Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

jmonroe

stickguy said:

sandy, for side impact, I would be more concerned with how well it is built. The VW is a good one for that. Adding an extra foot or 2 out the back really won't make much of a difference.

Not until a garbage truck thinks you're going to run a yellow light and you don't.

jmonroe

fintail

The hoping for a total thought makes me think of something else - if a car is stolen, I might not want it back. I'll always be wondering what happened, and what could go wrong.

If you want something that should crash well, get one of these

Sandman6472

Just some random thoughts I'm having which will result in nothing. Now, if totaled? That opens up a whole new can of worms going forward. Safety does become more of an issue after incidents like today tell me. Obviously, the Golf protected me when I hit my side and head against the door. As of now, got a nice size bump on the left side of my head and if I touch, it hurts. I don't touch it anymore! So the vehicle did what it was supposed to do today. And even if I had had one of those nannies in the vehicle beforehand, it wouldn't of changed the outcome. If I had more room, I possibly could've accelerated quicker to get out of that danger but split second events didn't work out in my favor today.
But luckily, I had buckled my seat belt on first thing like I normally do, Just showed me that being told over, and over, and over again when I was to do this paid off. Similar to the "don't smoke" and "don't do drugs" slogans we've all heard so many times while younger, paid off. And again, every professional who interacted with me after wards all asked the same question and that was about my seat belt being on. Obviously enough folks still don't take the seconds it takes to do this.
But, if Plan B happens, Plan A is getting my Golf repaired and returned to me by the first week of April, then I'll have to replace a totaled vehicle. So, am hoping Enterprise has something I've not driven before so I can test different vehicles. And if a hybrid is in that mix, all the better as I think it works best for most folks need. The "range anxiety" I might experience with a Leaf or similar vehicle would just take the fun of it out.

The Sandman :@

venture

sandman_6472 said:

Just some random thoughts I'm having which will result in nothing. Now, if totaled? That opens up a whole new can of worms going forward. Safety does become more of an issue after incidents like today tell me. Obviously, the Golf protected me when I hit my side and head against the door. As of now, got a nice size bump on the left side of my head and if I touch, it hurts. I don't touch it anymore! So the vehicle did what it was supposed to do today. And even if I had had one of those nannies in the vehicle beforehand, it wouldn't of changed the outcome. If I had more room, I possibly could've accelerated quicker to get out of that danger but split second events didn't work out in my favor today.

The Sandman :@

Doesn't it have side curtain air bags? If so, I wonder why they didn't deploy...or did they?

tbirdmarco

Send man sorry to hear

tbirdmarco

 About the car accident I hope 3 will fix your car like you said to the way it was prior awesome that you’re close with your oldest daughter I know you mentioned that in prior comments enjoy your day will talk more later 

tbirdmarco

Nothing wrong with random thoughts Cindy we shall see

tbirdmarco

 Nice explore to getting your new ride tonight post bunch of pics for everyone not so much me ha ha Ha 

driver100

tbirdmarco said:

Nothing wrong with random thoughts Cindy we shall see

And don't call him Cindy!

driver100

Sandman, I feel for you....not your fault but you go through the hassle. A lot of 27 year olds don't have fully developed brains yet....they have no idea of the repercussions of their actions. He could have been texting or calling or tuning his radio and put his foot on the gas.

About what to buy next if you have to get a replacement. I say the more metal around me the safer I feel. I am sure some people buy SUVs and especially trucks for that reason. I think there is a fine balance that you also have to get what you really want and also what you can afford.

The garage should know pretty quickly what the chances are of repairing or replacing the car are. I know it isn't too helpful, but, at least you are in reasonable shape...it could have been a lot worse....but, you will probably find more pain over the next few days.

driver100

jmonroe said:

driver100 said:

Ya know, after listening to the two of you discuss you tennis skills, it doesn't sound like either of you are all that good. So yeah, I'll shine your cars with one hand, and play both of you with the other and I'll still win. :@
jmonroe

JMonroe...you are on...if you also pick up the balls. Do you play with a wannabe racquet too?

