In Bangkok, between getting around between the trains, the bus, the river/canal boats, songteaws (pickups with bench seating in the bed), you have a number of cheap public options. In a pinch there's Grab motorbike taxis and general cabs, but a city being set up to mostly be walkable from transit hubs, means owning a car is completely optional--it would just help if it weren't seen as a status symbol. I noticed the same thing in Hanoi where people wanted to own cars because of status, which is disappointing.