A motorbike repair shop in Hanoi is swamped with customers amid a surge in flood damage on October 1.
On the morning of October 1, hundreds of broken-down bikes were lined up outside repair shops on Dai Tu Street in Dinh Cong Ward, most of which had suffered water damage.
A mechanic there said that since the previous afternoon, the workshop has been operating at full capacity, with the number of damaged bikes rising five to six times above usual levels. Four mechanics had been working overtime into the night.
“Too many engines failed, we couldn’t clear the backlog even working all night, still hundreds left behind,” he said.
Phuc Toan, the shop owner, explained that most failures are caused by water entering the engines. The standard fixes include draining water, replacing spark plugs, air filters and oil. For deeply submerged bikes, additional cleaning and replacement of parts are required.
“In just two days, we've received about 300-400 bikes,” he added.
Repair costs range from VND 200,000 to 400,000 (approximately USD 8-16) per vehicle, depending on the extent of the damage.
Another shop on Nguyen Xien Street, one of the hardest-hit flooded areas, has also been inundated with clients since the evening of September 30.
Shop owner Quang Loc said they have repaired nearly 100 bikes since yesterday.
“Because of the sudden influx, we can’t finish quickly, so many customers leave their bikes here overnight,” Loc said. “We're a small shop, so we even parked bikes outside and the mechanics took shifts working through the night.”
“Most repairs take about 15-20 minutes for minor water damage,” he said. “However, for deeply submerged bikes with serious damage, we sometimes must keep them for one to three days.”
Waiting nearly an hour at Loc’s shop, Vu Thai recounted that yesterday evening, travelling from Dong Anh Commune to Trieu Khuc Street, his bike died in a section flooded about 60 cm deep. He pushed it more than 2 km to the workshop and spent nearly one and a half hours getting it fixed.
“After the repair, it ran for a short distance but then failed again because of water. I had to push it back and leave it there overnight,” he said.
The repair cost was approximately VND 500,000 (USD 20), mainly for oil, filters, and cleaning. The shop would not offer a warranty because the breakdown was from flooding, not a mechanical fault.
Many shops across streets such as Nguyen Chi Thanh, Thanh Cong, Cau Giay and Nguyen Trai are similarly overwhelmed. Residents have had to push their bikes for kilometres to find a repair shop. Some owners have become frustrated, as they are unable to get service due to congestion, going from shop to shop.
It is not just motorbike shops; automobile garages are also receiving an increasing number of flood-damaged vehicles. At one garage on Trinh Dinh Cuu Street in Dinh Cong Ward, several cars that were damaged by water yesterday are currently being repaired.
Garage owner Tran Binh said that car flood repairs tend to be less complex than those for bikes. If water only reaches the wheels, mechanics usually change the oil, drain the water, and inspect the spark plugs and filters. If water seeps deeper, they must remove interior parts to dry for 2-3 days. Repair costs range from VND 550,000 to 1,000,000 (USD 22-40).
For more severe flooding, particularly if water enters through windows and damages the electrical system, repair bills can reach hundreds of millions of VND, especially for luxury cars. Binh added that this morning, a few vehicles have been brought in because roads remain flooded and movement is complex, often requiring towing. He expects the number of vehicles needing repair to surge later today or tomorrow.