Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous

Sandman6472

Had an extended drive with a new 2018 Encore at work and it's probably off my short list. In city traffic it's fine but it was huffing and puffing when I got on the turnpike this afternoon and making all sorts of noise when I was trying to pass slower vehicles. My Golf drives so much better in these same situations but think because I have the 1.8 turbo engine to be honest. But I'm just not into any domestic vehicles right now to be honest so think I'll be staying in either Europe or the Japan/Korea part of the world. Probably my best move is to just replace mine with a newer 2018 Golf but get the SEL model instead. A little more pricey but some more goodies also and definitely think I deserve it. The VW new longer warranty, 6 year/72K miles is one of the best in the business now which is great. Just wish Fiat didn't have such awful reliability ratings because I like the 500X in white to be honest. It sits a bit higher up and has a stance that I like. The interior isn't exactly bargain basement but close. Really need to drive one again to see if it's something I could stand for a good many years.
Again, this might sound really bizarre, but I drove another new 2018 Ford Focus Titanium model today, their dark red over ivory leather/vinyl or pleather and it really wasn't that bad really. The auto tranny shifted perfectly without any hiccup, same as the one I drove last week. The Titanium is their premium Focus model and it comes with a lot. The Sony sound system is acceptable and found the whole infotainment system very intuitive and was quick to learn and set up. The seats were comfortable with adequate support, ergonomics were just fine with ingress/egress not terrible, acceptable I'd say. It looked good in the red color, more of an orangy red and it looked good on this vehicle. Very decent mpg's also with regular grade petrol. The MSRP was a joke at $26.6 plus but to pick up one of these puppies for around $20K would be something I might settle on. Never in a million years would I think I'd ever like a Ford product, any Ford product, but this Focus is a fine attempt by Ford to fix a very dismal automobile. I also like the new Ecosport but have yet to get behind the wheel of one so can not really give it any kind of review. Hoping it's better than the Encore/Trax cousins I've driven in the past week!!
If the vehicle drives decent enough and has an interior and driving dynamics that don't stink, am willing to give most any smaller vehicle a shot at my money. Just looking for something like my Golf which still, to this day, puts a smile on my face. I see it, I smile. I drive it, am grinning from ear to ear. I just love 99% of my VW Golf. That's my story...and I'm sticking to it!!!

The Sandman

Sandman6472

Happy Birthday from the older side of the team! Seriously, 63 is a great age with the kids grown and gone, making it on their own and not coming back with their hands open! Being an empty nester is great, we love it. And the funny part is, now our girls just stop over on a regular basis just to say hello as we don't pry into their lives or push them to do anything anymore. They just like touching base every so often so we musta done something right! The boy and his wife are in Chicago so too hard to just drop in whenever. But that's what texting and Facetime are for I guess.
So Bradd, enjoy the kids now because those years go very quickly and next thing you know, they will all be graduating and looking for their first "real jobs" and getting on with their lives...the way G-d intended!!! But as long as their all happy and well adjusted, good people and all, then you know you've done your job well and can then look forward to the rest of your lives!!!

The Sandman

Sandman6472

Shifty, I just feel like I'm being screwed over, again...and again...and again. It's a nightmare I can't wake up from and since I did nothing wrong, it's really just wearing me down. Of course it's not personal, but...every one should be doing their job and looking out for their customer. I feel that after they cashed my check and accepted us a clients, they owed us to do everything they could to make this process go as smoothly as possible. I should not have had to make phone calls to get them to fast track the case and get things moving along. You're right, this should never have taken almost 5.5 weeks to get done, the appraiser should've done her job correctly and not say things that we relied on never to have done any of it. It kinda stinks actually and then when on the phone, lying to my face and treating me like a four year old! Her bosses need to talk with her seriously to find out how the ball was dropped, correct the problem going forward so no other customer has to go through the crap I did and finally move on while doing her best job as possible.
If an insurance company doesn't want to do the right thing by their customers, maybe their in the wrong business. So...it's all out of my hands right now and come Thursday, we'll see the finished product, and then I'll do what I have to do to get back to a new normal with my VW.
I've really had enough but thank you experts for all your help and will probably be back with some more questions as I try to make a diminished value claim here.

