Recommendation for trusted Car Dealership and good Garage to fix in the future

[Hendrie]

Hi I'm an expat here for nearly 5 years and now my wife is pregnant, so I think it's the best time to buy a car. Anyone can recommend me where to buy with 12.000$ budget and where is a good garage to fix in the future? Million thanks, cheers !

[GMJS-440]

http://www.yimsarkun.com/?pag=4&sid=12

They fix it properly but be ready for upselling to the extreme. For example I needed some work done on radiator and the missus took the car over while I was at work. I told her to SMS me a photo of the quote and they put some 4L of liquid for $30. Since you just need water it was bullshit. Second occasion they took apart separate part of car from where repairs were to try and show me a dirty filter. But they DO fix the car properly.

For easy I go to Bquick in Aeon. Like oil changes or tire changes get it done while seeing a movie. But they are not good for more complex repairs so Bosch it is.

[Spigzy]

For $12k you may as well join the Lexus 300/Toyota {insert model of choice here} club - Every garage & its dog knows how to repair these cars and spares are plentiful/cheap. Forget about 'Good garage' unless you're buying a car that has a western qualified mechanic on site - e.g. BMW, Audi, etc. (and after recent events, I removed Range Rover from that list ... sorry Envotech, enough was enough ...)

[AverageJoe]

http://www.yimsarkun.com/?pag=4&sid=12

Those numptys wasted two hours of time trying to fix my car and then stole my tool kit out of the boot. Never going back.

I take my car to Eam Seth on St. 460 close to the sewage river.

[phat kunthea]

http://www.yimsarkun.com/?pag=4&sid=12

Those numptys wasted two hours of time trying to fix my car and then stole my tool kit out of the boot. Never going back.

I take my car to Eam Seth on St. 460 close to the sewage river.

Maybe the mechanic disliked your Tico.

[Jaap]

http://www.yimsarkun.com/?pag=4&sid=12

They fix it properly but be ready for upselling to the extreme. For example I needed some work done on radiator and the missus took the car over while I was at work. I told her to SMS me a photo of the quote and they put some 4L of liquid for $30. Since you just need water it was bullshit. Second occasion they took apart separate part of car from where repairs were to try and show me a dirty filter. But they DO fix the car properly.

For easy I go to Bquick in Aeon. Like oil changes or tire changes get it done while seeing a movie. But they are not good for more complex repairs so Bosch it is.

I don't get it. They tried to fuck you over and you still go there?

[slavedog]

I will also be looking for a new motor in the 10 - 15k bracket after the hols.

A bit boring, but probably looking at a Highlander.

I've been looking a bit at what's available. One thing I noticed is that, unlike back home, vendors never quote a mileage. What's the reason for this?

[Spigzy]

All cars in Cambodia are clocked - every single one. Your best bet is to get one that doesn't have plates (i.e. never been driven by a Khmer) and then do a VIN check on it. That way you can see the mileage before it left the US (and some other countries where you can check VINs vs car history). It's always worth checking this anyway for the $10 or whatever it is, it gives you ammunition to fight the dealer on any scrapes they've covered up and thought you wouldn't noticed. When I bought a RX300 when I first got here, I got a lot off the price simply on minor damage they'd actually done a good cosmetic job on - and the car itself was sound mechanically. It also steered me clear of a bunch of write offs/lemons with all sorts of history you really don't want to know. Don't forget to check VIN (usually located in windscreen above steering wheel), vs the engine & chassis, etc. Some cars are actually two cars (or more) shoved back together and made to look good as new.

Final point, you might be surprised what you can pickup for your bucks; some models, including Range Rovers, are not valued vs say a Lexus 570 - when I was looking a few years back they went as low as $25k (dodgy history & state mind, but could have been fixed for another 5k probably). The prices are probably even lower now, so look out for less attractive models like BMWs, Mercedes, etc - to a normal person they're a good car, to Khmers they're simply not a Toyota or Lexus!

[GMJS-440]

http://www.yimsarkun.com/?pag=4&sid=12

They fix it properly but be ready for upselling to the extreme. For example I needed some work done on radiator and the missus took the car over while I was at work. I told her to SMS me a photo of the quote and they put some 4L of liquid for $30. Since you just need water it was bullshit. Second occasion they took apart separate part of car from where repairs were to try and show me a dirty filter. But they DO fix the car properly.

For easy I go to Bquick in Aeon. Like oil changes or tire changes get it done while seeing a movie. But they are not good for more complex repairs so Bosch it is.

I don't get it. They tried to fuck you over and you still go there?

Fuck me over? The tried to sell me more than needed (UPSELL), but you just tell them no. And see bold statement which is rather relevant.

Surprised you did not get that.

BTW, i would love an honest mechanic in Cambodia but that's an oxymoron, even in the west.

[Jaap]

http://www.yimsarkun.com/?pag=4&sid=12

They fix it properly but be ready for upselling to the extreme. For example I needed some work done on radiator and the missus took the car over while I was at work. I told her to SMS me a photo of the quote and they put some 4L of liquid for $30. Since you just need water it was bullshit. Second occasion they took apart separate part of car from where repairs were to try and show me a dirty filter. But they DO fix the car properly.

For easy I go to Bquick in Aeon. Like oil changes or tire changes get it done while seeing a movie. But they are not good for more complex repairs so Bosch it is.

I don't get it. They tried to fuck you over and you still go there?

Fuck me over? The tried to sell me more than needed (UPSELL), but you just tell them no. And see bold statement which is rather relevant.

Surprised you did not get that.

BTW, i would love an honest mechanic in Cambodia but that's an oxymoron, even in the west.

Fair enough. wasn't aware of the concept of upselling, never heard of that before (being a non-native speaker of English; another thing learned). I would not feel comfortable though with a garage that tries shit like that, but that might just be me.
Getting your vehicle properly fixed is the most important thing.

[slavedog]

Thanks, Spigzy, that's one of the reasons that had occurred to me.

Another silly question: why do vendors sometimes quote part of the number plate (the first two characters?) when selling?

[Spigzy]

The first number indicates the type of vehicle/how it was registered; motos all begin with 1, cars with 2, vans 3, - not entirely sure about the letter after that though sorry; possibly connected to the year, but I don't think so as my first car was 2L (2001), second 2Z (2006), third 2Q (2014), I'll leave that to James Bong or PH to answer

[GB8]

They were not "upselling", they were following correct procedure. Tap water is not an acceptable replacement for coolant.
The difference between running the proper mix of coolant or just water is huge. It's not enough for your radiator to be wet on the inside, coolant has properties that perform a number of different functions while it swooshes through your engine.

The most obvious difference is the freezing point, if you live in a cold climate you'll crack your engine block if you have only water in there. But coolant also has a much higher boiling point than water, and can, therefore, hold a lot more heat without boiling over. Wait, there's more. The compounds in coolant fight corrosion in the radiator and other components it comes in contact with.

Running water alone isn't going to stop the process and can lead to premature failure of parts of your cooling system. Worse, tap water has its own bag of unwanted chemicals, and running your car on that can cause even more corrosion of parts. The bottom line? You must run coolant in your system no matter where you live. This is non-negotiable. If you suspect your car is without coolant, it's a good time to do a flush and fill of the system. It's not worth taking chances.

[gavinmac]

That's the longest and most opinionated post I've ever seen from GB8. He's going to need a nap.