Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

pensfan83

Glad to see and hear everyone in Florida came trough everything ok.

ab348

oldfarmer50 said:

sda said:

I like the white Intrigue parked in front of the garage. It was an unappreciated car that was really very nice.

Did the 3.5L Shortstar in that car have the same problems as the Northstar v8?

It seemed a pretty good engine. But it did have some leakage issues. Mine always had a mysterious seeping from the cooling system that nobody could ever find, and the dealer finally prescribed these GM "Cooling System Sealing Tabs" which were these large tablets the size of something an elephant might take, which you crumbled into the rad. I remember reading the package and they contained a bunch of organic things like turmeric. My buddy's Intrigue didn't have that problem but did have the oil leak issue a lot of Northstars had. The dealer fixed it under warranty by pulling the engine and disassembling much of it to replace a lot of gaskets. Took several days, must have cost GM a bundle.

fintail

It was a mess, no doubt less so because of less population here, even more so at the time. I lived in the same place as now, I am on the same grid as the local high school which was used as a shelter, so my power was back within 12 hours. The NE 8th area had more electricity than most, I recall long lines at the gas stations from people in areas still without power. Got to miss a couple days of work, too.

suydam said:

I lived through that storm. Temperatures were well below freezing. We were without power for 5 days. I found one of the last hotel rooms in our little area for my elderly father and I stayed with him. A friend took our dogs. Spouse and 2 kids slept in a campus lobby that had power. It was crazy. But not nearly as many people affected as this Florida storm.

fintail

That's the way to go - let it go now, and maybe get some enjoyment out of setting it free. I moved 12 years ago and donated or tossed a ton of stuff. The remaining stuff has multiplied too, it will eventually be time for a thinning of the herd again.

Some of the boomer-hoarders out there, with houses full of collectibles, might not be pleased in another 10-20 years when they see what the market has done with their one-popular stuff, or their kids will be burdened with all of the clutter, and sell it all at a pittance to be rid of it (and to sell the house bought back when it was a more realistic purchase). Young people don't collect so much anymore. Of course, if someone collects something for fun or security blanket reasons, the pain may be less.

houdini1 said:

We went thru that about 10 years ago. Gave away tons of stuff. Wife and I feel the same about getting rid of what we don't need. Now 10 years later, we need to do it all over again !!

explorerx4

The reason we went to look for the farmer was that the porch was locked, so we couldn't get to the Horseradish.
He said had to start locking the porch because kids were stealing the money out of the cash box.
Didn't sound senile to me.

jmonroe

abacomike said:

sda said:

abacomike said:

We lost electricity at 10:15 PM last night.  Still no power and no timeframe as to when it will come back on.  Very dark in the house because the hurricane shutters are in place so I am using a candle right now.  At least I have access to data from T-Mobile, but battery power is getting low on my iPhone.  I will have to venture outdoors to get into my car so I can charge the phone.

My brother and his SO have no access to data from Verizon and MetroPC for their phones.

No flooding here and, as far as I can tell, no damage to the house or roof.  I will try to return to South Florida tomorrow or early Wednesday.  I have a full tank of gas but with the horrendous traffic I am expecting from those returning south, I hope it will be enough.

Glad you are safe and damage minimal. I realize your post was from this morning. Does your app show that power is up at your condo?

I just arrived home.  6-1/2 hour drive - I must have passed 500+ bucket trucks and the same number of tree

Good to hear Mike. I just spoke with my Delray Beach SIL about 20 minutes ago and she said they were spared in her neighborhood. When she had a couple of the hurricane shudders opened late yesterday afternoon she did not see much of anything in the streets. Her only problem was the power went out at 10 last night but was restored by 10 this morning.

Yep, they dodged a bullet in that area.

jmonroe

explorerx4

A lot of people here in New England had family/ friends who now live in Florida.
We watched the weather reports very closely.
An aunt of my wife is on oxygen full time. Her husband said she had enough for about 2 1/2 days.