Why do you ask, you worried? :@

jmonroe

Just so you know....these racquets are illegal;

driver100

jmonroe said:

stickguy said:

sandy, for side impact, I would be more concerned with how well it is built. The VW is a good one for that. Adding an extra foot or 2 out the back really won't make much of a difference.

Not until a garbage truck thinks you're going to run a yellow light and you don't.

jmonroe

I sometimes think of that. The insurance company had to pay to replace a $79k car...but, not too much medical expense. If we were driving something like a Fiat 500 there would probably have been astronomical medical bills, and we might not be playing tennis...or even pickleball any more. I don't know if a trunk gives you a little bit more margin of safety, but, I say the more metal and space around me the better. I sometimes think something like a Mazda Miata would be fun, but a big garbage truck would have driven right over us and the bumper would be at about head level,,,,no desire to own one any more.

imidazol97

@mrsandman
I think I'd do my shopping for cars to replace. If you're lucky, you'll get a check in a month. If not so much, you'll get a car back that drives just fine, but will never feel the same. In that case you may be wanting to trade, but it'll have a big CarCheck on its record. Probably a straight out sale might find someone wanting a nice car who overlooks the repairs somewhat for value.

Go slow and get the medical problems treated. Even if someone's insurance isn't high enough to pay, they are still responsible. The idea that people can only be responsible for their insurance limits is ridiculous. Sue.

driver100

I see them on Hot Bench all the time....I forgot to renew my insurance. Or, they try to get insurance....after the accident. Completely irresponsible people who should never be allowed to drive again. They don't have a clue, they could cause $300000 worth of damage and they never realize....someone has to pay for that, like maybe the moron who caused the accident.

graphicguy

Sandy....very sorry to hear about the accident. Good news, all you have are some bumps and probably some bruises.

That said, if the damage is as extensive as you say it is, not sure I’d want the kind of repaired Golf you’re going to get in the deal. I’m sure you know this, but don’t sign anything the insurance company wants you to sign until you get a clean bill of health from the medical prefessionals.

And, make it a point that you had some physical discomfort as a result of the accident. That should dissuade them from trying to force you to take a car that will clearly have diminished value after it’s fixed.

stickguy

Once the shop has it in the air and pulls the wheels, the full extent of the damage should be clear. Bent or twisted structure (unibody) can’t always be pulled back once it’s been stretched is my understanding.

jipster

https://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/d/2010-mercury-milan/6514058089.html

What do you guys think of this vehicle for my son? It's Craiglist...buyer BEWARE!! See any red flags? Owner emailed me a lengthy response. Says has owned a couple years. Bought from some close friends in Florida, who bought from dealership. Says no wrecks as far as he knows. Planning on doing trans flush this weekend.Tires 1 year old. New plugs, rotors and brakes. Seems to be overpriced by about a grand. Thoughts?

jipster

From Owner: Thanks for your interest. We have owned it a couple of years. Bought it from some close friends in Florida who could no longer drive. It was purchased from a dealer in New Smyrna Fl. I have the Dealer Cert. Since we bought it I have installed new brakes, calipers and rotors, replace plugs and replace throttle body. Throttle body could have probably been cleaned but I chose to replace it. New tires installed last year. I have changed oil and filters every 3000 miles. Castrol GTX. As far as I know, never any accidents and same for the friends we got it from. Feel free to run a Carfax. Everything on the car is in great shape and works as it should. It is due a transmission fluid and filter change, which I will be doing this weekend. One tire pressure sensor occasionally blinks on. Recently took it on a trip to FL and it averaged 31.2 MPG. It has been my wife’s primary car but she now has a VW she likes better, that’s why we are selling it. We are retired and don’t need an extra vehicle. If I can answer any further questions please let me know.

