Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

tjc78

We had a short time with just the S10, (when I sold the Genesis to Autolenders) and the Elantra. It worked but wasn't ideal, that was before kids. It certainly wouldn't work now!

stever

lol, sounds like a bunch of first world problems.

My wife is at a class at a resort town two hours away all week. She took the van, and is staying there.

I'm carless. Oh, the humanity.

(Now, if the internet goes down, I'll lose my mind....)

Mr_Shiftright

Buy an old Suburban for winter and knock-around. They're cheap and they run forever.

berri

Stever, then turn on the stereo and reminisce about the gold old days (even if memory tends to exaggerate reality sometimes

stever

Just what I need around here Shifty, two old beaters.

Three, if you count me.

stickguy

random car links of the day.

one of these is actually probably all the car I would need. Not very expensive, super cheap to own, and plenty functional.

http://www.redbankvolvocars.com/used/Honda/2012-Honda-Fit-caa876780a0e08bc613e27b2210c644c.htm

though this one would probably make my wife happier, at a much higher price point! But major issue, does not seem to have a moonroof!

http://www.redbankvolvocars.com/used/BMW/2013-BMW-X1+xDrive28i-e8dd883f0a0e08b945baeac2b1da29b6.htm

nyccarguy

I found @roadburner's ///M235i's twin in New York City. Looks like a nice deal. 2 years old, 18K miles, RWD - $37,995


http://www.bmwnyc.com/certified-inventory/index.htm?search=&saveFacetState=true&model=M235i+Coupe&lastFacetInteracted=inventory-listing1-facet-anchor-model-13

320 hp for under $40K? A RWD coupe in NYC? How long will it sit?

stickguy

not exactly the best car for Manhattan. But sounds nice.

roadburner

nyccarguy said:

I found @roadburner's ///M235i's twin in New York City. Looks like a nice deal. 2 years old, 18K miles, RWD - $37,995


http://www.bmwnyc.com/certified-inventory/index.htm?search=&saveFacetState=true&model=M235i+Coupe&lastFacetInteracted=inventory-listing1-facet-anchor-model-13

320 hp for under $40K? A RWD coupe in NYC? How long will it sit?

Looks like it's equipped the same way as mine plus it has the rear view camera. The dealer has had it for nearly a month and it failed the NY emissions inspection. Hmmmm...

nyccarguy

@roadburner -I didn't catch that. I wonder what gives.

qbrozen

stickguy said:

random car links of the day.

one of these is actually probably all the car I would need. Not very expensive, super cheap to own, and plenty functional.

http://www.redbankvolvocars.com/used/Honda/2012-Honda-Fit-caa876780a0e08bc613e27b2210c644c.htm

though this one would probably make my wife happier, at a much higher price point! But major issue, does not seem to have a moonroof!

http://www.redbankvolvocars.com/used/BMW/2013-BMW-X1+xDrive28i-e8dd883f0a0e08b945baeac2b1da29b6.htm

Base model x1, huh? Interesting. Too bad about the color combo and what seems to be total lack of anything. BUT, auction value is around $19k, so seems to be a good deal if the history is clean.

stickguy

From my browsing, red bank seems to price fairly. Even the fit looks like a good deal.

graphicguy

stever said:

Just what I need around here Shifty, two old beaters.

Three, if you count me.

I thought we were talking about cars, right?????!!!!!

stever

Painting the vigas is making me feel some aches and pains. Keep forgetting to take my Vitamin I.

Don't need a second car - too tired to go anywhere anyway.

Mr_Shiftright

Use it or lose it Stever.

breld

Mentioned this to @michaell over lunch yesterday, but I'm really digging the new Mazda CX-9. It could be a run replacement for the minivan when that lease is up. I may go and check one out to see how that turbo 4 cyl performs.

I had a 2010 CX-9 that I loved - evidenced by the fact that I kept it for a bit over 2 years! Coincidentally, shortly after I traded that CX-9 (on the Odyssey), it showed up in my work garage - a co-worker had purchased it from the dealer.

stickguy

My wife saw a commercial for the new CX9 and perked her ears right up. Not really what we're will be shopping for though, unless trade he car, and make the new one oeinary.

au1994

New CX-9 is great looking. I was a fan of the version breld had but the subsequent redesigns were not as attractive to me. The interior shots look great too.  

stever

It's getting good reviews - buyers are facing MSRP with no slack anywhere yet over in the Prices Paid discussion. Good review by @mikeyfoucs there posted yesterday.

