Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

dino001

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:

imidazol97 said:

Not to change the subject, but are RMD requirements waived completely for 2020 now? No withdrawals required from IRA or 401K accounts for the year?

Correct. This article does a good job explaining it. Of course, with everything related to taxes, there are oddities and exceptions! This is the key piece:

the new CARES Act allows account owners to skip both their 2019 RMD if it was their first year and had not yet made an RMD by April 1, 2020, and their 2020 RMD.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiehopkins/2020/03/30/cares-act-drastically-changes-required-minimum-distribution-rules-for-2020/#48904cd19a07

I’m not concerned about RMD since my IRAs are all Roths. What I worry about is since I funded for 2020 based on my full anticipated salary I might be over funded based on my now reduced 2020 earned income.

How can you overfund your Roth IRA if you have lower income than anticipated? The other way is a concern (too high income), too low income can be a problem only if you make next to nothing in "earned income" (hate that term, as investment/retirement income are called "unearned", which means means what, undeserved?), i.e. essentially less than the contribution limits.

kyfdx

dino001 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:

imidazol97 said:

Not to change the subject, but are RMD requirements waived completely for 2020 now? No withdrawals required from IRA or 401K accounts for the year?

Correct. This article does a good job explaining it. Of course, with everything related to taxes, there are oddities and exceptions! This is the key piece:

the new CARES Act allows account owners to skip both their 2019 RMD if it was their first year and had not yet made an RMD by April 1, 2020, and their 2020 RMD.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiehopkins/2020/03/30/cares-act-drastically-changes-required-minimum-distribution-rules-for-2020/#48904cd19a07

I’m not concerned about RMD since my IRAs are all Roths. What I worry about is since I funded for 2020 based on my full anticipated salary I might be over funded based on my now reduced 2020 earned income.

How can you overfund your Roth IRA if you have lower income than anticipated? The other way is a concern (too high income), too low income can be a problem only if you make next to nothing in "earned income" (hate that term, as investment/retirement income are called "unearned", which means means what, undeserved?), i.e. essentially less than the contribution limits.

I think that is his point. He may have less earned income than $14,000 (assuming he contributed for both he and his spouse).

At the end of the year, you can fix that. If you've over-contributed, the adminstrator will return the overage.

jipster

On the Kia Optima, I did drive it before, I didn't really care for the interior on the two lower base models. The leather interior on the SE looks pretty good, in photos at least.

I do like the spaciousness of the Accord. The leather interior and upgraded stereo, a few.other things, are a good trade off against the hybrid powertrain I preferred.

It's raining here today in Louisville. Not up to looking at the Mazda 6 today. I'll make another attempt at the EX-L. It that doesn't work.... I'm going to buy a horse.

dino001

I almost got caught by that couple of years ago, but the other way - had some unexpected windfall late in the year, the employer paid us extra week that I did not see coming (changed the pay period to close the year) and I suddenly fell above the phase-out threshold, having contributed in full early in the year. Pulled all the stops, from taking unrealized investment loss up to a limit, added a few leftover dollars to my HSA, etc. Still was over, but fortunately it was just a few dollars, literally below any threshold that required me to take any money back (it appears the worksheet uses $100 income blocks, before applying any penalty. So I could let it go.

I looked into that return procedure, it's a real pain in the neck, because you have to estimate earnings/losses on that excess contribution and take them out, too (or you can reduce the money you pull out). The formula is not very straight forward, it's based on the whole account value on the day of contribution and day of the withdrawal., which with the fluid market becomes a real pain Another option is to pay the penalty for that year if the excess is small and roll it over to the next year as a contribution, as long as you know you'll be eligible.

kyfdx

jipster said:

On the Kia Optima, I did drive it before, I didn't really care for the interior on the two lower base models. The leather interior on the SE looks pretty good, in photos at least.

I do like the spaciousness of the Accord. The leather interior and upgraded stereo, a few.other things, are a good trade off against the hybrid powertrain I preferred.

It's raining here today in Louisville. Not up to looking at the Mazda 6 today. I'll make another attempt at the EX-L. It that doesn't work.... I'm going to buy a horse.

End of the month is next Thursday. I'd sit on the EX-L and see if they call you back. There are a million cars to buy, if they don't.

oldfarmer50

dino001 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:

imidazol97 said:

Not to change the subject, but are RMD requirements waived completely for 2020 now? No withdrawals required from IRA or 401K accounts for the year?

