Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

ab348

driver100 said:

Sweet picture! I'm a cat guy but one thing about cats is that it is near-impossible to get them to pose like that without them having a look that could kill.

tjc78

I just can't believe the cop. He must have known the truck driver or owner of the company, etc. He is wrong with every statement, but in the end he did put blame where it belongs thank goodness

driver100

ofand tjc, I taught driving to high school students, classroom and in the car. The way I see it, if you can stop safely you stop, driver behind almost always has to be able to stop in time or he hasn't left enough space.

I wonder if something else could be going on.....like cop resenting the Mercedes?

snakeweasel

andres3 said:

That's not a lawful rule. You like to cite the law, so let's use the vehicle code law.

Actually the law in the vast majority of states simply state that the yellow light means that the relative green light has ended and that a solid red light will be shown immediately. This has been interpreted as "clear the intersection" which in turn translates to stop if you can do so reasonably.

snakeweasel

andres3 said:

Not so fast

There are already people that follow the safe and comfy speed for them rule (ignoring the speed limits for the most part) and those that are rule followers (abiding by the speed limit no matter how ridiculously low it is posted) creating those speed differentials already. Raising the speed limits turns the law breakers into law abiders, and gets the pre-existing law abiders to go faster, which actually REDUCES speed differentials and increases safety.

Logic 101, and proven by many studies as well where speed limits have already been raised.

Not so fast yourself, You forgot the ones that follow the invisible X rule (where X = a set speed above the speed limit), raise the speed limit and these people will increase their speed. Also remember that the people that follow the safe and comfy for them very often drive at or below the speed limit. So raising the speed will have the effect of some people increasing their speed and some people driving the same rate of speed.

Logic 101 and proven by many studies where the speed limits have already been raised.

venture

driver100 said:

Houdini......we don't get too many big cash settlements in Canada, they put caps on what you can collect, and healthcare is covered. I think they do work out the sales tax since you don't really have a trade-in. Maybe technically the dealer is buying your trade in.

It is true, when this happens it is a reminder to always be even more careful than you are, and don't take one minute of life for granted......everything can change instantly.

Just to throw in my 2 cents - You should not be responsible for contacting the truck drivers insurance company. You should only have to contact your insurance company. Your company should handle it from there on out.
Also you should not even talk to the truck drivers insurance company. Ask yours and I bet they confirm that.

Same with a car rental.

Glad nobody was hurt.

snakeweasel

OK, not trying to be political here but since it's an election year I thought I would share this that's hanging in my garage:



The story about it is that my father took a job as a chauffeur during the 1960 Republican convention. One day he returned to his car and found someone stealing the plates off of the car. My father offered to let him go with one of the plates if the guy gave him the other. So now it sits in my garage.

qbrozen

venture said:

Houdini......we don't get too many big cash settlements in Canada, they put caps on what you can collect, and healthcare is covered. I think they do work out the sales tax since you don't really have a trade-in. Maybe technically the dealer is buying your trade in. It is true, when this happens it is a reminder to always be even more careful than you are, and don't take one minute of life for granted......everything can change instantly.

Just to throw in my 2 cents - You should not be responsible for contacting the truck drivers insurance company. You should only have to contact your insurance company. Your company should handle it from there on out. Also you should not even talk to the truck drivers insurance company. Ask yours and I bet they confirm that. Same with a car rental. Glad nobody was hurt.

While it is true you CAN go that way, I do not suggest it unless you run into problems with the other insurance company. I made the mistake of one time dealing only with mine for an accident I was involved in. They fixed my truck and went after the other person's insurance. Meanwhile, my policy came up for renewal and they doubled my rate. When I inquired, I was informed that because they had to pay, it counts against me regardless of fault. A year later, they finally got their money back and reduced my rate; however, they would not refund me the premium I paid for the previous year.

snakeweasel

OK so I go out riding my bike this evening. The bike path I was on has a spur at one point for access that immediately starts up a steep hill with an ever increasing incline that has a 90 degree left hand turn at its steepest point (it takes everything I can muster to keep enough forward momentum to stay up) and then goes into a series of switch backs to go up the hill. So I usually go as fast as I can down the path and make the turn onto this spur so I have enough speed to help me past that one steep spot.

