Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

andres3

28firefighter said:

In case any of you sports fans were following, my wife and I are now official under contract to buy our new home. It is a contingent sale (which in this market is unheard of), so our current home will go on the market mid-next week.

It is a newer construction home, which was intentional, so we could purchase Earthquake insurance which is only available on newer construction or homes that have had about $90k-$100k of retrofitting to the structure.

It will double our available living space and quadruple our outdoor space. Plus, and this is the best part, an oversize two car garage!

Congrats! Sounds like a winner. Hope you find a buyer soon!

I have an undersized two-car garage, and that's with an Alltrack and TTS. Imagine if my stable was an S8 and Atlas instead.

Michaell

28firefighter said:

In case any of you sports fans were following, my wife and I are now official under contract to buy our new home. It is a contingent sale (which in this market is unheard of), so our current home will go on the market mid-next week.

It is a newer construction home, which was intentional, so we could purchase Earthquake insurance which is only available on newer construction or homes that have had about $90k-$100k of retrofitting to the structure.

It will double our available living space and quadruple our outdoor space. Plus, and this is the best part, an oversize two car garage!

A conditional congrats on the new house! Let's hope your current home sells quickly.

Contingent sales are also quite rare in CO.

28firefighter

We expect our home will sell within 7 days. We are pricing at an acceptable price to us, but slightly under market value for the sake of reaching a wider audience of potential buyers.

The reason we ideally wanted a contingent sale is so we would have access to the funds, but also not end up homeless because we do expect the home to sell quickly.

abacomike

When I was in the car this morning, I was listening to FM HD, which is what I usually listen to - we are lucky to have many, many HD FM stations here in the Greater Miami/Ft. Lauderdale/Palm Beach Metro Areas. Outstanding sound reproduction. At about 5 minutes before the hour, most of the FM stations go to commercials for 5-10 minutes, then play 50 minutes of uninterrupted music. So I switched to Satellite Radio - the sound reproduction off the Sirius channels is poor when compared to HD FM. That is one of the major reasons I rarely listen to Sirius Radio - the sound quality is no where near as good as FM, or DVD or even Bluetooth off my cell phone.

Why can't Sirius/XM improve the quality of music broadcasts to be, at least, on a par with FM HD? Is it the fact that it comes off a Satellite transmission? Or does it have something to do with the receiver in the car - when the signal is received as it goes into the amplifier(s)?

28firefighter

abacomike said:

When I was in the car this morning, I was listening to FM HD, which is what I usually listen to - we are lucky to have many, many HD FM stations here in the Greater Miami/Ft. Lauderdale/Palm Beach Metro Areas. Outstanding sound reproduction. At about 5 minutes before the hour, most of the FM stations go to commercials for 5-10 minutes, then play 50 minutes of uninterrupted music. So I switched to Satellite Radio - the sound reproduction off the Sirius channels is poor when compared to HD FM. That is one of the major reasons I rarely listen to Sirius Radio - the sound quality is no where near as good as FM, or DVD or even Bluetooth off my cell phone.

Why can't Sirius/XM improve the quality of music broadcasts to be, at least, on a par with FM HD? Is it the fact that it comes off a Satellite transmission? Or does it have something to do with the receiver in the car - when the signal is received as it goes into the amplifier(s)?

When Sirius and XM were separate entities and initially came out, they had and promised CD quality audio at 128kbps. My guess is they found over time that most people didn't care and they could greatly improve their bandwidth usage by reducing the quality.

Mr_Shiftright

What do you mean "rare"? You mean people buy the house without inspection and mortgage approval?

fintail

Congrats. Is this the Shoreline place?

28firefighter said:

In case any of you sports fans were following, my wife and I are now official under contract to buy our new home. It is a contingent sale (which in this market is unheard of), so our current home will go on the market mid-next week.

It is a newer construction home, which was intentional, so we could purchase Earthquake insurance which is only available on newer construction or homes that have had about $90k-$100k of retrofitting to the structure.