Correct. This article does a good job explaining it. Of course, with everything related to taxes, there are oddities and exceptions! This is the key piece:

the new CARES Act allows account owners to skip both their 2019 RMD if it was their first year and had not yet made an RMD by April 1, 2020, and their 2020 RMD.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiehopkins/2020/03/30/cares-act-drastically-changes-required-minimum-distribution-rules-for-2020/#48904cd19a07

I’m not concerned about RMD since my IRAs are all Roths. What I worry about is since I funded for 2020 based on my full anticipated salary I might be over funded based on my now reduced 2020 earned income.

How can you overfund your Roth IRA if you have lower income than anticipated? The other way is a concern (too high income), too low income can be a problem only if you make next to nothing in "earned income" (hate that term, as investment/retirement income are called "unearned", which means means what, undeserved?), i.e. essentially less than the contribution limits.

That’s it exactly, too low ‘earned’ income. I only made $13k at my part time gig last year which just about matched what I put into the Roth. This year I funded for the same amount but thanks to the pandemic I probably won’t make that much. Hence I overfunded for 2020.

Not sure what the penalty is for that.

On another topic, I’m sure the owner of this car doesn’t have to worry about IRAs.

https://youtu.be/35QMyv-CsFs

jipster

dino001 said:

jipster said:

Sorry to keep you guys hanging. Busy day. Bad news, as you know, the sales manager did not accept my offer. It was really disappointing as I thought I had an acceptable offer.

and yadda, yadda, yaddda..

I guess it's a bit of a pride thing now. If they throw me a bone, I'll buy it tomorrow. Split the difference. $100 off. 5 oil changes. A nice cold beer. Something.

Sometimes "points of pride" get in the way of getting \good things done, but of course there are limits to what we can all endure. Jip, who wants this more, you or them? Or perhaps neither? Our old long-gone friend Bobst always said you don't know if the offer is too low until you walk and they don't stop you. Then he was willing to come back or adjust his numbers when he saw that they truly let him walk.

I definitely want the car more than they want.to sell it. They let me walk...twice. At this point, after coming in 3 or 4 times to test drive cars, I would think the dealership would be happy to split the difference in the EX-L just to get rid of me.

I am getting closer to the dealers bottom line on my final offers. Think I was $1,500 (?) off on the Accord Hybrid, only $500 off on this Accord EX-L. So, getting close. If the dealership doesn't go down any $$$ when I offer.to split the money, I may counter with remove the dealer installed options of the all weather floor mats, and the trunk floor mat, which my wife likes because we go to Florida a lot. Plastic sheet just as good...no?

tjc78

Hey Jip, the Optima is a really nice ride especially in the higher trims... having said that, the Accord you are $500 apart is a good deal. As I’m sure you know (and it may have already been mentioned) the Accord will no doubt hold its value better. This may not be important if you are driving it until the wheels fall off, but a thought.

roadburner

oldfarmer50 said:

I suppose that’s because the defense attorney knows all the other stuff his client did that he didn’t get charged with. Sort of like a guy trading in a car where the dealer doesn’t know that the tranny is about to fail. He’s glad to take the offer.

Yes, or else the defendant’s case has a fatal flaw that will blow wide open at trial. Again it makes me wonder if I missed something. That said, I’ve also had cases with major issues that the defense wasn’t aware of- like a flakey or AWOL witness.

jipster

kyfdx said:

jipster said:

On the Kia Optima, I did drive it before, I didn't really care for the interior on the two lower base models. The leather interior on the SE looks pretty good, in photos at least.

I do like the spaciousness of the Accord. The leather interior and upgraded stereo, a few.other things, are a good trade off against the hybrid powertrain I preferred.

It's raining here today in Louisville. Not up to looking at the Mazda 6 today. I'll make another attempt at the EX-L. It that doesn't work.... I'm going to buy a horse.

End of the month is next Thursday. I'd sit on the EX-L and see if they call you back. There are a million cars to buy, if they don't.

Yeah, I've been tossing around that idea of waiting till the end of the month since I began looking at cars. See what happens with incentives for May. But, I'm gonna make another attempt on that EX-L.
It was saying, "buy me, Jip" on the test drive. So best to listen when cars talk to you. ;-)

stickguy

Jip, just keep the mats, etc. since you want them anyway, and no, a plastic bag is not just as good!

stickguy

jipster said:

kyfdx said:

jipster said:

On the Kia Optima, I did drive it before, I didn't really care for the interior on the two lower base models. The leather interior on the SE looks pretty good, in photos at least.