Well tonight I am moving down that bike path and make that turn fast and DEER. Yep hit a deer with my bike, boy did Bambi bolt afterwards. Need to true up my front wheel, may have to replace it (hopefully not). Otherwise no issues from the encounter.

berri

Now that's certainly an unexpected one!

jmonroe

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

Sweet picture! I'm a cat guy but one thing about cats is that it is near-impossible to get them to pose like that without them having a look that could kill.

I didn't know that about cats but it almost looks like @driver100's pooch is trying to smile.

jmonroe

berri

Well they say with babies it is either trying to smile or gas Cute dog though. Looks like it has a very nice disposition.

roadburner

I drove this puppy today; a new 2016 340i M Sport xDrive fitted with the Track Handling Package and just about every M Performance accessory in the catalog...

verdugo

nyccarguy said:

Wow @driver100! Glad you and your wife are ok. Don't worry about the car. You are due for another CCBA punch anyway!

Wow indeed. I'm so glad that you and your wife are ok. Make sure you get checked out. A lot of times, injuries don't show up until a few days later.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

Thanks again for your good wishes and for excellent thoughts. We were going to dinner and Gigi was not in the car which was very fortunate....she gets a seatbelt for the Florida trip. I forgot about that, lucky she wasn't with us.
I think the doctor idea is good, will try to work it out.
Most people think the car won't be resurrected, including our friend Mike, my salesman, the tow truck driver/body repair guy and many knwledgeable people here.

I never heard the term seat belt pre tensioners but they make the seatbelts extra tight in a rear end accident, I guess to help prevent whiplash. My wife complained that was really tight right after impact - like hard to breathe, but, I think it did what it was supposed to do.

Not many 2016s left, but if the price is right and color etc is good may go with that if I can get a replacement. The 2017 is technologically superior, but only a 4 cylinder until later November or December.

Well at least if you get screwed over by the insurance company you can hire an agent for that cute dog and make a killing doing commercials for dog food or cars.

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

ofand tjc, I taught driving to high school students, classroom and in the car. The way I see it, if you can stop safely you stop, driver behind almost always has to be able to stop in time or he hasn't left enough space.

I wonder if something else could be going on.....like cop resenting the Mercedes?

I think you have something there. We're you dressed like either one of these guys?

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

venture said:

driver100 said:

Houdini......we don't get too many big cash settlements in Canada, they put caps on what you can collect, and healthcare is covered. I think they do work out the sales tax since you don't really have a trade-in. Mayb
e technically the dealer is buying your trade in.

It is true, when this happens it is a reminder to always be even more careful than you are, and don't take one minute of life for granted......everything can change instantly.

Just to throw in my 2 cents - You should not be responsible for contacting the truck drivers insurance company. You should only have to contact your insurance company. Your company should handle it from there on out.
Also you should not even talk to the truck drivers insurance company. Ask yours and I bet they confirm that.

Same with a car rental.

Glad nobody was hurt.

While it is true you CAN go that way, I do not suggest it unless you run into problems with the other insurance company. I made the mistake of one time dealing only with mine for an accident I was involved in. They fixed my truck and went after the other person's insurance. Meanwhile, my policy came up for renewal and they doubled my rate. When I inquired, I was informed that because they had to pay, it counts against me regardless of fault. A year later, they finally got their money back and reduced my rate; however, they would not refund me the premium I paid for the previous year.

Does that really matter? In my state they just list you were "involved" in an accident and the insurance company boosts your rate. You could have been sitting in church and they still raise you.

tjc78

When I was rear ended last year, all I did was report to my insurance. They were more than willing to proceed with a claim, but I said I wanted to deal directly with his ins co and they were perfectly fine with that. The agent said if I had any problems to call them back.