Mr_Shiftright

My elderly cousin in Sarasota had to go to a special needs shelter. That couldn't have been fun for her.

jmonroe

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

roadburner

I let mys on drive the X3 and 2002 on my gravel farm road; not a big deal IMO.

suydam

We started all 3 kids driving in school parking lots after hours. They aren't on the road. Why not?

stickguy

well, these days with litigation and such, I would not (and didn't). Not worth the risk, especially in a public place. If you happened to get caught, there could be nasty ramifications with tickets, insurance, not being able to get a permit, etc.

Different story on private property, like driving around on your farm or a long driveway of some sort. But in a school lot, never know who might show up.

Though I am a worry wart about this kind of stuff!

and the why not? Well, it is illegal.

cdnpinhead

I started my driving career on an International Cub tractor at the fist hatchery that my father managed, then graduated to the full-size International at the same place in San Marcos, TX, all on government property. Felt like a million dollars. In flyover country (you know, those "red" areas) kids start driving about the time they can see over the steering wheel, on their family farm, and my thing was similar to that. So long as it's not on public roads, go for it.

stickguy

I got to drive a small Ford (I think) tractor on my grandparents property in Vermont, when I was about 7. That was fun!

fordfool

What do you suppose the roof racks are for? For those who do want to take it with them?

tjc78

@jmonroe
In parking lots and a little private property I learned to drive about two years prior to ever getting a permit.   I remember the driving instructor saying on my first day "well this is obviously not your first time"

driver100

fordfool said:

What do you suppose the roof racks are for? For those who do want to take it with them?

Some basketball players are like 7'8", so the roof racks come in handy in those cases

driver100

My father used to give me driving lessons when I was 14 and 15 at a supermarket parking lot...on a Sunday when they used to be closed on Sunday.
There are usually factory or office building lots that are empty on the weekends, it is private property so not too much can happen, so I would risk it. These days I would probably want a definitive answer about what my insurance would cover. Don't want the kid stepping on the gas instead of the brake and hitting something and doing $1 million worth of damage. Just a guess, but, I think you would be covered.

Like anything, the sooner you start learning the better you will pick it up.

I taught driving to high school students 40+ years ago, and the one's who were hardest to teach were from countries where they weren't used to being in a car....China comes to mind as a big one. A child growing up with cars has a real advantage.....as with most things.

JM, or maybe your father senses your son is more responsible than you were at that age

oldfarmer50

jmonroe said:

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

With a 15yo teen who is hot to trot I'd say it's fine to let him/her move the car in a parking lot or driveway under supervision...but ONLY under supervision.

When I was 15 I suddenly got the bug and begged my father to start showing me how to drive in our long driveway. I did fine so he let me go up and down and turn around on my own. Took a week of that for me to get over confident and back it through the garage center post.

Even good kids are stupid when it comes to judging risk.

oldfarmer50

P

stickguy said:

well, these days with litigation and such, I would not (and didn't). Not worth the risk, especially in a public place. If you happened to get caught, there could be nasty ramifications with tickets, insurance, not being able to get a permit, etc.

Different story on private property, like driving around on your farm or a long driveway of some sort. But in a school lot, never know who might show up.

Though I am a worry wart about this kind of stuff!

and the why not? Well, it is illegal.

A permit is no magic shield. 2nd time out with a permit my younger son ran the car into a parked van owned by a convent. The nuns were very kind and allowed me to pay for the damage with no police or insurance involvement.

oldfarmer50

fordfool said:

What do you suppose the roof racks are for? For those who do want to take it with them?

That's for folks who want the economy funeral services. You have to wait while they drop the 1st class passenger off first.

oldfarmer50

Story on hurricane flood cars this morning. They said in Florida between 200 and 2000 cars (seems low) and in total 500k to 1 million. Texas must account for most of them.

They showed how it took only 5 hours for a crew to clean up a car so it "looks" ok. I didn't know there were professionals who did this but they showed a time lapse where a Fusion was pulled apart and washed off.

They also said many people with no comprehensive insurance will try to clean them up themselves and pawn them off. These will be the ones that have no salvage title because they didn't go through a claim.