I do like the spaciousness of the Accord. The leather interior and upgraded stereo, a few.other things, are a good trade off against the hybrid powertrain I preferred.

It's raining here today in Louisville. Not up to looking at the Mazda 6 today. I'll make another attempt at the EX-L. It that doesn't work.... I'm going to buy a horse.

End of the month is next Thursday. I'd sit on the EX-L and see if they call you back. There are a million cars to buy, if they don't.

Yeah, I've been tossing around that idea of waiting till the end of the month since I began looking at cars. See what happens with incentives for May. But, I'm gonna make another attempt on that EX-L.
It was saying, "buy me, Jip" on the test drive. So best to listen when cars talk to you. ;-)

The CPO is used, so month end probably doesn’t matter since Honda as no interest in that one. Won’t count against monthly new car sales target bonus.

roadburner

jipster said:

dino001 said:

jipster said:

Sorry to keep you guys hanging. Busy day. Bad news, as you know, the sales manager did not accept my offer. It was really disappointing as I thought I had an acceptable offer.

and yadda, yadda, yaddda..

I guess it's a bit of a pride thing now. If they throw me a bone, I'll buy it tomorrow. Split the difference. $100 off. 5 oil changes. A nice cold beer. Something.

Sometimes "points of pride" get in the way of getting \good things done, but of course there are limits to what we can all endure. Jip, who wants this more, you or them? Or perhaps neither? Our old long-gone friend Bobst always said you don't know if the offer is too low until you walk and they don't stop you. Then he was willing to come back or adjust his numbers when he saw that they truly let him walk.

I definitely want the car more than they want.to sell it. They let me walk...twice. At this point, after coming in 3 or 4 times to test drive cars, I would think the dealership would be happy to split the difference in the EX-L just to get rid of me.

I am getting closer to the dealers bottom line on my final offers. Think I was $1,500 (?) off on the Accord Hybrid, only $500 off on this Accord EX-L. So, getting close. If the dealership doesn't go down any $$$ when I offer.to split the money, I may counter with remove the dealer installed options of the all weather floor mats, and the trunk floor mat, which my wife likes because we go to Florida a lot. Plastic sheet just as good...no?

Don’t forget my M235i. I MIGHT let it go for $18,000 but you’d be practically stealing it.

jipster

tjc78 said:

Hey Jip, the Optima is a really nice ride especially in the higher trims... having said that, the Accord you are $500 apart is a good deal. As I’m sure you know (and it may have already been mentioned) the Accord will no doubt hold its value better. This may not be important if you are driving it until the wheels fall off, but a thought.

Yes, pretty sure this Accord we'll keep for 10-15 years. My dad still has his 2002 Toyota Camry, around 100,000 miles. Still looks and runs good. I'm a jip off the old block, I guess.

Finally got around to taking my Mercry Mariner to a mechanic yesterday. Turns out I do not have a transmission problem, but a bad caliper. So, new pads, rotor, and calipers were $269. Pads were under warranty. $269 total. Much better than $3,000-$4,000 for a transmission rebuild. Think something may be going on with the a/c though. It's working, but making a weird scraping noise on occasion.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

jipster said:

kyfdx said:

jipster said:

On the Kia Optima, I did drive it before, I didn't really care for the interior on the two lower base models. The leather interior on the SE looks pretty good, in photos at least.

I do like the spaciousness of the Accord. The leather interior and upgraded stereo, a few.other things, are a good trade off against the hybrid powertrain I preferred.

It's raining here today in Louisville. Not up to looking at the Mazda 6 today. I'll make another attempt at the EX-L. It that doesn't work.... I'm going to buy a horse.

End of the month is next Thursday. I'd sit on the EX-L and see if they call you back. There are a million cars to buy, if they don't.

Yeah, I've been tossing around that idea of waiting till the end of the month since I began looking at cars. See what happens with incentives for May. But, I'm gonna make another attempt on that EX-L.
It was saying, "buy me, Jip" on the test drive. So best to listen when cars talk to you. ;-)

The CPO is used, so month end probably doesn’t matter since Honda as no interest in that one. Won’t count against monthly new car sales target bonus.

Salespeople and manager incentives always matter. That is what generates the end of month sales. Quotas and bonuses. It’s a used car. Individual dealer employees have the most motivation for end of the month.

graphicguy

I’ve let some cars get away from me waiting on either the dealer to “get back to me” or waiting till the end of the month/qtr, etc. Not saying @jipster may have that happen, given today’s climate. But, as others have pointed out, letting a buyer walk with the same climate, you’ve reached the end of what it takes to do a deal.

