Please nee Help...on buying a bike in Thailand
 

Hi I am from the UK and I will be leaving in 3 weeks (with my girlfriend) for a 3 month trip around SEA... first Vietnam then Thailand and Laos, then India.

After Vietnam we would like to buy a bike in Thailand (possibly in Chiang mai)

Please can someone advise me on best place to buy, what sort of bike, documents I bring with me from UK, and what documents I will need to get there, for touring as well as exporting or selling.

The ideal plan I think, would be to start from Chiang mai Thailand, and hopefully in one week, I will be able to find a bike and get it registered; then we would like to ride for 4 weeks into Laos, then cross back into Thailand heading towards Bangkok, then ride down to Phuket / Krabi...and finally bring the bike to KL ,from where it will be shipped out (to Italy)

Then we will fly back to Bankgok and continue our trip to India.

Any advice much appreciated

Cheers,
Ryan
:helpsmilie:

You want to be looking at the GT-Rider board Motorcycle Touring & Maps: Thailand : Laos : Golden Triangle

It's the definite ressource for SE Asia, and on the board there are a lot of riders/expats who are based in Chiang Mai, so it should be easy enough to hook up with something. Plus they have a bikes for sale section.

Doing the same trip next year
 

I am doing a similiar trip next year and just called a motorbike shop in CNX yesterday. I asked him to look for a Honda XR400 to buy. We will be going two up and need to make it travel ready; panniers, custom seat, larger tank, etc.
I will let you know what I find out. I will tour Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam before shipping to India from KL.
Let's stay in touch.

Whatever you buy, make sure the rego (Green Book) is genuine. Due to import restrictions it is a common practice to "recycle" GBs for registering newly imported bikes. People may tell you that it's 'no problem'. Apparently it is when the time comes to change ownership.

info
 

Hi there
I have just come back from living in Thailand
my mate now resides there permanently
he has a British and aust p[passport
he emailed me last week and tole me he just bought a bike
he had a few complications but sorted it out

there are some websites there where all the foreigners sell their motor bikes
and it is sometimes easier buying it off them
but moist are in Bangkok, pattaya or phuket
often you can get a bargain

if you send me a private message i will forward it on to my friend
we were living in krabi ( Google it)
which is in south Thailand
i was in changmai a few months ago and crossed form there in to Laos and made my way by slow boat down the Mekong
i actually hired a bike for a few months and it was easy and cheap to do so

motor bikes are not cheap in Thailand as you may think
any way hope this offer is helpful
any thailand qustions feel free to ask
i am over 50 yrs so have a full time retirement Thai visa so i can come and go fairly easily

gjw

Look on the Thaivisa.com - Home website for bikes for sale. You will need a non-immagrant type B visa and a copy of your address in Thailand to get the reg book put in to your name. This visa is available easily from the Thai Consulate in Hull UK for 100 pounds for a year. Vietnam has a cc restriction of i think 175cc.