Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

Sandman6472

Had the tires rotated and the alignment done at T P, steering wheel seems to be a bit off center now, a big pet peeve of mine! But, since I'm only about a month or two from getting a new set of sneakers, not going to sweat this. Also, with some miles on them, things might straighten themselves out. It's just not like it was before I took it in and they all know how anal I am about the wheel being perfectly straight!
Looking like the Bridgestone Serenity's are going to be the new sneakers but my friend thinks I should go with the Destination tires, Bridgestone's run flat tire. He has them, his wife has them...says they're an excellent riding tire. So will think it over for a few weeks. Told him to call me when the upcoming tire sale starts and I'll come in and get 'er done.
Will be nice to have fresh treads before the rainy season kicks in because will not drive in the rain with them much longer.

The Sandman

Sandman6472

Surprisingly, my oldest assumed I was car shopping again, have no clue why. texted her from the tire store and she asked why I was looking at replacement sneakers since I was car shopping again. Think she thought I leased the Golf and it was almost time to turn it in. Even though I drove a 2016 Tiguan base model at work yesterday, and liked it, a lot, just not ready to seriously car shop right now, just not feeling well enough to do it.
Got me thinking though about what I might look at and how much I want to spend. Figure I'd spend $22K inclusive of everything plus the Golf. My list though:

- 2016 VW Tiguan
- 2015 IS 200t
- 2015 MB CLA 250
- 2015 MB GLA 250
- 2014 MB C 250
- 2014 BMW 328i
- 2014 BMW X1
- 2014 Mini Cooper S

Have been driving 12,500 miles the last couple of years and thinking it best to wait till I retire again before the next purchase since my commute is pretty long. Right now, looking to stop either a year from now or sometime in 2018. Since our kid is moving to south Miami next week, our moving plans have been put on hold indefinitely. And with the likelihood of the oldest and the youngest getting married in 2017, staying in Casa Sandman is the current plan it seems. And I'm fine with that unless we have a hurricane coming towards us, then all bets are off!

The Sandman

Mr_Shiftright

kyfdx said:

Also, the wife has weighed in, and she is less than enthusiastic. Go figure.

Oh GEEZ, you *told* her?

No, no, I am totally in support of you buying this. I have my popcorn and folding chair already set up.

qbrozen

Ok, ok, wait a sec. It runs, 4wd works, AC works, heat works, power seat works, air suspension has been exorcised, and its $500. I only have one question: how much life in the brakes and tires? If more than half, I vote yes.

BTW, not that I think isell's shop wasn't wise to turn and burn Rovers, but they also did so with Volvos, so I would not personally use that info to judge a car purchase.

stickguy

probably makes sense at that price, under a few conditions. One is that it will just be a spare winter beater car, so not travelling long distances or a lot of miles overall. 2nd is that you are handy enough and willing to do some stuff to keep it moving. and 3rd is that you are fine at cutting and running quickly (as soon as anything significant pops up). Just might get a cheap 6 months out of it!

would make sense for me when my car goes back, since I would probably put a whopping 200-300 miles on it per month, tops.

kyfdx

you are fine at cutting and running quickly

That's me... no problem with that.

kyfdx

qbrozen said:

Ok, ok, wait a sec. It runs, 4wd works, AC works, heat works, power seat works, air suspension has been exorcised, and its $500. I only have one question: how much life in the brakes and tires? If more than half, I vote yes.

BTW, not that I think isell's shop wasn't wise to turn and burn Rovers, but they also did so with Volvos, so I would not personally use that info to judge a car purchase.

Didn't check the brake wear, but they work well. No squeaks and a firm pedal.
Tires have about half-life, so no issue there. If I needed brakes in the future, it would get sent packing.