The Sandman

kyfdx

tjc78 said:

kyfdx said:

28firefighter said:

thebean said:

I'm pretty sure I have underwear older than some of you.  

Hmm. Perhaps a trip to Target is in order then?

Pretty sure you can get them on Amazon via USPS.

Kmart.... ( there is a reference there)

Got it.

Sandman6472

Have decided to take the driver at the auction position after all. Can definitely do the one day, Thursday, and will look into working on some Tuesday's if I indeed do like it. Will be starting a week from Thursday unless the Golf won't be ready until the later part of the afternoon. Have to be in West Palm at 7:45 ready to work. Then we'll be driven over to the auction, go to our selected line leaders and told what to do. Was told that not being able to drive a stick shift is no problem, just let the line leader know and he'll get someone who can drive one. The lady who's our boss and gave yesterday's presentation was a young woman but she knew her stuff. She made sure we all knew this is serious work and stressed what not to do so we wouldn't be banned from the auction. It'll be a bit fast paced but she said once everyone knows what to do, it should be a piece of cake and really fun! So after talking with the wife and giving it a lot of thought, gonna give it a shot and see where it leads.
Only drawback is driving to West Palm Beach as we were led to believe the job was going to be at the Ft. Lauderdale auto auction. As long as the traffic ain't too bad in the early morning, all should be fine. I'll get up early as usual and get to the meeting place by 7:30 or so and wait for the others. This looks like it's gonna be fun and who knows, working an extra day or two might just work. Get paid every other week which is fine and will be making more that what Hertz pays me after 3 full years of employment!!

The Sandman

nyccarguy

Thanks so much everyone for your kind words!

Mr_Shiftright

There may be individual agents who care about the customer, but to the corporation at large you are just a policy # and one integer on a balance sheet.

thebean

kyfdx said:

tjc78 said:

kyfdx said:

28firefighter said:

thebean said:

I'm pretty sure I have underwear older than some of you.  

Hmm. Perhaps a trip to Target is in order then?

Pretty sure you can get them on Amazon via USPS.

Kmart.... ( there is a reference there)

Got it.

"This is NOT my underwear."

"Underwear is underwear!!!"

Michaell

thebean said:

kyfdx said:

tjc78 said:

kyfdx said:

28firefighter said:

thebean said:

I'm pretty sure I have underwear older than some of you.  

Hmm. Perhaps a trip to Target is in order then?

Pretty sure you can get them on Amazon via USPS.

Kmart.... ( there is a reference there)

Got it.

"This is NOT my underwear."

"Underwear is underwear!!!"

Lets just cut to the chase - "KMart sucks"

tbirdmarco

 Send man congratulations on the new job yes give it a shot sounds like fun I’m sure you have to let us know and we will pause with the two jobs and how you are able to do sorry to hear about all the troubles with the insurance company also with the snow I would close Thursday tomorrow you pick up your car hope it’s all fixed correctly and yes get to the moose value clean do what you have to do with that 

tbirdmarco

 New York poor guy you are welcome 

tbirdmarco

lol lol lol

rayainsw

nyccarguy -
Happy [ belated ] Birthday !
- Ray
Over 65 - and stopped counting .....

thebean

Michaell said:

thebean said:

kyfdx said:

tjc78 said:

kyfdx said:

28firefighter said:

thebean said:

I'm pretty sure I have underwear older than some of you.  

Hmm. Perhaps a trip to Target is in order then?

Pretty sure you can get them on Amazon via USPS.

Kmart.... ( there is a reference there)

Got it.

"This is NOT my underwear."

"Underwear is underwear!!!"

Lets just cut to the chase - "KMart sucks"

Never were truer words spoken.

qbrozen

This is a pretty damned good deal.

tifighter

And it's your favorite color combo. I'll bet it sounds nice, though.

28firefighter

I'd be happy to go look at it for you.

