Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations (Archived)

dino001

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

andres3

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Credit Unions is what changed. Some, like Navy Federal are big enough to put a big dent in the banks market share. The one's that get the honor of "Federal CU" get to be a non-profit with all the tax advantages thereof, and of course that benefits the membership. If the banks had their way, Federal CU's would be abolished.

dino001

I don't recall my very limited interaction with credit unions as anything special. Long time ago, my boss's dog chewed up a twenty and they refused to change it, he asked me to bring it to my bank and they did it with no issues. My friend has started a checking account with them and nothing special. I started with Barnett Bank, bought by Nations, who bough BoA (and renamed itself). Has been with them for almost two decades with them. The benefits are only increasing - free ATMs nationwide, available free ATMs in some foreign Countries (Deutche Bank, Scotiabank, etc.), kicka** rewards program. I only had a bad experience once, when tried to update my tax filing status (changed from non-resident to resident) and it took too many attempts and too much time. Rest of it has always been quite positive.

andres3

dino001 said:

I don't recall my very limited interaction with credit unions as anything special. Long time ago, my boss's dog chewed up a twenty and they refused to change it, he asked me to bring it to my bank and they did it with no issues. My friend has started a checking account with them and nothing special. I started with Barnett Bank, bought by Nations, who bough BoA (and renamed itself). Has been with them for almost two decades with them. The benefits are only increasing - free ATMs nationwide, available free ATMs in some foreign Countries (Deutche Bank, Scotiabank, etc.), kicka** rewards program. I only had a bad experience once, when tried to update my tax filing status (changed from non-resident to resident) and it took too many attempts and too much time. Rest of it has always been quite positive.

BofA? I can tell multiple horror stories. It is a wonder I'm still with them. Mainly because I already have my Bill Pay setup and don't want to have to redo it with another institution, and they do have the most ATM's in CA.

Credit Unions are far from perfect, they take on the traits of banks more than they do excellent customer service; although I do hear a lot of good things about NFCU and USAA.

oldfarmer50

andres3 said:

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Credit Unions is what changed. Some, like Navy Federal are big enough to put a big dent in the banks market share. The one's that get the honor of "Federal CU" get to be a non-profit with all the tax advantages thereof, and of course that benefits the membership. If the banks had their way, Federal CU's would be abolished.

After my hometown bank went through several mergers (making me some money on stock offers each time) they became so big that they chased us out with a bunch of niggling fees. We went to a credit union and were much happier.

driver100

Mike....hoping for the best....hope the new meds regimen does it's magic

JMonroe. Good story about buying the Pontiac. I read every word. I think dealers did use hidden microphones at one time. I wouldn't be surprised if questionable used car dealers still use them.

oldfarmer: lol about the backup facility.

imid: I agree, we have to change the topic. But, it does remind me of something.....drive thru's could be even more popular if there was a way to.....well you know where I am going with this.

JMonroe. That picture may have been photoshopped, but once we found a motel - the only one available, and I would say for some reason the room was average size, but the bathroom was about 20 X 15 ft. The sink was in the corner and opposite was a toilet right at 90 degrees....no room for knees. Vast open space in the middle, and the toilet paper holder was on the opposite wall about 20 feet away.....maybe a way to get some exercise sprinting across the room.

driver100

Someone mentioned wanting to go to St Petersburg Russia....but hassle with visa's etc. (could be fin).

Good way to go is cruise ship, they take you there, you are allowed to be there for 72 hours, gives you time to see the main attractions which are well worth seeing, no visa required. You have to stay with your group....no wandering around on your own.

imidazol97

driver100 said:

imid: I agree, we have to change the topic. But, it does remind me of something.....drive thru's could be even more popular if there was a way to.....well you know where I am going with this.

Don't misunderstand. I was laughing how we're getting pictures of toilets and baths. LOL. Don't need to change subject, rather I'm just amused at the many branches this topic takes. Very pleasing. Well, except when ragging on GM unnecessarily, despite deserving some of the criticism from historical experience.

I'm waiting until GG gets his check and then I'll be free to comment more.

ab348

imidazol97 said:

Don't misunderstand. I was laughing how we're getting pictures of toilets and baths. LOL. Don't need to change subject, rather I'm just amused at the many branches this topic takes. Very pleasing.

It's all @driver100 's fault. If he hadn't been lording over us with that designer Delta toilet picture a few months ago none of this s**tstorm would have occurred.

