Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

ab348

oldfarmer50 said:

explorerx4 said:

I can't believe our town ever let this house get built(built by a Madoff type back in the 80's).
https://www.wfsb.com/news/rapper-cent-s-farmington-house-finally-sells/article_2de35e74-5586-11e9-93cf-1f7f45a13609.html

Listing with pictures
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/50-Poplar-Hill-Dr-Farmington-CT-06032/2140575838_zpid/

That’s a bargain for a house that size.

Yeah, but it would need a lot of gutting and renovating in order to save your eyes.

Odd thing, it looks almost cheap on the outside. I guess the money was spent on all the gold plating and stone inside.

explorerx4

@oldfarmer50,
I can't understand why the town would allow a house with 30+ bedrooms to be built, other than the obvious 'greasing of palms'.

ruking1

oldfarmer50 said:

ruking1 said:

Reminds me of putting nitrogen in NON aircraft tires, aka. motor vehicles. It’s telling there were precious little data : mpg saving, faster/slower 0 to 60 times, track times..

You realize that they posted that video on April 1st, right?

Yes & absolutely. But the “nitrogen con cept “ dealers were charging up to $4.50 per tire, as I remember. I remember then as I did when they posted the winter/summer air video, laughing my head off.

ruking1

Yes the winter air cans are located right next to the spring air cans @ the auto parts store! You know, right next to the cans of whoop a-_s.🤣

But the post can bring up a good but TMI discussion about proper air pressure. 😴😱😜

cdnpinhead

oldfarmer50 said:

Did you get to drive one of those 7 series? I’d love one if I had the $90k.

Would you, would you really? You're a professional driver and have been for years, and I was as well, back in the day, when I drove 5-600 miles a day hauling overdimensional fragile cargo (boats).

Driving hundreds of miles a day in an excellent vehicle is a pure pleasure. Poking along in anything in 5 mph traffic, or even doing the daily 20 miles each way grind is a hell of a way to utilize an excellent vehicle.

Many of the high-end vehicles are designed for 100+ mph romps on the autobahn (or other European equivalents), but end up being status symbols here in North America -- Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Nevada, Montana, and much of several other western states notwithstanding.

Go figure. If you can't use the thing, what's the point of having it?

Yeah, I know, but I wish I didn't.

driver100

explorerx4 said:

@driver100,
I flew in an airline's newest plane a few months ago, a 737.
Just think about how many times you have flown on a plane that has millions of air miles on it.
No warranty and no guarantee it will stay in the air either.

Yeh, and look at what happens to planes every once in awhile.

oldfarmer50

explorerx4 said:

@oldfarmer50,
BTW, Governor Cuomo Bridge now?

Uh, no.

roadburner

Buying a new car to "avoid expensive repairs" is akin to buying a new car that gets better gas mileage to "save money."
Just admit you like the new car smell or the latest shiny object and don't try to justify a new car purchase as a wise financial decision. As an aside, I recall that an "expert" on another board proclaimed that leasing a new BMW every three years was the cheapest way to own one. I crunched the numbers-subtracting what I sold it for from my purchase price and adding in all maintenance and repairs- and it turned out that buying my CPO 2004 X3 and driving it for 12 years was actually $32,000 less expensive than a perpetual $550/month lease over the same period.

qbrozen

ab348 said:

I can't believe our town ever let this house get built(built by a Madoff type back in the 80's). https://www.wfsb.com/news/rapper-cent-s-farmington-house-finally-sells/article_2de35e74-5586-11e9-93cf-1f7f45a13609.html Listing with pictures https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/50-Poplar-Hill-Dr-Farmington-CT-06032/2140575838_zpid/

That’s a bargain for a house that size.

Yeah, but it would need a lot of gutting and renovating in order to save your eyes. Odd thing, it looks almost cheap on the outside. I guess the money was spent on all the gold plating and stone inside.

How the hell is the “zestimate” only $826k?! Houses 1/10 that size around me are $1.2M. And the listing history is quite telling. Yikes.

cdnpinhead

Damn -- confusing the conversation with actual data.

fintail

That house should be featured on "mcmansionhell" - those windows, that staircase, yikes.

stickguy

I have stayed in hotels smaller than that house.

