Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

abacomike

DO OUR LIVES REALLY REVOLVE AROUND OUR CARS/SUV'S?

We post day-in and day-out on this thread about the vehicles we drive, the vehicles we'd love to drive/own, the trials and tribulations/frustrations with our vehicles (i.e., graphicguy's CTS saga), the vehicles we loved and drive in our early years, the breaking headlines about re-calls and fraud in the auto industry (GM, TOYOTA, VW, TAKATA, etc), the price of gasoline to power our vehicles, the advent of Electric Vehicles and hybrids, etc.  Of course we throw in a pinch of politics, family life, vacations, road trips, highway construction and repair, kitchen remodeling, appliances, etc., every now and then, but are our lives directly influenced by automobiles and other mass produced vehicles?

I can only speak for myself because I don't personally know enough about all of your daily routines and lives - just what you post over the years.

For me, I love new and classic cars.  But this adoration for the automobile takes up perhaps 1/20th or less of daily life and activities.  My life does not revolve around my automobile - I am more concerned about family, health, quality of life, my future and my happiness.  Cars make me very happy, but only for a month or two after I buy one.  After that, it (the car) becomes just one of many, many things I think about on a daily/weekly/monthly basis and does not supersede anything else in my life.

Now I've answered the "title" question as it pertains to me.  Why not take 10-20 minutes to give some thought to how you would answer the "title" question above.  Then, share your own thoughts.  Sometimes, exercises like this better define who we really are and what is really important to us (you)!  

roadburner

Cars and motorcycles are my main hobby, but not my main priority.

stickguy

Too invested in wasting time focusing on the Mets being in the WS now to worry about cars much!

stever

Murphy's Law and GOAT have taken on new meanings.

@abacomike, road trips are a joy. Cars are just tools to get me on the road.

PF_Flyer

I don't know that my life revolves around my cars, but even working from home, a car (with an ICE at this point) is definitely a major factor in quality of life, for lack of a better term. It's 5 miles to ANYTHING from my house and a minimum of 7-10 miles to the stuff needed to live day to day. While that's certainly walkable or bikeable (I have walked to pick up a car from service at the dealer 5 miles away) there's no way to exist without a personal vehicle here. There is a bus system, but it comes to my neighborhood 3 times a day. Morning, noon, and roughly 6PM. If I tried, for example, to go buy groceries, and took the 7 AM bus, I'd have to take the half hour ride into town, wait for the transfer to the proper bus, take that ride, get the groceries, wait for the bus to get back into town for the transfer to (hopefully) catch the bus that gets back to my place around noon. So the 8 mile trip to the store turns into at least a 5 hour ordeal. If I can't make a connection in time it's the whole day.
As rural as my location is, I always try to turn every trip into a multi-task and keep it to one trip into town a day. So generally that will wind up covering 30 to 40 miles or more. Hence, the need for something with more cargo capacity than a bike and more range than an EV can comfortably guarantee at this point. If I don't really need anything, I stay home for the day. There's always something to work on in the yard

My life revolves around a lot of things. My car takes me for the spin!

@stever Poor Cubbies... I'd feel for them, but I just can't reach. My college roomie said the Cubs can't win for at least a few more years. His theory... every year you see a news story about the oldest person in the world dying and who the new oldest living person is. Generally those folks seem to be around 114, although the oldest is currently 116. The Cubs last won in 1908. Add 114, and in 2022 there likely will be nobody on the planet who was alive the last time the Cubs won. Now THAT's a drought

driver100

abacomike said:

?

Cars make me very happy, but only for a month or two after I buy one.  After that, it (the car) becomes just one of many, many things  

Mike, you have been happy with this car for almost a year now....or are you getting ready to trade?

People need something in common to make them of interest to us. Around here it is our love and appreciation of cars.