stickguy

Sounds nice enough at least. If legit, the kind of car you want to buy. Likely cheaper in long run than buying one with needs.

graphicguy

Jipster....it doesn’t thrill me (but I’m sure @OldFarmer is already on his way to FL to look at it). But, given you’re not the one who’s going to be behind the wheel full time, I’d be tempted to throw 50 Benjamins at it. Looks and sounds good!

stickguy

For $5k, seems like a solid deal for a kid. Decent cars, cheap to fix.

jipster

Yeah, I think Edmunds has the car at around $5,400 private party. KBB and NADA about a grand more.  Price is front end dealers retail. Owner says he's retired, so guess he wasn't out drag racing in it?  Looks to be well cared for. Emailed him I'd like to look at it this weekend.I

 Cars near Louisville, where I live. So I'll have the drop on oldfarmer on this one.

driver100

Jip, I got an Edmunds evaluation of;
Rough
Average
Clean
Outstanding
TRADE-IN
$2,449
$2,817
$3,414
$3,674
PRIVATE PARTY
$3,385
$3,945
$4,848 Clean
$5,234 Outstanding
The car seems to be in mint condition, and it sounds like he really has kept it up. I think it would be worth while checking the CarFax report. One concern I would have - though I am a little more skeptical than average - would be a water damaged car.
I like the Milan, looks nicer than the Fusion equivalent, If I really wanted the car I would go to $5500, start at $5000. I would hope to put at least 50k miles on it, so it works out for oldfarmers rule...$1000 for every 10k miles.

dino001

jipster said:

https://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/d/2010-mercury-milan/6514058089.html

What do you guys think of this vehicle for my son? It's Craiglist...buyer BEWARE!! See any red flags? Owner emailed me a lengthy response. Says has owned a couple years. Bought from some close friends in Florida, who bought from dealership. Says no wrecks as far as he knows. Planning on doing trans flush this weekend.Tires 1 year old. New plugs, rotors and brakes. Seems to be overpriced by about a grand. Thoughts?

Assuming everything he wrote is true, the owner is pricing some of those extra maintenance care costs and I don't blame him. If the car checks out (Carfax, drive, etc.), I think it's definitely worth at high end of whatever books say. I'm sure he left some bargaining room, but I think even near 6 grand may not be too much for this one, if your next large maintenance service is in say 20-30 thousand miles (spark plugs, timing belt) and everything works till then.

I drove a rental Milan once. It was a fully loaded six cylinder. Quite nice.

jipster

driver100 said:

Jip, I got an Edmunds evaluation of; Rough Average Clean Outstanding TRADE-IN $2,449 $2,817 $3,414 $3,674 PRIVATE PARTY $3,385 $3,945 $4,848 Clean $5,234 Outstanding The car seems to be in mint condition, and it sounds like he really has kept it up. I think it would be worth while checking the CarFax report. One concern I would have - though I am a little more skeptical than average - would be a water damaged car. I like the Milan, looks nicer than the Fusion equivalent, If I really wanted the car I would go to $5500, start at $5000. I would hope to put at least 50k miles on it, so it works out for oldfarmers rule...$1000 for every 10k miles.

Thanks for the price info driver. Most kind of you. Yes, I too am skeptical... of anything that comes out of Craigslist. Seems maybe 20% of their cars aren't rebuilt, or highly suspicious. Like you,first thing I thought of when I saw from Florida was water damage. That this gentleman has owned a "couple of years"... hmmm. New tires and brakes? Hmmm. But, my general feeling is this guy is legit. I'll be able to get a better idea when I speak with the owner in person.