The early adopters mostly want the Signature Edition and it's hard to find.

breld

Yeah, I'm sure the prices will hold steady near MSRP for a little while, but I can't imagine it will be too long before they come off that pricing, and even start offering some incentives. It's just too competitive a market - personally I like the CX-9 (or think I will) for it's sleeker looks and purportedly sportier dynamic. But for what most people want/need from a 3-row SUV, a Pilot or Highlander will still be very appealing.

stickguy

We don't need a third row. Just the wife thinks a bit more cargo room would be nice. My idea of bring less crap, is still not getting much traction.

Michaell

I met an old friend for breakfast this morning, and since I was on one of the many 'auto rows' in metro Denver (104th Avenue), I decided to pop into the local VW store to take another close look at the Jetta.

Naturally, the trim I wanted - 1.4 SE - wasn't in stock, so I sat in a 1.8 SEL.

First, once I got the seat to its lowest position, I fit. Very comfortably, I might add. I like the layout of the dash and infotainment systems - seems more upscale than what I have in the Hyundai.

Salesman was pretty aggressive, until I told him I was unemployed and my DTI ratio was a bit, um, skewed negatively.

Sales manager wanted me to keep them in mind when my lease is up - this is part of a dealer group that has been in Denver for over 100 years, so they don't spend as much money on advertising and thus have more discounts to give to the customers. At least, that was the story I was told.

Right - there are probably 3-4 VW dealers closer to my house than this one, and probably the one in Colorado Springs is perhaps the same distance from my house.

I went away a bit frustrated, but more determined to find a new job so I can get serious about the end of lease process.

As noted, @breld and I had lunch yesterday, and we kicked around several possibilities. Given that I don't know where my next job is, a lease may not be feasible. So, the thought of buying something new or (slightly) used for, say, $15K was mentioned. I've found several GTI's around the country with less than 50,000 miles under that price point, and I'm sure there are lots of other nice choices to be had as well.

Sandman6472

Drove a new Infiniti Q50 today and it was outstanding to be honest. Took it on the turnpike and within seconds, I was up to 90 but it didn't feel that fast. Comfy interior and the Bose stereo was outstanding also, great sound quality even as I turned up the volume...excellent sound! Only negative was that these seem to be gas hogs which is not a good thing. Betting they all need premium which is a negative in my book. But great vehicle overall, I was extremely impressed!!
Also drove a couple of new Optima's and Jetta's, two vehicles which I think are just excellent vehicles. Have a feeling the Jetta's had the new 1.4 engine but it pulled seamlessly up the power band with crisp shift points that were pretty seem less. Not sure if the new Golf's still have the 1.8 or have gone to the 1.4 engine...seems like it would also be a good fit since the Golf is a lighter vehicle.
Lastly, drove a '16 Sedona with 25K on the clock and was quiet as could be and it also had the same 2.4 engine as the Sonata and Optima, a very sweet engine that pulls nicely and shifts very unobtrusively. This new crop of 4 cylinder engines are excellent and make a nice sound under full acceleration and can really move these vehicles.

The Sandman

tjc78

Surprised the Bose was as good as it was. The Bose in our Enclave is just so so. The Harman Kardon in our LaCrosse was much much better.

I'm an audio nut so maybe I'm just picky, but even my wife noticed it wasn't nearly as good.

As for the gas mileage the 300hP V6 version is rated at 19/28. I don't think that is too bad considering the performance.

suydam

Had Bose in my Nissan Maxima. It was excellent.

nyccarguy

Not a punch, but I got a new garage door today

Before

nyccarguy

After

stickguy

nice improvement Bradd.

Sandy, I drove a 1.4 Jetta and 1.8 back to back recently, when I took my Sport in and got a base 1.4 loaner. I honestly did not notice any difference around town. Sounded the same, and the 1.4 pulled strong. Might be different out on the highway, but I did not try that.

Michael, there is a bit of a difference on the interior between the base 1.4 and the SEL. Very similar, just plainer.

corvette

Nice! Looks much better.

kyfdx

Nice door!

fintail

I am sure the new door feels smooth as glass in operation compared to the old one.

