to the Cambodian border twice a year. Thanks for confirming what Local Yokul said, the requirement of a resident certificate in Thailand, which I will get tomorrow from the Immigration Offi

I will consider buying a 4-door Toyota VIGO 3.0 diesel, despite not needing a pick-up, or HILUX utility, the name of the same car in Australia. I had a HILUX 1983 model, which I sold after 15 years with 300 000 km on the clock. It only had the 2 wheel drive version, with a 4 speed manual gear box and a petrol engine. I used to drive on some very rough roads and seldom got bogged. There was always the old Tirfor winch to get me out of trouble went I went bush.

Hi Groggy, I met an English guy a few days ago and he rents a Toyota Vios from the Dusit Thani Hotel reception at the special rate of THB 20000 per month. He also drives upcountry and is full of praise of the VIOS. I picked up a price list at a the Carrfour supermarket a while ago, where some Toyotas were on display. There is a choice of 9 different models, starting with the lowest priced VIOS 1.5 litre J/5M (NO ABS) at THB 504 000 to the highest-priced VIOS 1.5 S/A LIMITED at THB 709 000. I would probably pick up any of those models in between, as long as there are automatic in this shit traf

I think I need my frontal lobes checked sooner than later. Do you need another residence certificate, like you do when you get a Thai drivers licence, when you buy a new car? Which car would you prefer, a Honda City or a Toyota Vios? I have driven the Toyota Vios, which drives very well with plenty of head room, but does not look as good as the Honda City. Is there enough head and leg room for my 6'2'' medium built frame in a Honda City? If not, the Honda Civic will be another option being a larger car. Is the Toyoya dealer diagonally across from the Bangkok Pattaya Hospital the best Toyo

Stinky, you are a slubberdegullious bastard and as mad as a cut snake. On the other hand you speak the way you see things and don't pretend to be something you are not. Often you come across as a selfish and obnoxious prick, but I have a feeling a lot of it is just brinkmanship.. I like your directness, which is like a breath of fresh air, after listening to the my idiots on this list, who think their shit does not stink. You should be made a honorary Australian. You would fit in well in the land down under.

Aussiechic, thanks for the kind reply, but i can do without the sardines for the time being. When I go for my next brief trip back to Aussieland I will eat a couple of tins and then probably won't have any more cravings for sardines for a very long time. It is similar to me wanting to eat Kentucky Fried chicken once in a blue moon and being very disappointed after having eaten it. It normally takes another six month before I have another go at it. It is also similar to wanting to be home in Darwin again. Usually, after a couple of weeks back home I search the Internet for a flight back to

It certainly wasn't me leaving John West sardines at the FLB for your pleasure. I would have eaten them myself. I am convinced there are no good sardines to be found in any shop in Pattaya. . Friendship supermarket has a supply of tinned German herring in various sauces and also has glass jars of pickled in vinegar Estonian herring. The glass chars contain 5 small herrings wrapped around a piece of small cucumber. They are outrageously expensive at around THB 320 per jar. The pickled fish smells a bit like cunt, wich has not been cleaned for at least 2 days, so keep a toothbrush and toot

My mistake was to switch from red salmon to sardines. There is no added oil in tinned salmon to my knowledge. There is lots of added oil in tinned sardines, unless you buy the spring water variety. Some of the board members immediately thought any kind of grease could be used for sexual purposes and the thread about fine imported food took a turn. Sexual activities between animals and humans are a punishable offence in Australia, so I better keep my mouth shut about such activities. A friend told me he knows a shop where they sell imported sardines for THB 184 per tin in Pattaya

If you like animals licking your ring, I think a dog would do a better job than a cat. Dogs have much larger tongues and are probably more enthusiastic than a cat. With male dogs you would probably have to watch out not to get fucked up your backside, unless you are into that kind of deviate behaviour. I doubt the fleas would worry a bloke like you. They would not be any worse than the crabs you are already used to. And no, I have not tried it myself. I have slight problems with hemorrhoids and use that part of my body for what it was designed for in the first place.

This afternoon I went with a friend to the seafood markets at Bali Hai Pier at the end of Walking Street to buy live prawns. They only had medium sized ones at THB 200 per kilo, which is reasonably cheap. When I got home, I got the missus to cook up one kilo (2.2 pounds). Normally I would relish eating fresh prawns dipped in a bit of fish sauce, but this afternoon I hardly enjoyed them. All I could think of was eating sardine sandwiches with salad and a bit of mayonnaise.

I have not opened the tin of salmon yet, therefore I cannot give an opinion on the taste of its contents. I am pretty sure they have the right vinegar and salad cream at Friendship's. They are the most Farang-friendly supermarket in town, in my opinion. One thing is for certain. The salmon is imported, but there is no way it is the good stuff from Alaska. In Australia, a tin of red salmon from the USA will set you back at least 5 to 8 Aussie dollars, depending on its size. I like tinned salmon now and then as a snack. A few years ago I discovered really cheap tinned salmon in Darwin, farm-

Back to your, MM's and Jacko's favourite subject. Pink salmon in a red tin is now available at Friendship Supermarket for THB 96. Like Joe pointed out, a tin of tuna for THB 32 is much better value. The Thai Ayam brand of baked beans is just as good as the American Heinz brand at a fraction of the price.

We did our shopping at Friendship Supermarket today and spotted about 20 tins of salmon on of the shelves. It was pink salmon in a red tin . I think it was called Salmon Supreme and cost 98 THB per tin. It did not look like imported stuff as it had mainly Thai writing on it. The imported stuff usually tells you the name of the country where it comes from.

I never had a virus and I am going bareback with the missus. When I want to have a bit of fun away from home I use XXXL at the Jade House.