Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

suydam

The last time I parallel parked a car was when I got my drivers license at age 17.

ab348

Maybe they removed parallel parking from the test because the examiners had a hard time finding a spot to get the candidate to try doing it.

stickguy

in NJ the DMV stations where they do road tests out of have a place in the parking lot dedicated to this. You park between 2 poles. If you can accomplish that, they take you out for a loop on some local streets.

sda

I do think parallel parking should be a requirement. It shows being able to judge distance and manipulate getting into and out of a challenging spot. I haven’t had to parallel park in a while, but still remember how to initially position the car to do so. I was a master at it when having to find parking at college.

stickguy

all this talk of chipped ham makes me think of the old nickname of the army grub of chipped beef on bread. Which I won't repeat here.

ab348

You mean, "on toast", which is sometimes known as a "shingle". I'll leave the rest to the imagination.

fintail

I can't think of any areas where rural tax funds subsidize cities. In virtually every example I have seen, cities receive negative cash flow in terms of taxes paid vs benefits received. I know it's that way in WA, where Seattle metro is a net loser, while those in some areas perpetually moan and whine while if it wasn't for the economic behemonth crowded into a little inlet, they'd likely be driving on rutted pioneer trails and living in soddys.

And don't get me wrong, I have no problem subsidizing infrastructure in such areas, but I think there's a big bootstrap/built it myself kind of mythology out there for public goods.

oldfarmer50 said:

It’s only socialist when vote buying politicians take money from rural/suburban areas and funnel it to cities without providing similar services to folks paying for it.

fintail

It's even worse here. In some places, palms-greasing developers are allowed to build high density residential buildings without parking. We also have the same problem of cookie cutter mini mcmansion orchards cutting into old pasture land, while the old two lane arterials that were used for these little horse properties etc for ages are never appropriately improved. I am sure holding the developer accountable would be an "onerous" regulation or something similar.

driver100 said:

All true! A big factor that people who live here full time tell me is developers can make whole neighborhoods, and they don't pay any development fees....even for new roads. So the new surveys go up with 100s of homes, and then the state has to figure out how to make roads to handle the traffic...which doesn't come until many years later.
Not much enforcement for no licence or no insurance.

fintail

I can believe it. This is the age of the lowest common denominator.

I seldom parallel park, but I look at it as a badge of honor, and in a weird way, almost enjoy it when I have to do it. My car having 4 cameras and surround view helps a lot, of course. But even in my old car, it isn't that bad, with its low beltline and thin pillars. It just takes a few moments of concentration. Can't do it while texting someone or eating.

oldfarmer50 said:

Just this minute I heard on the news that NYS is eliminating the parallel parking portion of the license road test. Are you kidding?

Their logic is that since most drivers pass all the other portions of the test why keep the hard parts that people fail.

I think I’m losing my mind living in this place.

explorerx4

We had family that lived in Warren right off 8 Mile, pretty close to the Chrysler(RAM) truck plant.
We didn't cross over to the Detroit side.

ab348

fintail said:

I can't think of any areas where rural tax funds subsidize cities. In virtually every example I have seen, cities receive negative cash flow in terms of taxes paid vs benefits received.

It depends on how the geography works. Here, the former city of Halifax was combined with the former county of the same name, which is mostly very rural with a donut of suburban sprawl closer to the old city. The result is that those rural areas 60 miles away are paying high taxes to fund urban core planning exercises, street beautification, parks, buses, and all the usual things one expects in a city. Meanwhile all they get is snow removal from roads (eventually) and garbage pickup. Police are a long ways out, the fire protection is volunteer, and forget about things like sidewalks, sewers, water service, etc.

ab348

fintail said:

It's even worse here. In some places, palms-greasing developers are allowed to build high density residential buildings without parking. We also have the same problem of cookie cutter mini mcmansion orchards cutting into old pasture land, while the old two lane arterials that were used for these little horse properties etc for ages are never appropriately improved. I am sure holding the developer accountable would be an "onerous" regulation or something similar.

The problem is with the planning staff. It is the same thing here. But it is the govt planners who say yea or nay to development proposals, and who allow developments to be built without appropriate road upgrades, parking, etc. It is a very strange profession and I suspect in some cases, very corrupt.

oldfarmer50

tjc78 said:

In reality how often do most people parallel park?

I think I do it twice a year at most.

I do it every so often when I pick my son up at his city apartment. I’m better at parking a 35’ school bus than a short little Kia.

oldfarmer50

ab348 said:

fintail said:

I can't think of any areas where rural tax funds subsidize cities. In virtually every example I have seen, cities receive negative cash flow in terms of taxes paid vs benefits received.

