The other day, after visiting with Melissa, I noticed this 1962 Karman Ghia parked in front of the July Sports Center.
I was in college in 1961 and this was one of the cars I would have loved to have had. I always thought it was neat looking.
This one was driven here from Costa Rica. Inside the seats looked just like new as did the rest of the interior.
Yesterday, I was at Hotel Ciudad de David and there was an old car parked out front. My dad had one like this and I remember riding in the back seat.
I took a couple photos, which are at the end of the post. It is owned by Panama Automotive, which I have posted about in the past.
A corollary might be that high maintenance prices is the mother of maintenance price research.
The other day I took my car into Auto Servicios de Chiriquí to have my oil and oil filter changed. When I got the bill, I was a little shocked. It was $61.53. I told the cashier that I thought it was extremely high and got no response. I have sent Carlos Saldana and email asking if this was a typical charge and listed the bill’s components. As of today, I have not received a reply.
UPDATE September 26, 2011. – I received an email from Carlos and he said that
…the mechanic also check the brakes on all 4 wheels, check spark plugs, check fluids, belts, battery, clean air filter, check lights….. well it was a complete service check.
Normal we not only just change oil and filter since also all others items need to be inspected…
Therefore the price and service was for a complete service check.
Looks like the jury is in. $5 is a typical charge for labor for oil and filter change. $26.75 for labor is way out of line.
Today, while I was out shopping for some new tires, I did a little research on other lube change options. I had all locations price the filter, 4 quarts of oil and labor to get a fair comparison.
For a true upper limit option I went to Ricardo Perez, who I would have expected to be the high-end benchmark. I thought the last plain vanilla oil change with filter I had done at Ricardo Perez was in the neighborhood of $48. My quote today was $53.86. Still cheaper than Auto Servicios de Chiriquí by $7.67 over 12% cheaper.
I saw this one in front of Ely’s Bakery when I was taking photos of the new construction areas in David.
My body clock still has not acclimated to being back in Panama. Close, but not there yet.
While I am trying to organize my thoughts and photos of our trip, I though I would mention one thing before I forgot it.
We spent two days in Panama City before returning to David. On Sunday we went out to eat and to a theater and I saw an MG on display. I remember in the late 50′s or early 60′s the MG sports cars I drooled over.
Well, the brand is returning. The sedan I saw in Panama City was very nice looking. It is being assembled in the UK using bodyshells, engines and powertrains shipped from China by Shanghai-based parent SAIC Motor Corp. See THIS Article.
The car is being targeted for the UK and this may be the way that China is planning on entering more of the auto market. Time will tell how well it is received. I will say that I was impressed by its looks. You never can tell, the Chinese may be able to produce a better quality MG than the UK did.
Since it is on display in Panama City, there is a possibility you might see one on the road.
Everyday, I get hits because of old posts I did about Super Replicas in David. Super Replicas promised to show me a car many times and never delivered on the promise. I finally gave up and quit asking to see one.
Because I was getting so many hits, I sent an email to Super Replica asking if Tony Sinclair still was involved with the company.
I received a reply back from Tony saying he is still here and still involved. The only replica I ever saw was shown in this old post. Tony told me he didn’t want me to take closeups photos because he said it was not up to final quality.
The Super Replica shop is across the street from Da- Li restaurant. I have been to the Da-Li restaurant several times and have not seen anyone entering, leaving or any cars. I still could not say if this location is involved with a replica business or not. If you go to Da-Li, you might want to go across the street and ask to see some of their work.
The other locations that Tony had shown me for the early posts are do not appear to be associated with SR anymore. I really don’t know the status of this company, but if it were me, I would go to the assembly plant and ask to see examples of finished products before I blindly sent money.
I say this because I just received the following request for help from a client of Super Replica. At his request, I am posting his email.
From……: Ricardo
Email…..: ricardhoamorim2@gmail.com
Url…….:Hello, my name is Ricardo Amorim. I’m talking from Brazil. I’m contacting you because, you’re from the same city of the one company that I look for. The name is Super Replica. Could you help me with any information would already be very kind. I’m thinking that I was curled. I sent money to this people and they simply disappeared. Can you help me with anything that you have? Any information, any personal judgment. Will help very much. I’m talking from Brasília, Brazil – capital of Brazil.
Thanks I will waiting for you answer.
While I was at Antojitos, in Boquete yesterday, I saw this car drive up. I had to take its photo. It is a 1947 Plymouth. It looked like it was in perfect condition.
Panama is changing its law and is going to start charging 25% tax on new cars. This new tax will go into effect in July. If you are planning on buying a car, you might need to speed up your thinking process.
UPDATE: The Panama News posted the Spanish text for Martinelli’s tax reform. I assume buried within this document is the answer to the whether cars are going to have a tax of 25% or not. Being Spanish legalese, it is beyond my ability to understand it.
While I was out running errands yesterday, I spied this car. I have googled all outstanding recalls that are in place and this car is not on the list. This car does not have any reports of randomly deciding to speed up and ignore all attempts to apply the breaks.
The air conditioning (provided by lowering the windows and mother nature) has not failed once. There has never been a computer failure. Continue reading
I have received a lot of questions about used car lots in Panama. While I was waiting at the hospital today, I found these sites listed in the want ad section of La Prensa. These sites may give you an idea of what is available.
http://www.fullcarspanama.com/
I often recommend people talk to the dealers of the brand car you want and ask if they have any clients that are wanting to trade cars. You will also need a mechanic you trust to inspect the car and advise you of its real condition.