Thinking about this late night. When I bought the Acura TLX, I think I got them to $200 over invoice (actually, probably right at invoice given they negated the doc fee).

Looking at the prices and incentives I see advertised over 3 years later on the same car, if I had waited another 40 months, I could have scored a better deal. Do I care? Not one iota. It was a new refresh on a very good car. And, at least initially, it was in high demand.

I made it up on the Stinger, and then some. If you buy enough cars, I’ve come to the conclusion there’s a ying/yang to each deal. If you feel you’re at the point the deal is really good, and you like the car (or any product/service you can negotiate on for that matter), you pull the trigger.

The other part of this, you have to ask if you’d be happier with the Optima, or the Mazda 6, or even the Hybrid or TLX? If the answer’s “no”, why keep kicking their tires?

No right or wrong way, just recalling my thought process of how I’ve bought cars over the years.

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

roadburner said:

What I hate is when I make an offer and it’s immediately accepted. It’s even happened at work with a couple of plea offers; I made what I thought were some fairly tough offers and I was certain the defense attorneys would balk and make counter offers but they accepted them without the slightest complaint.
I always wonder how much I left on the table.

I suppose that’s because the defense attorney knows all the other stuff his client did that he didn’t get charged with. Sort of like a guy trading in a car where the dealer doesn’t know that the tranny is about to fail. He’s glad to take the offer.

First hand experience?

jmonroe

bwia

@jipster, while haggling over the $500 difference, you’ll also need to factor in the cost of insurance when you are looking at what you’ll be paying monthly to drive your car. The cost for new vs used or different brands and models may change the economics of the deal.

When it comes to determining the cost to insure a new vehicle, most big insurance companies make auto insurance coverage calculators available on their websites. That way you can start to get an idea of what you’ll pay to protect your potential new wheels. Read more here at https://clark.com/cars/how-buy-new-car/

jipster

roadburner said:

jipster said:

dino001 said:

jipster said:

Sorry to keep you guys hanging. Busy day. Bad news, as you know, the sales manager did not accept my offer. It was really disappointing as I thought I had an acceptable offer.

and yadda, yadda, yaddda..

I guess it's a bit of a pride thing now. If they throw me a bone, I'll buy it tomorrow. Split the difference. $100 off. 5 oil changes. A nice cold beer. Something.

Sometimes "points of pride" get in the way of getting \good things done, but of course there are limits to what we can all endure. Jip, who wants this more, you or them? Or perhaps neither? Our old long-gone friend Bobst always said you don't know if the offer is too low until you walk and they don't stop you. Then he was willing to come back or adjust his numbers when he saw that they truly let him walk.

I definitely want the car more than they want.to sell it. They let me walk...twice. At this point, after coming in 3 or 4 times to test drive cars, I would think the dealership would be happy to split the difference in the EX-L just to get rid of me.

I am getting closer to the dealers bottom line on my final offers. Think I was $1,500 (?) off on the Accord Hybrid, only $500 off on this Accord EX-L. So, getting close. If the dealership doesn't go down any $$$ when I offer.to split the money, I may counter with remove the dealer installed options of the all weather floor mats, and the trunk floor mat, which my wife likes because we go to Florida a lot. Plastic sheet just as good...no?

Don’t forget my M235i. I MIGHT let it go for $18,000 but you’d be practically stealing it.

Thx Roadbruner, sounds good, and I like your "Go fast or Go home!" motto....but just don't think a Bimmer is for me.

imidazol97

jipster said:

, I may counter with remove the dealer installed options of the all weather floor mats, and the trunk floor mat, which my wife likes because we go to Florida a lot. Plastic sheet just as good...no?

Doesn't the company that heavily advertises their mats for floors also sell mats cut and designed for your trunk?

When I got the Malibu, it was supposed to have floor mats, rubber from GM, in it, but the dealer switched sources and this car did not have mats. I was informed of that when asked if I wanted this car instead of the other from an Ohio dealer that wouldn't respond to my dealer's trade request. I bought the GM mats discount that afternoon from Ebay.

Try looking for the mat on Ebay.

stickguy

I’ve found insurance doesn’t vary much for same coverage. Going from Elantra to TLX, and old to new RDX, only changed policy by a few bucks a month at most.