BTW I have not yet bought the replacement water closet for the main floor bath, but I suspect it will be a very mainstream Gerber or American Standard model, sort of the Republican cloth coat of toilets.

jmonroe

@driver100 said:

JMonroe. That picture may have been photoshopped, but once we found a motel - the only one available, and I would say for some reason the room was average size, but the bathroom was about 20 X 15 ft. The sink was in the corner and opposite was a toilet right at 90 degrees....no room for knees. Vast open space in the middle, and the toilet paper holder was on the opposite wall about 20 feet away.....maybe a way to get some exercise sprinting across the room.

I'm not saying that bathroom picture was "photoshopped". It was probably real. Right before someone did a renovation they "set it up" for an internet posting.

Now, about that hotel room you described:

Could it be that you got to that hotel room before the renovation took place?

jmonroe

graphicguy

EUREKA.....GM's check showed up around lunch time (or so the dealer said). Went to the dealership immediately. They inspected it. Signed an odometer reading declaration. Signed title over to them. Signed a declaration holding GM harmless once I accepted the check and cashed it. Numbers were right. Was planning on UBER-ing home. Dealer SM said he'd get his porter to give me a ride home.

Porter had what I'll assume was a demo ATS. Understand I'm not a "no smoking" zealot. I probably have more sinus issues with people who wear cologn or perfume than I do with smokers. However, I'll assume at some point, the ATS demo I was riding in was going to be sold as a "demo". It really stunk to high heaven, and ciggy ashes were everywhere, given cars don't have ashtrays anymore. Given the porter smelled the part, I'm sure he uses the ATS daily. I know the dealership has a rule against smoking in their loaner cars, but apparently are a lot more lenient with their demo fleet.

Anyway, got home. Jumped into the Q50. Took the check to the bank and deposited it.

This sad, sad saga is officially over after approx 6 months since Cadillac admitted they had a wiring problem (turns out, it was a big problem). Thanks again to all of you for the support. Greatly appreciated (and very much needed).

28firefighter

Congrats @graphicguy!  Good riddance to this whole experience. 

suydam

Done! Mazel Tov! Enjoy the Q.

qbrozen

awesome. congrats.

Michaell

@graphicguy - thanks for putting a lid on this story for us. Glad that it had a happy ending, for you. Guessing you'll never darken a GM brand dealer ever again, unless you're with a friend.

@imidazol97 - feel free to comment away.

oldfarmer50

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Are you saying communist banks have better service than capitalist banks? Not hard to believe. Maybe I should put my meger proletariat savings in the people's Polski bank.

oldfarmer50

graphicguy said:

EUREKA.....GM's check showed up around lunch time (or so the dealer said). Went to the dealership immediately. They inspected it. Signed an odometer reading declaration. Signed title over to them. Signed a declaration holding GM harmless once I accepted the check and cashed it. Numbers were right. Was planning on UBER-ing home. Dealer SM said he'd get his porter to give me a ride home.

Porter had what I'll assume was a demo ATS. Understand I'm not a "no smoking" zealot. I probably have more sinus issues with people who wear cologn or perfume than I do with smokers. However, I'll assume at some point, the ATS demo I was riding in was going to be sold as a "demo". It really stunk to high heaven, and ciggy ashes were everyhere, given cars don't have ashtrays anymore. Given the porter smelled the part, I'm sure he uses the ATS daily. I know the dealership has a rule against smoking in their loaner cars, but apparently are a lot more lenient with their demo fleet.

Anyway, got home. Jumped into the Q50. Took the check to the bank and deposited it.

This sad, sad saga is officially over after approx 6 months since Cadillac admitted they had a wiring problem (turns out, it was a big problem). Thanks again to all of you for the support. Greatly appreciated (and very much needed).

Hoo-Ray!!!

andres3

graphicguy said:

EUREKA.....GM's check showed up around lunch time (or so the dealer said). Went to the dealership immediately. They inspected it. Signed an odometer reading declaration. Signed title over to them. Signed a declaration holding GM harmless once I accepted the check and cashed it. Numbers were right. Was planning on UBER-ing home. Dealer SM said he'd get his porter to give me a ride home.

Porter had what I'll assume was a demo ATS. Understand I'm not a "no smoking" zealot. I probably have more sinus issues with people who wear cologn or perfume than I do with smokers. However, I'll assume at some point, the ATS demo I was riding in was going to be sold as a "demo". It really stunk to high heaven, and ciggy ashes were everywhere, given cars don't have ashtrays anymore. Given the porter smelled the part, I'm sure he uses the ATS daily. I know the dealership has a rule against smoking in their loaner cars, but apparently are a lot more lenient with their demo fleet.

Anyway, got home. Jumped into the Q50. Took the check to the bank and deposited it.