Explorer, that location in Nanuet is the one I was talking about. When I was little it was in the next town over where I grew up.

driver100

roadburner said:

Buying a new car to "avoid expensive repairs" is akin to buying a new car that gets better gas mileage to "save money."
Just admit you like the new car smell or the latest shiny object and don't try to justify a new car purchase as a wise financial decision. As an aside, I recall that an "expert" on another board proclaimed that leasing a new BMW every three years was the cheapest way to own one. I crunched the numbers-subtracting what I sold it for from my purchase price and adding in all maintenance and repairs- and it turned out that buying my CPO 2004 X3 and driving it for 12 years was actually $32,000 less expensive than a perpetual $550/month lease over the same period.

I'd say buying a new car is akin to upgrading and moving to a newer better house. There is no doubt, unless you are unfortunate, keeping a car longer will cost less. In the example given about leasing......for some people who know they will be trading every 3 years and with possible tax advantages, leasing may actually cost less than owning, but, couldn't possibly be less than owning for 15 years.

But, the point is, neither is wrong. If you can maintain your car, don't use it on long trips...like 1500 miles Toronto to Tampa - don't mind spending time getting it repaired, don't care about 100% reliability, don't care about having the latest safety or convenience devices, don't get a thrill from buying a new car, and get a car that lasts there is no doubt your car costs will be less. It is two different goals.....choose the one that suits you.

But, here are some posts on the subject to think about:

Linda: We bought brand new 2014 Dodge Charger SRT8 Superbee. It is now not drive able due to cracked cam shaft, broken lifter which these have caused problems to engine. Would cost $16000 to fix. Four years old and we still owe 13000. Dealership and Chrysler Canada no help at all. Have to buy another car. It won't be a Charger. bTW we did take care of the car with it's regular maintenance.

Denice ;I had a 1997 Honda accord. The best car ever. I let it sit for 4yrs, and bought a 2001 PT Cruiser the worst car I've ever owned. The Honda has 259,000 and the cruiser has 90,000. so many parts on the Honda had decayed, and just recently burned up. Now looking at another Honda or a Nissan

driver100

fintail said:

That house should be featured on "mcmansionhell" - those windows, that staircase, yikes.

I'd put in an offer if it had a pickleball court.

oldfarmer50

Sandman6472 said:

Nope. They had just come in off the truck and were in line to be pdi'd. Our office is an HLE one, just like the Enterprise offices and they try to give us vehicles that have about 10K or more on them. Sometimes we get returns with much lower mileage or at maintenance, we pick up lower miled vehicles in the ready lines. Had one on Monday with just 2995 on the clock, still had that new car smell. Like you, every day is different with no two ever the same.
Did pick up an application at the VW store today. Asked one of the main guys if they were looking for shuttle drivers. He said fill out an app, so I got one. Have done this a few times in the past but think once I leave, they toss them. Guess they figure my cane makes me not fit to work there but today, did say that I've been at Hertz for over 5 years now but would like something much closer to home. The VW store is like 3.5 miles so would be perfect. They hire older retired men but I'm a little younger than what they normally go with. Just for kicks, think I'll fill it out tomorrow and drop it off on Thursday. I know it's a waste of time but have got nothing to loose.
Saw on Indeed, the nearby Toyota store was looking for a shuttle driver awhile back. Applied online but again, nothing. But the ad could've been a bit old. But I'd enjoy that also. I know they go from Palm Beach to Miami if need be. Again, might as well give it a try. One never knows and crazier things have happened.

When I was retirement job shopping I applied for a transporter job at a BMW dealer. They never called. I called them. They never called back.

A few months later a new guy at Enterprise told me that he had applied and been hired by the same dealer about a month after I applied. Puzzling as my credentials and driving record were much superior to his.

Who knows what strange criteria a car dealer’s HR department uses to hire.

driver100

The guy applied at just the right time. A lazy or overworked HR worker isn't going to bother going through files and try to evaluate....when a guy happens to apply at just the right moment.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

The guy applied at just the right time. A lazy or overworked HR worker isn't going to bother going through files and try to evaluate....when a guy happens to apply at just the right moment.