 The ad for the car just came out just the other day. So the owner may want to sit on his price for 2 or 3 weeks. But I'll run a carfax, print out the Edmunds TMV, use a just a small portion of the famous ole Jipster charm... drive that sucker home.  

nyccarguy

jipster said:

https://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/d/2010-mercury-milan/6514058089.html

What do you guys think of this vehicle for my son? It's Craiglist...buyer BEWARE!! See any red flags? Owner emailed me a lengthy response. Says has owned a couple years. Bought from some close friends in Florida, who bought from dealership. Says no wrecks as far as he knows. Planning on doing trans flush this weekend.Tires 1 year old. New plugs, rotors and brakes. Seems to be overpriced by about a grand. Thoughts?

How much driving will your son do? You should lease him something cheap for 3 years. A Civic, Fit, Jetta, Mazda 3...

jipster

Dino, my initial thought was owner was pricing to sell at $6,000. Owner says he changes oil every 3,000 miles!! ...3,000 is an old school oil change interval. So this guy, in 2 years of ownership, has really babied this car. He may very well not drop below $6,000. 

roadburner

jipster said:

Yeah, I think Edmunds has the car at around $5,400 private party. KBB and NADA about a grand more.  Price is front end dealers retail. Owner says he's retired, so guess he wasn't out drag racing in it?  Looks to be well cared for. Emailed him I'd like to look at it this weekend.I

 Cars near Louisville, where I live. So I'll have the drop on oldfarmer on this one.

It looks okay if it checks out. It's not far from me.

jipster

nyccarguy said:

https://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/d/2010-mercury-milan/6514058089.html

What do you guys think of this vehicle for my son? It's Craiglist...buyer BEWARE!! See any red flags? Owner emailed me a lengthy response. Says has owned a couple years. Bought from some close friends in Florida, who bought from dealership. Says no wrecks as far as he knows. Planning on doing trans flush this weekend.Tires 1 year old. New plugs, rotors and brakes. Seems to be overpriced by about a grand. Thoughts?

How much driving will your son do? You should lease him something cheap for 3 years. A Civic, Fit, Jetta, Mazda 3...

Probably drive less than 10,000 miles a year. Thinking of something nice, but if he puts a few dents in it, won't put too many gray hairs in my head.

Mr_Shiftright

Sound like front subframe and suspension damage. You've also got a good case for a Diminished Value claim after the car is fixed.

jipster

The 2007 Kia Optima, that I bought in 2012, that my daughter is driving, was bought from Craigslist. Oddly enough, it also had mid 70,000 miles, paid around $6,2000. And, KNOCK ON WOOD, still going strong. Reliable.  So perhaps an omen. 

driver100

jipster said:

Dino, my initial thought was owner was pricing to sell at $6,000. Owner says he changes oil every 3,000 miles!! ...3,000 is an old school oil change interval. So this guy, in 2 years of ownership, has really babied this car. He may very well not drop below $6,000. 

Good point Dino and Jip. The owner has put a few $100 into the car and maintains it. It is better to pay $6000 for a car that you know is well cared for, than pay $5000 for a car that is going to be in the garage a lot of the time. Over 5 years it is like $200 a year difference.......repairs on a car in bad condition could cost way more than that.

If you do go to see him Jip, advise NOT to take a sandwich.

driver100

jipster said:

The 2007 Kia Optima, that I bought in 2012, that my daughter is driving, was bought from Craigslist. Oddly enough, it also had mid 70,000 miles, paid around $6,2000. And, KNOCK ON WOOD, still going strong. Reliable.  So perhaps an omen. 

I don't know...now you are pushing your luck Jip, you are expecting 2 for 2 from CL. What are the odds?

jipster

roadburner said:

Yeah, I think Edmunds has the car at around $5,400 private party. KBB and NADA about a grand more.  Price is front end dealers retail. Owner says he's retired, so guess he wasn't out drag racing in it?  Looks to be well cared for. Emailed him I'd like to look at it this weekend.I

 Cars near Louisville, where I live. So I'll have the drop on oldfarmer on this one.

It looks okay if it checks out. It's not far from me.