He will make that up by getting much better MPG!

abacomike

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

Why so paranoid, driver? There are almost 5 billion other people in the world! 😜🤪😛

It's all about me though!

Ugh! That's the problem. It's not all about you - it's about "everyone". There is no "I" in "we" or "us". I cherish your contributions to this board, driver100. You are always the first one to research for the group here and post your findings. It's your ego that gets in the way, sometimes.

Keep us all honest and up-to-date, driver100 - we all need a push every so often.

jipster

graphicguy said:

I’ve let some cars get away from me waiting on either the dealer to “get back to me” or waiting till the end of the month/qtr, etc. Not saying @jipster may have that happen, given today’s climate. But, as others have pointed out, letting a buyer walk with the same climate, you’ve reached the end of what it takes to do a deal.

Thinking about this late night. When I bought the Acura TLX, I think I got them to $200 over invoice (actually, probably right at invoice given they negated the doc fee).

Looking at the prices and incentives I see advertised over 3 years later on the same car, if I had waited another 40 months, I could have scored a better deal. Do I care? Not one iota. It was a new refresh on a very good car. And, at least initially, it was in high demand.

I made it up on the Stinger, and then some. If you buy enough cars, I’ve come to the conclusion there’s a ying/yang to each deal. If you feel you’re at the point the deal is really good, and you like the car (or any product/service you can negotiate on for that matter), you pull the trigger.

The other part of this, you have to ask if you’d be happier with the Optima, or the Mazda 6, or even the Hybrid or TLX? If the answer’s “no”, why keep kicking their tires?

No right or wrong way, just recalling my thought process of how I’ve bought cars over the years.

Yes, after thinking about it yesterday, and this morning, i know the Accord is the car I want at a good price. Comes with the extended powertrain and bumper to bumper warranty. The lifetime powertrain warranty would be too much of a.pain to follow thru on. is

The Accord can't match the TLX in driveability or luxury, but I do like the spacious interior better, and it's center stack and infotainment system seem more user friendly.

abacomike

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

stickguy

Plus it’s cheaper!

driver100

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

Why so paranoid, driver? There are almost 5 billion other people in the world! 😜🤪😛

It's all about me though!

Ugh! That's the problem. It's not all about you - it's about "everyone". There is no "I" in "we" or "us". I cherish your contributions to this board, driver100. You are always the first one to research for the group here and post your findings. It's your ego that gets in the way, sometimes.

Keep us all honest and up-to-date, driver100 - we all need a push every so often.

Thanks for the kind words....I think.
Any ego stuff is just joking.....I am the kindest, most considerate, humble, thoughtful person there is

imidazol97

As Jipster is nearing an end to his negotiating, we can all start negotiating at the gas station when we go to fill up our tanks. How much will they pay us to store their oil derivative in our tank:

graphicguy

jipster said:

graphicguy said:

I’ve let some cars get away from me waiting on either the dealer to “get back to me” or waiting till the end of the month/qtr, etc. Not saying @jipster may have that happen, given today’s climate. But, as others have pointed out, letting a buyer walk with the same climate, you’ve reached the end of what it takes to do a deal.

Thinking about this late night. When I bought the Acura TLX, I think I got them to $200 over invoice (actually, probably right at invoice given they negated the doc fee).

Looking at the prices and incentives I see advertised over 3 years later on the same car, if I had waited another 40 months, I could have scored a better deal. Do I care? Not one iota. It was a new refresh on a very good car. And, at least initially, it was in high demand.

I made it up on the Stinger, and then some. If you buy enough cars, I’ve come to the conclusion there’s a ying/yang to each deal. If you feel you’re at the point the deal is really good, and you like the car (or any product/service you can negotiate on for that matter), you pull the trigger.

The other part of this, you have to ask if you’d be happier with the Optima, or the Mazda 6, or even the Hybrid or TLX? If the answer’s “no”, why keep kicking their tires?

No right or wrong way, just recalling my thought process of how I’ve bought cars over the years.

Yes, after thinking about it yesterday, and this morning, i know the Accord is the car I want at a good price. Comes with the extended powertrain and bumper to bumper warranty. The lifetime powertrain warranty would be too much of a.pain to follow thru on. is

The Accord can't match the TLX in driveability or luxury, but I do like the spacious interior better, and it's center stack and infotainment system seem more user friendly.

I doubt very seriously the lifetime power train warranty will not be needed. They've been known to be good for 250K-300K miles.