It will double our available living space and quadruple our outdoor space. Plus, and this is the best part, an oversize two car garage!

abacomike

28firefighter said:

In case any of you sports fans were following, my wife and I are now official under contract to buy our new home. It is a contingent sale (which in this market is unheard of), so our current home will go on the market mid-next week.

It is a newer construction home, which was intentional, so we could purchase Earthquake insurance which is only available on newer construction or homes that have had about $90k-$100k of retrofitting to the structure.

It will double our available living space and quadruple our outdoor space. Plus, and this is the best part, an oversize two car garage!

I wish you, your wife and of course your son much luck and happiness in your "hoped for" new home. Enjoy - sounds great!

28firefighter

Mr_Shiftright said:

What do you mean "rare"? You mean people buy the house without inspection and mortgage approval?

In Seattle there are two common occurrences, in addition to homes selling quickly and for over list price.

(1) All cash buyers that close the sale within 14 days. Typically foreign money. In this case, all contingencies (inspection, financing, appraisal, title etc) are waived.

(2) Buyers that waive inspection, appraisal and finance contingencies and take the risk that they may need to bring more money to the table. Sale contingencies are generally a non-starter.

28firefighter

@fintail - yup.

fintail

I remember that style, nice cars. Angular smooth exterior, but a very Americanized looking interior. A friend of my dad's had one, and I remember the leather interior to my eyes seemed more fit for a Cadillac than something with such a modern looking exterior. The next (and final) Cressida was more rounded, finally exiting the market after the 1992 model year. I suppose it was replaced by both the Avalon and Lexus ES.

abacomike said:

My Dad owned a Toyota Cressida - I believe it was a 1988, IIRC. Great automobile - luxurious, great handling and smooth ride. He sold it after two years for only $1000 less than he actually paid for it.

Mr_Shiftright

28firefighter said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

What do you mean "rare"? You mean people buy the house without inspection and mortgage approval?

In Seattle there are two common occurrences, in addition to homes selling quickly and for over list price.

(1) All cash buyers that close the sale within 14 days. Typically foreign money. In this case, all contingencies (inspection, financing, appraisal, title etc) are waived.

(2) Buyers that waive inspection, appraisal and finance contingencies and take the risk that they may need to bring more money to the table. Sale contingencies are generally a non-starter.

So you do all your homework going in, then? Like you bring your home inspector to the open house?

abacomike

Several weeks ago, I was forced to part ways with my cleaning ladies - they had become undependable - showing up very, very late or not showing up at all. So, through one of my neighbors, I contacted a cleaning woman who is highly recommended. Today was her first day - just left.

She is totally professional and brings all her own materials and chemicals needed to complete here job. She arrived at 12:15 and left at 2:35. She was so thorough and so skilled that I didn't have to tell her what needed to be done or not bothered with. She charged me $50.00, which is a bargain. I don't use the master bedroom suite except for using the computer in that room. I never use the living room or the dining room. I eat in the kitchen at the kitchen table and only use the front bedroom and guest bathroom. My place looks great! God bless cleaning ladies - they are his gift to the aged or near aged!

andres3

Mr_Shiftright said:

28firefighter said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

What do you mean "rare"? You mean people buy the house without inspection and mortgage approval?

In Seattle there are two common occurrences, in addition to homes selling quickly and for over list price.

(1) All cash buyers that close the sale within 14 days. Typically foreign money. In this case, all contingencies (inspection, financing, appraisal, title etc) are waived.

(2) Buyers that waive inspection, appraisal and finance contingencies and take the risk that they may need to bring more money to the table. Sale contingencies are generally a non-starter.

So you do all your homework going in, then? Like you bring your home inspector to the open house?

The housing market has gone nuts! Nuts I tell you!

However, I suppose I may inherit a house in Sacramento at some point. So in that case, keep the bubble blowing!

28firefighter

@Mr_Shiftright We are buying this house off-market. We approached the sellers off-market and were able to negotiate a slightly higher than market value price but including all normal contingencies - inspection, title, finance, appraisal etc. We also were able to get the sale contingency. But yes, we have done all of our homework.

fintail

Nice. Closer-in than Lake Forest Park or Brier or whatever you were looking at before.