If I had a house and was replacing a door, I might get one of the trendy translucent panel ones, or maybe a vintage looking one. When I was a kid we had houses with either unpainted stained finish garage doors, or one with windows made of that lumpy 70s style decorative glass, both of those seemed cool to me, must have been an odd kid noticing garage doors so much.

All the way up until maybe the late 90s, my grandparents' mid century rambler had its original garage door, which was one piece and seemed impossibly wide to me - as the doors we always had were sectional and divided for each parking space. It had a design on the exterior like two stars with 4 arms each, my uncle told me he chose the design when they had the house built, as it reminded him of a satellite (it was the space age after all). The time warp houses in the neighborhood still wearing their original doors all have fun 50s style designs, from when people didn't take it all so seriously, like this:





There's still quite a bit of this kind of thing around Seattle.

corvette

Even a nice garage door often messes up the design of a house. I kind of like the garages that face the back yard.

stever

The new house being built near us has a three car garage in front. But that's okay - they faced the backyard toward the street (where the mountain views are).

Met a builder the other day who builds higher end homes (that's $400k + around here). Jetted tubs are out and glass garage doors are in.

Michaell

corvette said:

Even a nice garage door often messes up the design of a house. I kind of like the garages that face the back yard.

There are a few new housing developments here that are reverting to having the garage in the rear of the house - which also means the return of alleys. Makes for better curb appeal, but the lots and yards are way small.

tifighter

Hey at @stever I'm in ABQ this week. You never told me it was this hot...

stever

Yeah, but it's a dry heat. You know, like a pizza oven.

My wife is up in the mountains this week where it's ~20 degrees cooler.

So I'm enjoying keeping the AC on here at 79°. Feels great.

It's only about 3.5 hours on the freeway - c'mon down.

roadburner

It really depends on the house; our house is a colonial design and therefore the garage is at the rear. On some lots there isn't enough room to put the garage door in the back.

nyccarguy

My garage is on the side of the housr

kyfdx

I like hidden garage entrances, but our lot is only 70' wide. No chance of that.

I'm not too fond of 3-car garages, where all the doors face the street. (though, I'm very fond of 3-car garages).

Michaell

A lot of the newer homes here have three car garages, but one side of the garage is two deep, so the width remains the same as a standard two car garage.

stever

That would work - even better if there's another garage door at the rear so you could drive into your back yard. My brother had a two car garage with that setup at his last house and it was handy.

roadburner

I'd like a garage 2.5 cars wide and 2.5 cars deep with garage doors on each end as well as one small door on the side wide enough to get the mowers out. That would be perfect for me.

tjc78

@roadburner Sounds like a quick lube setup!

stever

lol, don't forget the ceiling hoist.

xwesx

Nice try, Bradd! You took those photos from opposite directions just to make us *think* there was something different with the garage door.

It looks great, by the way!

Sandman6472

Our two car garage faces the street as we live on a cul-de-sac. Our lot is pie shaped so a circular drive is not possible. Our neighbor has the same issue so he just widened the whole driveway with pavers so it can fit three cars across. Looks a bit off but solves any parking issues and now, we're thinking about something similar. Our middle child who just finished pharmacy school is moving home temporarily in September which means another vehicle parked here. The Golf and A3 always go in the garage and hate parking her Accent on the street so a lot of jockeying vehicles is involved. Widening the driveway would solve the problem but at a cost. I'd do it tomorrow but the other half isn't convinced about moving forward since moving has crept back into the plans.
So for the time being, we'll do nothing. Have the funds put away once she gives me the go ahead!

The Sandman

berri

Some new homes seem to be going with a tandem arrangement where it looks like a two car, but you can fit two cars back to back on the far side making it a 3 car. Works for those very narrow lot lines I guess.

nyccarguy

I think I posted about getting my house painted here:

Quote 1: $10,800
Quote 2: $6,000

I had a guy come today for quote 3. Let's see what he comes back with.

stickguy

at least you are trending in the right direction.

nyccarguy

@breld - if you are ever going to get a 3er wagon, I saw one for you while gassing up the Prelude this AM

2016 328xi Wagon
White Exterior
Red Interior
I believe it had the Sport Package

Very sharp