Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

ab348

Back in ye olden days one of the offices I worked in used wands that you filled with water and had a sponge on the business end for moistening envelopes and stamps, to save wear and tear on the tongue.

ab348

In a more flavorful vein, I picked this up on the weekend. Those of you in the USA would think of this as a store pick, where a retailer picks a barrel sample and has the contents bottled just for them. Back when I was working I actually got to help pick one from Jack Daniel’s but all of the choices offered were pretty awful. This one is really, really nice though. About $70USD. I don’t know if they just took one barrel or several. Just about 250 bottles from a barrel.

imidazol97

jmonroe1 said:

Do you first peel off any stamps where they missed date stamping them, and then use them again?

————————————————-
Sure, if they’re the right flavor.

jmonroe

Can the post office machines tell that a stamp has been "recycled"?

stickguy

not if it wasn't cancelled.

driver100

ab348 said:

This one is really, really nice though. About $70USD. I don’t know if they just took one barrel or several. Just about 250 bottles from a barrel.

But it's number 216 of 246.....kind of the bottom of the barrel.

driver100

stickguy said:

not if it wasn't cancelled.

They seem to miss the stamps more than they stamp over them.

ab348

driver100 said:

ab348 said:

This one is really, really nice though. About $70USD. I don’t know if they just took one barrel or several. Just about 250 bottles from a barrel.

But it's number 216 of 246.....kind of the bottom of the barrel.

I guess you’ve never seen how a bottling line works.

driver100

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

ab348 said:

This one is really, really nice though. About $70USD. I don’t know if they just took one barrel or several. Just about 250 bottles from a barrel.

But it's number 216 of 246.....kind of the bottom of the barrel.

I guess you’ve never seen how a bottling line works.

Only when we went to the Guiness plant in Dublin.

tjc78

Those Maker’s private selection picks are usually very good. I enjoyed all the variations I’ve tried.

jmonroe1

imidazol97 said:

jmonroe1 said:

Do you first peel off any stamps where they missed date stamping them, and then use them again?

————————————————-
Sure, if they’re the right flavor.

jmonroe

Can the post office machines tell that a stamp has been "recycled"?


————————————————
They’ve never caught me but then neither has the IRS. Must be a federal thing.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

tjc78 said:

@oldfarmer50 said:

Until the power goes out.😥

No need for power! I do mostly everything on my phone.

I don't think oldfarmer does internet on his phone, IIRC.

I can, I choose not to. It would burn through my data too fast. tjc78 shouldn’t go to Vermont if he wants to do banking from his phone.

why? Is it not allowed, or just no cell service?

There are a lot of areas that have no cell coverage. You’ll be talking and your call will break up and drop. Those dead zones extend down into border areas in NY. Right now there’s a notable murder trial going on where a group lost cell coverage (and gps service) and pulled into the wrong driveway with tragic results. I’m sure you heard about it on the local news.

oldfarmer50

kyfdx said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

tjc78 said:

@oldfarmer50 said:

Until the power goes out.😥

No need for power! I do mostly everything on my phone.

I don't think oldfarmer does internet on his phone, IIRC.

I can, I choose not to. It would burn through my data too fast. tjc78 shouldn’t go to Vermont if he wants to do banking from his phone.

You can do online banking from your desktop. You don't have to use phone data.

I use my IPad when I want to do banking online but it only works with the house Wi-Fi. I would never use public Wi-Fi.

kyfdx

oldfarmer50 said:

kyfdx said:

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

tjc78 said:

@oldfarmer50 said:

Until the power goes out.😥

No need for power! I do mostly everything on my phone.

I don't think oldfarmer does internet on his phone, IIRC.

I can, I choose not to. It would burn through my data too fast. tjc78 shouldn’t go to Vermont if he wants to do banking from his phone.

You can do online banking from your desktop. You don't have to use phone data.

I use my IPad when I want to do banking online but it only works with the house Wi-Fi. I would never use public Wi-Fi.

When you are using your phone for banking, you aren't on Wi-Fi, so all good.

oldfarmer50

Here’s something that will give a few of our posters anxiety:

https://youtube.com/shorts/yGDkiUAwxRs?si=Ntmais2avb1QriRx

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

Here’s something that will give a few of our posters anxiety:

https://youtube.com/shorts/yGDkiUAwxRs?si=Ntmais2avb1QriRx

I'd have to try it to see if that is true!
Has it ever actually happened in real life?
I'm not giving up my batteries.

jmonroe1

driver100 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

Here’s something that will give a few of our posters anxiety:

https://youtube.com/shorts/yGDkiUAwxRs?si=Ntmais2avb1QriRx

I'd have to try it to see if that is true!
Has it ever actually happened in real life?
I'm not giving up my batteries.