The infotainment system in the new Accords is the next generation....better than the current iteration in the TLX. Didn't get to test the sound system in the brief test drive of the Accords I've done, but if it suits your needs, that's all that matters.

Sounds like a great deal on a great car. Good luck the rest of the way.

driver100

jipster said:

graphicguy said:

I’ve let some cars get away from me waiting on either the dealer to “get back to me” or waiting till the end of the month/qtr, etc. Not saying @jipster may have that happen, given today’s climate. But, as others have pointed out, letting a buyer walk with the same climate, you’ve reached the end of what it takes to do a deal.

Thinking about this late night. When I bought the Acura TLX, I think I got them to $200 over invoice (actually, probably right at invoice given they negated the doc fee).

Looking at the prices and incentives I see advertised over 3 years later on the same car, if I had waited another 40 months, I could have scored a better deal. Do I care? Not one iota. It was a new refresh on a very good car. And, at least initially, it was in high demand.

I made it up on the Stinger, and then some. If you buy enough cars, I’ve come to the conclusion there’s a ying/yang to each deal. If you feel you’re at the point the deal is really good, and you like the car (or any product/service you can negotiate on for that matter), you pull the trigger.

The other part of this, you have to ask if you’d be happier with the Optima, or the Mazda 6, or even the Hybrid or TLX? If the answer’s “no”, why keep kicking their tires?

No right or wrong way, just recalling my thought process of how I’ve bought cars over the years.

Yes, after thinking about it yesterday, and this morning, i know the Accord is the car I want at a good price. Comes with the extended powertrain and bumper to bumper warranty. The lifetime powertrain warranty would be too much of a.pain to follow thru on. is

The Accord can't match the TLX in driveability or luxury, but I do like the spacious interior better, and it's center stack and infotainment system seem more user friendly.

Right on Jip....I think you nailed it.
I read a review comparing the TLX and the Accord and they liked a lot of things about the Accord more. They liked the buttons on the dash and the room, and they thought the price difference made the Accord a better buy. Unfortunately, I can't find it.
There comes a time when you just have to pull the trigger. If you can get another $200 off great....but, really, $500 isn't going to change your life when you love the car...and you will love that car.

stickguy

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

Why the rush? Do you really think the deals will be worse 3/6 months from now, so it’s worth making double Payments for 3 months?

tjc78

Keep us informed Mike! Black over black would be a little scary in South FL but either way sounds like you are on the way to a solid deal on a car you absolutely love!

houdini1

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

Why so paranoid, driver? There are almost 5 billion other people in the world! 😜🤪😛

It's all about me though!

Ugh! That's the problem. It's not all about you - it's about "everyone". There is no "I" in "we" or "us". I cherish your contributions to this board, driver100. You are always the first one to research for the group here and post your findings. It's your ego that gets in the way, sometimes.

Keep us all honest and up-to-date, driver100 - we all need a push every so often.

Thanks for the kind words....I think.
Any ego stuff is just joking.....I am the kindest, most considerate, humble, thoughtful person there is

One day last Fall, driver and I attended a football game. There must have be 75,000 people in the stadium. We were seated in the lower section. All of a sudden some guy way up behind us shouts, "Hey Bob"! Driver jumps to his feet and looks all around, sees no one and sits back down. Immediately the guy yells out again, "Hey Bob". Again driver jumps up, looks all around and with a puzzled look on his face says, "I wish someone would tell that guy that my name is not Bob".

pensfan83

stickguy said:

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

Why the rush? Do you really think the deals will be worse 3/6 months from now, so it’s worth making double Payments for 3 months?

The large CCR done on the current car will also be money lost.

jmonroe1

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

abacomike said:

driver100 said:

abacomike said:

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

Man, so close yet so far. I think the ole @jip should shoot for 3 free oil changes and first shopping cart ding coverage then take it home and wax it, already. I'll even throw in a nice micro fiber rag to get this done. Maybe more contributions from his poster buddies would also help. So let him know how you'll pitch in.

jmonroe

What, you think all this advice is free?

We've been paying his dues, under the table....

Michael, I sent you a message.

Hope it's not about me

Why so paranoid, driver? There are almost 5 billion other people in the world! 😜🤪😛

It's all about me though!

Ugh! That's the problem. It's not all about you - it's about "everyone". There is no "I" in "we" or "us". I cherish your contributions to this board, driver100. You are always the first one to research for the group here and post your findings. It's your ego that gets in the way, sometimes.