But, cars are not my life, I follow the news, have TV programs I enjoy, books, movies, sports, plays, friends, family etc., cars are a small but very important part of my life. I enjoy talking about them and I love driving them, and I feel very fortunate some guy thought of making an automobile, and that it has developed to this level. A car adds to my enjoyment of life, I can't imagine how different life would be without a car....I'd probably have a horse and that would be waful, especially cleaning up!

tjc78

NJ isn't al

stickguy said:

speaking of construction, the Jersey turnpike just went through a major project. As long as I have driven it (30+ years) there was always a huge bottleneck going south at "the merge" (exit 8A) where the car and truck lanes came together (dropping from 6 to 5 to 3 in a short period). any even was bad, and some holidays could lead that to back up 5+ miles.

so, they came up with a plan a few years back to extend that down another 15ish miles (estimate!). Was a bit of a pain with the lane shifts, etc. while they replaced all the overpasses, etc. But, it got done last year.

Man, what a transformation. Now, there is no backups, and you breeze through. By the time it finally merges further south, traffic has dispersed enough that it does not seem to be a problem. Plus, they repaved the whole thing (the old parts desperately needed that) and took care of some other bad spots like off ramps.

nice to see a road project that actually made a big positive difference!

Yes! It's so much nicer around that area! For years I always took the truck lanes as they didn't back up as far. Now all we need to do is get the 295/42 project done (in my lifetime I hope).

tjc78

@Isellhondas.... I just read that you have an Avalon? What year? Both of mine were great cars.

ab348

tjc78 said:

@Isellhondas.... I just read that you have an Avalon? What year? Both of mine were great cars.

I had no idea @isellhondas was so old.

Michaell

Like others have posted, I am a car enthusiast, but my life does not revolve around them.

I remember collecting and playing with Matchbox cars when I was a kid - and getting the newsletter each month. My folks got me my first subscription to Car & Driver when I was 13. I've always been interested in cars, even though I've never owned any that were particularly "special" - my folks owned an early 70's MB Diesel when I was in HS.

I've been a member of Edmunds since the forums opened up in the late 90's. I've met great folks through these discussions, and I've been lucky to have met some of them in person over the years.

At some point, I hope to own a sporty or luxury car, but not exactly sure when that might be - I've got one more year on my lease of the Elantra GT, and I suspect that will be followed by another value oriented lease. After that - 4 years from now - I might have the ability to find something that I really want.

qbrozen

Cars are my #1 hobby. If I'm reading something for pleasure, it is most likely about cars. If I'm daydreaming about something, it is most likely about cars. If I'm pointlessly surfing the internet, it is mostly likely car ads, car reviews, and general car talk. It is my main distraction, main stress reliever, and favorite thing to discuss with people.

It is not, however, my chief "concern" in life. I try very hard not to be overly concerned with material things. Money comes, money goes, objects comes, objects go. I don't let it rule my life or the lives of my family.

stever

PF_Flyer said:

@stever Poor Cubbies... I'd feel for them, but I just can't reach.

We had a good friend in Anchorage who was a diehard Cubs fan, right down to getting her name up in lights on the scoreboard one vacation trip. She always wanted to see a Series win but passed relatively young. I root for them when I can.

Oh, I'm 15 minutes from town, 8 to 10 miles to get most anywhere. Biking down would be okay, but it'd be about a 700 foot elevation gain slogging home.

isellhondas

tjc78 said:

@Isellhondas.... I just read that you have an Avalon? What year? Both of mine were great cars.

We were down to two cars (both CRV's) when our next door neighbor decided to sell their pristine 2004 Avalon so I grabbed it. honestly it drives smoother and it's more quiet than the Cadillac and Lincolns we owned.

isellhondas

ab348 said:

tjc78 said:

@Isellhondas.... I just read that you have an Avalon? What year? Both of mine were great cars.

I had no idea @isellhondas was so old.

Funny you would say that. Every time I see another Avalon the people driving it are older than I am. It's Toyota's answer to a Buick Park Avenue.

henryn

andres3 said:

henryn said:

nyccarguy said:

@henryn - have you read the edmunds road test about the F150 with the 5.0 V8? http://www.edmunds.com/ford/f-150/2015/road-test1.html

From some of your postings on CCBA & the Diesel thread, it seems like you are really happy with your truck. Did you even drive the V8 or just the 2.7?