I guess I have to give up dreaming about my southern fantasy cars.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe said:

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

Took a week of that for me to get over confident and back it through the garage center post.

Even good kids are stupid when it comes to judging risk.

And, then you drove school buses, so you must have learned something OF. Up here there is a real shortage of school bus drivers, people don't want to do it too much any more. They interviewed a guy who did it last year and he explained why it is hard to find drivers. The course is 50 hours long and you have to know your stuff, only a large truck license is harder to get. They have to arrive 30 minutes early and do a complete check of the bus before going out. Drive the route for 2 or 3 hours. Then, unpaid time until the next pick up. Pick kids up and get paid for 2 or 3 hours. All this for minimum wages which are about $12 an hour here. This guy made about $600 every 2 weeks....and, he had to drive around with all these kids. He said he could make a lot more with less responsibility, driving a garbage truck!

stickguy

My thought of getting a used car is impacted now with all the water damaged. Need to be specially careful with carfax to make sure it was always up this way. Or that dealer had it before late August! That and a Good PPI should cover it. Not as concerned about getting a washed car as prices spring because cars will get sent down south. Sometimes supply and demand works against you.

tjc78

If I were you I'd look into a cheap lease again.  For sedans there are just so many sub $300 options nicely equipped.  

ab348

cdnpinhead said:

I started my driving career on an International Cub tractor at the fist hatchery that my father managed, then graduated to the full-size International at the same place in San Marcos, TX, all on government property. Felt like a million dollars. In flyover country (you know, those "red" areas) kids start driving about the time they can see over the steering wheel, on their family farm, and my thing was similar to that. So long as it's not on public roads, go for it.

When I was 11 years old the parents bought a place in the country, 7 acres, partially cleared, plus a house and garage, on a lake. Beautiful spot actually, they never should have sold it, but that's another story. A couple of years after getting it Dad thought he'd try his hand at being a gentleman farmer and bought a 1947 Ford-Ferguson tractor with some implements. He plowed up a section of field and we eventually planted rows of different vegetables. The work involved in that seemed out of proportion to the result so that didn't last long but the tractor was fun for 13 year-old me to drive around.

Around that same time my oldest brother picked up (probably free) an old Ford consul, something like this one, to use as a "woods car", which I got to drive around the property too.



That didn't last too long but then they picked up a '63 Chevy pickup for cheap which was actually licensed for a while and I also drove that around the property. By the time I was 14 or 15 I could handle a vehicle and knew how to shift gears but had never driven on a road. I remember just before I got my drivers license that Dad brought home a used but fairly new Volvo 164 from the dealer to try out. It had a manual transmission and he let me drive it on the country road there while he sat in the passenger seat, and I had no difficulty.

Driving experience helps a lot (though some people never seem to get comfortable with it) so probably the more you have a chance to do this sort of thing in advance, the better.

qbrozen

I never drove until driver's ed, which was supplied by our high school. You went there instead of gym class once a week for a semester. After completing the course, you got your permit. I only attended 3 sessions before the instructor decided I needed no assitance and he handed me my permit and told me to not come back so he could focus on those who needed help. I learned everything I needed to before getting behind the wheel merely by paying attention as a passenger for 16 yrs.

Of course, I did not go back to gym. It gave an excuse to cut class the rest of the semester.

fintail

They say hearses don't have luggage racks, not so true in Europe. You can even find them on later models:



I suspect just for decoration, although I once thought they might be used to maybe haul flowers or something.

I remember practicing driving with my dad in a high school gym parking lot, which was near where I lived at the time. I can't recall if I had my permit, I might not have, as it was a small town and my dad wouldn't have cared. I did a bit of parking practice and low speed maneuvering in my dad's 60 Ford wagon, which was a bit larger than the typical car in the 90s. I think he figured that if I could park that gigantic thing, I could park anything.

I sometimes wish I could track down that car, out of all the cars my dad had when I was growing up, the 60 Ford sticks with me the most, an insanely rare and cool ride. After he sold it, it dropped off the face of the earth, I have a suspicion it was exported. It was pretty much like this:

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe said:

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

Took a week of that for me to get over confident and back it through the garage center post.