Yep, especially for a low level job.

imidazol97

driver100 said:

Denice ;I had a 1997 Honda accord. The best car ever. I let it sit for 4yrs, and bought a 2001 PT Cruiser the worst car I've ever owned. The Honda has 259,000 and the cruiser has 90,000. so many parts on the Honda had decayed, and just recently burned up. Now looking at another Honda or a Nissan

Another wunderAccord? I see it decayed and caught fire. Not a good recommendation. LOL

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

The guy applied at just the right time. A lazy or overworked HR worker isn't going to bother going through files and try to evaluate....when a guy happens to apply at just the right moment.

Yep, especially for a low level job.

You should have brought her a box of chocolates or bottle of wine, maybe not....might give the wrong impression.

driver100

imidazol97 said:

driver100 said:

Denice ;I had a 1997 Honda accord. The best car ever. I let it sit for 4yrs, and bought a 2001 PT Cruiser the worst car I've ever owned. The Honda has 259,000 and the cruiser has 90,000. so many parts on the Honda had decayed, and just recently burned up. Now looking at another Honda or a Nissan

Another wunderAccord? I see it decayed and caught fire. Not a good recommendation.

At least it made it to almost 300000 miles before it spontaneously combusted.

Mr_Shiftright

Yep, you buy a Honda and 22 years and 259K miles later, you got trouble with it.

imidazol97

A few years back I was getting the Cobalt serviced at my local store and the guy in the waiting room was in for his to be serviced. It had 350,000 mi on it. It was one of the earlier ones and he had a fairly long commute so the miles added on fast. I was amazed. Because like most here I consider 150,900 to be good and 200,000 mi to be a great sum of miles.

Anecdotes are nice.

Mr_Shiftright

I"m pushing toward 250K on my Dodge Dakota. I guess it's a combination of good maintenance and assembly plant luck? I don't see any reason why we can't get to 300K. That won't be soon, as it is a bit of a gas hog.

ab348

Yesterday I was behind a last-gen Chevy Cavalier on the road. The thing looked like new. Newest it could be was 14 years old. I remember when they were blowing them out after the end of production there was a row of them lined up on a dealer's front row here with "$9995" signs plastered across their windshields. Those things would run forever. Their biggest issue was that being a cheap car they were often bought by those of limited means who did not spend much on maintenance.

Mr_Shiftright

Some owners get into the bad habit of deferring too many maintenance items or repairs. Then, before you know it, you've got a list as long as your arm to deal with, and your vehicle starts to feel like a pile of junk every time you get in it--this doesn't work, that thing rattles, don't park in the driveway because of leaks, door locks don't work with the fob anymore, what IS that clunk back there?

roadburner

driver100 said:

Buying a new car to "avoid expensive repairs" is akin to buying a new car that gets better gas mileage to "save money." Just admit you like the new car smell or the latest shiny object and don't try to justify a new car purchase as a wise financial decision. As an aside, I recall that an "expert" on another board proclaimed that leasing a new BMW every three years was the cheapest way to own one. I crunched the numbers-subtracting what I sold it for from my purchase price and adding in all maintenance and repairs- and it turned out that buying my CPO 2004 X3 and driving it for 12 years was actually $32,000 less expensive than a perpetual $550/month lease over the same period.

I'd say buying a new car is akin to upgrading and moving to a newer better house. There is no doubt, unless you are unfortunate, keeping a car longer will cost less. In the example given about leasing......for some people who know they will be trading every 3 years and with possible tax advantages, leasing may actually cost less than owning, but, couldn't possibly be less than owning for 15 years. But, the point is, neither is wrong. If you can maintain your car, don't use it on long trips...like 1500 miles Toronto to Tampa - don't mind spending time getting it repaired, don't care about 100% reliability, don't care about having the latest safety or convenience devices, don't get a thrill from buying a new car, and get a car that lasts there is no doubt your car costs will be less. It is two different goals.....choose the one that suits you. But, here are some posts on the subject to think about: Linda: We bought brand new 2014 Dodge Charger SRT8 Superbee. It is now not drive able due to cracked cam shaft, broken lifter which these have caused problems to engine. Would cost $16000 to fix. Four years old and we still owe 13000. Dealership and Chrysler Canada no help at all. Have to buy another car. It won't be a Charger. bTW we did take care of the car with it's regular maintenance. Denice ;I had a 1997 Honda accord. The best car ever. I let it sit for 4yrs, and bought a 2001 PT Cruiser the worst car I've ever owned. The Honda has 259,000 and the cruiser has 90,000. so many parts on the Honda had decayed, and just recently burned up. Now looking at another Honda or a Nissan