28firefighter said:

@fintail - yup.

28firefighter

fintail said:

Nice. Closer-in than Lake Forest Park or Brier or whatever you were looking at before.

28firefighter said:

@fintail - yup.

Kenmore. And yes. Much better neighborhood and much better commute for my wife.

stickguy

TJC, actually better to just get it over with at one shot. Often cheaper too, "while you are in there".

oldfarmer50

graphicguy said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

Saw the new version of Wheeler Dealer. Ummmm.....don’t like it as much. I’m sure the new mechanic is fine. I liked Ed much better.

I’m really crossing off shows from Velocity I don’t want to watch, and the watch list is dwindling.

However, I have been watching Garage Squad....where someone buys what appears to be a classic car, is in the middle of a restoration (or just getting the car running) and gets stumped. They come in and get the junk heap up, running and back on the road, all in the owner’s own garage.

For the most part, they don’t do much in the way of body work. Although, I did see them do a respray on an old Jeep the other night.

Their chief mechanic, Joe Zolper, is along the same lines as Ed China....really knows his stuff. And, he owns his own shop in IL. So, he’s not just an actor.

They’ve done some nice rehabs.....one rebuild made me think of @isellhondas. It was a Buick Grand National. Very cool rebuild.

Just saw an ad for the new season of Fast N Loud. Wonder if Aaron is coming back.

That would be good. Rawling's garage rehab show is terrible.

Agreed, I wouldn't lend those hoarder a dime because you know they'll trash that business again as soon as the cameras stop.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

Stocks. I hear 1/3 of your picks will go down, 1/3 will stay about the same. 1/3 will go up. You have to hope the 1/3 that go up go up, significantly more than the 1/3 that went down.

I don't do my own medical work or dental work...or car repairs, so I don't do my own stock picks. I did have a fun fund that I did well with, but don't want to spend the time. I would buy things like BP Oil after the disaster and it got hit....then it came up again. Same with Mars dog food when dogs were dying, then it came back again. But, you have to be emotionally detached to do well, I don't want the drama.

I had a school friend who moved to California and was an investment guy. I said you must be doing well. He says he manages the $million portfolios for clients...but, he goes to work on a bus....makes you think!

If you wants to bottom feed there are funds that buy out life insurance policies of terminal patients at a substantial discount. When the poor person dies ((usually in 6 mo or less) they collect the policy and make 25-50% APR.

Too slimey for my taste but some have no moral qualms.

explorerx4

I like that Car Matchmaker show. kind of harmless fun. It used to be on Esquire channel, now replaying on NBCSN.

Michaell

explorerx4 said:

I like that Car Matchmaker show. kind of harmless fun. It used to be on Esquire channel, now replaying on NBCSN.

There are several seasons of it. I've enjoyed it, too.

berri

Hope that new place works out. I can't understand Seattle prices similar to SoCal and Silicon Valley. If it keeps up techies will start leaving and the market will have to adjust accordingly.

stickguy

wait until Amazon sets up their 2nd HQ and a bunch of people relocate, and they stop expanding in Seattle.

Michaell

stickguy said:

wait until Amazon sets up their 2nd HQ and a bunch of people relocate, and they stop expanding in Seattle.

I was thinking about that - not sure how much organic hiring will take place at HQ2, wherever and whenever it opens.

fintail

There's a lot more here than Amazon. Many other tech-related firms, huge piles of (often sketchy) offshore money. I doubt the growth rates can continue forever, but I don't foresee a real crash.

andres3

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

Stocks. I hear 1/3 of your picks will go down, 1/3 will stay about the same. 1/3 will go up. You have to hope the 1/3 that go up go up, significantly more than the 1/3 that went down.

