We have been looking around and debating on whether to buy, or continue to rent a motorbike. Given the fact that we were spending 2,000 Bahts/month on rental (a great deal compared to 150-250/day from the average rental shop), we decided to take the plunge and buy a bike. We figure it’ll save us money on the long run, and then we can sell it when we leave–that is, if we decide to leave! 
It took a while to get a feel for how much a used-excuse us- ‘second-hand’ (preferred local term) bike is worth. There are so many models to choose from: 100cc to 125cc engines, semi-manuals (clutchless) to automatics, as well as body styles (scooter v. motorcycle). Then you must factor in the age, mileage, mechanical and cosmetic condition of the bike; just like we would with used cars back in the states. Observation: expats love the BIG motorcycles, as in 250cc an up, but the vast majority of Thais ride the smaller “motorbikes” as they’re called-they are efficient, and fast! This is NOT your grandfather’s moped–you can easily reach near-highway speeds. Despite J’s extensive experience buying/selling cars on Ebay, appraising motorbikes was a different story…
In lieu of a Kelly’s blue book (the standard appraisal resource for used cars in the U.S.), we checked online classified ads, as well as local bike shops, both new and second-hand, to gauge the prices. Slowly but surely we were getting a feel for the value of the bikes. Hondas had higher resale values compared to similar Yamahas, so that had an effect on how much a bike would be upfront.
Well, we decided to go for an automatic, which is very easy to ride in traffic, just turn the throttle and go, and use both hand brakes to stop. Very lazy–as in easy–compared to the semi-automatics, which requires the use of your feet for braking and shifting. Honda was our brand of choice, since we loved our Civics and Fit back in the states. The Honda bikes seem to run and idle smoother compared to Yamahas, based on our limited test drive experience. We stuck with the 110cc motor, which yielded us over 50 km/L on a recent rental, which is (for us Americans) over 120 miles/gallon. Darn good if you ask us!
We are very thankful to our new Burmese friend (you know who you are), who was kind enough to take us to a bike shop near Tha Phae Gate, where she had bought her motorbike. After a few test drives, J had his eye on one of the Honda “Click” models- 4 years old, but very low mileage (15km on odometer) and looked immaculate. The motor was silky smooth (no white exhaust smoke), even more so than similar rentals we had that were half its age. Typically a sign of good maintenance. Our friend not only referred us to the shop, but through her Thai language & superb haggling skills (we had her on the phone with the shop owner “Tum” while we did the best with simple English and hand gestures), we walked away having paid 2,500THB less than the sticker price (Their list was 29,900, paid 27,500! May not be the best bargain, but bike was in mint condition) They also included a free front basket (not normally found on Clicks), and a new child’s helmet with a shield. Bargaining/haggling is a must here in Thailand. We love it.
(Update: if you do relatively long commutes, I’d recommend a Honda Wave or Dream, with manual transmission. Mileage is superior to automatics like the Click)
We just needed to provide a copy of a passport, paid cash, and we’re done! With a purchase of a motorbike, you’ll get the “Green Book” which is the “title” of the bike, showing records of the annual registration, and a separate mandatory insurance policy (and a receipt from the shop). An insurance policy in the U.S. primarily covers the vehicle (in addition to medical), but the motorbike policy here covers the people on the bike, not the bike itself. Interesting… Anyway, we just need to go to the local vehicle registration office and change the title into our name, by showing a non-immigrant visa and documentation of your local address (which may or may not require a notarization by the U.S. Embassy/Consulate) before the current registration expires. The annual cost of the registration and insurance (done together) is quite reasonable, roughly 500 Bahts. Keep the copies with you, and the originals safely at home.
Back in Texas, M had a name for both of our previous cars. “Zippy” for the Honda Fit and “Red” for the old Lexus coupe.
Wonder what she will name this motorbike of ours? We shall update you on this. Any suggestions???
So there it is!!
What do you think??
Surprised M by picking her up on our shiny, “new,” second-hand bike!
J really wanted an orange one, to match his alma mater’s school colors, but we were not able to find the right one. We think the blue is super cool, though. J did manage to get his school spirit onto his helmet, and now the bike to match!
Go Horns!! We seriously believe this may be the only Longhorn bike in CM!
Like the shirt? Click here for the story behind the geeky-cool Nokia shirt (note fake name tag and pocket, too).