It depends on how the geography works. Here, the former city of Halifax was combined with the former county of the same name, which is mostly very rural with a donut of suburban sprawl closer to the old city. The result is that those rural areas 60 miles away are paying high taxes to fund urban core planning exercises, street beautification, parks, buses, and all the usual things one expects in a city. Meanwhile all they get is snow removal from roads (eventually) and garbage pickup. Police are a long ways out, the fire protection is volunteer, and forget about things like sidewalks, sewers, water service, etc.

I get no buses, sidewalks, garbage pick up or sewers. On the other hand if I lived in the city my taxes would be higher.

jmonroe

stickguy said:

all this talk of chipped ham makes me think of the old nickname of the army grub of chipped beef on bread. Which I won't repeat here.

When I was a kid I heard several veterans talk about "xxxx on a shingle". Officially know as "chipped beef on toast". When it was served when I was in the Navy, it wasn't bad at all. Probably because I was stationed at an air base that was awarded, "the best land based Navy chow hall". So I was told, submarines were always known to have the best tasting chow in the Navy. I was never on a sub, so I have to take their word for that.

jmonroe

tjc78

NJ diners all serve chipped beef. I actually like it, but rarely order it.

snakeweasel

fintail said:

Also in European cities, there is usually decent transit, seen as an evil socialist conspiracy on most of this continent, so a lot of people don't need to drive.

I suspect some demographics are at play in FL, too - more density as time goes on, maybe more "new" drivers, along with poor training and enforcement. I think FL is a leader in unlicensed/uninsured drivers (and insurance fraud), with corresponding insurance rates.

In major US cities there is decent mass transit. One thing to remember is that Europe is much more densely populated than the US. (190 per square mile vs 87, 41 states have lower population densities than Europe) and their metropolitan areas tend to be more condensed than here. Plus they have more cities with populations over one million.

snakeweasel

tjc78 said:

In reality how often do most people parallel park?

I think I do it twice a year at most.

I do it more often than that but not by much. I can only think of two places I go to where there is parallel parking.

imidazol97

.

abacomike

tjc78 said:

In reality how often do most people parallel park?

I think I do it twice a year at most.

I haven't parallel parked in over 20 years. What kills me is that my car has the "self-parking" system and I have not had the chance to try it out in the 2-1/2 years I've had it.

Parallel parking spaces are few and far between down here. I've seen them along the coast (Route A1A) both in Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and Boca Raton downtown areas. Just have not had the opportunity.

fintail

In some US citiesn it is decent anyway, and "decent" might be relative to places with names like Spittoon Junction and Tabacky Corner.

Also less of an "I got mine, you can go to hell" mentality in some other cultures, too.

snakeweasel said:

In major US cities there is decent mass transit. One thing to remember is that Europe is much more densely populated than the US. (190 per square mile vs 87, 41 states have lower population densities than Europe) and their metropolitan areas tend to be more condensed than here. Plus they have more cities with populations over one million.

fintail

When economies become dependent on housing, that's one result. The real golden rule. No doubt gov't planners are very much influenced by developers. As I like to say when I have to deal with a road or sidewalk detour due to the construction of yet another "luxury" condo development aimed at unvetted residency-purchasing capital, "public sacrifice for private profit".

ab348 said:

The problem is with the planning staff. It is the same thing here. But it is the govt planners who say yea or nay to development proposals, and who allow developments to be built without appropriate road upgrades, parking, etc. It is a very strange profession and I suspect in some cases, very corrupt.

fintail

I suspect that's an anomaly in the overall scheme of things, too bad for those people though. In my experience, urban areas tend to pay more than they receive when it comes to taxes and benefits simply due to higher incomes and population density. I think it goes that way with states, too - tax money doesn't flow into the more urbanized regions, no matter how the law and order set may complain about "takers".

ab348 said:

It depends on how the geography works. Here, the former city of Halifax was combined with the former county of the same name, which is mostly very rural with a donut of suburban sprawl closer to the old city. The result is that those rural areas 60 miles away are paying high taxes to fund urban core planning exercises, street beautification, parks, buses, and all the usual things one expects in a city. Meanwhile all they get is snow removal from roads (eventually) and garbage pickup. Police are a long ways out, the fire protection is volunteer, and forget about things like sidewalks, sewers, water service, etc.

graphicguy

Went to the Cincinnati Auto Show today. As most other geographic auto shows have been doing, this one is shrinking. No Mercedes. No Tesla. No Genesis (not surprising given you can find scant models anywhere). Mercedes was conspicuous by their absence given their BMW/Lexus/Infiniti/Acura/Jaguar/Range Rover competitors were there.

