Best Of

Got up early and drove to the lake this morning with a Jeep load of plants, soil, new rugs etc, etc. Sometimes makes me wish I would have opted for the Maverick.

Now I catch myself eyeing a Ridgeline as a replacement in a couple of years. No complaints about the Jeep though. It’s a nice, comfortable ride that really will swallow a lot of stuff. Averaging right around 20 combined mpg. It’s just under 12k miles so I’m on track to be over if I’m not careful.

The Audi is at around 10k 18 months into the lease. It has been pretty flawless as well although the Audi MMI can be finicky at times. That doesn’t sit well with my wife as once when it happened she was on a road trip and she lost her navigation. I’ve completely disconnected all phones and did a hard reboot once but it still happens. It’s due for an oil change so maybe I’ll see if there is a s/w update.

I drove a Ridgeline yesterday and I was impressed how car like it drove.

We also drove some horrible POSs yesterday. Another driver and I were each assigned rusted out completely beat up Ford dually diesel dump trucks. They were awful. My coworker took his back to the yard because of a front flat tire so it was just me. As I left the yard the dash said ‘9 miles to reduced speed, add DEF’. Then we went on a search for DEF at 6 in the morning.

Luckily we found a source and started adding the fluid. Strangely it took less than a gallon before splashing out on our shoes. I got back in and started on my 100 mile trip. I immediately noticed that adding fluid didn’t help and the distance to shut down kept counting down. It hit zero and a warning came up: ‘DEF system fault, reduced speed on next start up’. So all our efforts had been a waste of time. I got it to the auction and got the heck out of there.

But the best is yet to come.

It turns out that they pumped up the tire on the second truck and gave it to another crew. As that crew was driving on the Thruway, that very same wheel decided to follow its own path and left the truck for a trip into the woods. Fortunately, the driver got it pulled over and they sent a wrecker to pick it up. Now I know why we had to hand check every lug nut on the school buses daily.

It’s not just a job, it’s an adventure.😫

Currently looking at a 2021 Honda Passport EX-L at the dealership. Miles a bit high at 78k. Good maintenance records. Local 1 owner. Dealership is asking $24,600, which included $1,000 off for financing. I offered $23,240. Salesman says they paid $22,000 for it. The car hasn't been inspected yet. We're putting $500 to hold. Wait for inspection. Car is in great conditions. Good tires. Only 5 small rock chips. Thoughts?

————————————————
You have no way of substantiating what the dealer paid nor should you care. It’s what you’re paying that counts. Pack a lunch and continue negotiating.

jmonroe

Former GF and I cruised a lot. Since then, I've gone solo several times. If you like not having plan anything when going from place to place, it's pretty much a slam dunk. The ships these days are floating cities (including Hospitals on board). Multitudes of restaurants, bars and entertainment on board. They go out of their way to do everything for you.

Last one I took was a year ago. Two weeks duration. Hit Spain, the French Riviera, Italy. Loved it. Then, after completing that one, immediately hopped on another one that was transatlantic, taking me to NYC. The two were quite different. The first was a convenient way to see historical sites like the Coliseum, Sargrada Familia, Monte Carlo, etc.

The 2nd was all about sailing with nothing but ocean for several days. I didn't think I'd care for that, but actually met some wonderful people and had a good time.

Cost wise, I think it ended up being $150/nite average, but that included the cabin with a balcony, all food, all drinks, entertainment, etc. Worth it to me to have a rom steward clean my cabin very day.