Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

depends on traffic. 2 probably if it is right by JFK.

I don't have enough confidence in my ability to evaluate a car on the fly to be willing to deal with a place like this that I am not familiar with. And no way could I do a PPI up there. So, either take a leap of faith, or find someone that actually knows what they are doing!

these cars never seem to pop up close to me. Or when I am actually looking to buy.

nyccarguy

breld said:

Looks nice and sturdy! Was it a tough job (is that wall concrete or just drywall)?

Concrete & Cinder Block

tbirdmarco

@sandman_6472 glad to hear you all had an good thanks giving! if that is the car you are interested in the 328I or any other car go for it when timing is rite sooner than later! like we all have bin saying in hear you only live once!

Michaell

Today I met an old HS friend for lunch up in Denver.

Given that the Broncos were out of town, I was able to cruise at 70-75 on I-25 all the way to my destination.

When I got to the parking lot, I took this picture of my dashboard info center, showing the trip MPG:

tbirdmarco

@stickguy glad to hear you all had an nice thanks giving! big croud you had this year! that is how menny of us wher at my brothers this year usally every year around that much! used to be mor back when I was an little kid but the hole moms side of the family don't do that anymore like that!

tbirdmarco

@stickguy sounds good to me to get out doring the week and wash the cars! wish had the time doring the week! when I get home already dark! hoping maby next Saturday!

tbirdmarco

@breld looking nice yes alwas grate therapy doing sumthing on an car!

tbirdmarco

@nyccarguy nice nice agree with everyone above! glad you got to hand wash the infinity this weekend!

28firefighter

Impressive, @michaell. 

Michaell

28firefighter said:

Impressive, @michaell. 

What's interesting is that on the return trip, under an almost identical driving environment, I got 10 MPG less.

I have no idea how much this matters, but there is a 700' decrease in elevation when I drive to Denver (5900' in my town, approx. 5200' in Denver).

au1994

sandman_6472 said:

Just the two of us this year. The pharmacist daughter had to work and the older girl ate with her fiance's family and ended up, as usual, at her best friends house around the corner from us. She called and wanted to stop in around nine but I was about to get into bed as I had to work Friday. Turned out to be an eleven hour day also so glad I got some sleep the night before. Really unhappy to be out of warranty to be honest, just hoping things don't go south any time soon. Since I'm always looking, might just jump if I find something truly remarkable. Looking back, that brown over brown 2015 328i I saw a few months back was just about perfect, just the timing was a bit off. Sure I'll find something perfect once I run into it and I'll know and will jump on it. The Sandman

If being out of warranty is a concern, you don’t want to go with a soon to be out of warranty BMW.  

Mr_Shiftright

Michaell said:

28firefighter said:

Impressive, @michaell. 

What's interesting is that on the return trip, under an almost identical driving environment, I got 10 MPG less.

I have no idea how much this matters, but there is a 700' decrease in elevation when I drive to Denver (5900' in my town, approx. 5200' in Denver).

Could be that, also air density with temperature change (which can happen quickly where you live). also those east range stiff winds.

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

@sda - 

You got your t-belt, tensioner, & water pump replaced, right?  I think you said you had a coupon from your dealer?  How much did it end up costing?

My Pilot has developed a strange & annoying noise.  WHen I have the steering wheel cranked at low speeds (parking lot, pulling out of my driveway, pulling out of my street) I hear a banging.  It's driving me insane.  It is more pronounced when turning left.

I'm happy with the paid off, 100K mile SUV in the fleet as well as my Infiniti.  I stalk the leasing boards here and "what if" a lot, but in the end my Q40 will be paid off in 2 1/2 years.

Ouch. This is a CV joint going bad. No question about. If you hear it primarily turning left, then it is on the left side (e.g., front driver side CV joint).

Mr_Shiftright

No...wait....if you hear it turning left, then isn't it on the *right* side?

stickguy

If it needs one at that mileage, might as well do both. While you are in there!

rayainsw

Charger R/T:
The first year of the 8-speed automatic with the Hemi was 2015.
Previously, it was available with the V6.
The 2014 V8 had the 5-speed auto.
- Ray
Bought a 2015 - partly for this reason...

suydam

xwesx said:

nyccarguy said:

@sda - 

You got your t-belt, tensioner, & water pump replaced, right?  I think you said you had a coupon from your dealer?  How much did it end up costing?

My Pilot has developed a strange & annoying noise.  WHen I have the steering wheel cranked at low speeds (parking lot, pulling out of my driveway, pulling out of my street) I hear a banging.  It's driving me insane.  It is more pronounced when turning left.