Hi Roadburner. Yeah, i remember some of your stories of buying a car from the Oxmoor dealership here in Louisville. Though I can't remember the specifics, I recall you weren't too thrilled with that ownership group. ;-)

ab348

I dunno about that Milan. While well-taken care of, it strikes me as a lot of money for a black on black cloth-seat 4-banger with 75K miles.

stickguy

On cars in that price range, better to pay for quality than bling. Plus simple is cheaper to maintain. Usually.

Cl used to be much better. Quite a cesspool now when I browse. Ive about given up finding. Not many sellers left like me (what I always tried to find). Very much a gut feeling about a particular ad.

tbirdmarco

 Driver I know his damn phone voice dictation change the names of everyone lol lol

qbrozen

driver100 said:

Jip, I got an Edmunds evaluation of; Rough Average Clean Outstanding TRADE-IN $2,449 $2,817 $3,414 $3,674 PRIVATE PARTY $3,385 $3,945 $4,848 Clean $5,234 Outstanding The car seems to be in mint condition, and it sounds like he really has kept it up. I think it would be worth while checking the CarFax report. One concern I would have - though I am a little more skeptical than average - would be a water damaged car. I like the Milan, looks nicer than the Fusion equivalent, If I really wanted the car I would go to $5500, start at $5000. I would hope to put at least 50k miles on it, so it works out for oldfarmers rule...$1000 for every 10k miles.

One of the rare times Edmunds is low (just a little). I don't think $4k would be out of line on a trade. Dealer asking would prob be $7495 or $7995 and taking $6500. So $5500 private party is pretty fair.

suydam

10 year old cars in very good condition are the prize everyone with teen or college drivers look for. Hopefully it has ABS and side airbags.

xwesx

fintail said:

The hoping for a total thought makes me think of something else - if a car is stolen, I might not want it back. I'll always be wondering what happened, and what could go wrong.

If you want something that should crash well, get one of these

LOL Stop it!!! Hahhaa

xwesx

@jipster - I have have always had good luck with CL. It's really just a matter of doing your homework.

Milan is a pretty decent car. I have a coworker with a 2010 Milan, seems to be fully loaded for the year, and it has been very reliable for her (she bought it new).

dino001

ab348 said:

I dunno about that Milan. While well-taken care of, it strikes me as a lot of money for a black on black cloth-seat 4-banger with 75K miles.

Really? Six grand for a reliable (presumably) transportation with mileage that's not even half-life? BTW, unless something drastically changed in last years, I recall Fusion/Milan of those years had one of the best reliability record in the market, passing many Toyota models at that time.

Remember how much new cars cost today. New four cylinder midsize with cloth seats and just a little equipment easily crosses 25 grand today. It's not hard to see a new Focus priced near 30k on sticker (minus incentives, of course) and I'm not talking SVT, ST, RS or whatever it's called today - just "Platinum", or "Titanium" trim with normal engine.

jmonroe

jipster said:

https://louisville.craigslist.org/cto/d/2010-mercury-milan/6514058089.html

What do you guys think of this vehicle for my son? It's Craiglist...buyer BEWARE!! See any red flags? Owner emailed me a lengthy response. Says has owned a couple years. Bought from some close friends in Florida, who bought from dealership. Says no wrecks as far as he knows. Planning on doing trans flush this weekend.Tires 1 year old. New plugs, rotors and brakes. Seems to be overpriced by about a grand. Thoughts?

Didn't see this post until now. Just got back from going out to breakfast, Sam's, the bank and waiting for Mrs. j to decide if she liked a garb of some type. I know you don't want to make a move on this car until your expert poster buddy gives his two cents worth so here goes:

$6,700 is pie in the sky asking money and I'm sure you know that. First off, I'd look it over closely for everything especially for signs of flood damage. If satisfied, I'd drive it for at least 15/20 miles on all types of roads. If you still like it, I'd take it to a good mechanic to get his opinion and what he thinks about getting a Car Fax on it. Again, what do they think about flood damage. You'll probably be into it for around a hundred bucks for the mechanic and Car Fax at this point, maybe a little more, so be sure you like it well enough before doing that. If everything checks out I'd offer $5,250 and when he balks, I'd work my way up to as much as $5,700 but that would be it for me.