I don't do my own medical work or dental work...or car repairs, so I don't do my own stock picks. I did have a fun fund that I did well with, but don't want to spend the time. I would buy things like BP Oil after the disaster and it got hit....then it came up again. Same with Mars dog food when dogs were dying, then it came back again. But, you have to be emotionally detached to do well, I don't want the drama.

I had a school friend who moved to California and was an investment guy. I said you must be doing well. He says he manages the $million portfolios for clients...but, he goes to work on a bus....makes you think!

If you wants to bottom feed there are funds that buy out life insurance policies of terminal patients at a substantial discount. When the poor person dies ((usually in 6 mo or less) they collect the policy and make 25-50% APR.

Too slimey for my taste but some have no moral qualms.

Some life insurance policies will let you cash out half your policy (if you have the rider) when terminally diagnosed with less than 1 year to live.

Live high off the hog.

Of course, based on my experience with insurance companies (admittedly none with life) I think they could stall, and delay, and ask you to get 2nd and 3rd opinions so that they pay out half your policy only a few days before you die.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

You got it! A Dodge Aspen.

Remember about the SIL making an AWD 2004 BMW X3 into a 2WD car. I wrote an email to the local expert mechanic who has a column in our local paper. I was expecting an email back but instead I was reading today's newspaper and there is my letter and his reply! It was the first letter and was the leading headline! Here is his reply - a bit jumbled for some reason because of the service the newspaper uses;

ANSWER
I would not do it unless it was my own car because I am aware of not having the benefits of a for wheel drive vehicle. To bring a repair job from eight thousand dollars down to a few hundred dollars suggests to me that the shafts to either the front wheels or the rear wheels have been removed. There isn’t anything that I am aware of that says that a technician cannot do this for a customer but altering a driver's benefit could come back to haunt the technician if his or her action caused a mishap related to the removal of the four wheel drive vehicle. Disconnecting the front wheel drive. Your son-in-law says that his daughter will not drive the car in the winter or on the highway but that obviously is not going to happen since going anywhere, you need to drive on some type of highway and a teenager can very quickly forget a promise. To ease you mind however, converting to a two wheel drive vehicle, by removing power from the rear wheels, is not going to affect the standard operation of a normal front wheel drive vehicle. As long as your granddaughter is aware of the fact that in the winter, she is driving a two wheel drive vehicle and not a four-wheel drive vehicle.

I think we all came to the same or similar conclusion, questionable but could be done.
Myself, I just don't think it is worth the risk.

You know that if your SIL reads that he'll think it's validation of his goofy idea.

I still say present the kid with an early Christmas present.

explorerx4

That 'mechanic' who replied to Driver100 doesn't even know an X3 is RWD?

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

You got it! A Dodge Aspen.

Remember about the SIL making an AWD 2004 BMW X3 into a 2WD car. I wrote an email to the local expert mechanic who has a column in our local paper. I was expecting an email back but instead I was reading today's newspaper and there is my letter and his reply! It was the first letter and was the leading headline! Here is his reply - a bit jumbled for some reason because of the service the newspaper uses;

ANSWER
I would not do it unless it was my own car because I am aware of not having the benefits of a for wheel drive vehicle. To bring a repair job from eight thousand dollars down to a few hundred dollars suggests to me that the shafts to either the front wheels or the rear wheels have been removed. There isn’t anything that I am aware of that says that a technician cannot do this for a customer but altering a driver's benefit could come back to haunt the technician if his or her action caused a mishap related to the removal of the four wheel drive vehicle. Disconnecting the front wheel drive. Your son-in-law says that his daughter will not drive the car in the winter or on the highway but that obviously is not going to happen since going anywhere, you need to drive on some type of highway and a teenager can very quickly forget a promise. To ease you mind however, converting to a two wheel drive vehicle, by removing power from the rear wheels, is not going to affect the standard operation of a normal front wheel drive vehicle. As long as your granddaughter is aware of the fact that in the winter, she is driving a two wheel drive vehicle and not a four-wheel drive vehicle.

I think we all came to the same or similar conclusion, questionable but could be done.
Myself, I just don't think it is worth the risk.

