buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

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kopkei
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by kopkei » February 15, 2011, 4:04 pm

well krusher, only falang tourist call samlor , tuk tuk, you can ask any thai , sam lor wil be sam lor, the thai do not call this tuk tuk , unless maybe to stupid falang , but anyway as you probably see the guy ( tourist ??)or lady more often , ask the address , tel nr...where to buy new one for 20.000 bath ,or even 7.000 i will need 5 , tuk tuk or samlor i do not care.... or when 7.000 bath i need 10..., thank you for any answer on the asked questions....



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Khun Paul
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by Khun Paul » February 16, 2011, 8:22 am

Just to clarify my previous post. I AM WELL aware that Atipong sells Samlors with skylad, however as most foreigners view a samlor as a Tuk Tuk including many Thais, i assumed that it was the generic name here and most would understand. As a further note the reason why the Bangkok or Chiang mai Tuk Tuk's are not here, the local Municipality don't want them so they will never be here, you can of course buy one to use here but not open a business selling them nor for that matter run a tuk tuk service with them. Strange but true. My info is from the Atipong family.

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KHONDAHM
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by KHONDAHM » February 16, 2011, 8:23 am

Krusher wrote:Listen to what I said, or rather read it. Walk past any 3 wheeled motorised vehicle in Udon and the driver will say 'Tuk Tuk?', not Samlor, now try it and tell me if I am right or not. Perhaps they technically are not tuk tuks, same as a Hoover isn't a vacuum cleaner, but it is the popular name.
Actually, that is not correct. Thais do not ever confuse the two. They may accommodate some farang in the same way we may say "big motorbike" or "motorbike" rather than "motorcycle" or "scooter". Here is the test: Walk up to any Thai and ask, "What do you call that [gesture towards one] in Thai language?" Answer will always be "Samlor".

Sam (pronouncd "saam")= three
Lor (pronounced "law") = wheel

Tuk-tuk is a name GIs gave to the common Bangkok variety due to the sound of the single-cylinder engine "tuk-tuk-tuk" they had back then and the name stuck. "Tuk-tuk" is not even a Thai word.

What's more is that Thais do not think of them as 3 wheel motorbikes. They think of them as 3 wheel poor-man pickup trucks.

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Khun Paul
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by Khun Paul » February 16, 2011, 4:31 pm

semantics....

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hangsaboot
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by hangsaboot » February 16, 2011, 6:32 pm

Khun Paul wrote:semantics....
what cc , engine would that model be ??

the govenor @ the factory has a smart customided tuk tuk ,
make a reaonable offer , and it,s yours . ;)
LOL :D

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Khun Paul
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by Khun Paul » February 18, 2011, 12:01 pm

Spoke to the Atipong family personally, they will custom build a SAMLOR (tuk tuk ) to any design with any size engine prices on application.

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ting_tong
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by ting_tong » March 2, 2011, 7:01 pm

KHONDAHM wrote:"Tuk-tuk" is not even a Thai word.

What's more is that Thais do not think of them as 3 wheel motorbikes. They think of them as 3 wheel poor-man pickup trucks.

As for "pecking order" on the road: YOU are individual vs cars and motorbikes. Nobody except a large truck will risk hitting a samlor. Go where you please, when you please.
[/quote]

ตุ๊กตุ๊ก

no possible way can you overtake a fast moving car or truck, let alone a 100 to 135cc motorbike in an issan Atipong samlor.
A car or truck will try to overtake you and push you away from the center line (if you are fast enough to ride next to the center line). After they overtake you they make you slow down or stop, then they pull into the next driveway to go and eat somtam and sticky rice.

Mr.Neng formerly of Top Mansion had a new samlor, he did a fast u-turn, his frame cracked and the samlor folded in 1/2 on its own.............he repaired it and sold it.

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KHONDAHM
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by KHONDAHM » March 2, 2011, 7:48 pm

ting_tong wrote:ตุ๊กตุ๊ก

no possible way can you overtake a fast moving car or truck, let alone a 100 to 135cc motorbike in an issan Atipong samlor.
A car or truck will try to overtake you and push you away from the center line (if you are fast enough to ride next to the center line). After they overtake you they make you slow down or stop, then they pull into the next driveway to go and eat somtam and sticky rice.

Mr.Neng formerly of Top Mansion had a new samlor, he did a fast u-turn, his frame cracked and the samlor folded in 1/2 on its own.............he repaired it and sold it.
My comment was that it is not a Thai word. Not that it cannot be spelled in Thai. So what exactly is your point by spelling it in Thai? I can spell sushi - doesn't make the word English.

As for driving near the center line (presumably on a main road), only an idiot would do such a thing and deserves to wreck. Anyone with common sense who drives a samlor knows to drive it on or near the shoulder of the road when on a main road. It is not and was never designed to be a high-speed vehicle. It is a poor man's pickup truck good for short hauls at low speeds.

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ting_tong
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by ting_tong » March 2, 2011, 9:25 pm

KHONDAHM wrote:YOU are individual vs cars and motorbikes!
I guess not then?

In the city, I can outrun all motorbikes up to 135cc
cars and trucks can not overtake me, I just speed up and they back off, I can hold the center line (in the city).

on the open highway, I can cruise at 120 KMph easily and hold the lane for a car without being pushed
at 120 KMph its a stable ride and feels solid.