Even good kids are stupid when it comes to judging risk.

And, then you drove school buses, so you must have learned something OF. Up here there is a real shortage of school bus drivers, people don't want to do it too much any more. They interviewed a guy who did it last year and he explained why it is hard to find drivers. The course is 50 hours long and you have to know your stuff, only a large truck license is harder to get. They have to arrive 30 minutes early and do a complete check of the bus before going out. Drive the route for 2 or 3 hours. Then, unpaid time until the next pick up. Pick kids up and get paid for 2 or 3 hours. All this for minimum wages which are about $12 an hour here. This guy made about $600 every 2 weeks....and, he had to drive around with all these kids. He said he could make a lot more with less responsibility, driving a garbage truck!

Wow! 12 bucks? I got paid $24 and they were still so short handed they had mechanics and dispatchers covering runs. Why would anyone work for that considering the responsibility and scrutiny you're under?

Do they drug test drivers in Canada? Once they started doing that here about 15 years ago the pool of potential drivers evaporated. A joint smoked in August could ruin your career for life in September.

abacomike

jmonroe said:

abacomike said:

sda said:

abacomike said:

We lost electricity at 10:15 PM last night.  Still no power and no timeframe as to when it will come back on.  Very dark in the house because the hurricane shutters are in place so I am using a candle right now.  At least I have access to data from T-Mobile, but battery power is getting low on my iPhone.  I will have to venture outdoors to get into my car so I can charge the phone.

My brother and his SO have no access to data from Verizon and MetroPC for their phones.

No flooding here and, as far as I can tell, no damage to the house or roof.  I will try to return to South Florida tomorrow or early Wednesday.  I have a full tank of gas but with the horrendous traffic I am expecting from those returning south, I hope it will be enough.

Glad you are safe and damage minimal. I realize your post was from this morning. Does your app show that power is up at your condo?

I just arrived home.  6-1/2 hour drive - I must have passed 500+ bucket trucks and the same number of tree

Good to hear Mike. I just spoke with my Delray Beach SIL about 20 minutes ago and she said they were spared in her neighborhood. When she had a couple of the hurricane shudders opened late yesterday afternoon she did not see much of anything in the streets. Her only problem was the power went out at 10 last night but was restored by 10 this morning.

Yep, they dodged a bullet in that area.

jmonroe

Now that I have slept a bit, went out for food and milk, and filled the car up with premium unleaded fuel, I have a few minutes to detail what I've seen locally and on the way down from the Jacksonville area.

When I left late yesterday afternoon, quite a few trees were down on my way to I-95. Quite a bit of flooded roads as well. Once I got on I-95 South, things went fine until I was about to hit the junction of I-4. That's when things slowed to a snail's pace. What made things worse was the hundreds and hundreds of out of state electric company trucks, bull dozers, tree companies, etc., jamming up the traffic. It was a convoy with State Police leading the line of trucks. I had to deal with that all the way down to Fort Pierce and then again on the Turnpike South.

When I exited the Turnpike, there were many, many downed trees so I had to zig-zag the two blocks from the Turnpike to the entrance to my Condo development. Once inside the Condo community, there were dozens and dozens of downed trees that I had to circumnavigate to get to my condo unit. Once there, I parked and brought up my luggage.

If found one small crack in a pane of glass in my bedroom window. I am not going to deal with that right now with all the contractors and glass companies dealing with much worse situations than mine. I will have it fixed when I get the chance and when things settle down in a few weeks/months.

My electricity was down for only 12 hours or so according to my neighbors. So whatever food I had left in the freezer, which was not much, and the fridge, which also was not much, was edible.