Michaell

@jpp5862 @breld Mrs breld and I are meeting up tonight at the Denver Auto Show. I'm sure we will all weigh in with our individual opinions over the next day or two.

stickguy

daughter called today to chat. One of her discussion items (she is "life planning" in anticipation of graduating college next month) was what we are doing about the cars. So that got me back thinking. Still not sure if will just have her do something on her own, or go ahead and pass the Elantra down to her. Could go either way. Still not sure.

we will do some looking when she gets home. Have 6 weeks until the Jetta goes back (and likely could extend) and she doesn't start working until late July. We could probably share for a month or 2, at least until she moves out (which might be September or October at the latest).

No clue what I would get though. Of course, if my plan to move was not stuck in the mud, it would be easier to plan. Don't want to pay tax and DMV only to move a few months later and lose it.

qbrozen

tifighter said:

And it's your favorite color combo. I'll bet it sounds nice, though.

yeah, black/black is awful but looks sinister at least.

A friend sent it to me. I think he may be considering it. Just sold off his Testarossa and wants a more modern toy.

tjc78

qbrozen said:

This is a pretty damned good deal.

I lost count how many “SRT” badges that thing has all over it 

tbirdmarco

Nice nice above

Mr_Shiftright

But it's only 707 horsepower. That's so ....yesterday Q. You can be beaten by a Jeep now.

xwesx

Sandy, I would relay you my insurance story from this winter just to make you feel better, but I have a feeling that it would just drag you down further.

Hang in there!

qbrozen

Mr_Shiftright said:

But it's only 707 horsepower. That's so ....yesterday Q. You can be beaten by a Jeep now.

oh, hell, I don't want 700hp. A Scat Pack would be plenty for me.

qbrozen

tjc78 said:

I lost count how many “SRT” badges that thing has all over it 

You got me curious.

Not including the stereo splash screen, I came up with 14.
1 on each wheel
1 on each front floormat
1 on each front seat
1 on the dash controls
1 on the passenger vent
1 on the steering wheel
1 on the grille
1 on the spoiler
1 on the air cleaner box

stickguy

well, I might not know what to get next. But I know it isn't going to be one of those!

Sandman6472

I remember you went through hell also. Latest update, Golf "might" be ready tomorrow, late afternoon. Told him not to rush it. Can always pick it up Friday or Saturday. If Friday, will just mean going into work late which I hate to do as since the hurricane, I've been sick with the flu and then the accident. Missed almost 2.5 weeks of work though I'm part time, still is a void when someone ain't there. I just want it back with no issues so hopefully, they'll hear me. Have the rental till Monday at 9:30 if needed.
Will start the new job at the West Palm Beach Auction a week from tomorrow. Figured I'd be a bit stressed tomorrow waiting to hear from the collision guy and I want to learn what to do at the auction with a clear mind. Figure if the rest go tomorrow as they all said, they can show me what to do next week. Luckily, the new boss understood about not starting right away and said next week is fine. I'd do Tuesday but have a dental appointment I switched from tomorrow, dumb move looking back. Tuesday's also are a longer day and can last upwards of 12 hours she said. Figure let me do some short days to get the hang of it all and then add some hours if I can. Still, should be a lot of fun and looking forward to starting next week.

The Sandman

Sandman6472

The mpg's gauge in the Elantra I've got showed 33.8 mpg on the way home, so not too shabby for an abused vehicle with just over 32,500 on the clock. One thing about Hertz, they are pretty religious about doing the "PM's" on a timely manner...the oil changes/rotations. I'd say 90% of the time, we're taking them in for this work when called for by either the vehicle or the computer. And at a certain point, a vehicle due for a "PM" can't be rented until it's done and cleared by a manager in the computer. And I know that we're doing them because I'm one of the folks that has to drive them to get it done!
The Elantra is about the same size as the A3, I measured them in the garage tonight, eye balled really, and are within an inch or two of each other. So a Kona or Elantra GT will fit on my side if I end up going in that direction at some point. Just not sure what I'll do once I get the Golf home. Just not up for the intensity of new car shopping right now to be honest. When they had led me to believe that it was going to be a total, I got the energy and started to look but once they changed their minds about doing it, I kinda lost the will to continue shopping which is too bad. Been in pain a bit more lately and think it has to do with them dragging their heels here and then the rental [non-permissible content removed], I just don't feel like taking the time or energy to look. And I learned after the Tucson affair, one really needs to be focused when buying a new or used vehicle to get the right one. I never want to experience that again, knowing within weeks that one had made a huge mistake and bought something totally wrong!
So, no more looking for awhile and will concentrate on getting my diminished claim set up as not sure how this is going to work out. And I could be very surprised as to how good a job they do on my Golf...now that would be very cool!! hopefully G-d understands that I just can't take anymore "crap" going forward. I need a break to lick my wounds and heal my spirit!!