You know that if your SIL reads that he'll think it's validation of his goofy idea.

I still say present the kid with an early Christmas present.

I doubt if he will see the article, SIL gets a different local paper.
I am thinking, the BMW official repair must have included a lot of other things wrong to get the estimate to $8000!
I bet there are a lot of other things wrong that aren't getting fixed....that was just enough to make it run.....maybe.
I wouldn't buy granddaughter a car, she is a student, should be able to live without a car, and the ungrateful SIL would just think he pulled off a master con....got me to buy a car he should be buying.

driver100

explorerx4 said:

That 'mechanic' who replied to Driver100 doesn't even know an X3 is RWD?

Good point! Will it make much difference though....I guess the cheap fix was to make it FWD, which isn't the normal mode....but, for the purpose of a cheap fix guess it could suffice.

tbirdmarco

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=P6FH4qk9XG8

tbirdmarco

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MUse2FEZe8g

28firefighter

stickguy said:

wait until Amazon sets up their 2nd HQ and a bunch of people relocate, and they stop expanding in Seattle.

Amazon just leased all of the office space in a building under construction that will be the second tallest in Seattle. 722,00 sq feet of office space.

Their growth here isn't going anywhere.

isellhondas

driver100 said:

imidazol97 said:

ab348 said:

It reminds me of a 1969 Buick.

That's an insult--to the Buick. That dash is, well, not appealing.

Personally, I think it is much smarter than a 69 Buick dash,

That's a Riviera dash! We once owned a 1969 Riviera and we've owned a couple of 1965's. Great cars!

berri

Long term, I dunno. Seattle is a neat area, but I have to think that if you graduate from somewhere like Cal Tech with comparable job offers, California will generally have an advantage over Seattle when cost of living becomes close. I don't see Seattle collapsing or anything. I think it has the potential to stagnate down the road though compared to some other areas. If you purchase for the long term, that is not a big deal. But if your horizon isn't clear and the math starts favoring renting v. owning, real estate can become vulnerable. Frankly, if home ownership is an individual's primary concern, they probably should be looking beyond the west coast (all other things being equal). The one thing a younger person should not do; put so much into a house that they have to hold back on their retirement investing. In most scenarios, over the many years of work, home ownership will not yield what the market will in wealth accumulation, particularly in a local market that has people strapped to get into a house (and the incremental tax bracket advantage won't offset that over the life of the mortgage).

btw, do you know the length of the Amazon lease? A lease is seldom an eternity. I suspect Amazon is banking on a high continued growth rate and this second HQ thing is about geographically diversifying to an area with good STEM and lower costs. It will be interesting.

28firefighter

@berri Not sure about the length of the lease but generally have the same concerns as you do. I'm fully expecting that at some point the market will stagnate and or start dropping a bit. That said, @fintail has mentioned numerous times that he knows people that have tied up their retirement in the increasing real estate market here, which is risky business. I know a lot of people that have done the same.

My wife and I are both 30, so we are intentionally purchasing well below our means (still way more than I want to spend) so we can continue maxing out our retirement investment, take vacations, etc. Home ownership at this point is a means of arresting the cost of living associated with the rental market.

berri

Sounds like some good financial planning 28!

fintail

Yep. I know people who put very little into retirement, as they are counting on the house to be a lottery jackpot like it was for their lucky generation parents. Not sure if that will pan out, but I understand the pressure to have a house when you have kids. These people also keep away from nice cars, vacations, etc, it all goes to the house. It brings up the question of do you own the house, or does the house own you? Being single, I don't have to get caught up in it. It's easier to justify renting in this position, especially with some of the low quality condos here, and insane HOAs. With so many young families here, legit speculators, and money-launderers, I don't see a crash. If one buys it as a shelter first, they will probably be fine and won't end up with negative equity.

For me, I don't want a mortgage more than 3.5x or so income. That rules out most livable detached houses within what I consider a reasonable commuting distance. I also like vacations, cars, and a little money in the bank. All of the affordable condos I look at seem to have apartment quality at house prices. If I buy, it won't be in the greater Seattle area.