Just a little bit about the importance of getting a good mechanic to look it over:

When Son #1 bought his 2013 G37 from and independent used car lot in the Cleveland area in 2015 he took it to a mechanic that he did some research on in that area, and luckily for him, it was only about 3 miles from the used car lot. I was there too so of course I had to climb under it when it was on the rack. I was satisfied and so was the mechanic. He looked it over for about 45 minutes and the only thing he found was low brake pads all the way around. In fact he said, "you'll just make it back to Pittsburgh with the left front pad because it is worn that much". No squeakers on that pad nor on the right front so someone must put some mighty cheap pads on that thing. None of us even knew you could buy pads without the squeaker but they weren't there. Anyway, armed with that info he told the used car lot the pads were bad all the way around. The guy said, "that's only a two hundred dollar job so I'll knock off $200. My Son said, "if you can do that job for $200 I'll wait while you change them". The guy said, "OK, I'll knock off $325 but that's all". My Son figured he could do the job himself for less than $150 so he said, "write it up".

He still has that car and other than when his wife wacked a deer coming off the PA pike ramp last year about this time of the year he is very satisfied with the car that had around 23K miles on it when we got back to the Burgh.

Good luck and let us know how bad the guy screwed you.

jmonroe

jmonroe

tbirdmarco said:

 Driver I know his damn phone voice dictation change the names of everyone lol lol

Just make sure it doesn't screw up my name. :@

jmonroe

driver100

Hate to admit it but JMonroe made a good point in his lengthy saga. If you take it to a mechanic, and he does find something, it is a bargaining chip to reduce the price by that amount so you can get it fixed. Works well for home inspections too, if you are buying.

I think if you are going to be spending $1000s on a car....the inspection is well worth the cost, either he will find something wrong, or you will have the piece of mind knowing the car should be good to go.

thebean

@sandman_6472, did you get a scan today? Hopefully you did, as you never know about head/neck trauma. On MRI's, I used to really have issues with them, but learned to just keep my eyes shut all through them and focus on something that interests you, like cars or sports. Works well on CT scans as well, and that has helped me a whole lot. No issue for me now and I have at least 2 a year now.

Hope things turn out for the best.

thebean

driver100 said:

Hate to admit it but JMonroe made a good point in his lengthy saga. If you take it to a mechanic, and he does find something, it is a bargaining chip to reduce the price by that amount so you can get it fixed. Works well for home inspections too, if you are buying.

I think if you are going to be spending $1000s on a car....the inspection is well worth the cost, either he will find something wrong, or you will have the piece of mind knowing the car should be good to go.

Wow, he11 must have frozen over - @driver100 complimented @jmonroe.

suydam

Always get any used car checked by a mechanic.

stickguy

good in theory, but IMO does not often happen, on private party sales. Not for mainstream and cheaper cars. Those are cash and carry. And if they are good deals, they will go quick. And owners aren't interested in dealing with all the logistics. I have sold a bunch myself, and have never had anyone ask.

I discussed doing it on a couple that I was looking at, but never got that far. One was a BMW, so really wanted it on that. Otherwise, I just winged it on my own recon!

driver100

thebean said:

driver100 said:

Hate to admit it but JMonroe made a good point in his lengthy saga. If you take it to a mechanic, and he does find something, it is a bargaining chip to reduce the price by that amount so you can get it fixed. Works well for home inspections too, if you are buying.

I think if you are going to be spending $1000s on a car....the inspection is well worth the cost, either he will find something wrong, or you will have the piece of mind knowing the car should be good to go.

Wow, he11 must have frozen over - @driver100 complimented @jmonroe.

Well, it was a little left handed....the hate to admit it part.

Besides, once a year he may have something worthwhile to share.