The Sad Sandman

stickguy

the Elantra is 179" long. Not sure about the A3, but likely close. The Elantra GT is 170" long, so only 2" longer than your Golf.

corvette

qbrozen said:

I lost count how many “SRT” badges that thing has all over it 

You got me curious. Not including the stereo splash screen, I came up with 14. 1 on each wheel 1 on each front floormat 1 on each front seat 1 on the dash controls 1 on the passenger vent 1 on the steering wheel 1 on the grille 1 on the spoiler 1 on the air cleaner box

Wouldn’t want anyone to forget which model you got! 

nyccarguy

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

tjc78

qbrozen said:

I lost count how many “SRT” badges that thing has all over it 

You got me curious. Not including the stereo splash screen, I came up with 14. 1 on each wheel 1 on each front floormat 1 on each front seat 1 on the dash controls 1 on the passenger vent 1 on the steering wheel 1 on the grille 1 on the spoiler 1 on the air cleaner box

Crazy amount of badging!  I knew it was over 10.

tjc78

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

They are nice trucks.  We have a prior gen Tahoe LTZ at the office for trips and I must admit I don’t hate driving it. Engine has a great exhaust note as well.   

pensfan83

Very nice ride....love the dog in the picture too!

qbrozen

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

Boy, they don't even try to differentiate the Escalade anymore, huh?

corvette

qbrozen said:

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

Boy, they don't even try to differentiate the Escalade anymore, huh?

The Slade has chrome door handles, uglier fog lights, and uglier wheels.  I’m not a fan of the rear quarter window on the new model, but I think it does allow the rear window on the short wheelbase models to lower completely. I know the one in my Tahoe only goes halfway down due to the size of the window and the way the door is shaped to accommodate the wheel. 

nyccarguy

tjc78 said:

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

They are nice trucks.  We have a prior gen Tahoe LTZ at the office for trips and I must admit I don’t hate driving it. Engine has a great exhaust note as well.   

Thanks! There's nothing like a V8 exhaust note. There was even a box to check on the "order sheet" for a dealer installed Borla Exhaust. My Dad told me NOT to check it for the $1,200 they wanted.

breld

As @Michaell mentioned, we all went to the Denver Auto Show last night.  I’ll include some highlights later, but for now, here’s a pic with the M5. 

nyccarguy

qbrozen said:

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

Boy, they don't even try to differentiate the Escalade anymore, huh?




Inside they are pretty much exactly the same. Big difference in the MSRP though.

stickguy

So I assume the happy couple bought it?

nyccarguy

corvette said:

qbrozen said:

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

Boy, they don't even try to differentiate the Escalade anymore, huh?

The Slade has chrome door handles, uglier fog lights, and uglier wheels.  I’m not a fan of the rear quarter window on the new model, but I think it does allow the rear window on the short wheelbase models to lower completely. I know the one in my Tahoe only goes halfway down due to the size of the window and the way the door is shaped to accommodate the wheel. 

Rear window goes all the way down. Chrome door handles are on the Denali & probably the Tahoe Premier as well. There was probably an option box for those on the SLT Yukon, but I didn't check it.

breld

I just have to share this too.  We asked a very nice millennial to take our photo.  I figured a young woman of that age would have no problem shooting a quick pic on an iPhone.  I think she overthought it - we stood there for what seemed like the longest time, while she was trying to do some fancy Pano thing.  Finally, she shot a simple photo which is what you see above in the previous post.