28firefighter said:

@berri Not sure about the length of the lease but generally have the same concerns as you do. I'm fully expecting that at some point the market will stagnate and or start dropping a bit. That said, @fintail has mentioned numerous times that he knows people that have tied up their retirement in the increasing real estate market here, which is risky business. I know a lot of people that have done the same.

My wife and I are both 30, so we are intentionally purchasing well below our means (still way more than I want to spend) so we can continue maxing out our retirement investment, take vacations, etc. Home ownership at this point is a means of arresting the cost of living associated with the rental market.

jpp75

Michaell said:

stickguy said:

wait until Amazon sets up their 2nd HQ and a bunch of people relocate, and they stop expanding in Seattle.

I was thinking about that - not sure how much organic hiring will take place at HQ2, wherever and whenever it opens.

I doubt Denver is a front runner given our proximity to Seattle but I'd almost rather we don't get HQ2.

stickguy

For Amazon, I actually think the Philly area someplace is going to win. Really is a good fit in many ways.

Fin, I agree if you are single, probably better to rent. But in our case, with 2 little kids, buying was a good idea. Not sure at this point if we are ahead or not financially, factoring all the carrying costs and tax benefits and appreciation but I think we are. But there are a lot of intangible benefits to raising kids in your own house. Not the least of them being stability. No guarantee if you are renting that you can stay there for an indefinite time. Plus, finding a nice house to rent in a neighborhood like mine is extremely hard to do, and any year, you could get booted out.

roadburner

explorerx4 said:

That 'mechanic' who replied to Driver100 doesn't even know an X3 is RWD?

Exactly; some "expert"- a FWD based AWD system works in an almost entirely different way from the BMW xDrive system.

roadburner

driver100 said:

explorerx4 said:

That 'mechanic' who replied to Driver100 doesn't even know an X3 is RWD?

Good point! Will it make much difference though....I guess the cheap fix was to make it FWD, which isn't the normal mode....but, for the purpose of a cheap fix guess it could suffice.

I seriously doubt that is what was done- xDrive has a RWD torque bias- not even your nitwit SIL's imbecile mechanic would attempt to convert an X3 to FWD. Your "expert" is dead wrong.

qbrozen

fintail said:

For me, I don't want a mortgage more than 3.5x or so income. That rules out most livable detached houses within what I consider a reasonable commuting distance. 

Just curious: where did that number come from? 

stickguy

usually it is done as a percentage of monthly income. IIRC, since been a long time, 28% of net, 36% of gross? So if you make 100K/year, can pay 36K (assuming no other debt) are 3K/month.

fintail

I think it might have been touted as a rule of thumb in a finance class from ~20 years ago, based on gross. It seems to pencil out pretty well, for me anyway. If I am making say 85K, I don't want a mortgage of more than 250-300K. In my area, for a reasonable commute, that will get me a tiny modern condo, a normal condo older than me with 1970s apartment quality finishes, a normal condo with a longer commute, or a tract house with a soul-crushing commute.

qbrozen said:

Just curious: where did that number come from? 

murphydog

28firefighter said:

@berri Not sure about the length of the lease but generally have the same concerns as you do. I'm fully expecting that at some point the market will stagnate and or start dropping a bit. That said, @fintail has mentioned numerous times that he knows people that have tied up their retirement in the increasing real estate market here, which is risky business. I know a lot of people that have done the same.

My wife and I are both 30, so we are intentionally purchasing well below our means (still way more than I want to spend) so we can continue maxing out our retirement investment, take vacations, etc. Home ownership at this point is a means of arresting the cost of living associated with the rental market.

It is curious how Seattle has simply exploded in the last 5 years. I bough my home in 1999 in the Ravenna neighborhood, near the University of Washington. Retirement was not the primary goal, and I have contributed heavily to my 401K from day 1. The value of my home has increased so much that I see it becoming a nice "unexpected" bump when I do retire - either in the form of selling here and moving somewhere we would not have thought we could have, or maybe downsizing and keeping the difference.