This sad, sad saga is officially over after approx 6 months since Cadillac admitted they had a wiring problem (turns out, it was a big problem). Thanks again to all of you for the support. Greatly appreciated (and very much needed).

Wow @ 6 months! That's a long time to be hassled. Also, make sure the check doesn't bounce! LOL!

How long until the check is cleared?

Anything go wrong with the Q50 yet? Some say foreign cars are no better.....

tjc78

abacomike said:

Mike, I accept if you say dealers don't have microphones in the sales office.......at least I believe yours didn't and maybe all reputable new cardealers follow that rule.

I don't know if I would trust an independent used car dealer not to have a microphone though. I guess my thinking would be, better act as if there is a microphone just in case.

I'm with you. You have no idea how much that bugs me but the truth cannot be argued. Read on. It's not too long but let me digress for a minute.

When we lived in SC, we bought our '95 Bonneville in August of '95. It had about 7K miles on it and the story was, it belonged to a retired GM exec who was entitled to buy a car or truck every year as part of his retirement umbrella deal. The price was set by the factory and all the dealer had to do was take the order and get a "pass-through fee". Maybe @abacomike can tell us how this really works but it's nice work if you can get it and this retiree got it. This part of the story turned out to be true. I found that out latter (long story you don't want to hear, so enough about that).

OK, now the story:

We went to this Pontiac dealer about 4 o'clock on a Friday. The dealer closed at 5:30. I figured we had plenty of time to get a deal done but I was wrong. The dealer wanted to play games. This was a big reason why I adopted my 30 minute thingy about wasting time trying to buy a car. Anyway, we are doing the dance and the salesman gets up to go to his manager again. He was there about 15 minutes and it's now past 5:30 and the lights are being turned off. Mrs. j says "now what" and starts into something I didn't want the salesman to hear so I quickly cut her off and said something like, "it looks like we should go back and talk to Marty at ABC Buick next door tomorrow morning. We were a lot closer with him than this guy. Let's go."

We get up and we are not 5 steps out of the salesman's cube when he comes running over and says the typical salesman bleep, "congratulations, you just bought that car for the price you wanted". I asked why he had to wait so long since it was same offer I made originally when the whole game started. His response was, "this is the last time we have to sell a car today so my boss said sell it". I believe that part of the story but I'm convinced that it was more about us going somewhere else the next day.

This salesman struck me as being the typical car salesman of that era not a mind reader, but, maybe he was. I'll never know or did I?

jmonroe

What triggered your getting the deal was the standing up and taking 5 steps toward the door - it works a great deal of the time - but I am sure they did not have you monitored on a hidden microphone. But, as you well know, I have been known to be wrong at times!

My stepdad always said the best thing to do when you weren't getting your price was to get up and walk away.  I agree it usually works and if they are able to do the deal they will. 

oldfarmer50

I've had pretty good luck with my GM products. The only weak area for me has been the AC systems. With one exception they all failed. No brand is perfect and the other domestics have had their own unique failures too.

The only flawless car was the Mitsu but that was bought new and never got to the age of my usual fare.

explorerx4

@graphicguy,
Happy for you that you will be able to close out that unfortunate Cadillac experience.
That money would make a nice down payment on a Porsche Cayman.
Of course, you would have to move out the Cobra.

dino001

oldfarmer50 said:

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Are you saying communist banks have better service than capitalist banks? Not hard to believe. Maybe I should put my meger proletariat savings in the people's Polski bank.

I wouldn't say that much, as money is a strange concept in communism. In 1998, when I came to the US, Poland was about eight years into its full transformation from communism (hence I used a term post-communist) to market-based economy, with many consummer-facing outfits already well adjusted to new reality, so my then most recent experience was shops wells stocked and many people discovering their entrepreneurial spirit. Banks were open until 7 pm, almost full day on Saturdays, some even on Sundays. They considered themselves not much different from merchant stores. US bankers think they are way much "better", than store owners at a mall.

ab348

oldfarmer50 said:

I've had pretty good luck with my GM products. The only weak area for me has been the AC systems. With one exception they all failed. No brand is perfect and the other domestics have had their own unique failures too.

The only flawless car was the Mitsu but that was bought new and never got to the age of my usual fare.

That's really odd because most GM AC systems let you hang meat in the car whereas most Mitsus are defective right off the lot.

ab348

dino001 said:

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

I remember when I first got a bank account in the mid-1970s banks here were open 10:00AM to 3:00PM, Monday to Friday. They stayed open an extra hour on Fridays. In the late '70s/early '80s one bank shook things up by staying open until 8PM Monday to Saturday. Gradually the others started extending their hours. Then ATMs and online banking came along to make branches less important.

imidazol97

graphicguy said:

This sad, sad saga is officially over after approx 6 months since Cadillac admitted they had a wiring problem (turns out, it was a big problem). Thanks again to all of you for the support. Greatly appreciated (and very much needed).