I had a little trouble because the moron who hit me never reported the accident and wouldn't return their calls for a statement. Finally they caved in, accepted liability and wrote a check. They even replaced my son's car seat because after a collision they may no longer be safe.

venture

qbrozen said:

venture said:

driver100 said:

Houdini......we don't get too many big cash settlements in Canada, they put caps on what you can collect, and healthcare is covered. I think they do work out the sales tax since you don't really have a trade-in. Maybe technically the dealer is buying your trade in.

It is true, when this happens it is a reminder to always be even more careful than you are, and don't take one minute of life for granted......everything can change instantly.

Just to throw in my 2 cents - You should not be responsible for contacting the truck drivers insurance company. You should only have to contact your insurance company. Your company should handle it from there on out.
Also you should not even talk to the truck drivers insurance company. Ask yours and I bet they confirm that.

Same with a car rental.

Glad nobody was hurt.

While it is true you CAN go that way, I do not suggest it unless you run into problems with the other insurance company. I made the mistake of one time dealing only with mine for an accident I was involved in. They fixed my truck and went after the other person's insurance. Meanwhile, my policy came up for renewal and they doubled my rate. When I inquired, I was informed that because they had to pay, it counts against me regardless of fault. A year later, they finally got their money back and reduced my rate; however, they would not refund me the premium I paid for the previous year.

Yeah, I hear what you are saying.

All I know is when a girl hit my Regal and totaled it my insurance company suggested that I let them handle everything. They said to not even talk to her company if they call me (which they did) since they will tape the conversation and try to get you to say something that may seem innocent, but may sway whether they pay or not. Since they do this all the time, Joe Citizen is at a disadvantage. Similar to negotiating with a car salesman. Now this is assuming that the company is a tad unscrupulous of course.

My company also arranged for a rental until I bought something else.

Of course every insurance company is different I suppose...

driver100

berri said:

Well they say with babies it is either trying to smile or gas Cute dog though. Looks like it has a very nice disposition.

Gigi is 12 years old now, just wouldn't bite anyone.

If someone goes to pet her or a workman comes to the house I say don't worry she doesn't bite, and even if she did you won't feel a thing.

driver100

About the insurance.....as far as I know, we have "no fault" insurance, which I assume means my insurance company deals with the other insurance company. My company pays out for the rental car etc., then collects from the at fault driver's insurance company.

I would try not to talk to other guys insurance company, and if you do, I would be so careful what I said because things can be taken out of context so easily.

jmonroe

driver100 said:

berri said:

Well they say with babies it is either trying to smile or gas Cute dog though. Looks like it has a very nice disposition.

Gigi is 12 years old now, just wouldn't bite anyone.

If someone goes to pet her or a workman comes to the house I say don't worry she doesn't bite, and even if she did you won't feel a thing.

I remember someone telling me long ago that when they echoed those words to a repairman who came to their house the guy said, "lady, I can show you marks on both of my arms from dogs who don't bite".

However, since Gigi looks like you and we know you're harmless, I believe you.

jmonroe

iluvmysephia1

driver100 - glad you and your wife are all right. Now comes the fun part - habbledabbling with the greedy, non-caring - I - I mean helpful car insurance companies. And as far as the cop on the scene goes...at the end of the day, it's not your job to worry about the truckdriver's driver's license being taken away if he gets a bad mark for this one. Traffic laws are there to sort out accident claims, aren't they?

Oh, and to help keep people (and animals) safe.

driver100

iluvmysephia1 said:

driver100 - glad you and your wife are all right. Now comes the fun part - habbledabbling with the greedy, non-caring - I - I mean helpful car insurance companies. And as far as the cop on the scene goes...at the end of the day, it's not your job to worry about the truckdriver's driver's license being taken away if he gets a bad mark for this one. Traffic laws are there to sort out accident claims, aren't they?

Oh, and to help keep people (and animals) safe.

That sums it up very nicely. It seems to be almost a game, cops know insurance will cover it, they just write it and file it. We called the cops after accident, finally one shows up in 20 minutes but he says why haven't you called it in. He was heading back to the station. Every time I call the insurance company I am on hold for 20 to 30 minutes, and their answering machine keeps telling me I am a valued customer and I am a priority.