Luckily, when I got out of bed this morning, I received an email from one of the local grocery stores that they were opening at 8:00 AM. I also checked GasBuddy and saw that Costco was open as was a much closer Shell station. There were only 2 stations within 10 miles that had gasoline. I decided to pay the 40 cents a gallon more at Shell because I imagined Costco would be jammed. I didn't even have to wait for a pump. I filled the tank up. Port Everglades is still closed and that is where 95% of all our gasoline comes in from the Gulf of Mexico ports so the gas these two stations had was probably trucked in from other locations, I then went shopping. No bread, but I was able to get a gallon of milk that is still good for 10 days, some rye bread, hot dogs, salami, eggs, cheese, margarine, grapefruit juice, hot dog buns and some flour tortilla wraps. Also was able to get 4 cans of Tuna Fish.

So, I guess I made out much better than most of the folks down here. Over half a million people in Broward County are without power and about the same number in Miami/Dade County.

I just spoke with my brother in Ponte Vedra (just south of Jacksonville in the Nocatee Community) and he still has no electric power. He had to throw out everything in his fridge and freezer and has only a little dry goods type food. He said he is going to have to go out and find a restaurant that is open in order to eat. I feel so sorry for him. He was so nice to allow me and his SO to come up there and flee the southeast coast and Orlando for her. But now, he is the one in a pickle, so to speak. I wish I could do something for him, but he can't leave his house for too long without power. I just pray they get power to him in the next few hours. All the trucks were headed to south Florida - so I assume Florida Power and Light is not as concerned with an upscale community of single family homes as they are with the southern service areas.

So, in a nutshell, that is the situation down here. I just need to unwind now and relax now that I have gasoline and some food.

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

My thought of getting a used car is impacted now with all the water damaged. Need to be specially careful with carfax to make sure it was always up this way. Or that dealer had it before late August! That and a Good PPI should cover it. Not as concerned about getting a washed car as prices spring because cars will get sent down south. Sometimes supply and demand works against you.

You're probably less likely to get a wet car from a brand name dealer and even the indie lots probably wouldn't risk the penalties for selling one without telling you.

What I worry about are the private sellers who didn't have insurance so no claim was filed thus no title brand. They clean them up an sell them on CL as ticking time bombs.

I was watching some YouTube videos on how to spot a flood car and most of the stuff like checking oil and air cleaners would seem to be the first thing a scammer would fix.

roadburner

cdnpinhead said:

I started my driving career on an International Cub tractor at the fist hatchery that my father managed, then graduated to the full-size International at the same place in San Marcos, TX, all on government property. Felt like a million dollars. In flyover country (you know, those "red" areas) kids start driving about the time they can see over the steering wheel, on their family farm, and my thing was similar to that. So long as it's not on public roads, go for it.

My son started on a Power Wheels Jeep back in the '90s when the driveway was 2,500 feet long. Every day-weather permitting-he would drive out and back while my wife and I walked alongside. I wish that Jeep had an odometer; I bet he put over 100 miles on it at least...

jmonroe

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe said:

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

With a 15yo teen who is hot to trot I'd say it's fine to let him/her move the car in a parking lot or driveway under supervision...but ONLY under supervision.

When I was 15 I suddenly got the bug and begged my father to start showing me how to drive in our long driveway. I did fine so he let me go up and down and turn around on my own. Took a week of that for me to get over confident and back it through the garage center post.

Even good kids are stupid when it comes to judging risk.

Thanks all for your opinions. It looks like I'm in the minority about thinking it's not OK to drive in a private or public lot before you get your permit.

About being a good stupid kid. Son #1 was one of those. Listen to this:

One night Mrs. j and I went out for dinner with someone and that person drove. Son #1 was 15 at the time and had driven my Fathers work van many times by then in the driveway. When we left he was washing my car ('75 Grand Prix) that was parked in the driveway. I found out many, many years later, after he washed the car he decided to take it for a ride around the block. Son #2 (12 at the time) and 3 friends from the neighborhood went with him. When he got to the back of the development he decided to go out the back way onto a not too often used 2 lane narrow road for a couple hundred yards that lead to a narrow 2 lane road that ran along a creek for about a mile that then wound up leading onto a more major 2 lane road that in turn merged onto a busy 4 lane road for about 150 feet to a light where you turned right into our development.