If I put 400 miles per month, that would be a lot..

stickguy

buy it cheap, clean it up, drive until you get bored or it scares you, and look to flip it for a couple bucks profit.

really what I should be doing with my spare car as soon as my lease is up.

stickguy

This was interesting. Was browsing some listings, as I do every night, and found a very attractive 2016 Q5, and as usual clicked on the Carfax (mostly to check sales date to see how much warranty left). And saw a couple things I never did before. One is that it listed vehicle stolen, then a week later, recovered. And, as of today (so now I know that these are real time, not "fixed" the day it is run), a note that someone flagged something and requested research. Have never seen that listed before. And even with the theft, it otherwise looks clean. I assume at least that the title is still not branded.

https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=EBZ_3&vin=WA1L2AFP0GA045682

corvette

qbrozen said:

BTW, not that I think isell's shop wasn't wise to turn and burn Rovers, but they also did so with Volvos, so I would not personally use that info to judge a car purchase.

Volvos used to be a lot less reliable than they are now. I'm guessing the issues could be a regional thing with the humid PacNW weather wreaking more havoc than normal with them.

stickguy said:

This was interesting. Was browsing some listings, as I do every night, and found a very attractive 2016 Q5, and as usual clicked on the Carfax (mostly to check sales date to see how much warranty left). And saw a couple things I never did before. One is that it listed vehicle stolen, then a week later, recovered. And, as of today (so now I know that these are real time, not "fixed" the day it is run), a note that someone flagged something and requested research. Have never seen that listed before.

I'm betting the selling dealer requested the "research" in order to try to get Carfax to remove the theft history. A buyer isn't going to drop nearly $40k for a low-mileage Q5 with a theft recovery history. Beautiful color combo on that one, though. I wonder if the theft recovery resulted in any paintwork (which might not show up on the Carfax if there wasn't an accident report)?

stever

Drove a 2017 Soul Plus this afternoon. Felt familiar. Was a bit rough on one street, on smoother asphalt it was fine.

The GSM was tied up so I didn't talk numbers or availability. Later email said they could request one from allocation for a $1,000 deposit but there aren't any available for allocation yet.

During the wait for the GM, the salesperson started talking up the Nero that he had just attended a web conference or training on. I didn't think it was going to be out soon but he said next quarter. The web says they could arrive in January.

Don't know if I can wait another three months, but my wife likes the idea of it too.

suydam

I'll be interested to hear your impressions of it. It gets Prius-like mpg from what I've seen. That's very attractive.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

This was interesting. Was browsing some listings, as I do every night, and found a very attractive 2016 Q5, and as usual clicked on the Carfax (mostly to check sales date to see how much warranty left). And saw a couple things I never did before. One is that it listed vehicle stolen, then a week later, recovered. And, as of today (so now I know that these are real time, not "fixed" the day it is run), a note that someone flagged something and requested research. Have never seen that listed before. And even with the theft, it otherwise looks clean. I assume at least that the title is still not branded.

https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistory/p/Report.cfx?partner=EBZ_3&vin=WA1L2AFP0GA045682

Looks like it was traded in, immediately after theft recovery, then the Audi dealer sent it to auction. That would scare me off.

Michaell

breld said:

Michaell said:

cdnpinhead said:

Progress report on the Subaru Forester search: Looks like I found one in Denver that's supposed to arrive in early January that I have in writing that they'll sell me for ~1100 below invoice. Remarkable, if true, but so far it seems pretty legit. Stands to reason that there'll be a better selection in Colorado than in Arizona. Mrs. Pinhead drove one yesterday and is very satisfied, but that particular dealer didn't have just what we wanted, and his price was nothing to write home about either. Looking forward to a nice drive down from Denver in mid- to late January.

Stay tuned.

Which dealer in Denver?

Let us know when you'll be in town - perhaps we can get together with @breld for lunch or something.

I'd be up for that.

By the way, I haven't purchased from Shortline, but have shopped there and it's a pretty decent experience. I'm not so sure there's a stellar Subaru dealer around here anyway - @Michaell, how was your experience at Groove?

My experience at Groove was fine. We picked a car that was 'in transit' - left a $500 deposit and they called when it came it.