————————————————
It WILL happen. I saw a technician do that when I was working, years ago. He did it several times I was told. It seems a lot of folks wanted to see it. He did it in a lab with several large extinguishers handy. When his boss found out they almost canned him. If he wasn’t one of the top techs in that lab, maybe even the best, he would have been gone.

jmonroe

tjc78

Like a little kid…. I’m going in

9090 pieces to go

jmonroe1

tjc78 said:

Like a little kid…. I’m going in

9090 pieces to go

————————————————-
Good way to stay at home and away from car showrooms.

jmonroe

driver100

The bitter cold is causing problems for Tesla owners;

Tesla owners line up, hoping to get a charge
"I've been here for over five hours at this point and I still have not gotten to charge my car," Tesla driver Brandon Welbourne told CBS News Chicago, as car horns blared nearby. "A charge that should take 45 minutes is taking two hours."

Other drivers spoke about how the cold seemed to drain their batteries more quickly than normal.
The challenges Tesla owners are facing aren't specific to the carmaker. Lithium ion batteries, which are used in everything from smartphones to the Model S sedan, are notoriously susceptible to cold, particularly when temperatures are below freezing.

Anyone who has seen their phone's charge indicator sink when they walk out into frigid air, only to rebound when back inside, has seen how cold can impair the batteries.

The article gives you tips....lots of them for trying to keep an EV charged in freezing cold weather;

https://www.npr.org/2024/01/16/1224913698/teslas-chicago-charging-extreme-cold#:~:text=Tesla owners line up, hoping,minutes is taking two hours."

qbrozen

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

The bitter cold is causing problems for Tesla owners;

Tesla owners line up, hoping to get a charge
"I've been here for over five hours at this point and I still have not gotten to charge my car," Tesla driver Brandon Welbourne told CBS News Chicago, as car horns blared nearby. "A charge that should take 45 minutes is taking two hours."

Other drivers spoke about how the cold seemed to drain their batteries more quickly than normal.
The challenges Tesla owners are facing aren't specific to the carmaker. Lithium ion batteries, which are used in everything from smartphones to the Model S sedan, are notoriously susceptible to cold, particularly when temperatures are below freezing.

Anyone who has seen their phone's charge indicator sink when they walk out into frigid air, only to rebound when back inside, has seen how cold can impair the batteries.

The article gives you tips....lots of them for trying to keep an EV charged in freezing cold weather;

https://www.npr.org/2024/01/16/1224913698/teslas-chicago-charging-extreme-cold#:~:text=Tesla owners line up, hoping,minutes is taking two hours."

The guy at work who owns a Polestar says his range goes from 220 to 170 miles @ 20 degrees F.

28firefighter

@tjc78 said:
Like a little kid…. I’m going in

9090 pieces to go

My guy has been eyeing this since he turned 4. I think we’ll do it together when he gets a bit older.

tjc78

@28firefighter said:

@tjc78 said:
Like a little kid…. I’m going in

9090 pieces to go

My guy has been eyeing this since he turned 4. I think we’ll do it together when he gets a bit older.

Get it soon! They aren’t making it much longer from what I understand.

When it is done, it will be a feature in my theater room.

roadburner

I haven't built anything that involved. So far I've built these:




Next up:


And thinking about...

28firefighter

@tjc78 said:

@28firefighter said:

@tjc78 said:
Like a little kid…. I’m going in

9090 pieces to go

My guy has been eyeing this since he turned 4. I think we’ll do it together when he gets a bit older.

Get it soon! They aren’t making it much longer from what I understand.

When it is done, it will be a feature in my theater room.

Oh wow. Maybe I’ll buy it and put it away. Thanks for the heads up!

dino001

qbrozen said:

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

Europe enacted insane mandates that pushed cities to buy certain percentage of new electric buses in order to comply with "fleet sustainability" quotas. Politicians and activists high fiving each other around for their brilliance until first real winter - now we have canceled services, as they don't have sufficient range to run their routes for their prescribed shift. Anybody with just a little knowledge could see that coming, but the politicians of course knew better, and city officials were left with little choice due to all these ridiculous laws passed in last five years. Of course same thing is coming here (or perhaps is already happening in some places).

This is what really happens when politics pushes a technology that has some good merits, but's not ready yet for the envisioned widespread adoption. Artificial mandates with incentives skew behavior of consumers and officials, which turns into one gigantic waste of resources and may even result in a delay of the legitimate timeline for the technology, as burned consumers turn sour - as the adage says "full me once..."

roadburner

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

roadburner

dino001 said:

qbrozen said:

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

Europe enacted insane mandates that pushed cities to buy certain percentage of new electric buses in order to comply with "fleet sustainability" quotas. Politicians and activists high fiving each other around for their brilliance until first real winter - now we have canceled services, as they don't have sufficient range to run their routes for their prescribed shift. Anybody with just a little knowledge could see that coming, but the politicians of course knew better, and city officials were left with little choice due to all these ridiculous laws passed in last five years. Of course same thing is coming here (or perhaps is already happening in some places).