He thought about turning around on the creek road and going home that way but figured what the heck, he was closer just going the way he was headed. Fortunately this drive was uneventful but he never figured on his brother blackmailing him for months about it. I never caught on why he was willing to do things that his younger brother had the responsibility of doing. After a few months of this blackmailing he had enough of it and told his brother, "OK, tell Dad. I'm tired of this already but I'm going to kick your [non-permissible content removed] every chance I get". Fortunately, Son #2 caved and that never happened.

As you said, sometimes you can get overconfident but you usually never fully think things through. Like having a blackmailing younger brother.

jmonroe

Mr_Shiftright

fordfool said:

What do you suppose the roof racks are for? For those who do want to take it with them?

Package deal if you're burying two at once?

stickguy

tjc78 said:

If I were you I'd look into a cheap lease again.  For sedans there are just so many sub $300 options nicely equipped.  

Most likely that ends up happening ne more time. Was hoping to avoid it, but cash savings needs time to recover! But if I lease, I want it cheap. But still want my goodies. So likely Hyundai or VW. But we shall see. Always some killer deals in the fall.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe said:

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

Took a week of that for me to get over confident and back it through the garage center post.

Even good kids are stupid when it comes to judging risk.

And, then you drove school buses, so you must have learned something OF. Up here there is a real shortage of school bus drivers, people don't want to do it too much any more. They interviewed a guy who did it last year and he explained why it is hard to find drivers. The course is 50 hours long and you have to know your stuff, only a large truck license is harder to get. They have to arrive 30 minutes early and do a complete check of the bus before going out. Drive the route for 2 or 3 hours. Then, unpaid time until the next pick up. Pick kids up and get paid for 2 or 3 hours. All this for minimum wages which are about $12 an hour here. This guy made about $600 every 2 weeks....and, he had to drive around with all these kids. He said he could make a lot more with less responsibility, driving a garbage truck!

Wow! 12 bucks? I got paid $24 and they were still so short handed they had mechanics and dispatchers covering runs. Why would anyone work for that considering the responsibility and scrutiny you're under?

Do they drug test drivers in Canada? Once they started doing that here about 15 years ago the pool of potential drivers evaporated. A joint smoked in August could ruin your career for life in September.

I am pretty sure they don't have drug testing for School Bus Drivers. It is hard enough trying to find school bus drivers....besides, smoking a joint should be allowed if you have to look after a bus full of kids.
(I wouldn't know personally, but, from what I have heard)

imidazol97

On the topic of identifying flood cars, check the rails for the front seats. Move the seat as far forward or backward as possible and look for rust. Some detailers spray paint the rails at ends to make it harder to note, but can't paint on other metal parts that rust quickly. AND fresh spray paint with no dust and lint gives away that something's been covered up.

The radio talk guy said just putting the car up on a rack will allow an experience mechanic to tell where water flooded up to inside areas that aren't easily detailed.

Can't trust CarFax and titles because some states allow titles without showing the salvage designation. The dealer record online for that brand of car should still show the salvage demarcation.

driver100

What made things worse was the hundreds and hundreds of out of state electric company trucks, bull dozers, tree companies, etc., jamming up the traffic. It was a convoy with State Police leading the line of trucks. I had to deal with that all the way down to Fort Pierce and then again on the Turnpike South.

A Nice News Story:
Ontario sending 200 workers to help restore power in Florida
Among the crews, Hydro One says it will send 150 lines and forestry staff, as well as 25 supporting resources, including mechanics, to help. Crews will bring 52 bucket trucks to Florida, as well as 30 other vehicles and pieces of equipment to transport and replace poles.

A Fun News Story:
Irma: Gun owners in Florida plan to 'shoot down' hurricane
Gun owners in Florida have vowed to respond to Hurricane Irma by “shooting at” the storm.
Tens of thousands of people have joined an event advertised on Facebook to tackle the hurricane currently bearing down on Florida, in an attempt to “show Irma that we shoot first”.

Some people appear to have taken the plan seriously, including one Facebook user who posted an image of himself holding a gun, along with the message: “I’m not going to sit around and wait, I’m going straight into the eye.”