I owned a 2013 F150 Supercrew with the 5.0L V8 for the last 2 years, so I am quite familiar with it. I have driven trucks with the 3.5L ecoboost on more than one occasion, so I’m familiar with that engine as well. This time around, I drove a 3.5L and a 2.7L back to back. The 2.7L felt faster, quicker, more responsive to my “butt-o-meter”.

From the article you linked to, testing the 5.0L :

The lighter weight also helps the F-150 accelerate to 60 mph in a respectable 6.9 seconds. The 2.7-liter and 3.5-liter EcoBoost engine SuperCrew models we tested were between a half and a full second quicker, respectively.

Both of the turbo charged V6 engines are quicker and get better gas mileage than the V8. And the 2.7L twin turbo “feels” even faster / quicker than the larger, more powerful 3.5L. What’s not to like?

On the downside, I have stated before that the longevity of this brand new twin turbo engine is somewhat of a question in my mind. If I were to keep the truck past the basic warranty (unlikely, as a card carrying member of CCBA), then I will buy an extended factory warranty.

How often do you have to punch your CCBA membership card to remain a basic member?

I don't think there is a number. More a matter of, "Do you feel like you belong in this group?" I've been averaging around 1.5 to 2.0 purchases per year. Some are less, others more (much more!).

Michaell

henryn said:

andres3 said:

henryn said:

nyccarguy said:

@henryn - have you read the edmunds road test about the F150 with the 5.0 V8? http://www.edmunds.com/ford/f-150/2015/road-test1.html

From some of your postings on CCBA & the Diesel thread, it seems like you are really happy with your truck. Did you even drive the V8 or just the 2.7?

I owned a 2013 F150 Supercrew with the 5.0L V8 for the last 2 years, so I am quite familiar with it. I have driven trucks with the 3.5L ecoboost on more than one occasion, so I’m familiar with that engine as well. This time around, I drove a 3.5L and a 2.7L back to back. The 2.7L felt faster, quicker, more responsive to my “butt-o-meter”.

From the article you linked to, testing the 5.0L :

The lighter weight also helps the F-150 accelerate to 60 mph in a respectable 6.9 seconds. The 2.7-liter and 3.5-liter EcoBoost engine SuperCrew models we tested were between a half and a full second quicker, respectively.

Both of the turbo charged V6 engines are quicker and get better gas mileage than the V8. And the 2.7L twin turbo “feels” even faster / quicker than the larger, more powerful 3.5L. What’s not to like?

On the downside, I have stated before that the longevity of this brand new twin turbo engine is somewhat of a question in my mind. If I were to keep the truck past the basic warranty (unlikely, as a card carrying member of CCBA), then I will buy an extended factory warranty.

How often do you have to punch your CCBA membership card to remain a basic member?

I don't think there is a number. More a matter of, "Do you feel like you belong in this group?" I've been averaging around 1.5 to 2.0 purchases per year. Some are less, others more (much more!).

I've averaged 1 a year for the past 3 years (2013, 2014, 2015), and I'll have another one next year when my current lease is up.

tjc78

isellhondas said:

tjc78 said:

@Isellhondas.... I just read that you have an Avalon? What year? Both of mine were great cars.

We were down to two cars (both CRV's) when our next door neighbor decided to sell their pristine 2004 Avalon so I grabbed it. honestly it drives smoother and it's more quiet than the Cadillac and Lincolns we owned.

I had an 03, I enjoyed it. I always loved the dashboard design on the 00-04s.

FWIW I was only 25 when I had that car... its stable mate was an 89 Town Car.

berri

I'm not embarrassed to admit I like a smooth luxury ride on long hauls!

As for CR, all I know is that it's reliability ratings have generally tended to reflect my experience as an owner of different vehicles over the years. I believe CR has admitted, at least indirectly, that cars are getting closer statistically, and that is why they now can recommend a car with only average reliability ratings sometimes.

henryn

berri said:

I'm not embarrassed to admit I like a smooth luxury ride on long hauls!

A friend of mine, a retired woman in her early 60's, recently asked my advice about purchasing a used car. She is going to be taking some road trips, with her elderly mother, visiting grandkids and other relatives scattered around the countryside.