Keep us all honest and up-to-date, driver100 - we all need a push every so often.

I know where I'd like to "push" him.

jmonroe

driver100

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

I just read in todays paper that car sales are starting to rebound. They hit a low in the second half of March, but there is some pent up demand and they expect sales to continue upward. Truck sales were only off 16%, car sales up to 80% in areas like New York.
Personally, I think they will come back from the low, but, not return to pre-virus anytime soon.
In other words, might be a good time for Jip to buy now!
Mike, that's your call....only you know what you really want, financially, not sure it is the best time to buy.

qbrozen

pensfan83 said:

stickguy said:

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

Why the rush? Do you really think the deals will be worse 3/6 months from now, so it’s worth making double Payments for 3 months?

The large CCR done on the current car will also be money lost.

That's the part I can't understand. Wasn't that something like $15k, Mike? So you have effectively prepaid $2500 for the next 6 months, which will be simply thrown away. What are the advantages to the new car over the current?

jipster

@graphicguy Yes, even though I understand the Honda 1.5 l turbo to be fairly new, I'm banking on the Honda reputation for quality engines.

@driver100 Hard to go wrong.with either Accord or TLX, but at my core, I think I'm more of an Accord guy.

oldfarmer50

jipster said:

kyfdx said:

jipster said:

On the Kia Optima, I did drive it before, I didn't really care for the interior on the two lower base models. The leather interior on the SE looks pretty good, in photos at least.

I do like the spaciousness of the Accord. The leather interior and upgraded stereo, a few.other things, are a good trade off against the hybrid powertrain I preferred.

It's raining here today in Louisville. Not up to looking at the Mazda 6 today. I'll make another attempt at the EX-L. It that doesn't work.... I'm going to buy a horse.

End of the month is next Thursday. I'd sit on the EX-L and see if they call you back. There are a million cars to buy, if they don't.

Yeah, I've been tossing around that idea of waiting till the end of the month since I began looking at cars. See what happens with incentives for May. But, I'm gonna make another attempt on that EX-L.
It was saying, "buy me, Jip" on the test drive. So best to listen when cars talk to you. ;-)

Oh oh, I sensing a serious case of hot pants here. Can cloud the judgement. Beware.

28firefighter

For some reason I think Mike’s trade had a balance of $25k. I too would hold it and not pull ahead. But I also I know what it is like to have the itch....

jipster

O.k...I'm going to contact the dealership now. Sub sandwich is gone. Let's see if this saga is over.

oldfarmer50

jipster said:

tjc78 said:

Hey Jip, the Optima is a really nice ride especially in the higher trims... having said that, the Accord you are $500 apart is a good deal. As I’m sure you know (and it may have already been mentioned) the Accord will no doubt hold its value better. This may not be important if you are driving it until the wheels fall off, but a thought.

Yes, pretty sure this Accord we'll keep for 10-15 years. My dad still has his 2002 Toyota Camry, around 100,000 miles. Still looks and runs good. I'm a jip off the old block, I guess.

Finally got around to taking my Mercry Mariner to a mechanic yesterday. Turns out I do not have a transmission problem, but a bad caliper. So, new pads, rotor, and calipers were $269. Pads were under warranty. $269 total. Much better than $3,000-$4,000 for a transmission rebuild. Think something may be going on with the a/c though. It's working, but making a weird scraping noise on occasion.

How does a bad caliper sound/feel like a bad transmission? How does the ac noise manifest itself? Blend door problems are almost universal on Fords of that vintage. I’ve also seen compressor clutch failure but that would stop the cooling. You might also check the blower motor. Could be junk or critters in it.

graphicguy

@abacomike ...Alright....I must have missed a few posts. You ordered a car, right? When is that supposed to be delivered?

I'm not one to lease. And, rolling over a previous lease's payments into a new one isn't a "thing" for me, but I don't lease all that much. So, what do I know?

Is there a huge difference between a new MB and the one you already have? I thought I saw you haven't driven your current one much, at all.

Not saying any of this is bad or good. I'm just really curious, as I don't keep track of Mercedes all that much, other than to help friends get a ride to pick one up.

oldfarmer50

Weird. I was just responding to a post when a pop up appeared from Vanilla Forums containing a bunch of IP jibberish. It said ‘just a moment’ and prevented me from publishing my post.

I finally clicked on ‘help’ and was taken to a screen which said ‘you’ll be taken to your content in a second’. I was then kicked back to page 2158 and the post I was attempting to make was gone.

