Purchasing new motor bike in HCMC

Honda PCX,Sh , remember you will need to put the bike in a VN name not your own, you can have it in your name only under certain circumstances.

thanks much...my wife is Vietnamese

The other point is you can only buy where your wife is registered. My wife lives in Saigon but registered in Ba Ria Vung Tau, she cant buy a bike in Saigon in her name.

colinoscapee wrote:

The other point is you can only buy where your wife is registered. My wife lives in Saigon but registered in Ba Ria Vung Tau, she cant buy a bike in Saigon in her name.

This is only partially correct.  She can buy it anywhere but only can register it in her home town.  Most Vietnamese just carry around the bill of sale until they make a trip home.  People who come from Hanoi but live in HCMC simply never register.  To westerners it sounds incredible but it seems to be normal in VN.   Don't know about UK, NZ or AU but in the US, not registering would be a violation.  In VN it is perhaps just another example of the difference between what is supposed to be and what is.

We drove our new Air Blade around for two years without registering it.  It made me nervous but my wife did not want to in case we resold it to someone in HCMC.  After she sold it to her brother, he registered it in their hometown.

THIGV wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

The other point is you can only buy where your wife is registered. My wife lives in Saigon but registered in Ba Ria Vung Tau, she cant buy a bike in Saigon in her name.

This is only partially correct.  She can buy it anywhere but only can register it in her home town.  Most Vietnamese just carry around the bill of sale until they make a trip home.  People who come from Hanoi but live in HCMC simply never register.  To westerners it sounds incredible but it seems to be normal in VN.   Don't know about UK, NZ or AU but in the US, not registering would be a violation.  In VN it is perhaps just another example of the difference between what is supposed to be and what is.

We drove our new Air Blade around for two years without registering it.  It made me nervous but my wife did not want to in case we resold it to someone in HCMC.  After she sold it to her brother, he registered it in their hometown.

Correct, but applying logic it would be easier to just do it in your home town. Don't forget the bike shops have a relationship with the police. You turn up with a bike from another city or provence you are asking to be rooted around while the police try and extort you.

Your wife was playing with fire, if she was in an accident or pulled over by police they would have checked the speedometer to see if the bike was just purchased. Mind you, a few Uncle Ho's would extinguish any problems.

Gent's,

Thanks for the information. I will discuss with my wife about the registration.

Any suggestions on the type of bikes or where to purchase?

Take Care

Jerry

Just head down to your local Honda shop, they are everywhere in Saigon.

You should try contacting to Jeremy. He's selling bike in hcmc. Very nice guy.
You can mail him: *** or via phone: ***
Good luck

Thank you for your time and response

Jerry

I think the PCX is probably too big for hcmc, check out the Honda Lead. A nice scoot and will fit the 3 people on it. Make sure you take the family in for a test ride to see if they can sit comfortably on the bike as well.

The lead is a good choice if you are staying in the city and never travel into the countryside.

Thanks Panda for your time and info.

không có chi

PCX is not that big 🙄 And there is fine that you have to pay if time goes too far between buying the bike and registration (transferring to your own name) I sold my old bike what I never did put to my name and the new owner had to pay if I remember right 1.5tr "fine"

If a foreigner has work visa with resident card, can foreigner buy a bike under his or her name?

Short answer.. Yes...

Thanks!

Sorry, just to clarify. I will get my 2 year TRC? an6d then6 a local drivin6g licence, b4ut my b4ike is registered in6 the n6ame of some Viet guy Ive n6ever met. I b4rought it from my pal who b4rought it from a Hon6da dealership in6 N^ha Tran6g n6ew.

The n6ame on6 the own6ership card is either the garage own6er or a frien6d of his. I un6derstan6d this is the n6orm. How does on6e go ab4out gettin6g your own6 n6ame as the registered own6er? an6d really a 1.5 million6 don6g b4rib4e?

ken99 wrote:

If a foreigner has work visa with resident card, can foreigner buy a bike under his or her name?