Finally got my rental car.....electric blue Fusion. I really like it, great little car. Nice electronics and rear camera etc. Feels good. If I was looking for a car in this price range I would really consider it.

iluvmysephia1

The job in Dodge City, KS, got me a white '14 Ford Fusion for my June '15 interview there. Nice car - I'm always in smaller economy cars so it was a treat to drive.

PF_Flyer

This ought to be fun to watch.

Uber's First Self-Driving Fleet Arrives in Pittsburgh This Month

PF_Flyer

stever said:

Yikes!

I dunno, a check up may be a good idea.

That shot of adrenaline always gets your attention. When the wife got plowed by a pickup and the car was totaled, she wasn't hurt, but was VERY tired for a couple of days

henryn

driver100 said:

About the insurance.....as far as I know, we have "no fault" insurance, which I assume means my insurance company deals with the other insurance company. My company pays out for the rental car etc., then collects from the at fault driver's insurance company.

I would try not to talk to other guys insurance company, and if you do, I would be so careful what I said because things can be taken out of context so easily.

The more stories I hear on here about insurance companies, the more I appreciate USAA. Usually (but not always) they are the lowest cost provider, and you simply don't get into these silly games. I was run over (twice) within 12 months, I simply reported it to USAA and they took care of everything. The first time, the young woman lied like a rug but her story was so unbelievable that her insurance company accepted responsibility. The second time, I had an eyewitness so there was never any doubt.

USAA gets me a rental car, everything is charged back through them, and my rates don't go up.

henryn

I saw a really weird one last night. I was leaving HEB, and there in the parking lot was a Porsche Cayman which had been “slabbed”.

Jacked up several inches, oversize tires on really large wheels (maybe 24 or 26 inch). The tires stuck out from underneath the car, vaguely reminiscent of the “squashed bug” look seen on ricers 15 or 20 years ago.

I thought about trying to get a picture, but the lighting was bad, and I had a load of groceries, so …

Mr_Shiftright

How brilliant. Take one of the best-handling cars in the world and render it useless.

ab348

Was behind one of these in traffic earlier today. There is a Mitsu dealer here and it did have local plates, but this is the first one of these I remember seeing locally. It was actually rather attractive-looking. I found myself admiring it - it is a very clean design, and this particular example was very nicely kept - and thinking such a vehicle would do well here if reasonably priced since there seems to be a market in this area for small wagons. Are they more common in the USA?

stickguy

Small wagons? Almost non existent in US market

driver100

PF_Flyer said:

stever said:

Yikes!

I dunno, a check up may be a good idea.

That shot of adrenaline always gets your attention. When the wife got plowed by a pickup and the car was totaled, she wasn't hurt, but was VERY tired for a couple of days

That is exactly the way we both have felt....fine physically but so tired. We haven't slept well for 2 nights....it keeps playing in my mind over and over again.

Because of your suggestions I have scheduled a doctors appointment for tomorrow. I think that adrenaline rush is a good possibility for the tiredness, along with dealing with insurance and rental car companies.

driver100

Our tow truck driver who also owned a body shop told us - and I am not sure how truthful he was - that the insurance companies wanted him to be a repair depot for them. But, he said, if he had to replace say a grill on a KIA, he would only use original replacement parts, but, the insurance companies will insist on using aftermarket parts.

On another topic one guy made a good point, my banged up car may be worth more as parts then then it would trying to put it back together. Engine and front end should be fine, as well as the interior.

oldfarmer50

ab348 said:

Was behind one of these in traffic earlier today. There is a Mitsu dealer here and it did have local plates, but this is the first one of these I remember seeing locally. It was actually rather attractive-looking. I found myself admiring it - it is a very clean design, and this particular example was very nicely kept - and thinking such a vehicle would do well here if reasonably priced since there seems to be a market in this area for small wagons. Are they more common in the USA?