She wanted a used car that was affordable, reliable, and extremely comfortable for her and her mother on long road trips. After a brief pause for thinking, I came back with Lincoln Town Car.

I myself own a Cadillac DTS, which would also fit the bill. But the Cadillac is just not as reliable, easy to work on, cheap to fix as the Town Car. It is more fun to drive, which is why I chose it over the Town Car.

The Avalon would probably be a good choice as well, but I'm not really familiar with them.

stever

A potential used Caddy buyer could use some feedback from real owners here. Thanks.

andres3

stickguy said:

Too invested in wasting time focusing on the Mets being in the WS now to worry about cars much!

I don't think the Mets can win a WS without Bill Buckner being on the other team.

qbrozen

My FIL had me drive about 12 miles home in his Grand Marquis. It is a 2010 with over 80k miles and I was quite impressed with how tight and quiet it still is.

ab348

qbrozen said:

My FIL had me drive about 12 miles home in his Grand Marquis. It is a 2010 with over 80k miles and I was quite impressed with how tight and quiet it still is.

The one thing I always found with those cars was they they used an interior door panel design that was really bad for noises and squeaks.

robr2

So I stopped at the local purveyor of Mercedes vehicles today at lunch to survey their assortment of previously enjoyed vehicles.

Saw the PDR guy in the lot massaging the hood of a new black S65 AMG. He better be doing a perfect job on that $241,625 car.

tommister2

qbrozen said:

Cars are my #1 hobby. If I'm reading something for pleasure, it is most likely about cars. If I'm daydreaming about something, it is most likely about cars. If I'm pointlessly surfing the internet, it is mostly likely car ads, car reviews, and general car talk. It is my main distraction, main stress reliever, and favorite thing to discuss with people. It is not, however, my chief "concern" in life. I try very hard not to be overly concerned with material things. Money comes, money goes, objects comes, objects go. I don't let it rule my life or the lives of my family.

You said it perfectly for me as well. I've been into this as a hobby for as long as I can remember. I've often wondered if I should get a job in the car biz somehow or if that would ruin it for me. The closest I have come is applying for a job at a car insurance company. 

houdini1

explorerx4 said:

To me, CR is overrated, as are all auto reviewers.
Did any of them figure out that VW was cheating up their diesels?
GM cars had bad ignition switches?
Civics had leaky engine blocks?
Lexus produced bad V8 engines for over 4 years?
Why Ford Explorers rolled over?
Same answer: No, so they are marginally useful.
They have their own definition of 'reliability', which is different than the most common definition.

About the only time an advertiser supported car mag tells you about all the things wrong with a vehicle is when a new model comes out. Then they seem to know all the things that were wrong with the outgoing model and glowingly tell you how all those things were fixed in the new model...and they do this year, after year, after.......

cdnpinhead

CR praised both the Chrysler LH cars (Intrepid, Concorde, Vision) and the Lincoln LS when they first came out. I bought them both. A few years later, both were pilloried for their shortcomings. Where was that at the outset? Either way, based on this and CRs reviews of specialty products, I read it for entertainment value only, not for direction.

The (older) masses love it.

andres3

cdnpinhead said:

CR praised both the Chrysler LH cars (Intrepid, Concorde, Vision) and the Lincoln LS when they first came out. I bought them both. A few years later, both were pilloried for their shortcomings. Where was that at the outset? Either way, based on this and CRs reviews of specialty products, I read it for entertainment value only, not for direction.

The (older) masses love it.

The Chrysler vehicles were OK when functioning, the problem is they rarely functioned, especially after 3 years or 36,000 miles. Shortcomings take time to notice when it isn't the ridiculous "initial quality" survey.

henryn

ab348 said:

qbrozen said:

My FIL had me drive about 12 miles home in his Grand Marquis. It is a 2010 with over 80k miles and I was quite impressed with how tight and quiet it still is.

The one thing I always found with those cars was they they used an interior door panel design that was really bad for noises and squeaks.