What was that all about?

oldfarmer50

bwia said:

@jipster, while haggling over the $500 difference, you’ll also need to factor in the cost of insurance when you are looking at what you’ll be paying monthly to drive your car. The cost for new vs used or different brands and models may change the economics of the deal.

When it comes to determining the cost to insure a new vehicle, most big insurance companies make auto insurance coverage calculators available on their websites. That way you can start to get an idea of what you’ll pay to protect your potential new wheels. Read more here at https://clark.com/cars/how-buy-new-car/

My Kia and my Mustang have almost identical costs for identical coverage. Their value is about the same too.

oldfarmer50

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

Good for you Mike but do you really want a black car in Florida?

jipster

oldfarmer50 said:

jipster said:

tjc78 said:

Hey Jip, the Optima is a really nice ride especially in the higher trims... having said that, the Accord you are $500 apart is a good deal. As I’m sure you know (and it may have already been mentioned) the Accord will no doubt hold its value better. This may not be important if you are driving it until the wheels fall off, but a thought.

Yes, pretty sure this Accord we'll keep for 10-15 years. My dad still has his 2002 Toyota Camry, around 100,000 miles. Still looks and runs good. I'm a jip off the old block, I guess.

Finally got around to taking my Mercry Mariner to a mechanic yesterday. Turns out I do not have a transmission problem, but a bad caliper. So, new pads, rotor, and calipers were $269. Pads were under warranty. $269 total. Much better than $3,000-$4,000 for a transmission rebuild. Think something may be going on with the a/c though. It's working, but making a weird scraping noise on occasion.

How does a bad caliper sound/feel like a bad transmission? How does the ac noise manifest itself? Blend door problems are almost universal on Fords of that vintage. I’ve also seen compressor clutch failure but that would stop the cooling. You might also check the blower motor. Could be junk or critters in it.

The cars shuddering, that started at around 40mph, amoung a few other things, are symptoms of a bad torque converter. The transmission fluid had not been changed in 90,000 miles. From what I read...bad torque converter. The brakes only started "sticking", when at stoplight and taking my foot off brake, when I was taking the car to be looked at yesterday. So, only then did I think I had a brake problem.

The a/c made what sounded like a soft scraping noise, or something was. Could be the blend door. Now that I think of it, maybe it is.Recall me posting that the a/c fan stopped blowing air when that shuddering first started?.Very well could be the problem. It (fan stopped blowing) only happened that one time though.

Haven't heard back from dealership yet.

stickguy

oldfarmer50 said:

Weird. I was just responding to a post when a pop up appeared from Vanilla Forums containing a bunch of IP jibberish. It said ‘just a moment’ and prevented me from publishing my post.

I finally clicked on ‘help’ and was taken to a screen which said ‘you’ll be taken to your content in a second’. I was then kicked back to page 2158 and the post I was attempting to make was gone.

What was that all about?

Likely just vanilla being vanilla.

stickguy

I don’t think mike wants a car now, but he knows if Jip buys we will have nothing going on so just helping out the team!

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.

Good for you Mike but do you really want a black car in Florida?

I was wondering the same thing. If he didn't have hot pants before, he'll surely have them now. But he'll have the remote start with the cooling seats so I guess he'll be using that feature a lot. Might even wear it out before he gets hot pants for his next car.

jmonroe

fintail

If they really want to move the car, they can pull forward sooner, too. When I re-upped in 2016 I think I did it 8 months ahead, as they really wanted to be rid of a leftover car.

abacomike said:

I think I have made my decision to get a new car between now and April 30th. I have researched the money factor for a 36 mo lease with 10,000 miles per year, thanks to Michaell. Also, thanks to Michaell, I am aware of a $2000 incentive from MB Financial on a lease. There is a 3 month pull-ahead program on my current lease which leave just 3 payments left that I can pay up front or roll into the lease. They are willing to set the Cap Cost at dealer invoice less $4,000 in additional incentives and $3,000 from USAA and another $1000 in loyalty. So the Cap Cost of the lease should be around $91,000 with a money factor of .00038.

The car(s) I am interested in is one in Silver with black leather and an MSRP of $110,000. He also has a black on black coming in from the port at about the same MSRP. I think I will do better on the black one because the silver one is at a dealership in Naples - about $500 for roiund trip transporatation, which will eat in to the lease.

So I am well prepared to do business. I am just waiting for a call from the manager (he is off today) to get the ball rolling. I just hope this is not another saga like Jipster's.