I had all my numbers prepared when I went in to pick it up, so the negotiations were not too difficult. I thought the customer service was pretty good - on par with our Saturn experiences in the past.

I kind of like Groove as they are locally owned - just the 4 stores in Denver (Subaru, Toyota, Ford and Mazda), plus one in the mountains, I think.

Since I'm not in the market for another 3 years - and, not sure that I'll replace the Jetta when the lease is up, given how few miles I put on it - I'll have plenty of time to research what I want and where I want to get it from.

@cdnpinhead - Shortline is not that far from where @breld and I often meet for lunch. Let us both know your specific travel plans and we will try to set something up.

stickguy

The Nero did look nice. I have been waiting for the Hyundai Ioniq (sister car) to come out too. I stopped at the dealer yesterday (they were giving out free Christmas hams with a test drive, so who am I to say no?). Took a lap in a base Santa Fe (nice enough, but way overpriced at $29,500 for basically a stippo). Asked about the Ioniq, and the salesguy said he was actually going to training on that next week. so I expect they are going to arrive by early January.

stever

Got some gas for the rental Santa Fe tonight. Getting 24.3 mpg by the gauge. Doing a two hour airport run in it tonight and maybe a 3 day trip if the van isn't ready in the am. The SF is "fine" but really not my cup of tea. Bit disappointed in it in fact, and the XM wasn't renewed so the CoffeeHouse in the radio preset that someone did isn't active.

breld

Okay - been chatting with @michaell about this, but I'll update everyone here too.

We are registering a crazy 7th punch this year.

Wife decided on the MINI Clubman, which I wholeheartedly agreed with. She really does love her base model MINI, but would like more refinement, a bit more functionality, and some fairly common features missing from her current model (heated seats, navigation, rear camera, etc.). So a new MINI seems to fit the bill perfectly.

Here are some pics - we actually bought from a different dealer, but this is exactly what she got, color and everything. That blue interior is killer.

2017 Clubman S All4

The only thing really holding my wife back on this choice (over a used X5 or Evoque) was that she didn't want to buy "new." But we qualify for all the incentives, like loyalty and USAA rebates, so we were close to $4k off MSRP.

Considering the amount of "BMW" in these new MINIs, not all that bad for an AWD wagon. I was very impressed on the test drive on the refinement and agility of the car. And like it or not, the car has a lot of character compared to other choices.

breld

By the way, we purchased the MINI from the same salesperson who sold us the 428xi a few weeks ago. I think we found a new friend.

Michaell

breld said:

By the way, we purchased the MINI from the same salesperson who sold us the 428xi a few weeks ago. I think we found a new friend.

I'm sure - his commission on your two deals probably made his mortgage payment!

Congrats on the punch!

How will you follow up in 2017? I think we need to have a separate set of guesses just for @breld each year.

28firefighter

Congrats, @breld!  Looks awesome. 

breld

Michaell said:

breld said:

By the way, we purchased the MINI from the same salesperson who sold us the 428xi a few weeks ago. I think we found a new friend.

I'm sure - his commission on your two deals probably made his mortgage payment!

Congrats on the punch!

How will you follow up in 2017? I think we need to have a separate set of guesses just for @breld each year.

I guarantee 2017 will have fewer punches. This year was crazy, even for us.

I won't go crazy and say no punches, but I think it will be two.

breld

28firefighter said:

Congrats, @breld!  Looks awesome. 

Thanks!

suydam

Definitely in a class by yourself. Congrats! I look forward to hearing your driving impressions.

28firefighter

I've utilized the BMW car share service ReachNow a few times and have driven a nicely equipped Clubman base. They're fun to drive, even with the base engine. It's not fast or anything, but it is peppy. I did find the rear window hard to see out of, though, which would be a deal breaker for me. 

xwesx

Wow; that's a really snazzy looking car, @breld! A world apart from its predecessor. But, is that an automatic transmission? Kinda hokey that they dress it up like a manual. Is her current Mini a manual or auto? I think a manual, on a car like that, would be icing on the cake! I'd never want to pull into the driveway....

stever

Congrats @breld!