About 5 years ago, I purchased a used 2004 Grand Marquis with 153k miles. It was my daily driver for about 1.5 years, and my only expense was oil changes, a serpentine belt, and a catalytic converter (all cheap). I never noticed any problems with the door panels. My only gripe was the add-on under carriage receiver, which was too low and kept scraping the ground. I must have threatened a hundred times to yank that sucker off, but I somehow never got around to it.

oldfarmer50

I'm watching Jay Leno's Garage and they're taking a mostly stock (if you count a supercharger as stock) 2015 Mustang GT up to 200mph.

Hit 207.9

And mine will only do about 160.

Mr_Shiftright

really? stock tires and stock aero?

tjc78

henryn said:

ab348 said:

qbrozen said:

My FIL had me drive about 12 miles home in his Grand Marquis. It is a 2010 with over 80k miles and I was quite impressed with how tight and quiet it still is.

The one thing I always found with those cars was they they used an interior door panel design that was really bad for noises and squeaks.

About 5 years ago, I purchased a used 2004 Grand Marquis with 153k miles. It was my daily driver for about 1.5 years, and my only expense was oil changes, a serpentine belt, and a catalytic converter (all cheap). I never noticed any problems with the door panels. My only gripe was the add-on under carriage receiver, which was too low and kept scraping the ground. I must have threatened a hundred times to yank that sucker off, but I somehow never got around to it.

Yeah, my 04 has no door panel rattles and I've had them off to change the speakers.

oldfarmer50

Mr_Shiftright said:

really? stock tires and stock aero?

They didn't say but I'm guessing that the tires cost more than my whole car. But they must be in stock somewhere.

The guy who souped it up is John Hennesy and he claimed he can do it to any stock Mustang for $20-$25k. I'm thinking there are more than a few mods.

PF_Flyer

Tires costing more than the car reminds me of when I got my first new car in 1980. I was buying a Nissan Sentra. I had a '73 Vega with that 2 speed Powerglide tranny and an engine that used almost as much oil as gas. I know it's shocking, but the dealer told my the Vega wouldn't get me anything in a trade (where was cash for clunkers when I needed it)
I had put on some Kmart tires a few months before, and someone I worked with needed tires. So the Kmart garage guys swapped me out some throw away tires because someone offered me like $150 for the tires since they needed them I was just going to drive the Vega to the scrap yard, but then another coworker said they'd be interested in the Vega. (Insert smelling salts here) They were hard up, I'm not mean, so I sold them the car for $25.
I understand they DID survive the car

Mr_Shiftright

I would think you'd need some serious mods to keep the car from going airborne at 200+ mph. Gutsy driver whoever it was.

oldfarmer50 said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

really? stock tires and stock aero?

They didn't say but I'm guessing that the tires cost more than my whole car. But they must be in stock somewhere.

The guy who souped it up is John Hennesy and he claimed he can do it to any stock Mustang for $20-$25k. I'm thinking there are more than a few mods.

oldfarmer50

PF_Flyer said:

Tires costing more than the car reminds me of when I got my first new car in 1980. I was buying a Nissan Sentra. I had a '73 Vega with that 2 speed Powerglide tranny and an engine that used almost as much oil as gas. I know it's shocking, but the dealer told my the Vega wouldn't get me anything in a trade (where was cash for clunkers when I needed it)
I had put on some Kmart tires a few months before, and someone I worked with needed tires. So the Kmart garage guys swapped me out some throw away tires because someone offered me like $150 for the tires since they needed them I was just going to drive the Vega to the scrap yard, but then another coworker said they'd be interested in the Vega. (Insert smelling salts here) They were hard up, I'm not mean, so I sold them the car for $25.
I understand they DID survive the car

I sold my 69 Plymouth for $100 with 160,000 miles and more holes in it than a sieve.

Mr_Shiftright

I used to enjoy the car hobby a lot more before big auction companies turned it into the stock market.

berri

Indeed, those auction houses are driving prices up I think, while taking heft commissions, often from the seller and the buyer. The issue here is that at some point they become unaffordable for many and some buyers will end up holding the bag. Bubbles aren't limited to financial instruments and homes.

nyccarguy

I agree with @qbrozen.  I love cars.  I love talking about cars.  I love learning about every facet of the car business.  I daydream about cars way more than I should.  "Building my own" on the different manufacturer's websites.  Checking out the different owner reviews & prices paid forums here on edmunds thinking "what if?"  They are my great escape.