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DermotC
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by DermotC » March 2, 2011, 10:05 pm

Cruising at 120kph in a Samlor.....Pull the other one it plays Jingle Bells :lol:

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malc123
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Re: buying a tuk tuk

Post by malc123 » March 2, 2011, 10:17 pm

I guess you have not seen ting_tong samlor...

I have :D

malc123

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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by richardnrenu » July 6, 2012, 10:48 am

I just found this post so hope that I'm not too late to learn something here. I've found a shop that builds samlor kreuangs or tuk tuks (not really sure of the right terminology). They're built with the 660cc Diahatsu engine and the 3 smaller car tires with the front being a bit open motorcycle style with faring and the entrance to the back body is through the rear into a song taow type of setup with the 2 benches. The price is 80,000 baht. My question is for those of you that already own one, what do you do for getting them registered and do you need a special driver's license? Or is there some other way of doing it?
Thanks in advance for your help,
Richard

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kopkei
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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by kopkei » July 6, 2012, 6:06 pm

hi richard ,
these are the tuk tuks as you see in nongkhai , i have driven one for 5 years , as i was not living here yet and did not want to invest in a car while not present all the time.., it is not possible to get a registration plate on this one, but you can get the basic porobo insurance based on the motor no...., and yes there is such a thing as a samlor
( 3 wheel ) driver license...so bare in mind when you are driving this , that when you make an accident your fault ,
you will have to pay for damage of your own pocket... ,what your price concerning , if this is a new one ( with second hand engine) , they must have become cheaper again , because last time i saw them they were priced 95.000 baht
i am talking about this one...
SAM_2048.JPG
but they do have an other model looking like the normal samlor ( motorbike front ) with bigger wheels in the back .... ;)

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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by richardnrenu » July 6, 2012, 7:05 pm

Hi Kopkei,
Thanks for the quick reply. Yes the picture you have is real similar to what I'm ordering. It's just a little bit different design in the front. Looks like yours has more protection from the weather. But same wheels and otherwise same body design. The shop in That Phanom was working on 3 of them all at different stages of completion when I showed up and the man said it takes them about 1 1/2 months to build them and yes the engine is a rebuilt Daihatsu. And the quoted price is 80,000 baht. Good to know about not being able to get registration plates. What type of test did you need to take for your samlor driver's license? I already have my motorcycle and car driver's license. Did you need to take a road test or just a written one. My Thai driver's license test a few years back was just a depth perception and color blind test with a quick reaction time test nothing written. Have you ever been stopped by the police and if so what do you tell them? Do you just drive it locally or can you take it on long journeys?
I'd include a photo but can't figure out how. I guess you could say I'm a bit computer illiterate. Sorry.
Thanks again.
Richard

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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by richardnrenu » July 6, 2012, 7:09 pm

I'll try to add the picture here
Attachments
Samlor Krueang 600x800.JPG

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kopkei
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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by kopkei » July 6, 2012, 7:44 pm

i have driven 5years the nongkhai tuk tuk and 3 years a bangkok style tuk tuk , and i have always showed my car DL
in case police stopped us...never have had problems with police ..
but i think the samlor DL is new since a few years ( 3-4?)
as i am also willing to buy one again , they told me at the transportation office i must make the full test because i do not have my international DL,but this can vary according to your transportation office location ...
and i did drive it local within a perimeter of about 100km...
the exception here was the bangkok tuk tuk , i bought in ayuthaya and drove it home myself...
i have seen the type you want to buy , i do not prefer them ( with the motorbike front) because you never find the good sitting position..., but this is maybe my problem only... ;)

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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by richardnrenu » July 8, 2012, 9:22 am

kopkei,
I've tried driving both models and find both to be uncomfortable for my legs but I was taking a close look at it and think that I can modify this one fairly easy to give myself more leg room. I can only find this style being built here now so another reason for me to chose it.
Thanks for all your information.
Richard

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harmonyudon
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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by harmonyudon » July 9, 2012, 10:00 am

Can I rent a tuk tuk/Samlor in Udon?? For example: dont need to rent a pick-up if you
need to move e.g. fridges etc...Also handy to show Udon to your tourist friends.

I was considering to rent-out tuk-tuks.....good or bad idea???
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poocman
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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by poocman » July 9, 2012, 10:14 am

harmonyudon wrote:Can I rent a tuk tuk/Samlor in Udon?? For example: dont need to rent a pick-up if you
need to move e.g. fridges etc...Also handy to show Udon to your tourist friends.

I was considering to rent-out tuk-tuks.....good or bad idea???
I would say a good idea and bad idea... if you wanted to move small household items i.e. a fridge hire a samlar and driver not rent a "self-drive" one... Then the driver will help with the lifting... The same goes with showing your tourist friends the sights of Udon... Stands to reason a 'local' will be more knowledgeable... :-k

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buying a tuk tuk in Udon Thani - Samlor

Post by harmonyudon » July 9, 2012, 11:14 am

@poocman...perhaps you're right....here some comments:
if you wanted to move small household items i.e. a fridge hire a samlar and driver not rent a "self-drive" one
if you need to drive 10x it can be rather expensive to take a tuk-tuk from the street,better hire one self-drive for 24hours for the same price as the rent of a motorbyke.

Another funny usp is: the chance at night to be stopped for (alcohol)control after some drinks is less...hahahaha
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