Good. Finally.

Your story should have gone somewhat akin to @abacomike's with a "sorry" from the company after a few weeks of redesigning the fix for the 3 cars involved and a buyout or replacement vehicle.

This story had more drama than a Wendy Williams episode.

oldfarmer50

dino001 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Are you saying communist banks have better service than capitalist banks? Not hard to believe. Maybe I should put my meger proletariat savings in the people's Polski bank.

I wouldn't say that much, as money is a strange concept in communism. In 1998, when I came to the US, Poland was about eight years into its full transformation from communism (hence I used a term post-communist) to market-based economy, with many consummer-facing outfits already well adjusted to new reality, so my then most recent experience was shops wells stocked and many people discovering their entrepreneurial spirit. Banks were open until 7 pm, almost full day on Saturdays, some even on Sundays. They considered themselves not much different from merchant stores. US bankers think they are way much "better", than store owners at a mall.

If you grew up during the old system the change must have been dramatic and traumatic. To then set off to a foreign country took a lot of courage. My hat's off to you.

oldfarmer50

ab348 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

I've had pretty good luck with my GM products. The only weak area for me has been the AC systems. With one exception they all failed. No brand is perfect and the other domestics have had their own unique failures too.

The only flawless car was the Mitsu but that was bought new and never got to the age of my usual fare.

That's really odd because most GM AC systems let you hang meat in the car whereas most Mitsus are defective right off the lot.

Ha ha. The one GM with a great AC was the 93' Caddy I bought for my son for $1200. It was working great even as the sub frame rotted away from the frame. Maybe if I had kept the Eclipse longer than 7 years it might have bedeviled me.

berri

Glad it is over graphic and thanks for keeping us posted. Now if you were in south Florida, Aba (Mike) might even give you a toast with some of that high priced hooch in his liquor cabinet

jmonroe

andres3 said:

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Credit Unions is what changed. Some, like Navy Federal are big enough to put a big dent in the banks market share. The one's that get the honor of "Federal CU" get to be a non-profit with all the tax advantages thereof, and of course that benefits the membership. If the banks had their way, Federal CU's would be abolished.

I hope this is my last comment about this bank subject but I have to tell this story.

We had been dealing with a local savings and loan for many years. I dealt with them when I was still single. Just trying to get my point across about the length of time.

Sure enough they were finally taken over by a large bank about 7 years ago. The ticky tack stuff started almost immediately but I put up with it because I didn't want to go through the work of setting up a checking account for direct deposit with the bank where we had already transferred our savings account because they had a better interest rate. Not great but better. Since we were long time customers with the old savings and loan we would not be hit with the new banks charge for checks. They would still be free for us.

Then they got me irritated about a check I had issued to me from the bank where I had my savings account which I deposited in my checking account. I can't remember what it was for but it was for around $5K. I knew they would hold the check until it cleared for a few days but on the day it should have been deposited it wasn't there so I called the new bank. The old savings and loan deposited any checks I got from anybody almost immediately not in 72 hours or whatever it was. So, right off the bat I didn't like the new rules but I had to abide by them. But it seemed to me they were not playing by the rules so I called customer service and we had the following conversation:

Me: When will my $5K check be deposited. This is the third day.

Customer Service Woman: I see your check wasn't deposited before noon so we can't credit your account until close of business tomorrow. The terms of your account explains that.

Me: So it will be there tomorrow, right.

Customer Service Woman: Yes, but not until the end of the day.

I just want to point out I did not need this money right away. Even if I got it the following week that would have been OK because I planned for delays.

Me: Can I ask you something?

Customer Service Woman: Sure, what do you want to know.

Me: When I dealt with XYZ Savings and Loan any checks I got were deposited by the next day. So, why do you guys hold my money as long as you do?

Customer Service Woman: OH, Mr. jmonroe we are following the banking laws so we can't credit your account right away. We are only following the banking laws established by Congress.

Me: So, this is the law, right?

Customer Service Woman: Yes it is.

Me: So you are telling me that one day the members of Congress woke up and decided to allow banks to hold our money as long as they do and that is why you do it.

Customer Service Woman: I don't know why they did it like that but they did.

Me: Let me tell you why they did it like that. Don't you think the banks lobby people pushed that though Congress to benefit the banking industry. Congress screws us all the time but I doubt this was their idea.

Customer Service Woman: Ah, c'mon do you really think that's how it was done?

Me: Absolutely.