And while it is true that Amazon is looking for HQ2, it seems like they are primed for 3-5 more years of job growth here in Seattle. Given that Seattle is hemmed in by water I see home prices continuing to climb.

Only time will tell.

qbrozen

stickguy said:

usually it is done as a percentage of monthly income. IIRC, since been a long time, 28% of net, 36% of gross? So if you make 100K/year, can pay 36K (assuming no other debt) are 3K/month.

It all seems so random. Do your numbers include taxes and insurance? Using 28% of net, we are about $500/mo on the wrong side of our mortgage when you add in taxes and insurance. But using fin's method, which only utilizes principle borrowed, we are only in for about 2.1x annual gross income.

of course, the banks allow WAY more. We carry a mortgage on this house plus our old house. We qualified with no rental income at the time and our salaries from 2 yrs ago. That was all about 3.7x gross income or I believe 48% monthly is the number the banks allow.

ab348

Brief update on my buddy who moved to the boonies: the mega-garage is almost ready for occupancy and not wanting to have any extra space, his wife bought herself a birthday present this week, an '87 Buick Grand National she has supposedly known of since new. Bought it from original owner, needs very little, etc etc. so they now have 4 collector cars and 3 everyday cars. I also expect he will get some kind of plow vehicle before much longer. They only way everything can fit in the new structure is if they install 2 storage lifts.

snakeweasel

Mr_Shiftright said:

driver100 said:

driver100 said:the

driver100 said:

driver100 said:

 I have that question that I wanted a mechanic to answer.....Could it be unsafe making an AWD BMW X3 into a 2WD car? I got some good answers here but I would like a mechanic to explain whether it can be done safely and the reasons. 

I am not a mechanic but I will say that it can be done safely if you have a mechanic that has the skills to do it and you don't skimp on the funds. The next question is why do it and is it worth it?

He did it because the dealer wanted $8000 to fix the car. He got a dodgy mechanic to fix the car for a few $100s, by changing it to 2WD. It just sounds like it is asking for trouble, but, I can't get a definitive answer as to how. I hadn't thought of it but maybe I can write to BMW....I will see if that is possible. It is possible....I sent BMW the question....see when and IF they get back!

Remember I said it could be done safely if you have the right person for the job and spend enough money. I don't think it can be done safely for a few hundred dollars, I would think several thousand dollars at a minimum would be needed to do it properly. 

I noted that in your post. I have no idea. I have read of Jeeps being done very easily, but, I believe the JEEP 4WD system isn't as complex....it is either on or off....not working all the time to send signals to the wheels. I am sure it can be done for a price....he wouldn't have done it if it cost $1000s I don't think, although, with him, anything saved is money saved in his mind....even if it costs more down the road or if it leaves the car unsafe to drive.

4WD systems tend to be easier because in most cases (maybe all) it's the driver who decides if it's going on 2 WD or 4WD. Most systems have a 3 way selection of 2WD/4WD/4WD low. Since the vehicle can be driven strictly in 2WD mode its easier to convert it to 2WD. 

That explains it nicely, thanx.

Speaking of 4WD i would love to see Chrysler bring back the original Eagle, a 4WD sedan and a 4 WD wagon with a higher than normal road clearance. Those cars were years ahead of their time. 

Yes, fair enough but frankly they were awful cars to drive. Gutless, terrible ride. That's why they didn't sell.

Actually seeing that they were designed to be light off road duty vehicles they were pretty decent cars for the time. Sure if you were looking for sports car handling or luxury car ride you weren't going to get it. But if you needed light duty off road capability it was either the Eagle a Jeep or a pickup truck.

The Eagle was very popular with people who lived in very rural areas where they would need 4 wheel drive in the winter time. I knew someone who had one who lived in a very rural area of the state, he was almost a mile from the nearest paved road and a mile and a half from the nearest decent paved road. to him it was a godsend. 

I hear that you can still find them being used in very rural areas of the country.