By the way, if you, or someone you know, will be moving to Chiang Mai and needs a bike, let us know. We’ll take you to the same bike shop. The owners were very friendly, and had many second-hand bikes to choose from. We’ll lend you our local haggler, for a small fee, lol. We also have a great connection for low cost rentals, if you’re only staying in CM for a short while (but why would anyone only stay in CM for a short while?).
Directions to the Bike Shop (walk into the old city from Tha Pae Gate, about 400m, shop will be on your left):
Bike shop is ~ 400m from ThaPae Gate, inside old city
GPS coordinates, if you're into that sort of thing
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I love the funny faces M comes up with posing on motorbikes! So glad you found a great bike Passport Familly.
Hey Chiang Mai neighbor! yes, M is quite the ham… gotta love that playful personality. She’s got quite the sense of humor, which we love!
Congratulations! I love the blue. I used to have a little red Honda Wave when I lived in Ho Chi Minh City and I loved it. I’ve been reading parts of your blog when I can and you seem to be settling in well. It’s such a great city, isn’t it?
Marie from NG Auckland
Hey Marie! Nice to hear from a fellow NG writer, I’ll be sure to pass along a Hello to A, who writes for NG Chiang mai. Ah, Vietnam is on our bucket list, as is every country in Asia! The waves are awesome, and based on my personal observation, it’s easily the best seller here. Most still ride manuals, but I do see more and more yamaha and honda scooters around. Yes, we love CM, and it’s a great town for biking around the old city.
So I am curious what was your final price for the motorbike?
Hey Todd, I’m sending you an email to answer your question. =)
hello
hope that you can help me
i am moving back to CM soon and
am going to buy a honda click
can you tell me how much your bike was?
how its running?
the most important thing is the name and the location of the bike store!
thank you for your help
i do love Cm and know it reasonably
well
cheers
pete
Hey Pete,
When will you be arriving to CM? I’ll email you the info from the comment; and I don’t mind taking you there myself… =)
Hello thank you for good info..
may i know the final price
cuz i think i need to buy one too
thank you
Hey Beny. I’ll email you the price we paid for the motorbike. Good luck bike shopping!
Hey, I just moved to Chiang Mai last week and am looking for some place to buy a used scooter/motorsie, and meet people here as well. Give me a shout at ns [at] imagesnare [dot] com
thanks!
Nate
Hey Nathan,
Look us up on Facebook, search for and join “Team Chiang Mai” and you’ll find us, and our local friends on it. Under Info Tab, you’ll find my phone number, and feel free to give me a call, or leave a note on the FB page. Thanks!
Looking for a small automatic bike to drive around CM for a year. Heard it was difficult to buy a bike, get it registered, insured etc unless you have residency. What’s the deal.
Hi, the documents for the bike, including insurance, will be transferred to you when you buy a second-hand bike. You will need to update the registration, but I think you may be right in that you may not do it with a tourist visa. We have non-immigrant visas, which will allow us to register it. You can check the Thaivisa.com forums to see what people say. We have a friend who rents out bikes for a very cheap monthly cost, so if you’re interested, send me an email, as that could be an alternative to buying one.
Hello!
I’m looking for a motorbike and trying to decide between buying new or used and what the resale value would be a year from now. I’d love if you could give me some info about where you got your bike and how much you got it for.
Thanks!
Becky
Hey Becky,
Sorry for responding late, but contact me directly by email and I can give you more specifics. Gotpassport2 (at) gmail (dot) com
Hi there!
I’m moving to Chiang Mai in June to work for an NGO in the year and am trying to figure out what to anticipate my start-up costs being. Could you please send me what the final cost of your bike was or maybe what the average price for used bikes/scooters is? Also, any info on the process of getting a license would be appreciated.
Thanks!
Hilary,
Not sure if you’ll get this email, but I’m guessing I did not respond to your comment on our blog about getting a motorbike (or did I?). I’m really sorry! I hope you got the bike you need.
Hi there,
Would you mind telling me the name of the shop near thapae where you bought your bike? I am going to buy my first motorbike. Any help would be awesome. I dont know much about how to do this..
Kind thanks!
Karen, I just replied to your email. Good luck bike shopping!
