Car Show

Yesterday, Tim and I went to the Bangkok Car Show with her brother Top and his wife Tham.  Tim and I were looking for a new car to replace the white van.  While the white van has its merits, it fits a lot of people fairly comfortably, it is too tall for a lot of parking garages, and I don't drive a manual transmission.  Even if I did drive one, I would not want to drive one in Bangkok traffic.

We ended up buying an Isuzu MU7.  The decision was between that and the Toyota Fortuner.  Its a lot more challenging to buy a new car here, as I cannot really use the Internet like I would in the U.S.  The car models are different and there isn't as much information about them.  Tim spoke with Tham's brother, who is a car enthusiast, who gave us some advice.

Tim actually has an Isuzu dealership at her station.  While talking to the salesperson, she saw one of the upper management guys that she knew.  She waited to say hi until we decided to buy the car. We picked the Isuzu because it was less expensive, had most of the same features, and they were willing to move a bit more on price. 

The Isuzu sales force was a lot more professional than the Toyota one.  The Isuzu representatives wore suits and seemed knowledgeable about the product.  The Toyota people were dressed in red and white, and the girl who was "helping" us seemed about as helpful as the girls providing eye candy for the car.

Speaking of eye candy, what is an auto show without attractive women at each manufacturer's space?  Each manufacturer had their models standing in front of the cars and there was a throng of professional and amateur photographers snapping away.  I didn't bring my camera, and I'm largely clad I did not.  There is no doubt that I could have found some good subjects, but I really wasn't in the mood. 

We finalized our deal at about 8:45 p.m.  Top then decided to buy something, and after waiting around for twenty minutes, Tim and I took a cab back to his condo, where our kids were waiting ot go home.  I think they ended up in bed at about 10:30.  Not good for a school night. 

I am not sure when we will actually get the car.  Tim is going to pick it up at her work when its ready.