Firstly you will need to pay tax on the bike, then get the run around from the police, to me, it's just not worth the grief trying to get a bike in my name. Still can't understand why we can't have vehicles in our name, it would save a lot of hassles in the long run.

I also recommend the Honda PCX as its riding position and handlebar setting was designed for a western frame. We are really to large to sit in a comfortable riding position on all the Asian scooters available to us except the PCX.
It was designed by Honda America for cruising and was first manufacture in Thailand and exported to the world.
There two versions available in Vietnam. The 125cc assembled in Vietnam for 65 million vnd and the 150cc made in Thailand for 105 million vnd.
The 125cc is more than adequate for HCMC conditions.
The 150cc would handle highway cruising better.

I have had mine for more than 5 years with no problems. The latest models have a keyless system which makes them difficult to steal.
That to me is an over riding feature in a counyry where bikes are stolen every second of the day.

Slightly off-topic, I move next year from Thailand to VN and have a PCX 150, one year old, 2015 model, in my name. Is it worth trying to export from Thailand and import to VN (in VN gf's name)? Or easier to sell before moving and buy another in VN? Thanks.

I think you will need to get the bike in your gf name first.

The 100% import duty on your bike will make the whole exercise uneconomical.

It's not worth the effort with all the logistics cost, import tax, registration cost, etc.

I would sell it in Thailand and buy 1 in Vietnam.

Many thanks everyone; I thought as much.

I just bought a Honda Fury (like a Harley, but better) in California from a Vietnamese friend who has an export business in San Jose. He never exported it to Vietnam, so sold it to me for cheap. Thing is, I don't know how to ride a motorcycle, but when I visit Vietnam in January/February for a month, I will practice on my wife's sisters bike. We/they live in the country there, so it will be safe for me, rather than learning in HCMC, or some congested area. When I come back, I will be able to master that beast easier. I call it my "Honda Harley", hahaha !

my wife rides a Honda Lead. It's low speed manouverablle in heavy traffic, handles the longer run from Sai Gon to Binh Phuoc province laden with her, myself and her 5 yo son and a heap of luggage. Added advantage over other Honda's I've looked at is the larger than normal underseat storage.

if you don't have to have NEW i have a friend who rebuilds bikes there in dist 1, Iv'e seen his work it's pretty good and thats from a bike enthusiast

Hi all,

Just was looking at the Honda SH 125. Any opinions out there?

Thanks

Jerry

Good bike, very comfortable but is the bike of choice for thiefs.

Somewhat thought that myself but the dealer said they have special key and can always add the wheel lock. Not sure If I lost something in the translation and sales are great liars. Need a bigger bike so all can sit.

Thanks again

Jerry

Its a very good bike, just dont leave it unattended anywhere.

It has the same engine system as the Honda PCX but as I have pointed out before it is made for Asians and you will soon find the riding position uncomfortable for an extended time. Your hands are a lot closer together than a PCX just as they are on all Asian Scooters.
I suggest you hire a scooter and rider round on it then go into a Honda dealer and actually sit on the PCX and immediately you will understand what I have been talking about. They wont let you test ride a PCX which put me off buying one 5 yrs ago. Then I was on holiday in Phuket and hired one for a week and in the first 20min after riding it I knew it was the right bike to buy for a Caucasian. Yet my very tiny Vietnamese  girlfriend loves riding it. In fact we often fight over who rides and who is passenger. Her tiny 45kilo frame can handle my 100kilo body as a passenger no problems.

About the SH question, my family members drive them comfortably. With the new sensor key and eco-setting in newer models,  they are energy efficient and self-anti-theft. I love the new technology. My mother actually has her own Honda Shop in several districts. Please don't hesitate to shoot me a message if you have more question.

Andy,

Thanks for the comments. We did purchase.  We waited until we purchased helmets in the US. I have yet to drive it because of the license process but my bride likes it very much. Still have not digested the anti theft system but will when time permits.

Regards

Jerry

My wife just bought the Honda SH. Her friend has one, so she had to get one too. Hopefully she will actually ride it, as she is afraid it might get stolen, even with the anti-theft device in it. Better to just ride some old Dream or something.