Random impressions....

-only Chevrolet CAR that was there was the Bolt. It’s seats were better than I remembered from the last time I sat in one. Pretty decent set up. Lots of plastic (presumably to save weight). Fairly nice package for the price of an EV.
-Chevy pickups and SUVs were prevalent. Not cheap ones....they were in the $70K-$80K range. Thanks, but no thanks!

-sort of lumping Nissan and Infiniti together. Nothing’s changed.....Everything looks the same as it has for the last few years. Highlight, to me, at least...the Infiniti Q50 30 year anniversary edition. 300 HP turbo V6....nice options....$40K. Pretty good value.

-KIA and Hyundai areas were packed. Couldn’t get in the only Stinger they had on the floor. Seltos, Optima, Sonata, Soul, Palisades, Telluride...all getting lots of attention. They are sort of reminding me of where Honda/Toyota were in the ‘80s....compelling, high quality, interesting vehicles, priced less than the competition.

-Jaguar...more vehicles there than I’ve seen in a while. Getting good foot traffic. People seemed to like their SUVs. Range Rover....not so much!

-Ford....trucks and SUVs. I was impressed with the Explorer ST. Nicely done. Wouldn’t mind test driving one. Again, there Fx50 trucks were all eye watering expensive.

-Lincoln....Wow...talk about a transformation. I don’t know all the model numbers. But, their SUVs/CUVs were all sporting GORGEOUS interiors.

-Toyota...only thing that interested me was the Camry TRD. Liked it before. Like it better now. Everything else? They’ve slapped TRD on just about every vehicle, truck, SUV/CUV I saw....sometimes for good...most times for ill.

-MAZDA....everything...and I do mean EVERYTHING...Car and CUV were gorgeous. Last thing I looked at from them was my long gone RX8. They should be selling better.

FCP...no Peugeot’s on the floor, but geez-Louise....how long has it been since they’ve updated the 300? Is Fiat finished here yet (again)? Probably should be. RAM....BIG TRUCKS. People love them some Jeeps. Everyone was all over them. The Jeep pickup was....ummm....interesting!

Poor Mitsubishi.....had 3 models....no one....NO ONE WAS LOOKING...

-Best Acura at the show was the RDX (I liked it a lot)...it was also the best mid-size lux SUV there, too. ILX looked pretty nice. My guess is the new TLX is going to look like a bigger ILX with the RDX’s interior.

-Lexus....nice SUVs....in sizes small, medium and large. Everything else they had? Kind of thought....”so what?”

Feeling really good about my Stinger purchase after visiting the show. It’s performance, quality, price, material, build...all of it...can’t be beat for the price. It’s closest competition was as Audi S5...AT $63K? No thanks!

-speaking of pricing....a BMW 330i....for $62K? No...no....and no!

snakeweasel

fintail said:

In some US citiesn it is decent anyway, and "decent" might be relative to places with names like Spittoon Junction and Tabacky Corner.

Also less of an "I got mine, you can go to hell" mentality in some other cultures, too.

snakeweasel said:

In major US cities there is decent mass transit. One thing to remember is that Europe is much more densely populated than the US. (190 per square mile vs 87, 41 states have lower population densities than Europe) and their metropolitan areas tend to be more condensed than here. Plus they have more cities with populations over one million.

For decent public transportation an area has to have a critical mass in both number of people and population density. Otherwise it wouldn't be fiscally feasible to run a mass transit system. Thinly populated rural areas dont have the population to financially support such a system that a large city does.

stickguy

had an unexpected chance to drive a newer F150. Standard cab, 8' bed, work spec (IOW stipped). Courtesy of Lowes. My career working on the kids house ended abruptly when the relationship ended Friday evening. Of course, 1 week after we spent the weekend painting the whole basement rec room. Not her idea, though I don't think she was too surprised. So found this out dinner time Friday, and after a weekend scramble of packing and moving my house is now overflowing with all her stuff again (it seems like 2/3 of what was in that house was hers, so it looks kinda sparse without her!

so for now, she is back with us. Not a huge difference logistically, since she was only about 3 miles away. at least we are closer to her work! Will need to figure out where to go from here, but her 2 year development program ends in July, so this is when she needed to deep think what she wants to do after that. At least now, she can have moving elsewhere to try a new place on the table.

a bit annoying how much work we put into the place. at least she enjoyed it for a while, and developed a ton of DIY skills that will come in handy for the future if she buys her own house! This one, smartly, was not in her name. she was a glorified investor/renter, but is coming out whole on the deal. He will get the benefit of the sweat equity though at some point, if ever sells. I assume there has to be some by now.

oldfarmer50

Sorry to hear that. So you ended up doing all that work in some dude’s house and he just sails away with the benefit?