Seven cars in one year. My wife and I have had 8 cars since we moved in together. In 1980.

There's still a week left for one more punch.

tjc78

stickguy said:

The Nero did look nice. I have been waiting for the Hyundai Ioniq (sister car) to come out too. I stopped at the dealer yesterday (they were giving out free Christmas hams with a test drive, so who am I to say no?). Took a lap in a base Santa Fe (nice enough, but way overpriced at $29,500 for basically a stippo). Asked about the Ioniq, and the salesguy said he was actually going to training on that next week. so I expect they are going to arrive by early January.

I got that email too, I was going to drive a new Acadia but never got there with the craziness at work and the holidays. One more office day then I'm off until the 3rd.

Hope everyone else is getting some time off to enjoy the holidays too.

rayainsw

Congrats on the MINI !

cdnpinhead

Michaell said:

@cdnpinhead - Shortline is not that far from where @breld and I often meet for lunch. Let us both know your specific travel plans and we will try to set something up.

Will do; should be about three weeks, more or less.

corvette

Congrats again, breld! We're now up to 42 punches for the year. 

Michaell

cdnpinhead said:

Michaell said:

@cdnpinhead - Shortline is not that far from where @breld and I often meet for lunch. Let us both know your specific travel plans and we will try to set something up.

Will do; should be about three weeks, more or less.

Uh-oh; that could be a problem. I'm scheduled to be in the Bay Area from Jan 8-13 ...

nyccarguy

Wow! Congrats on the MINI! Way to go! 7 punches in 1 year is impressive to say the least! Did you get a good trade in for her current MINI?

fintail

Congrats on the Mini - blue interiors have been pretty rare for the past 15-20 years, but will probably come back. Nice to see so many interior choices out there that aren't black or beigegrey.

And Mini, definitely in name only now, I think those things are about the same size and maybe heavier than a malaise era Buick Century

sda

Congrats on the Mini! I really like the look of the interior and really appreciate the blue color. I am tired of black, gray and beige.

tjc78

@breld Congrats on the Mini. Just got a chance to check out the link. Love the interior, not many blue interiors these days.

ab348

Congrats @breld ! What are those colors inside and out? I am challenged in that respect.

breld

Thanks all for the kind words on the MINI. Once she saw that blue interior, it became a must-have on my wife's list of features.

We negotiated without the trade on her current MINI (which, to address a question above, is indeed a manual trannie). Based on feedback from Q on the RWTV thread, probably looking at $6-7k - not a ton of tax savings there, and could probably private sale it closer to $10k. Nevertheless, we are taking it up there tomorrow (when we take delivery of the Clubman) so they can take a look at it. They actually seemed eager to consider it on trade and even the salesperson expressed some interest in it for his daughter. It's a good looking car with low miles for a pretty cheap price - should be appealing to someone. I think the catch is finding someone who likes the manual, but doesn't care that it's the base engine.

And, FWIW, the number of punches this year kinda freaks me out - don't want to approach that in the coming years.

breld

Friday will be a fun car day - 10:00 am appointment to turn in the JSW TDI, then head on up to the MINI dealer to get the Clubman.

We'll fit in some last minute X-mas shopping in there too.

breld

One other thing that helped with the decision - in addition to the cash incentives, they also have 0% interest for 60 months. Rates are generally low anyway, but I'll take it.

All in all, I don't think these Clubmans are selling all that great, and I don't think it'll get any better when the new Countryman comes out. But if you appreciate the quirkiness of the model, like my wife and I do, it's a very fun vehicle.

Michaell

breld said:

One other thing that helped with the decision - in addition to the cash incentives, they also have 0% interest for 60 months. Rates are generally low anyway, but I'll take it.

All in all, I don't think these Clubmans are selling all that great, and I don't think it'll get any better when the new Countryman comes out. But if you appreciate the quirkiness of the model, like my wife and I do, it's a very fun vehicle.