What is it, I don't recognize that model?

oldfarmer50

driver100 said:

Our tow truck driver who also owned a body shop told us - and I am not sure how truthful he was - that the insurance companies wanted him to be a repair depot for them. But, he said, if he had to replace say a grill on a KIA, he would only use original replacement parts, but, the insurance companies will insist on using aftermarket parts.

On another topic one guy made a good point, my banged up car may be worth more as parts then then it would trying to put it back together. Engine and front end should be fine, as well as the interior.

They'll probably saw it in half and weld your front to the back of another that took a front hit. Did any airbags deploy?

28firefighter

oldfarmer50 said:

ab348 said:

Was behind one of these in traffic earlier today. There is a Mitsu dealer here and it did have local plates, but this is the first one of these I remember seeing locally. It was actually rather attractive-looking. I found myself admiring it - it is a very clean design, and this particular example was very nicely kept - and thinking such a vehicle would do well here if reasonably priced since there seems to be a market in this area for small wagons. Are they more common in the USA?

What is it, I don't recognize that model?

I just saw a car like this over on Jalopnik as part of their nice-price-or-crack-pipe series.

It is a Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart Hatch.

jmonroe

driver100 said:

Our tow truck driver who also owned a body shop told us - and I am not sure how truthful he was - that the insurance companies wanted him to be a repair depot for them. But, he said, if he had to replace say a grill on a KIA, he would only use original replacement parts, but, the insurance companies will insist on using aftermarket parts.

On another topic one guy made a good point, my banged up car may be worth more as parts then then it would trying to put it back together. Engine and front end should be fine, as well as the interior.

In the US most insurance companies usually insist on after market parts after the car is 2 years old unless the after market part is not available and it would unreasonably delay the repair of the car. Then an OEM part can be used. Don't ask me what unreasonable is because that depends on the insurance company but there are exceptions that allow for the use of OEM parts after 2 years and that is what happened with Mrs. j's '12 Legacy with just a few ticks under 25K miles on it when it had to have the right front fender replaced a few months ago do to a hit and run caused by a jacked-up truck in a parking lot.

The guy doing the estimate took a picture with his phone of the right front fender that was damaged and then he proceeds to go around the car and took at least a dozen pictures of both the outside and the inside of the car. When I ask him about that he said that was to prove to the insurance company that the car was in great condition and warranted an OEM fender. Otherwise at it's age they would only authorize an after market fender. I remember him saying that not all insurance companies do this and most are pretty strict about the 2 year limit. As I have said before, I am with a very good regional insurance company. They are not the cheapest but they are known to be second to none around here for claims service.

jmonroe

jmonroe

PF_Flyer said:

This ought to be fun to watch.

Uber's First Self-Driving Fleet Arrives in Pittsburgh This Month

This just hit the local 5 o'clock news here in the Burgh. They had to make it dramatic but at the end of the segment they said there would be a driver behind the wheel poised to take over if something happened. Of course they didn't tell the people on the street about this that were interviewed asking what they thought about the "look-ma-no-hands-driving-machine".

jmonroe

ab348

28firefighter said:

oldfarmer50 said:

ab348 said:

Was behind one of these in traffic earlier today. There is a Mitsu dealer here and it did have local plates, but this is the first one of these I remember seeing locally. It was actually rather attractive-looking. I found myself admiring it - it is a very clean design, and this particular example was very nicely kept - and thinking such a vehicle would do well here if reasonably priced since there seems to be a market in this area for small wagons. Are they more common in the USA?

What is it, I don't recognize that model?

I just saw a car like this over on Jalopnik as part of their nice-price-or-crack-pipe series.

It is a Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart Hatch.

The badges on the back said it was a Mitsubishi "Sportback", their term for a wagon I presume. I saw no Ralliart badge.

28firefighter

ab348 said:

28firefighter said:

oldfarmer50 said:

ab348 said:

Was behind one of these in traffic earlier today. There is a Mitsu dealer here and it did have local plates, but this is the first one of these I remember seeing locally. It was actually rather attractive-looking. I found myself admiring it - it is a very clean design, and this particular example was very nicely kept - and thinking such a vehicle would do well here if reasonably priced since there seems to be a market in this area for small wagons. Are they more common in the USA?