Customer Service Woman: You can believe what you want but like I said we are only following the law.

Me: You don't think just a little bit that is how it happened.

Customer Service Woman: To be honest with you, NO. I don't think our Congress would let something like that happen
.
That ended the conversation. I couldn't take anymore.

This woman was the perfect nitwit to be in customer service. Clueless, even when you try to explain something to them.

FWIW, 2 years later that bank started to charge us for checks. The honeymoon was over and so was our dealing with them.

jmonroe

qbrozen

Alright, alright, then I gotta tell this one. I was a member of a credit union not too long ago. I actually got involved with them through a dealership when I financed my first Infiniti. Anyway, I will try to keep this brief.

 About 1.5 years ago when trying to buy our new home, I was attempting to jump through all the ridiculous hoops of closing with the mortgage company. Even before this began, I had consolidated accounts with the credit union (we had 3 accounts with them which I dropped all into the 1 account with check writing capability) in preparation for this purchase. Very late in the underwriting process, I was asked to verify where this money came from. They wanted to see the statements from the accounts I had closed when I consolidated. I went online and found I could not see those anymore. I called the credit union. They told me, in no uncertain terms--and no matter how much I pleaded that this was a very time sensitive matter, my closing was 48 hrs away, etc--that I had to physically go into a branch to obtain these statements to which I could previously access online. I was obviously blown away by this absurdity. Here I was going to lose half a day of the 48 hrs I had left. Fine. I decided if they insisted I go into a branch, then I would use that visit to close my remaining account with them, which is exactly what I did.

oldfarmer50

jmonroe said:

andres3 said:

dino001 said:

berri said:

How about the post office - close weekdays at 5 before most working people can get there. Open Saturday only until noon and closed Sunday. That's called "customer service"

I remember my disbelief when I came to the free market US from post-communist Poland and discovered that banks are open 'til 4 pm, some actually til 3:30, and "to accommodate" their valued customers they close 4:30 on Fridays. Closed on Saturdays. Something changed since - many stay open 'til 6 pm and 2 pm on Saturdays.

Credit Unions is what changed. Some, like Navy Federal are big enough to put a big dent in the banks market share. The one's that get the honor of "Federal CU" get to be a non-profit with all the tax advantages thereof, and of course that benefits the membership. If the banks had their way, Federal CU's would be abolished.

I hope this is my last comment about this bank subject but I have to tell this story.

We had been dealing with a local savings and loan for many years. I dealt with them when I was still single. Just trying to get my point across about the length of time.

Sure enough they were finally taken over by a large bank about 7 years ago. The ticky tack stuff started almost immediately but I put up with it because I didn't want to go through the work of setting up a checking account for direct deposit with the bank where we had already transferred our savings account because they had a better interest rate. Not great but better. Since we were long time customers with the old savings and loan we would not be hit with the new banks charge for checks. They would still be free for us.

Then they got me irritated about a check I had issued to me from the bank where I had my savings account which I deposited in my checking account. I can't remember what it was for but it was for around $5K. I knew they would hold the check until it cleared for a few days but on the day it should have been deposited it wasn't there so I called the new bank. The old savings and loan deposited any checks I got from anybody almost immediately not in 72 hours or whatever it was. So, right off the bat I didn't like the new rules but I had to abide by them. But it seemed to me they were not playing by the rules so I called customer service and we had the following conversation:

Me: When will my $5K check be deposited. This is the third day.

Customer Service Woman: I see your check wasn't deposited before noon so we can't credit your account until close of business tomorrow. The terms of your account explains that.

Me: So it will be there tomorrow, right.

Customer Service Woman: Yes, but not until the end of the day.

I just want to point out I did not need this money right away. Even if I got it the following week that would have been OK because I planned for delays.

Me: Can I ask you something?

Customer Service Woman: Sure, what do you want to know.

Me: When I dealt with XYZ Savings and Loan any checks I got were deposited by the next day. So, why do you guys hold my money as long as you do?

Customer Service Woman: OH, Mr. jmonroe we are following the banking laws so we can't credit your account right away. We are only following the banking laws established by Congress.

Me: So, this is the law, right?

Customer Service Woman: Yes it is.

Me: So you are telling me that one day the members of Congress woke up and decided to allow banks to hold our money as long as they do and that is why you do it.

Customer Service Woman: I don't know why they did it like that but they did.

Me: Let me tell you why they did it like that. Don't you think the banks lobby people pushed that though Congress to benefit the banking industry. Congress screws us all the time but I doubt this was their idea.

Customer Service Woman: Ah, c'mon do you really think that's how it was done?

Me: Absolutely.