The thing is, I don’t think it’s an either/or decision. I wouldn’t hesitate to drive my M235i or X1 anywhere. Both are in excellent shape and have yet to require any service beyond normal maintenance. As I noted earlier, it will take something with considerably more straight line performance and handling capability to tempt me to trade the M235i; the availability of more nannies or gadgetry won’t factor in to my decision. 

abacomike

Had a great day with my daughter yesterday. I took her shopping and she bought some pants, shorts, shoes, etc.  it was so nice to buy her things she needed.  Then we went out for dinner and she had a Caesar salad and a lobster tail and several glasses of wine.  I had part of her salad, sautéed mushrooms and a filet mignon.  Very enjoyable dinner.

She is in North Palm Beach today on a job interview.  Boy would that be nice if she could find something down here.  Great spending some time with her! 😛

roadburner

I took the Clubman to my local Mini dealer to have the brake fluid, coolant and oil changed. I also had them address a couple of minor issues that I did not have the time to fool with. When I picked it up this morning I was pleasantly surprised to find that the valve cover gasket and one spark plug had been replaced to correct an intermittent cylinder 3 misfire- at no cost! I then drove it to the office at-ahem-a somewhat rapid pace- and it still averaged over 37 mpg. 

stickguy

Getting lots of miles IMO heavily depends on usage. Put them on fast and easy. If you live in a mild climate, and just drive a few miles then hop on open highway to drive 70 miles at 70 mph, then back home later, you should be able to rack up 300k with the car barely broken in, since it will only take about 5 years!

driver100

roadburner said:

driver100 said:

roadburner said:

Buying a new car to "avoid expensive repairs" is akin to buying a new car that gets better gas mileage to "save money."
Just admit you like the new car smell or the latest shiny object and don't try to justify a new car purchase as a wise financial decision. As an aside, I recall that an "expert" on another board proclaimed that leasing a new BMW every three years was the cheapest way to own one. I crunched the numbers-subtracting what I sold it for from my purchase price and adding in all maintenance and repairs- and it turned out that buying my CPO 2004 X3 and driving it for 12 years was actually $32,000 less expensive than a perpetual $550/month lease over the same period.

I'd say buying a new car is akin to upgrading and moving to a newer better house. There is no doubt, unless you are unfortunate, keeping a car longer will cost less. In the example given about leasing......for some people who know they will be trading every 3 years and with possible tax advantages, leasing may actually cost less than owning, but, couldn't possibly be less than owning for 15 years.

But, the point is, neither is wrong. If you can maintain your car, don't use it on long trips...like 1500 miles Toronto to Tampa - don't mind spending time getting it repaired, don't care about 100% reliability, don't care about having the latest safety or convenience devices, don't get a thrill from buying a new car, and get a car that lasts there is no doubt your car costs will be less. It is two different goals.....choose the one that suits you.

But, here are some posts on the subject to think about:

Linda: We bought brand new 2014 Dodge Charger SRT8 Superbee. It is now not drive able due to cracked cam shaft, broken lifter which these have caused problems to engine. Would cost $16000 to fix. Four years old and we still owe 13000. Dealership and Chrysler Canada no help at all. Have to buy another car. It won't be a Charger. bTW we did take care of the car with it's regular maintenance.

Denice ;I had a 1997 Honda accord. The best car ever. I let it sit for 4yrs, and bought a 2001 PT Cruiser the worst car I've ever owned. The Honda has 259,000 and the cruiser has 90,000. so many parts on the Honda had decayed, and just recently burned up. Now looking at another Honda or a Nissan

The thing is, I don’t think it’s an either/or decision. I wouldn’t hesitate to drive my M235i or X1 anywhere. Both are in excellent shape and have yet to require any service beyond normal maintenance. As I noted earlier, it will take something with considerably more straight line performance and handling capability to tempt me to trade the M235i; the availability of more nannies or gadgetry won’t factor in to my decision

. 

