The latest estimate for purchases under the first-time car buyer scheme is 1.2 million vehicles, up from the original target of only 500,000, says Somchai Pulsawas, director-general of the Excise Department.
The number of requests for excise tax rebates now stands at 1.1 million with a value of 73 billion baht.
"As we have 10 days left before the scheme ends on Dec 31, we believe we'll see a total of 1.2 million requests for tax rebates," Mr Somchai said yesterday.
Demand for the scheme remains hectic even though requests have declined to about 20,000 units a day from 40,000 earlier this month.
However, amid the overwhelming success of the scheme, Honda Automobile (Thailand) has complained to the Excise Department about the permission given to Toyota Motor Thailand for its new Vios model to be eligible for tax rebates.
Honda claims it is unfair to other car makers, as the Vios has not even been produced yet and is not available in the market.
Car makers must apply to the department to register specific models for the programme.
Rebates are available only to first-time buyers of pickup trucks or small passenger cars with engine sizes of less than 1,500cc.
The selling price must not exceed 1 million baht, and the rebate is a maximum of 100,000 baht.
Buyers will receive rebates after the first year of ownership but must maintain ownership for at least five years or be subject to back taxes.
Mr Somchai said the latest Vios model had been accepted because Toyota had completed all procedures required by the department.
As for the unavailability of the model, buyers must ask their dealers to issue new documentation with a date stamp after the model's formal acceptance.
"Our consideration and approval have been done transparently without any bias or taking any sides for the benefit of any car maker," said Mr Somchai.