I am definitely a card carrying CCBA member.  I punched my card in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, & 2014.  

I I took off work to spend the weekend with my wife & my son in Marlborough, MA for a hockey tournament.  Tomorrow is our 11th wedding anniversary.

abacomike

I got a call from my doctor at 9:00 AM this morning with some bad news.  The blood test I took last week showed that the Hepatitis C is again spreading in my blood and liver.  I was shocked and became very depressed.  After 12 weeks on the drug it showed no viral count but one month later after I stopped taking the drug (Harvoni) it is back as strong as before.

There is another drug regimen that includes a drug I took in 2005 that gave me terrible side effects - Ribarivin I think it's called - which has to be taken with another drug.  I would feel faint when taking my shower and it was difficult to drive do my Dad drove me when needed.  I don't have Dad any longer so I am in a dilemma.

I think the cost of the drugs are very expensive and my insurance may not approve any more treatments.  So I may just have to live with this disease.  It eventually causes sorosis and in its final stages - liver cancer.

Needless to say I am not handling this very well.  I will have to see what the doctor and the insurance company have in store for me.

All I can ask from you guys is to pray for me.  

[Deleted User]

Not good, Mike. I'm genuinely sorry to learn of the news and of course you'll be in our prayers. Any chance that additional treatments of the newer drug could knock out the virus for good?

stickguy

certainly bummer news. Hopefully they come up with some other miracle for you. You certainly have been through the wringer lately.

abacomike

tyguy said:

Not good, Mike. I'm genuinely sorry to learn of the news and of course you'll be in our prayers. Any chance that additional treatments of the newer drug could knock out the virus for good?

The doctor is non-committal.  The most effective drug on the market didn't work for me after I finished the treatment.  The other available drugs are not as effective.  I will just have to wait until he and the insurance company decide what to do.

Thanks for your prayers.

abacomike

stickguy said:

certainly bummer news. Hopefully they come up with some other miracle for you. You certainly have been through the wringer lately.

Yep!  With Dad passing, the side effects of the drug I took for 12 weeks, fixing up the condo with carpeting, painting and window treatments, my son and his brain tumor - when it rains it pours!

jwilliams2

Mike, I am praying for you, and hope the doctors and insurance company do the very best for you.

oldfarmer50

abacomike said:

I got a call from my doctor at 9:00 AM this morning with some bad news.  The blood test I took last week showed that the Hepatitis C is again spreading in my blood and liver.  I was shocked and became very depressed.  After 12 weeks on the drug it showed no viral count but one month later after I stopped taking the drug (Harvoni) it is back as strong as before.

There is another drug regimen that includes a drug I took in 2005 that gave me terrible side effects - Ribarivin I think it's called - which has to be taken with another drug.  I would feel faint when taking my shower and it was difficult to drive do my Dad drove me when needed.  I don't have Dad any longer so I am in a dilemma.

I think the cost of the drugs are very expensive and my insurance may not approve any more treatments.  So I may just have to live with this disease.  It eventually causes sorosis and in its final stages - liver cancer.

Needless to say I am not handling this very well.  I will have to see what the doctor and the insurance company have in store for me.

All I can ask from you guys is to pray for me.  

Done.

driver100

Hoping and praying for the best Mike.
We need you here, you got to win this battle too....you've done it before!

houdini1

Harvoni is being advertised as a cure for hep c, so I don't understand why it failed in your case. I would try the same harvoni regimen again, just in case the first batch was defective in some way. I don't see how your ins. co. could refuse at this point. In the meantime, of course you are in my prayers.

suydam

Such a disappointment. I'm sure you feel crushed. I'm so sorry.

driver100

We talked before about the safest speed to have on our highways. There is a TV show in Canada called market place and they came up with a formula which works pretty well.

Whatever the posted speed is, the ideal speed for the fewest accidents, is the speed most cars are traveling.

On our main highway, the posted speed is 70 mph, 85% of the cars are going between 72 and 80, so they found, that was the safest speed cars should go.