This is the new engine - 200-something HP, correct?

breld

xwesx said:

Wow; that's a really snazzy looking car, @breld! A world apart from its predecessor. But, is that an automatic transmission? Kinda hokey that they dress it up like a manual. Is her current Mini a manual or auto? I think a manual, on a car like that, would be icing on the cake! I'd never want to pull into the driveway....

A manual would be fun, but I think my wife is ready to give it up given the kind of commute we have.

We'll likely pick up a "fun" car with a manual to satisfy that urge. In fact, I wouldn't mind a current gen base MINI for that purpose. Or a WRX...or GTI...or Civic Si...or.....

rayainsw

'We'll likely pick up a "fun" car with a manual to satisfy that urge'
Next punch lining up...

Michaell

rayainsw said:

'We'll likely pick up a "fun" car with a manual to satisfy that urge'
Next punch lining up...

Wait just a minute ... it occurs to me that every car in the @breld fleet is now an automatic!

Shock! Horror! How long can this possibly last?

Check with us next week - same bat time, same bat channel.

breld

Michaell said:

breld said:

One other thing that helped with the decision - in addition to the cash incentives, they also have 0% interest for 60 months. Rates are generally low anyway, but I'll take it.

All in all, I don't think these Clubmans are selling all that great, and I don't think it'll get any better when the new Countryman comes out. But if you appreciate the quirkiness of the model, like my wife and I do, it's a very fun vehicle.

This is the new engine - 200-something HP, correct?

189 hp, 207 torque

breld

Michaell said:

rayainsw said:

'We'll likely pick up a "fun" car with a manual to satisfy that urge'
Next punch lining up...

Wait just a minute ... it occurs to me that every car in the @breld fleet is now an automatic!

Shock! Horror! How long can this possibly last?

Check with us next week - same bat time, same bat channel.

Yeah, yeah - there was a time when all our cars were manuals except the Odyssey. Now we have the lone manual "old" MINI which won't be in the fleet for long.

That will be addressed with one of the punches next year.

tjc78

It's awesome that you and your wife enjoy swapping out cars. My wife really doesn't even care, and now that we have two cars she doesn't mind driving she just takes whatever is behind the other in the driveway.

We are going to the Philly Car Show this year as I do want to show her all the SUV options. We have definitely decided that we are getting another SUV late next year when the Enclave goes back.

I've been looking for info on the 2018 Enclave, most I can find is that it will be a stretched version of the 2017 Acadia and will move up-market (IE More money). Anyone else read anything more?

sda

I received the '17 CR-V are available e-mail today. They look really impressive and believe that the EX will be very popular with its extensive standard equipment. I do wish Honda would provide pictures of the cloth interior. The leather looks great, but I'd like to see what the cloth interior looks like.

tifighter

Congrats @breld

Seems like you have had that Sedona for a long time...

breld

You're right on the Sedona! That's what you get with one of those pesky 3 year leases!

It will be turned in one year from now, with some 3-row SUV as a replacement, in all likelihood.

andres3

breld said:

Michaell said:

breld said:

By the way, we purchased the MINI from the same salesperson who sold us the 428xi a few weeks ago. I think we found a new friend.

I'm sure - his commission on your two deals probably made his mortgage payment!

Congrats on the punch!

How will you follow up in 2017? I think we need to have a separate set of guesses just for @breld each year.

I guarantee 2017 will have fewer punches. This year was crazy, even for us.

I won't go crazy and say no punches, but I think it will be two.

Didn't consider this before, but with the high MSRP of the Clubman 4S, looks like it is a VW Alltrack competitor at a higher price point of course. Is it much smaller you think?

Answered my own question by reading all the posts. Seems like it has a smidge more power than the 1.8T VW is using. The Alltrack is funny in that I think it will compete with the Outback on the large end, and perhaps smaller cars like the Clubman; sort of fits in between.