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Published on January 2, 2008

I remember talking to my friends about writing on this, and there were some who agreed and some who disagreed.

Those agreeing said it would be good and to warn motorists out there, but those against it said if I did, then people would think Thailand remained a prehistoric society.

I am referring to the belief in amulets and the supernatural. Well, if it were only a tradition or the local culture, it would not matter so much, but at present so many Thais have become so attached to such things that it could lead to loss of life and property.

There's a Thai saying: "Even if you don't believe, do not show disrespect". This means if you do not believe in what others believe and respect, be it religion or the supernatural, simply be still and do not accuse anyone of being stupid or superstitious. I am one Thai who always follows this saying, so what I am going to write about is not disrespectful by any means.

I would simply like to remind my fellow Thais not to be too superstitious.

I believe people in developed countries are superstitious, too. Travellers there may have their lucky rabbit's-foot key rings, while others may throw salt over their left shoulder believing that will help drive out evil from their lives.

Believing in these things is not foolish, but sometimes you must consider whether such beliefs are harmful to you or society at large, especially if you are in the ranks of our social leaders.

In Thailand, many people like to hang flower garlands on the rear-view mirror of their car, especially if it's a new car, without realising it is a big distraction while driving, plus the flowers also block visibility. There could be small insects that come with the flowers, while rodents may be attracted to the vehicle. After they are done nibbling the flowers, they will surely be looking for wires to nibble next. And once they enter the car and start nesting, you're in trouble.

Driving out of the showroom with their new car, many people love to attach large flower garlands to the front grille, believing this to be a way of showing respect to the supernatural and thus ensuring that the vehicle will be safe from accidents. But they never think about the flowers preventing sufficient air from entering the engine to cool it like the car's engineers intended. This can easily lead to overheating.

Or if they leave the flowers there until they dry up, petals or leaves can fly into the engine and block the radiator (again leading to overheating) or get burned inside.

Some also like to hang necklaces of sacred objects on their rear-view mirror, and when the car is in motion they keep swinging around and disturb the driver's concentration. If they are hard objects, they also produce a noise that further distracts the driver.

A lot of people also like to glue Buddha amulets and small Buddha sculptures onto the steering wheel and console. They do not understand that in an accident, passengers could be thrown into this area and be injured even more seriously by these amulets. (You can easily lose an eye this way.)

Fitting hard objects on the steering wheel or console is dangerous, because if there is an air-bag unit there, when an accident takes place and the bag bursts open, the amulets can shoot towards the passengers like bullets.

In fact, believing in something is good, since it always reminds you to think about safety whenever you get into your car, working subconsciously in your mind. But for these sacred objects, you should find a way to pay respect to them properly and safely, so that they do not interfere with modern safety equipment in your car or end up injuring people.

If you remain stubborn and worship them blindly, they could come back to hurt you.

In order to operate your car safely, you only need to check the vehicle's systems and components as scheduled, follow traffic rules strictly, refrain from drugs or alcohol while driving and make sure you have enough rest before driving.

For the New Year, I would like to ask each one of you to make full use of the vehicle you have purchased and always think about how to minimise fuel consumption, because fuel costs are really high these days. I also wish you safety while out on the road all year round.

 E-mail your motoring questions to Pattanadesh@nationgroup.com.

By Pattanadesh Asasappakij

The Nation

Ultimate in Luxury

The Luxury LS 460 is a wonderfully comfaortable car fitted with all mod cons, althoough not necessarily the most fun vehicle to drive.