Others responded to it with skepticism, with one user writing: “Isn't this just going to make the weather madder?”
(Nor sure if that was "fake news" )

oldfarmer50

Imidazol97 said:

"Can't trust CarFax and titles because some states allow titles without showing the salvage designation. The dealer record online for that brand of car should still show the salvage demarcation."

That's certainly one thing to look for. If a CarFax says a car started in Florida and was then registered in Vermont (a state with lax title laws) I'd wonder what they were hiding.

Not sure what you mean about the dealer record online showing salvage. Do you mean a dealer would have to reveal that information at time of sale? If you're talking about required disclosure forms where they check off if the car was a taxi, wrecked, rental etc. yes that's the law.

I can't help but wonder if some small shady buy here pay here places might try to slip one through.

houdini1

jmonroe said:

OK, this is as good a place as any to ask about this.

Last week Son #1 took his 15 year old son (will be 16 in February) for a 2 hour get acquainted test drive at a school parking lot. Had him do about everything he could think of in a school parking lot including parallel parking. He said he did pretty good for the first time and will do it many more times before he gets his permit.

So, my question is, should he have done that. My Father didn't let me near the keys until I got my permit and I didn't let either of my sons drive until they got their permits.

Funny thing about this, is that my Father let Son #1 move his work van (1979 F-150 stretch version) around his driveway many times before my Son was 16. I think my Father started this when my Son was about 13. When I asked my Father why him and not me when I was his age, his response was, "I'm a little softer now". I don't know if I was just jealous or pissed.

Anyway, still not sure it's the right thing to do. Any opinions.

jmonroe

Here is a tip for you youngsters out there. Both my sons started driving golf carts with me as a passenger when they were about 10 years old, on golf course. Killed two birds with one stone, they learned the basics of driving and both became pretty good at golf. Younger son was a PGA pro for a few years (club pro) until he decided he wanted to make a living. Older son loved the game but got married and had to get a real job. Couple of fender benders as teens but nothing serious. Both pretty good drivers and we still play golf at every chance.

driver100

Household Tip for power outages.

Freeze a small container of water in your refrigerator (should have a lid).
Once the liquid turns to ice put a penny (in Canada a nickel or dime) on top.
If you are away, and the penny sinks, then your fridge/freezer have been off for several hours.
When in doubt - throw out....it ain't worth the risk.

houdini1

cdnpinhead said:

I started my driving career on an International Cub tractor at the fist hatchery that my father managed, then graduated to the full-size International at the same place in San Marcos, TX, all on government property. Felt like a million dollars. In flyover country (you know, those "red" areas) kids start driving about the time they can see over the steering wheel, on their family farm, and my thing was similar to that. So long as it's not on public roads, go for it.

I also took that course !

driver100

Good plan houdini....how to make your kids car crazy and into golf bums at the same time
Just joking, it is a good idea, and it is a shared activity and a sport they can enjoy for many years, and they will learn something about driving....from an early age.

houdini1

oldfarmer50 said:

fordfool said:

What do you suppose the roof racks are for? For those who do want to take it with them?

That's for folks who want the economy funeral services. You have to wait while they drop the 1st class passenger off first.

When the time comes, you could ride off with my box of ashes on a bicycle.

explorerx4

Some insurance company got in trouble after hurricane Sandy because they 'forgot' to mark the titles of some of the vehicles they got through settlements. It was USAA.

tjc78

@stickguy

I'd bet a Fusion could lease out well too, lots of tech available on those too. 

Cash flow... what's that (spoken from someone in the middle of a huge remodel!!)

stickguy

Cash is all my money flowing to a college 2x a year. Thankfully 17 of 18 payments down! December and I am finally done. Then all the money goes into the house stuff I keep putting off

tbirdmarco

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bE3R2priMZY

houdini1

driver100 said:

Good plan houdini....how to make your kids car crazy and into golf bums at the same time
Just joking, it is a good idea, and it is a shared activity and a sport they can enjoy for many years, and they will learn something about driving....from an early age.

Well, no plan is perfect !!

explorerx4

In Michigan you can get your learner's permit at 14 and 9 months.