You should send him a bill.

Having done a lot of work on a house I know how much strain it can put on a relationship.

driver100

GG how long has it been since they’ve updated the 300?

Great little reviews GG...I get a lot of information from your comments. I was wondering the same about those Chrysler 300s.....what a tired looking design, and what would compel someone to buy one?
From what I could find out;
With first generation models in 2005 thru 2010
Second-generation four-door sedan models from 2011 to the present day.
I didn't know there was a 2nd generation....can't see a difference.
I had a rental in about 2008, and driving it felt like I was driving a car from about 1986!

stickguy

it was always a possibility. I did it for her since she was living there. But she didn't have any money in at the end. Mostly we did a lot of painting and odd jobs. I had some fun, and she learned a lot by doing. I considered this her "practice house". Now if she gets another one for herself, she is set to go!

besides, it was not really livable at the beginning, and since she was living there, something had to be done!

driver100

Parallel parking...I would have said I do it about once a year....but, I actually did it today. And, I actually did it myself....without a backup camera!

Went to Lakeland with a friend and had a tour of the Frank Lloyd Wright buildings that he designed for the campus at Southern Florida College....12 buildings! Great tour if you are in the area, and have any interest.

stickguy

oh, forgot to mention, my son that lives in Albany is starting to shop now for a house to get out of the place he has been renting for the last few years. He is looking for the opposite. Wants something already all remodeled. does not have much interesting in building sweat equity. But will see what he ends up with.

Michaell

snakeweasel said:

fintail said:

In some US citiesn it is decent anyway, and "decent" might be relative to places with names like Spittoon Junction and Tabacky Corner.

Also less of an "I got mine, you can go to hell" mentality in some other cultures, too.

snakeweasel said:

In major US cities there is decent mass transit. One thing to remember is that Europe is much more densely populated than the US. (190 per square mile vs 87, 41 states have lower population densities than Europe) and their metropolitan areas tend to be more condensed than here. Plus they have more cities with populations over one million.

For decent public transportation an area has to have a critical mass in both number of people and population density. Otherwise it wouldn't be fiscally feasible to run a mass transit system. Thinly populated rural areas dont have the population to financially support such a system that a large city does.

That's true. Denver has invested billions in developing a light rail system over the past 20 years. The problem now I see they can't keep enough qualified drivers employed to run a full bus and train schedule, so there's have been cuts.

stickguy

I think OF should do this with his Mustang. Already got the red base!

fintail

And maybe having obtained that critical mass during an era when such goods were more of a priority is a key. Cities that boomed into metropolis size a little late (like Seattle) are now kind of putting together a puzzle with a few missing pieces trying to create a system that could be considered useful. Maybe with another 20 years of now much more expensive development.

snakeweasel said:

For decent public transportation an area has to have a critical mass in both number of people and population density. Otherwise it wouldn't be fiscally feasible to run a mass transit system. Thinly populated rural areas dont have the population to financially support such a system that a large city does.

fintail

I bet the 300 is 95% fleet now. I've had a couple rentals - I don't find it a hateful car, just really old.

driver100 said:

Great little reviews GG...I get a lot of information from your comments. I was wondering the same about those Chrysler 300s.....what a tired looking design, and what would compel someone to buy one?
From what I could find out;
With first generation models in 2005 thru 2010
Second-generation four-door sedan models from 2011 to the present day.
I didn't know there was a 2nd generation....can't see a difference.
I had a rental in about 2008, and driving it felt like I was driving a car from about 1986!

venture

I was ordering something from Amazon yesterday (2/9) and it kept nagging me to sign up for a 30 day trial of Prime with one day shipping. I finally relented and signed up. After finishing paying it said my order would arrive on 2/12.

LMAO. I guess it did say it would ship in one day not that I would have it in one day.

driver100

Sometimes it actually can still arrive the next day. The cost of Amazon....including FREE SHIPPING, fast shipping, plus the programming is a bargain....until they have a monopoly on everything in the world.

snakeweasel

A sure sign that spring is near, this week pitchers and catchers report.

houdini1

snakeweasel said:

fintail said:

In some US citiesn it is decent anyway, and "decent" might be relative to places with names like Spittoon Junction and Tabacky Corner.