......and I have older cars and took them on long trips. Sometimes something goes that you couldn't foresee.....a hose or belt breaks, a muffler rusts through, a fuse goes, fuel pump, lights don't work, a transmission part not working properly, headlight or taillight goes.......I don't want or need those problems.

A friend took his Ford F150 diesel to Florida with a trailer. Truck would hardly move....he had to stay in a small town, went to the only garage in town where they tried to fix it a few times, waited 3 days for parts.....$5000 later and with 3 days of his life gone forever he was on the road again.......I hate when that happens! :@

driver100

abacomike said:

Had a great day with my daughter yesterday. I took her shopping and she bought some pants, shorts, shoes, etc.  it was so nice to buy her things she needed.  Then we went out for dinner and she had a Caesar salad and a lobster tail and several glasses of wine.  I had part of her salad, sautéed mushrooms and a filet mignon.  Very enjoyable dinner.

She is in North Palm Beach today on a job interview.  Boy would that be nice if she could find something down here.  Great spending some time with her! 😛

Great, some good news to brighten our day......sounds like fun!

driver100

roadburner said:

I took the Clubman to my local Mini dealer to have the brake fluid, coolant and oil changed. I also had them address a couple of minor issues that I did not have the time to fool with. When I picked it up this morning I was pleasantly surprised to find that the valve cover gasket and one spark plug had been replaced to correct an intermittent cylinder 3 misfire- at no cost! I then drove it to the office at-ahem-a somewhat rapid pace- and it still averaged over 37 mpg. 

Fortunately the mechanics found it, and the gasket and misfiring cylinder were fixed before you headed out on a 500 mile trip!

roadburner

driver100 said:

I took the Clubman to my local Mini dealer to have the brake fluid, coolant and oil changed. I also had them address a couple of minor issues that I did not have the time to fool with. When I picked it up this morning I was pleasantly surprised to find that the valve cover gasket and one spark plug had been replaced to correct an intermittent cylinder 3 misfire- at no cost! I then drove it to the office at-ahem-a somewhat rapid pace- and it still averaged over 37 mpg. 

Fortunately the mechanics found it, and the gasket and misfiring cylinder were fixed before you headed out on a 500 mile trip!

Actually, I found it; I checked for faults with my scan tool before I took it to the dealer. I was planning to fix it myself. In any case, the Clubman is used primarily as my commuter car. 
Really though, I think that if you are worried about the reliability of a 5-6 year old car with less than 100,000 miles on it the real issue is the quality of the car itself. 

ruking1

Mr_Shiftright said:

Yep, you buy a Honda and 22 years and 259K miles later, you got trouble with it.

Mr_Shiftright said:

Some owners get into the bad habit of deferring too many maintenance items or repairs. Then, before you know it, you've got a list as long as your arm to deal with, and your vehicle starts to feel like a pile of junk every time you get in it--this doesn't work, that thing rattles, don't park in the driveway because of leaks, door locks don't work with the fob anymore, what IS that clunk back there?

Your number two post goes over the real issues & not the number one!

To wit, 2004 Honda Civic bought new, was sold with app 250,000 miles sold in late 2018. Trouble with it? YES & NO! Toyota Lexus, Honda has been on the most reliable & durable lists for a long time.

Most SCHEDULED maintenance was extended, not undone or ignored, i.e., 10,000 miles OCI’s @ 20,000 miles.

Unscheduled maintenance was always done. So for example, the battery gave out at approximately 7 1/2 years. It was jumped, driven to the nearest Costco with battery change tools. A brand new Costco brand battery was bought & DIY’ed app 1.5 hours later (you know how hard it is to get through a Costco line with one item), core changed, new battery installed. A battery sometimes is considered a scheduled maintenance item by some ,as 4 years is consider too long. I was used to a 9/10 year (Panasonic) battery life cycle.

So far I am very impressed with almost a double to triple wear rate of European OEM consumables versus Japanese consumables. One HUGE anomaly was 250,000 miles (& still going) on set of Japanese rear drum brake shoes.

henryn

driver100 said:

A friend took his Ford F150 diesel to Florida with a trailer. Truck would hardly move....he had to stay in a small town, went to the only garage in town where they tried to fix it a few times, waited 3 days for parts.....$5000 later and with 3 days of his life gone forever he was on the road again.......I hate when that happens! :@

"F150 diesel" ?? That should probably read F250 or F350.

henryn

driver100 said:

Linda: We bought brand new 2014 Dodge Charger SRT8 Superbee. It is now not drive able due to cracked cam shaft, broken lifter which these have caused problems to engine. Would cost $16000 to fix. Four years old and we still owe 13000. Dealership and Chrysler Canada no help at all. Have to buy another car. It won't be a Charger. bTW we did take care of the car with it's regular maintenance.