This is what really happens when politics pushes a technology that has some good merits, but's not ready yet for the envisioned widespread adoption. Artificially mandates with incentives skew behavior of consumers and officials, which turns into one gigantic waste of resources and may even result in a delay of the legitimate timeline for the technology, as burned consumers turn sour - as the adage says "full me once..."

Agreed; the smart thing to do would have been to encourage hybrid vehicles until the infrastructure and technology had significantly matured.

laurasdada

roadburner said:

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

Are you kidding? Don't you realize that the added friction caused by the reduced aerodynamics as a result of the raised graphics on the cap will likely lead to tire fires at speed (and, potentially a spontaneous combustion at rest)! I hope you have a Nomex suit and garage.

In other news, I have a 30 lb. turkey to carve. I think I'll buy a new plastic knife for the task.

qbrozen

@roadburner said:
One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:

Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

They probably gotta reprogram the car anyway.

dino001

One thing still baffles me in that EV equation, regardless of the brand - the packaging. You see it across the board - smaller motor with smaller battery and powerful motor with larger battery. Why not create a model with largest battery we can fit and smallest motor that can be acceptable? Essentially EV version of Civic/Corolla or Accord/Camry, or one of those small SUVs? Are there some technological barriers, or is it just marketing people assuming that all people want is asphalt-scorching vehicle? I can't believe that weight penalty from larger battery would offset engine power so much that it would not be drivable at some moderate levels. I see possible huge success if they created an EV with modest performance of a Corolla or 4-cylinder Camry and range that beats them by 100-150 miles, partially offsetting inconvenience due to longer charging on the road - all of course at a decent price, not necessarily same level, just not at $70K+. But it the whole effort (at least in marketing) seems to be going toward beating M3 in 0-60 mph dash. Spectacular numbers, great for PR, but not a serious transportation solver.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

Make sure they put nitrogen in the tires to prevent fires. Isn’t you life worth $499?

laurasdada

oldfarmer50 said:

roadburner said:

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

Make sure they put nitrogen in the tires to prevent fires. Isn’t you life worth $499?

Ha! It's only $299 with coupon at my local Ferrari/Maserati dealer!

jmonroe1

roadburner said:

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

————————————————-
Well, since you’ll already be there you might as well have the tires filled with nitrogen. At least drain and fill with fresh Winter air.

jmonroe

driver100

roadburner said:

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

Don't forget to register the new devices with bmw or your warranty may be voided.

driver100

qbrozen said:

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

I would bet a great majority of people who buy an EV have no idea how many miles it will really go, and they have no idea how the cold weather or operating a/c, wipers, etc. will affect mileage.
The car salesguy isn't going to mention these problems.

laurasdada

driver100 said:

qbrozen said:

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

I would bet a great majority of people who buy an EV have no idea how many miles it will really go, and they have no idea how the cold weather or operating a/c, wipers, etc. will affect mileage.
The car salesguy isn't going to mention these problems.

If only there was a simple to use, and access, interconnected knowledge pool on such topics...
Along with a desire to understand your purchase and just a touch of smarts.
If only.

driver100

laurasdada said:

driver100 said:

qbrozen said:

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

I would bet a great majority of people who buy an EV have no idea how many miles it will really go, and they have no idea how the cold weather or operating a/c, wipers, etc. will affect mileage.
The car salesguy isn't going to mention these problems.

If only there was a simple to use, and access, interconnected knowledge pool on such topics...
Along with a desire to understand your purchase and just a touch of smarts.
If only.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that is why I ask questions and try to get answers before I make the plunge. And I want to know the positives and negatives too. I know they suck power when it is cold, but I haven't given much thought to the problems they might have in sub-freezing temperatures.

laurasdada

driver100 said:

laurasdada said:

driver100 said:

qbrozen said:

After all this time, there are EV owners who are just now figuring out the cold kills range? Wow. Talk about head in the sand.

I would bet a great majority of people who buy an EV have no idea how many miles it will really go, and they have no idea how the cold weather or operating a/c, wipers, etc. will affect mileage.
The car salesguy isn't going to mention these problems.

If only there was a simple to use, and access, interconnected knowledge pool on such topics...
Along with a desire to understand your purchase and just a touch of smarts.
If only.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that is why I ask questions and try to get answers before I make the plunge. And I want to know the positives and negatives too. I know they suck power when it is cold, but I haven't given much thought to the problems they might have in sub-freezing temperatures.