My brother Norman was asking if Thailand has anything like a Kelley Blue Book so I Googled “Kelley Blue Book Thailand” and guess whose site came up…
I had clicked into the site without even looking at the url, the banner or who wrote it and was thinking, this writing seems familiar. I glanced up and lo and behold. You guys!! 
555! That was funny! Who knew that we cornered the market for that search term! Does that mean he’s coming to Thailand? Has he visited you before?
Hello! Myself and a friend will be in Chang Mai in a couple of days and would like to buy 2 used motor bikes to use for 3 weeks and sell when we’re done. We would greatly appreciate any help/advice!
Julia
Julia,
I think you’d be better off renting, since it’s only 3 weeks. Email us at gotpassport (at) gmail (dot) com, and my wife can put you in touch with our local friend who rents bikes (monthly rates), who can surely get you a nice price for 3 weeks. For only 3 weeks, paying that much in case up front, then the hassle of selling, the paperwork for only 3 weeks of use isn’t worth it.
We’ve had friends who rented for a few months even, and it’s better than buying. I think if anyone is staying for 6 months or more, then buying makes more sense.
Hey… I just caught this blog. I’m now living here and looking to buy. What’s the shop name you bought your bike from. One of the people I work with bought from a shop near Tha Phae Gate and described the same buying experience. I wonder if it’s the same? But she didn’t have a name for me.
thanks!
James
Hi James,
I’m crafting an email for you now.
Cheers,
J
Could you give me name of Bike shop near Thapae Gate
thanks
dev
Hi Dev,
Don’t have a name for the shop, but just walk towards the old city (west bound) from Tha Pae Gate, and it’ll be the first bike shop (selling, no rentals) on your left. There will be motorbikes on the sidewalk with price tags on them, then you’ll see a small shop where their office is. The lady’s name is “Tum,” and she has short hair, and is very pleasant to work with. I’ll be sure to mark it on my gps next time I’m there and place the map in the post!
J.
Hi there,
We have recently moved to Chiang Mai and wondered if you could email us a good shop for cheap motor bike rentals. Nice pictures and good blog!!!
Paul
Paul, emailed you about info of the shop. Can’t guarantee it’s the cheapest in town, so look there and shop around, too. Thanks, and cheers!
I’m interested in buying a honda click very much like yours, and would be thankful for you divulging what you paid for it and any pertaining information you wish to contribute via email. Thank you J.
Ezio, I emailed you some info about our bike and bike shop. Thanks for commenting! J.
I don’t understand why you don’t post the info on the blog. Everyone in comments is asking the same thing: How much, where, etc. Just post the information. It’s not a secret!
Hi “Me,”
Yes, you’re right. Been pretty busy, and I was able to help those who emailed me. I just recently got a photo of the shop, and added it to my phone’s GPS. We just moved, and internet just got set up today. Per your suggestion, I will add the info shortly. Cheers.
Thanks for the info and I’m happy to hear you got a good deal!
I’m debating renting or buying. I think I may be stuck with renting simply because I’ll be on a tourist visa this time around (arrive Oct 29th). Do you know if someone can buy on a tourist visa?
Like the others, I would love to know how much you paid… I’ve been doing a little research so I have an idea what clicks are running for.
Where is your rental place? That is a pretty good price!
I’m curious….do you chain your bike up at night?
Hey Mark, thanks for commenting. You’re right, you can’t own a motorbike with a tourist visa. Many (not an endorsement by me) have the bike in a Thai friend’s name, and pay for it. I’ve updated the post with how much I paid (27,500) and location of the shop. I’m sure there are better deals out there, but my post is just to share my experience; not based on a thorough market research of local markets. Contact me via email (gotpassport(at) gmail(dot)com when you get here and we’ll hook you up with the friend who rents bikes. She rents them to foreigners on a case by case basis, since she’s had unreliable customers in the past.
I don’t chain my bike, but if you park in an unsecured area (we have our own house and car port), or often in public places, then it might be a good idea, especially if you own a Honda Dream (heard it is in high demand for thieves).
Wow! Thanks so much for this write-up. It is now bookmarked! My partner and I just moved to Chiang Mai where we plan to stay for the next year. We’re weighing the options of renting versus buying, and posts like this are extremely helpful. After a day rental yesterday, it’s clear we need more practice to calm the nerves and assimilate to the pace of traffic here!