"$16000 to fix" -- say what?? Did someone misplace a decimal or what?

Mr_Shiftright

Well a new crate engine + labor + "while we're in there" might not hit $16K but it's going to be a big bill.

ruking1

No, it unfortunately sounds about right.

stickguy

Canadian dollars FWIW.

qbrozen

And its not just a matter of replacing the cam and lifter. Metal has now potentially contaminated the engine. So full teardown or just replace the engine.

henryn

Still sounds excessive to me. But what do I know? Does anyone here have any idea what Mopar gets for a crate engine?

That damage sounds like what we used to see on a much more regular basis when some would be hot-rodder missed a shift, over-revved, and blew an engine. I was under the impression that pretty much all modern cars have rev limiters straight from the factory?

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

The guy applied at just the right time. A lazy or overworked HR worker isn't going to bother going through files and try to evaluate....when a guy happens to apply at just the right moment.

Yep, especially for a low level job.

You should have brought her a box of chocolates or bottle of wine, maybe not....might give the wrong impression.

Maybe I just should have smelled her hair.

oldfarmer50

Mr_Shiftright said:

I"m pushing toward 250K on my Dodge Dakota. I guess it's a combination of good maintenance and assembly plant luck? I don't see any reason why we can't get to 300K. That won't be soon, as it is a bit of a gas hog.

The ever popular Scotty Kilmer claims that cruising down the highway at 65 causes almost no wear on an engine. He says 10,000 highway miles is equal to 2000 city miles. So a car that would last 100,000 miles in the city would go 500,000 if just driven on the highway.

stickguy

Don’t know about his numbers, but I believe in the concept.

oldfarmer50

henryn said:

Still sounds excessive to me. But what do I know? Does anyone here have any idea what Mopar gets for a crate engine?

That damage sounds like what we used to see on a much more regular basis when some would be hot-rodder missed a shift, over-revved, and blew an engine. I was under the impression that pretty much all modern cars have rev limiters straight from the factory?

If it really was a SRT-8 wouldn’t that be a Hellcat engine minus the supercharger? Can’t be cheap.

Would over-revving bust a cam shaft? Sounds like a factory defect.

Mr_Shiftright

oldfarmer50 said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

I"m pushing toward 250K on my Dodge Dakota. I guess it's a combination of good maintenance and assembly plant luck? I don't see any reason why we can't get to 300K. That won't be soon, as it is a bit of a gas hog.

The ever popular Scotty Kilmer claims that cruising down the highway at 65 causes almost no wear on an engine. He says 10,000 highway miles is equal to 2000 city miles. So a car that would last 100,000 miles in the city would go 500,000 if just driven on the highway.

That could be one of those ideas that makes sense but might not be accurate, in the real world.

Miles is miles if you think about various hazards in highway driving--lots of contamination, possible overheats, long pulls up hills. I mean, do city bicycles or motorcycles wear out 5X faster than highway bikes? How could you really quantify such a statement?

tjc78

In all reality I would think the engine is the part I'd worry least about in a modern car. I'd fear the overly complex systems around it for eventually totaling a newer car.

Mr_Shiftright

henryn said:

Still sounds excessive to me. But what do I know? Does anyone here have any idea what Mopar gets for a crate engine?

That damage sounds like what we used to see on a much more regular basis when some would be hot-rodder missed a shift, over-revved, and blew an engine. I was under the impression that pretty much all modern cars have rev limiters straight from the factory?

I think around $8K, give or take.

henryn

ruking1

The only missings part are 1. time values & $’s for R/R engine & transmission. 2.inspecting transmission 3. testing 4. Ancillary charges to pack up & ship back for fees for core & rebuild. 4. Are there VAT’s (14%?) on products? On labor? $1. usd= $1.33 CN, 14% VAT

DIY can save a bundle? 😜👍