What is it, I don't recognize that model?

I just saw a car like this over on Jalopnik as part of their nice-price-or-crack-pipe series.

It is a Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart Hatch.

The badges on the back said it was a Mitsubishi "Sportback", their term for a wagon I presume. I saw no Ralliart badge.

Ah okay - I was close

oldfarmer50

Help me decide: two cars same domestic make and model and color.

#1 2005 high trim, leather, sunroof, 54,000 miles $4600. $1000 under book but has about $500 of cosmetic repairs needed. Florida car no rust. Ugly vinyl roof.

#2 2001 low trim, cloth, 44,000 miles. No apparent rust. No information on any repairs needed. $3000. $400 over Edmunds but right on KBB. No vinyl.

Which would you choose?

qbrozen

probably the newer one. 4 years is a long time. You know everyone wants to know the make and model. In something like a Grand Marquis, I may choose the cheaper one since the car didn't change one damned bit in those 4 years and their cloth interior is pretty darned nice.

ab348

Tough call, @oldfarmer50. I am leaning towards the 2001 but that is 15 years old so who knows what evils lurk? I don't like the idea of a car that needs cosmetic repairs which can rapidly outstrip its value. A lot depends on the car itself - if we are talking Panthers here I would take the '01 without a second thought.

Mr_Shiftright

Sounds like a wash to me, but if you can verify the cost of cosmetic repairs, I'd probably go for the newer car. The vinyl roof will disappear from your consciousness in a few months.

driver100

oldfarmer50 said:

driver100 said:

Our tow truck driver who also owned a body shop told us - and I am not sure how truthful he was - that the insurance companies wanted him to be a repair depot for them. But, he said, if he had to replace say a grill on a KIA, he would only use original replacement parts, but, the insurance companies will insist on using aftermarket parts.

On another topic one guy made a good point, my banged up car may be worth more as parts then then it would trying to put it back together. Engine and front end should be fine, as well as the interior.

They'll probably saw it in half and weld your front to the back of another that took a front hit. Did any airbags deploy?

They could almost do that....from the rear seat forward was pretty much intact.....except the headrests seem to pop apart for some safety reason.

We bought a new car tonight. I don't know if the car will be replaced, though everyone seems to think it will be, and in any case I'll need a new car.

I like the 2017 E400 but the one's available now are 4 cyl models. The V6's will be available in early December. If I wait a week I won't get it until January. So, they took an order they had for a dealer model, and they still had 24 hours to change it so it would be the way I wanted it, and so the car is now on order. Since we have bought before there was no money down, though I will put a down payment on it as soon as the insurance company tells us what is happening.

I wa tempted to get a new red color with a cream interior, but, I just had to go with white again. I like the contrast of the white car and black panoramic roof. They will get me a deal on a rental if I need it, and if I am forced (unlikely) to have my old car repaired, they will accept it as a trade in.

They said they can't take 4% off any more, but they would take 3% off.

We might fly to Florida in late October, and then fly back when the car comes in, then drive down in the new car.

So, the deal isn't over until it is over, but I might be an actual new car buyer.

driver100

Here is the interior though it will be a lighter beige:

ab348

You'll certainly be the first on your block! Congrats.

stickguy

snazzy. I really like that darker brown in the picture. That was in the BMW 2 series I looked at. Gorgeous. Though out of place with a silver exterior! Nice with white though.

funny, but the other day, my wife mentioned that she might like a white car next time. a year ago, neither one of us would ever consider white, now we both like it! You are right too, looks great with the black roof. And on our jetta, set off nicely with the black accented wheel spokes.

tjc78

@oldfarmer50
If Q is right and it is a Grand Marquis (or other Panther). You want the 05. The 01 still has the plastic intake. 03+'Models have rack and pinion steering better suspension all around.

With Panthers you also never want an 03 (bad timing chain guides and soft rear axles)

05 is the start of drive by wire. Many claim the programming wasn't as good as later models, but I've driven one and it was fine.