Customer Service Woman: You can believe what you want but like I said we are only following the law.

Me: You don't think just a little bit that is how it happened.

Customer Service Woman: To be honest with you, NO. I don't think our Congress would let something like that happen
.
That ended the conversation. I couldn't take anymore.

This woman was the perfect nitwit to be in customer service. Clueless, even when you try to explain something to them.

FWIW, 2 years later that bank started to charge us for checks. The honeymoon was over and so was our dealing with them.

jmonroe

The bank (who we are no longer with) did that to me on a cash deposit causing a check I had written to a supplier to bounce. No so much as an Ooops or an offer to void the bounced check charge. :@

tjc78

I know I'm sure to be flamed for this but I use one bank only.  I've got everything through them (checking, savings, 401k, mortgage, HELOC, kids accounts and a Visa) everything is free.  They will even credit back ATM surcharges.   So all in all I'm happy.   

explorerx4

@graphicguy ,
The reason for the embargo is to give a pool of reviewers an equal opportunity. The first reviewer can't 'scoop' the rest.

driver100

ab348 said:

imidazol97 said:

Don't misunderstand. I was laughing how we're getting pictures of toilets and baths. LOL. Don't need to change subject, rather I'm just amused at the many branches this topic takes. Very pleasing.

It's all @driver100 's fault. If he hadn't been lording over us with that designer Delta toilet picture a few months ago none of this s**tstorm would have occurred.

BTW I have not yet bought the replacement water closet for the main floor bath, but I suspect it will be a very mainstream Gerber or American Standard model, sort of the Republican cloth coat of toilets.

For the sake of accuracy it was a Pfister!



and oldfarmer said you would never get him to sit on something called a Pfister.

jmonroe said:

@driver100 said:

JMonroe. That picture may have been photoshopped, but once we found a motel - the only one available, and I would say for some reason the room was average size, but the bathroom was about 20 X 15 ft. The sink was in the corner and opposite was a toilet right at 90 degrees....no room for knees. Vast open space in the middle, and the toilet paper holder was on the opposite wall about 20 feet away.....maybe a way to get some exercise sprinting across the room.

I'm not saying that bathroom picture was "photoshopped". It was probably real. Right before someone did a renovation they "set it up" for an internet posting.

Now, about that hotel room you described:

Could it be that you got to that hotel room before the renovation took place?

jmonroe

jmonroe said:

@driver100 said:

JMonroe. That picture may have been photoshopped, but once we found a motel - the only one available, and I would say for some reason the room was average size, but the bathroom was about 20 X 15 ft. The sink was in the corner and opposite was a toilet right at 90 degrees....no room for knees. Vast open space in the middle, and the toilet paper holder was on the opposite wall about 20 feet away.....maybe a way to get some exercise sprinting across the room.

I'm not saying that bathroom picture was "photoshopped". It was probably real. Right before someone did a renovation they "set it up" for an internet posting.

Now, about that hotel room you described:

Could it be that you got to that hotel room before the renovation took place?

jmonroe

I really think the renovation had been done recently. Mrs D and I were on a business trip to Halifax N.S. and every hotel room in town was booked. We drove a few miles out of town, saw this creepy looking motel...like something from Psycho, and we took the room unseen. It was fairly scuzzy but I was glad my wife is realistic enough to know we had to stay there or we would have to sleep in the car.

The bathroom looked like it had just been redone....it was actually clean. I think it was just where the pipes came out and not much thinking. This was probably 18 years ago, but the good news was the cost of the room was about $36 when most hotels were $80 to $150 a night. We felt so scuzzy the next night we stayed in a $150 (18 years ago) night hotel and had a big expensive dinner to make up for it.

driver100

GG, Glad to hear it is all over and you conquered the mighty GM.

Now, if you ever get any ideas about visiting another Cadillac or other fine GM product let us know so we can talk you down from it

driver100

JMonroe . The old savings and loan deposited any checks I got from anybody almost immediately not in 72 hours or whatever it was. So, right off the bat I didn't like the new rules but I had to abide by them

Did that have anything to do with when if someone cashed a check on the east coast the bank would wire the money from the west coast, and the reverse if the check was cashed on the west coast? It stalled the money for at least a day, and the interest earned even for 24 hours on $billions was substantial profit for the banks!

ab348

driver100 said:

GG, Glad to hear it is all over and you conquered the mighty GM.

