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Best Posts in Thread: Auto costs

  1. Crystalhead

    Crystalhead ADMIN Admin ★ Forum Moderator ★ ★ Global Mod ★ ★ Moderator ★ ★★ Forum Sponsor ★★ ★ No Ads ★ Highly Rated Poster Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    There's a place called (Richmond) part of Vancouver Canada. One intersection I counted 16 sets of traffic lighst (no exaggeration) I use to pick the Asawa up from work and she worked 4 Kilometers away. I had to go through 11 intersections with traffic lights. I spent more time stopped than driving. Point being is I would not want the Philippines to change a thing or Yah may as well go back to the 1st Turd World. Many great points have been made. Always stay alert and focused if driving in the Philippines. Expect anything and everything to come at Yah and always give way to Scooters no matter if they are on left, right, front, behind because they will not give it to you and never expect that here. Almost 4 years here driving and no accident yet. Stay safe out there!
     
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  2. Stefan_Negros

    Stefan_Negros DI Member

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    Thanks for your reply.

    First of all I apologize in case I have insulted you. That was at no point my intention.

    I didn't know that you have only little experience of the daily challenges in this country. Hence I was surprised of your "western thinking".

    In our home countries we are used to live with rules, law and regulations and in case somebody is not behaving according to the law you can claim your right. At least this is the idea.

    Here it's different. Completely different. You need to adapt local rules and forget everything you knew from the past.

    From my point of view you can have a more or less decent life here if you can manage to avoid conflicts. Not only in terms if traffic, but in general.

    Of course it's not always possible. Let your wife handle disputes. She can most probably do it in a better and more successful way.

    The Philippines are ruled by tribes. Not by law.
     
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    Last edited: Sep 2, 2022
  3. JWBobbit

    JWBobbit DI Member

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    The one thing Toyota has going for it here over Nissan is massive brand power which makes for a quick selling vehicle with minimal loss. We bought a Mazda CX3 in Manila while working and living there, perfect small car for NCR, Luzon. We drove it to Dumaguete for a 3 month trip, we never left and our one regret here is ground clearance. Roads a generally wider and better here than NCR but so many of the places you want to get to in Negros Oriental roads can be very bad.

    Toyota Rush ticks a lot of boxes if you dont want a Truck/ Ute and at 1,1M PHP super popular for resale, good clearance. Mostly ugly but not as ugly as a Suzuki Ertriga and super practical. I would go a Truck/ Ute if you are going to do any building work. Delivery costs, delays and dealing with delivery drivers is a pain and if you can load most materials onto your on truck it makes life a little bit easier here.
     
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  4. dadof3at1ce

    dadof3at1ce DI Member Veteran Marines

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    On my first trip to the Philippines I rented a vehicle. Prices were comparable to US rental car prices. My three week stay was between $700-$800 if I remember correctly. The truck I had broke down and they replaced it with a piece of crap car. They said they would have the truck fixed in two days and I would get it back. A week and a half later they finally had it fixed and I got it back.

    For my second trip back we purchased a used Mitsubishi Strata. It is manual shift 4x2 but works just fine even in the mountains. It is fairly comfortable and stylish enough for me, fits 5 inside and as many as you can pile in the back.

    For a while while we are in the US, our neighbor in PH is also my wife's cousin who is a mechanic. We would pay him a few hundred peso to drive it for us once or twice a month. Worked great for a while, then he got busy. Truck sat for a while and soon needed a new battery. Not a big deal. I just didn't want the truck sitting to long and have stuff starting to freeze up. Eventually he became unbusy and they would take small trips. Bacong to Dauin, Bacong to Forest Camp-Valentia, etc. Nice little outing for everyone, they get to see places they have lived around forever but never had the means to actually see.

    Now my wife's sister is getting married to a guy who is a driver for the owner of a local engineering firm in Dumaguete. They now use the truck off an on to go to his hometown of Tanjay. Saves me paying the cousin, but puts a few more KM on the truck.

    Bought the truck used, had to buy a new set of tires, a new battery, a cover for the truck, and the air conditioner always had trouble keeping up. My soon to be brother in law had the air fixed so now everything is good. We cover the truck even though we have a fairly large carport-essentially a garage with no door- more to keep the chickens off it than anything. We paid 650k peso for the truck, I think it is a 2013 and had 35k km on it when we bought it in 2017.