Also less of an "I got mine, you can go to hell" mentality in some other cultures, too.

snakeweasel said:

In major US cities there is decent mass transit. One thing to remember is that Europe is much more densely populated than the US. (190 per square mile vs 87, 41 states have lower population densities than Europe) and their metropolitan areas tend to be more condensed than here. Plus they have more cities with populations over one million.

For decent public transportation an area has to have a critical mass in both number of people and population density. Otherwise it wouldn't be fiscally feasible to run a mass transit system. Thinly populated rural areas dont have the population to financially support such a system that a large city does.

Kansas City has a rather large metropolitan area. On the Kansas side, specifically Johnson County, we have had buss service for some time. Not unusual to see a million dollar bus with 2 or 3 people on it. They finally have come to their senses and started using "mini busses", (vans).

graphicguy

Forgot to mention Volvo at the car show. They had the 60 and 90s series there. In sedan and wagon/CUV format.

Again, nice cars. Nice interiors. Good materials.

Sadly, no new ‘vette (Chevy couldn’t do without one small space to put one where yet another pickup sat?).

Honda...surprisingly busy. Pilot, Odyssey, Civic Type R, Accord....all getting crowds.

Looks like my Chicago trip this week will probably be a day trip for work. Not sure I can carve out any time to visit their car show. Sad!

ab348

stickguy said:

had an unexpected chance to drive a newer F150. Standard cab, 8' bed, work spec (IOW stipped). Courtesy of Lowes. My career working on the kids house ended abruptly when the relationship ended Friday evening. Of course, 1 week after we spent the weekend painting the whole basement rec room. Not her idea, though I don't think she was too surprised.

That's unfortunate. Did they both take part in assisting you with the renos? I forget the details here. In retrospect did you pick up any clues that this might happen? At least it sounds like she is not out of pocket.

dino001

I used to go to our Tampa Auto Shows in the past, but stopped several years ago. They were boring, usually displayed cars from local dealers, very little novelties, same "exotics" every year, "all new" models that are in stock for months often still displayed behind ropes on pedestals (if you think about it those are the ones you want to see up close the most). It varied by the maker/dealer though: you could usually get into all shown BMWs, Jaguars, even M's or top of-the-line $100K+ limousines) and many others, but I remember local Lexus dealers always thinking their cars were made of precious metal, putting most interesting models (not even very new) on pedestals behind ropes (don't touch, don't even look) and stripping other models of gear lever knobs or other finishes. I saw that a little disrespectful. I suspect BMW and Jag dealers had better factory support for those shows than Lexus.

stickguy

They had a couple of fits and starts. Not a total shock to us. Daughter and I took care of inside the house. He did grunt work outside in the yard. It needed a whole lot of that. That I was not touching. But correct that $ wise she should not be out anything. Plus she did live there.

After seeing how much stuff she managed to collect from an apartment then the house, and how stuffed full ours is again (and I am still fighting the battle to think out my wife’s stuff), in lieu of rent while here she is going to pay for a storage unit for the overflow. Plus redecorate the house. Already started that, and I should be getting a freshly repainted front door out of the deal!

driver100

Talk about houses, couple in Toronto bought this shack on 25 ft sq lot 10 years ago.

Built a 2200 sq ft home on it...and are selling it for $2.25 million.

Stick, might give you some ideas!

jmonroe

driver100 said:

Talk about houses, couple in Toronto bought this shack on 25 ft sq lot 10 years ago.

Built a 2200 sq ft home on it...and are selling it for $2.25 million.

Stick, might give you some ideas!

Talk about putting lipstick on a pig. Great neighborhood and view too. Maybe they had to build high enough to get a better view. I'll never get over how some people think.

jmonroe

qbrozen

driver100 said:

Talk about houses, couple in Toronto bought this shack on 25 ft sq lot 10 years ago.

Built a 2200 sq ft home on it...and are selling it for $2.25 million.

Stick, might give you some ideas!

What did they do with the power/phone lines and manhole?

stickguy

That’s bigger Than a 25sf lot. Odd house. Poor location.

jmonroe

snakeweasel said:

A sure sign that spring is near, this week pitchers and catchers report.

I'll have you know that Punxsutawney Phil now knows where you live, cause I told him. :@

jmonroe

qbrozen

stickguy said:

That’s bigger Than a 25sf lot. Odd house. Poor location.

must have meant 25ft squared.

fintail

Maybe 2500 sq ft lot? And the wonderful mcmodern box architecture, a plague around here, for people who like work so much, their house resembles a generic building on a forgettable office campus. I mean, so hip and edgy and modern!

driver100 said:

Built a 2200 sq ft home on it...and are selling it for $2.25 million.

Stick, might give you some ideas!