Now, if you ever get any ideas about visiting another Cadillac or other fine GM product let us know so we can talk you down from it

Clearly, he should only ever lease new cars, not buy them outright.

ab348

driver100 said:

I really think the renovation had been done recently. Mrs D and I were on a business trip to Halifax N.S. and every hotel room in town was booked. We drove a few miles out of town, saw this creepy looking motel...like something from Psycho, and we took the room unseen. It was fairly scuzzy but I was glad my wife is realistic enough to know we had to stay there or we would have to sleep in the car.

The bathroom looked like it had just been redone....it was actually clean. I think it was just where the pipes came out and not much thinking. This was probably 18 years ago, but the good news was the cost of the room was about $36 when most hotels were $80 to $150 a night. We felt so scuzzy the next night we stayed in a $150 (18 years ago) night hotel and had a big expensive dinner to make up for it.

Oh my... as a local, you have to tell me the name of this motel.

ab348

I used to deal with a credit union here. It was one sponsored (?) by the provincial government and was right across the street from the legislature. It was good for me as a saver because they were the only financial institution at the time that had the ability to have my govt paycheck deposited automatically. This is no longer the case, obviously.

I found they were good but antiquated in many ways. They had no ability to sell me things like a US currency money order. They had just started to become part of an ATM network in the early '90s but had very limited coverage. Back then they had very limited technology systems. Eventually I closed out the account. I suspect today a lot of those drawbacks no longer apply. But it was probably because they were small by comparison to the major banks and did not have the ability to invest in those things.

Some banking practices like holds on cheques still seem to throw back to the days where account balances were maintained in a branch or at least not system-wide. I find it hilarious now that I deal with a "virtual" bank (no physical branches) that relies totally on electronic fund transfers, yet they still hold funds coming in or out for a few days. I fail to see the reason for that.

driver100

ab348 said:

driver100 said:

I really think the renovation had been done recently. Mrs D and I were on a business trip to Halifax N.S. and every hotel room in town was booked. We drove a few miles out of town, saw this creepy looking motel...like something from Psycho, and we took the room unseen. It was fairly scuzzy but I was glad my wife is realistic enough to know we had to stay there or we would have to sleep in the car.

The bathroom looked like it had just been redone....it was actually clean. I think it was just where the pipes came out and not much thinking. This was probably 18 years ago, but the good news was the cost of the room was about $36 when most hotels were $80 to $150 a night. We felt so scuzzy the next night we stayed in a $150 (18 years ago) night hotel and had a big expensive dinner to make up for it.

Oh my... as a local, you have to tell me the name of this motel.

Ab, this was probably at least 15 years ago so hard to remember. All rooms in Halifax were booked so we started driving out of town...my wife thinks the town name began with an 'M". We looked at pictures of some places, we know the parking was right up at the door.

We think it could be the Windjammer in Mahone Bay, but can't be positive, they don't show pictures of the bathrooms.
WINDJAMMER MOTEL

graphicguy

Thanks again, all!

My issue was never with GM, per se. My issues were with Cadillac specifically.

My other GMs (Pontiac, now defunct) and Chevy were all great. Wouldn't hesitate getting another Chevy.

Anyway, no more Cadillacs.....ever!!!!!!

suydam

I grew up on a Navy base so we used a credit union. I've continued to do so ever since. In my experience they have better service and lower rates and rarely any fees. Their credit cards don't have foreign transaction fees. I don't use them for everything but they are my go-to for most banking needs. When traveling I prefer a rewards Visa card like Chase because Amex isn't accepted abroad everywhere.

roadburner

My father founded an S&L in the 1960s. Around 1990 it was sold and has changed hands a couple of times since. The latest owner charges for external bank transfers and has several other new fees so we are changing banks once my son graduates from SC(his rent is paid by electronic check).

graphicguy

explorerx4 said:

@graphicguy ,
The reason for the embargo is to give a pool of reviewers an equal opportunity. The first reviewer can't 'scoop' the rest.

I guess I don't understand the whole idea of taking reviewers on a test drive, and not allowing them to give their impressions. That tells me, as a potential customer, it wasn't the response they were hoping for.

But, I see what you're saying giving equal opportunities to different reviewers. First time I've ever heard of a car company telling reviewers to test drive but not to report their impressions.

It looked to be a press event and everyone had the same opportunity to drive the TLX on the same day.

Acura could use a few wins with their cars, as their sales have been tepid the last several years.

On the other hand, their SUVs seem to be the upscale wagons of choice around these parts.

I'm always on the lookout for something I might like better than the Cobra. But, so far, nothing has struck me....at least not for the amount of money I'm willing to pay.

graphicguy

ab...how would leasing a car change whether it is a lemon or not? Leasing or buying....if a car is a lemon won't change.

I don't lease, anyway.