    Bottom line, it is much better to own than rent if you have the people you can trust to help take care of it and won't abuse it. I have heard horror stories of families taking advantage of things and ruining them because it isn't theirs, but my experience has been the exact opposite. They are very grateful and they take care of things we have there. Even when we are there, the one sister will wash the truck every time we go somewhere to help keep it clean. In fact we now own the Mitsubishi, a Multicab, and a Chariot there that they take care of. They use the Chariot and Multicab as needed, to get water or collect firewood for example. They ask every time when they want to use the truck though, although I don't recall a time we ever told them they couldn't use it. I think I am lucky and couldn't really ask for a better family to be in-laws with.
     
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  5. Dutchie

    Dutchie DI Senior Member Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    In addition to all that's been said already:
    1. traffic rules in the Philippines are pretty much the same as everywhere else,
    2. however, because there's so many without a drivers license (but still drive) and quite a few who have one but "bought it" (corruption anyone?) and
    3. because those traffic rules are mostly not enforced,
    it is wise to live by only one rule here when driving: always assume all other drivers are bungol (deaf) and blind and don't know the rules.
     
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  6. cabb

    cabb DI Forum Patron Highly Rated Poster ✤Forum Sponsor✤

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    Sounds like a dashcam is a must have. Might need one for each side of the car. lol
     
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  7. Dutchie

    Dutchie DI Senior Member Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    1. don't know, but would assume yes
    2. no, and good luck getting the guilty party's insurance to actually pay the damages to your car.
    3 no, so the latter applies
    In short, don't get into any accident
     
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  8. Stefan_Negros

    Stefan_Negros DI Member

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    Ground clearance is more than enough in my opinion.

    I own the 4 x 4 version, that means 2,5 liter engine and 190 horsepower. I never had any problems to go whereever I wanted to go. Of course you need good tyres as well. Power alone is not enough if you move around in extremely heavy conditions.

    I am happy with my Navarra. More than that. No issues at all. Just came back after 2 years im Europe, pushed the button, and the car runs like always.

    Garage of Nissan in Dumaguete is quiet ok. They have all the computers for analyses and there are several huge Nissan dealers in Cebu. Hence delivery of spare parts shouldn't be a problem. I never needed any, but I have a good feeling.

    Having a good garage available in town was a ko criteria for me.

    I don't say Toyota is bad, but the respective model compared to my Navarra would be much more expensive. Same applies for Ford.

    Isuzu got a nice model. 3 Liter engine. I guess it's called D-Max.

    Mitsubishi Strada isn't bad at all, but neither Mitsubishi nor Ford or Isuzu got trustful garages in Dumaguete.

    Due to the above I decided to buy a Navarra 4 x 4, and I didn't regret for one single second.
     
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  9. Dutchie

    Dutchie DI Senior Member Showcase Reviewer Veteran Army

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    Hmm, I would strongly advise to look at a second hand car in the circumstances you describe, or at none at all.
    When looking at a second hand, a simple car without much modern technology like a Mitsubishi Adventure, for which maintenance can be arranged at just about any local garage, sounds like the safest and cheapest bet to me (you should be able to find a second hand Adventure with low mileage around the 450k mark).
    As for cost, yearly test and registration, as well as third party liability insurance are all cheap, let's say around 2,000 peso a year in total.

    Why second hand? If "family members" would be using it, chances are they will not treat it as they would their own, because someone else will pay for any damage/maintenance anyway.
    Think about it though, why would something you wouldn't consider at all in your home country be a good idea in the Philippines?

    Anyway, if you'd still want to proceed then obviously the cost of maintenance and (all-risk) insurance will both be much more expensive if you persist in getting a new car.
     
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  10. Notmyrealname

    Notmyrealname DI Forum Luminary Highly Rated Poster Showcase Reviewer

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    As you are now aware (and others should follow), it is best to negotiate a reduced price and the buyer takes on the processing (including paying taxes). My wife, with no training in this, has done so. Being the Philippines, it is a case of being messed about and going through hoops that are not required in a normal country - but it is the only way to be reasonably sure.

    A very pleasant and intelligent Filipino builder told me "Don't trust any Filipino - and that includes me". Turned out to be very sound advice.
     
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