But when I got home, there were 3-4 photos on my phone like this one.  

kyfdx

stickguy said:

So I assume the happy couple bought it?

Exactly....

28firefighter

breld said:

I just have to share this too.  We asked some very nice millennial to take our photo.  I figured a young woman of that age would have no problem shooting a quick pic on an iPhone.  I think she overthought it - we stood there for what seemed like the longest time, while she was trying to do some fancy Pano thing.  Finally, she shot a simple photo which is what you see above in the previous post.

But when I got home, there were 3-4 photos on my phone like this one.  

Looks like the quality of my work. This is why my wife handles all the pictures of Sam.

jpp75

As @breld mentioned we were able to get together last night for the auto show. Had a great time as always and opening night was a great time to go as the crowds were relatively light. @Michaell and I got to grab dinner beforehand then met up with @breld and Mrs. @breld to browse the show.

We were able to get through all the displays before closing the show down around 10. A few highlights for me were the Jaguar XF wagon, the Buick Regal CrossTour (exterior only though), the VW Arteon and a few others.

The XF wagon is just a gorgeous vehicle, I'll try to get a picture off my phone later to upload (and I think @Michaell has one as well). It's not something I would ever buy but what a great looking vehicle with amazing performance.

I was excited to see the new Regal based on the pictures I had seen. The "sportback" was somewhat disappointing in person as it looked a lot like a Malibu and you really couldn't tell it was a hatchback. A couple of cars over I spotted one that looked better, before I realized it was the LaCrosse Avenir model. The CrossTour was a gorgeous wagon, they had it in a dark blue with a brown interior which was beautiful. Then we sat inside. What a huge disappointment. The dash and gauge cluster were extremely small, nondescript and looked out of place in such a nice car. It felt like they tried way too hard to go "minimalist" on the dash and gauge cluster and it ended up looking like they threw in some aftermarket gauges as part of a cheap restoration. @Michaell commented that some designers at Buick need to be demoted and I completely agree. It's hard to put into words how cheap and out of place it looked, even the Chevy Sonic had a nicer gauge cluster. It's a shame because it really ruins the interior of the car and doesn't fit with the exterior presence at all.

The Arteon was a pre-production model so you couldn't sit in it but it had nice lines and a very nice interior. It probably won't be a big seller but should be a nice used option down the road.

A few other noteworthy items, the Subaru Ascent was "meh" and @breld and I commented that we would rather have the VW Atlas if you're looking for something in that category that is different and unique (i.e. not a Pilot, Highlander or Explorer). The new Jetta was there also, a handsome looking package for sure. And as always the GTI was a crowd favorite for us. Kia had a Stinger GT2 there, I think it's a great package as long as it doesn't try to be something it's not (i.e. a BMW or Mercedes). Finally, the Mazda6 continues to impress, with the new turbo engine and over 300 ft-lb of torque is has to be a great driver. If I was shopping in that segment it would be top of the list.

All in all a great night, glad I was able to go with everyone. I've found car shows are more fun when you have fellow friends and enthusiasts to conspire with.

Mr_Shiftright

qbrozen said:

nyccarguy said:

Dad’s new 2018 Yukon SLT.

Boy, they don't even try to differentiate the Escalade anymore, huh?




Only in the six figure window sticker for a loaded-up one! (SIX FIGURES!)

tifighter

At the Volvo dealer this morning for service, where they had this XC40 in the showroom.

Fully loaded R-Line stickering at $47k. Must say, it is quite nice inside and room isn't a problem. The sales guy calls it their millenial car. Mid-level will be the sweet spot, and I think they'll sell as many as they can get their hands on.

fintail

I saw a Tahoe being filled up by a sales/lot guy last weekend, still wearing the sticker. 78K, and I suspect it was far from fully loaded.

Mr_Shiftright

So that salesman thinks that millenials have $50K to spend on a new car? Good luck with that. It's probably an older demographic with family.