(EDIT....I have looked at some of those super cheap leases Michaell pointed to several weeks ago for a grocery getter).

carnaught

graphicguy said:

Thanks again, all!

My issue was never with GM, per se. My issues were with Cadillac specifically.

My other GMs (Pontiac, now defunct) and Chevy were all great. Wouldn't hesitate getting another Chevy.

Anyway, no more Cadillacs.....ever!!!!!!

@graphicguy, so happy this unfortunate saga is over for you, congrats! Your patience and perserverance were awesome.

driver100

graphicguy said:

ab...how would leasing a car change whether it is a lemon or not? Leasing or buying....if a car is a lemon won't change.

I don't lease, anyway.

(EDIT....I have looked at some of those super cheap leases Michaell pointed to several weeks ago for a grocery getter).

I would consider leasing rather than buying if I really wanted a particular car but didn't know whether I could trust it. For example, I would rather lease a Tesla, Rover, Cadillac, Alfa Romeo because if I don't like it I hand it back in after the lease. If I do like it I buy it at the end of the lease. Just more options and easier to ditch.

graphicguy

driver100 said:

graphicguy said:

ab...how would leasing a car change whether it is a lemon or not? Leasing or buying....if a car is a lemon won't change.

I don't lease, anyway.

(EDIT....I have looked at some of those super cheap leases Michaell pointed to several weeks ago for a grocery getter).

I would consider leasing rather than buying if I really wanted a particular car but didn't know whether I could trust it. For example, I would rather lease a Tesla, Rover, Cadillac, Alfa Romeo because if I don't like it I hand it back in after the lease. If I do like it I buy it at the end of the lease. Just more options and easier to ditch.

driver...did lease once. At the time, I was commuting to Columbus, OH from Cincinnati every day. Did the lease before I took that gig and was stuck with a huge mileage overage charge at the end of the lease. That was a long time ago. But, that experience still sticks with me.

Besides, it seems every time I look at a lease, I negotiate a good price. And then, on the back end, I'm paying lease inception fees, acquisition fees, disposition fees, this fee and that fee. All of a sudden, the good deal I thought I had made, doesn't look so good any more.

I understand how some would like to lease. Nothing against it. Just not for me.

abacomike

ab348 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

I've had pretty good luck with my GM products. The only weak area for me has been the AC systems. With one exception they all failed. No brand is perfect and the other domestics have had their own unique failures too.

The only flawless car was the Mitsu but that was bought new and never got to the age of my usual fare.

That's really odd because most GM AC systems let you hang meat in the car whereas most Mitsus are defective right off the lot.

When I owned GM cars (Pontiac, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and Oldsmobile), I found their air-conditioning systems to be the best on the market at that time (1960's-1990's). I also remember back in 1987, 1988 and again in 1991, I owned Mercedes Benz vehicles and the air-conditioning systems in those cars was HORRID! It would take forever to get the car cooled down. I think at the time they were producing cars more for the European markets where air-conditioning was not as critical in a car as it is in the summers here in North America. When I bought my first "modern" Mercedes in 2008, the air-conditioning was superior. I also have found the air-conditioning system in my BMW to be outstanding as well - and we get "hot" down here with loads of humidity. I think auto manufacturers have finally mastered temperature and humidity control in the cars they build - which was not the case 15+ years ago.

abacomike

Took my first Epclusa tablet as part of my first step in trying to finally rid my body of this awful Hepatitis C Virus last night just before bedtime. At 3:00 AM, I woke up in a cold sweat and my body felt like a truckload of bricks fell on top of me. I tossed and turned and in between, I finally got some sleep. I woke up at 6:30 AM and felt like I would never get out of bed again. By 9:00 AM, I was showered, dressed, and out the door on my way up to take a walk at the Mall. I only had to stop once to rest.

So, I have some decisions to make - when is the best time to take this pill? According to the pharmacy that fills my prescription, taking it with my evening meds is best as I won't feel the ill-effects of the drug making me tired, weak and headachy. I will try to continue taking the drug, but a bit earlier - like 6:00 PM with my regular meds, so the insomnia and side-effects will hit me before midnight so I can get a good night's sleep. I'll just have to get used to this drug.

I have to have that 22 vial blood test in about 3 weeks just prior to my appointment with my gastroenterologist. Hopefully, the test results will show no detectable virus. I have to have those tests every 4 weeks. I am praying this works - it will boost my immune system and protect my liver as well as my kidneys. This disease is murder.

According to the Federal Government, 1 in every 9 "baby-boomers" is infected with Hepatitis C and don't know it. That's why they strongly urge boomers to get tested for Hep C. It is estimated that many millions of people in my age category are walking around with it. Unbelievable.