I was more referring to those that make big ticket (and small ticket?) purchases blindly. Especially newer technologies.
Now, I have to go get the darn tape unstuck in my VCR!

roadburner

Regarding learning about vehicles prior to purchase, if you are too lazy to do some research you deserve whatever you get. There are a couple of imbeciles on the 4xe forum complaining about the range of the 4xe in EV mode- even though the range the morons are whining about falls exactly within the range that Jeep advertises. A pox on those ignorant dimwits.

roadburner

driver100 said:

roadburner said:

One of the gifts I received on my birthday was a set of Mercedes-AMG valve stem caps:



Of course I don't want the car to catch fire or explode, so I'm taking my car to my local tire shop and I'll let the guys there install them.

Don't forget to register the new devices with bmw or your warranty may be voided.

Your encyclopedic automotive knowledge is once more displayed so all can see.

driver100

Sorry, missed it was for your MB. I happen to have a full day so I sometimes skim and reply. Believe it or not some people have an actual life besides writing posts.
Enjoy your tire valve stem caps.

explorerx4

The county auditor sent out a guy to verify our house measurements, so hopefully we will get some relief there.
HVAC guy was also here today to PM the heating system. He said everything was good but recommended a surge protector for the furnace and AC units. $285 with up to $7500 heat/AC replacement if damaged due to a surge. Seems like cheap insurance, so I'm getting that scheduled.
He also mentioned an air purifier unit. Does anyone have one of those? I don't know if it worth getting.

ab348

Is an air purifier the same as an electronic air cleaner? I have/had one of those until it failed after about 15 years. I didn't bother to get it fixed as it was a bit of a pain to clean and it was noisy when it zapped a bit of dust or cat hair. Fortunately the space taken by the ionizing plates is the same size as a furnace filter, so I'm now using those.

imidazol97

We have a 5 inch slot for a filter. The electronic cleaner would have been another 5 inch box on top of
that.

I get the 11 rating filters. I think 15 is the highest offered. I've stuck with the electrostatic version the same as the Lennox installer put in originally.

roadburner

Our house came with a Honeywell electronic air cleaner. It was more trouble than it was worth so I went with a regular filter.

jmonroe1

explorerx4 said:

The county auditor sent out a guy to verify our house measurements, so hopefully we will get some relief there.
HVAC guy was also here today to PM the heating system. He said everything was good but recommended a surge protector for the furnace and AC units. $285 with up to $7500 heat/AC replacement if damaged due to a surge. Seems like cheap insurance, so I'm getting that scheduled.
He also mentioned an air purifier unit. Does anyone have one of those? I don't know if it worth getting.

————————————————
That guy sounds more like a salesman than an HVAC service tech. I wouldn’t get an electronic air cleaner. I’ve had two in my day, both came with the house. In the second house it lasted 2 years and the house I’m in now it was DOA when I moved in. For the fun of it when we had the furnace and AC installed in 2008 I asked the guy about getting one and he told me to save my money and buy filters because that’s what I’d be doing in 5 years anyway. That’s when he suggested adding the larger filter unit I have now, 6X25X16. I think that was a measly $130 upgrade for the filter box and 2 filters.

As for surge protectors, that is a good idea but being you’re in a new house I’m surprised it wasn’t code when you bought last year.

Are you listening @stickguy?

jmonroe

venture

I know credit scores come up occasionally.

I was messing around in my Credit Union account and noticed that my credit score went up 1 point over what it has been for quite a few months. (They chart it.) One point!!

I remember back when one of my guys was multiplying a series of 2 guesses, I mean estimates, out to 4 or 5 decimal places. Seems about the same.

dino001

venture said:

I know credit scores come up occasionally.

I was messing around in my Credit Union account and noticed that my credit score went up 1 point over what it has been for quite a few months. (They chart it.) One point!!

I remember back when one of my guys was multiplying a series of 2 guesses, I mean estimates, out to 4 or 5 decimal places. Seems about the same.

It is and banks generally know that. They don't split hair on credit scores, just look at the range values. Nevertheless, your score is probably hovering near the top anyway, so as long as you keep doing the same thing, it will only go back and forth by small number of points, usually dependent on current credit card bills, i.e. different shopping throughout the year (assuming you're paying them all off every month). Only people with low scores or those who recently stopped paying their bills will see their scores moving by large amounts.

BTW, I think that scoring formula has some real flaws that result in some idiotic outcomes at times. Best example is when you pay off your last installment loan. Literally NEXT MONTH it drops your score by some small amount saying more less "there are no current installments so we're not sure now how you could handle a new one". One paying off the loan last month after say a many years of responsible payments should be a predictor of lower risk, not higher, as one's credit capacity just increased, at least for several months, if not longer, until something else have changed, like say significant increase in revolving account balances, or income (but income is not a part of the score anyway, which always baffled me, too). It is just plain lunacy. Whoever developed that formula clearly does not have first clue about human behavior. I don't care what computer models say - they are just plain wrong about that particular thing.

kyfdx

Weird, but when I made the last payment on my wife's BMW in October (72 mo, 0% loan), my credit score went up by 12 points