I'm happy with the paid off, 100K mile SUV in the fleet as well as my Infiniti.  I stalk the leasing boards here and "what if" a lot, but in the end my Q40 will be paid off in 2 1/2 years.

Ouch. This is a CV joint going bad. No question about. If you hear it primarily turning left, then it is on the left side (e.g., front driver side CV joint).

That’s my thought too. Happened to us on a road trip once in a really old car.

stickguy

See, it is true. A cár hits 100k, and falls apart!

xwesx

LOL Well, these are machines that move, and moving parts need occasional replacement! For CV joints, they take a lot of wear, particularly in local driving (e.g. it sees a lot of intersections where you turn either right or left. This is extra-so on AWD vehicles where you not only have front axles, but they are attached to all the other wheels and all turn at different speeds).

Shifty, in my experience, it is same side (e.g., if you turn right and hear it, then it is passenger side CV joint). I don't know that the phenomenon is universal though. I've only had to replace CV joints on Subarus. I also replaced both front half-shafts on a friend's Nissan pickup, but his were both so bad that it didn't matter which way he turned! Hahha

@nycarguy - I love the new railing! Iron pipe FTW! Of course, given your business, that should come as no surprise! Hehehe. We used a similar design for the ladder and grab bar for my son's bed. Wasn't particularly cheap, TBH, but it was easy to build!

qbrozen

i wouldn't go replacing CVs until proven bad. It could be that, it could not. @nyccarguy did you try the moving the steering wheel trick yet?

nyccarguy

qbrozen said:

i wouldn't go replacing CVs until proven bad. It could be that, it could not. @nyccarguy did you try the moving the steering wheel trick yet?

Yes @qbrozen. I did try moving the steering wheel. Forgot to post. It didn't work. Thanks for the suggestion though.

cdnpinhead

Wind and elevation change are very big deals, especially at high elevations where the aero drag is generally so much lower than those who exist at or near sea level see. I've seen up to 5 mpg better than I expect when there's a tailwind, and 3-6 mpg better above 5000 feet than at home (1200 ft).

nyccarguy

xwesx said:

LOL Well, these are machines that move, and moving parts need occasional replacement! For CV joints, they take a lot of wear, particularly in local driving (e.g. it sees a lot of intersections where you turn either right or left. This is extra-so on AWD vehicles where you not only have front axles, but they are attached to all the other wheels and all turn at different speeds).

Shifty, in my experience, it is same side (e.g., if you turn right and hear it, then it is passenger side CV joint). I don't know that the phenomenon is universal though. I've only had to replace CV joints on Subarus. I also replaced both front half-shafts on a friend's Nissan pickup, but his were both so bad that it didn't matter which way he turned! Hahha

@nycarguy - I love the new railing! Iron pipe FTW! Of course, given your business, that should come as no surprise! Hehehe. We used a similar design for the ladder and grab bar for my son's bed. Wasn't particularly cheap, TBH, but it was easy to build!

I saw a similar problem with some similar vintage year Odysseys. Honda actually issued a TSB http://techinfo.honda.com/Rjanisis/pubs/SB/A11-038.PDF

I might try this. Looks simple enough to jack the Pilot up, lift up the dust cover and apply some grease. If that doesnt work, then I'll bring it to the mechanic and see if he can diagnose.

tbirdmarco

@nycarguy sounds good give that an shot and than go from there!

corvette

I had a dream last night that breld bought another car, some sort of Mini, I think. You okay over there, breld? 

stickguy

It’s been almost 2 weeks. Could be having withdrawal symptoms.

breld

Nope - no new car for me, Mini or otherwise!

Funny story from lunch today - I took my accounting team out for a nice lunch as a "thank you" for their hard work this year. Came back to our work garage, I parked the Durango next to my wife's Volvo. One of the accountants exclaims, "that is the ugliest color on a Volvo I've ever seen!"

I reply with a genuine smile, "Uh, Rita, that's my wife's car."

Oh boy, she was so embarrassed, though I assured her that it was absolutely hilarious. Everyone got a good laugh out of it. And someone made the good point that the new temp tag should have been a dead giveaway that it was one of our cars.

iluvmysephia1

I disagree with her breld, I like that color on your Volvo wagon!

sb55

I pick up my non-motorized (but still a vehicle) punch tomorrow. 30' Airstream Flying Cloud trailer. The walkthrough at the dealer is supposed to take 4 hours! I'll post pics if I get home before sunset.

tbirdmarco

@breld funny what you posted above I do like that color on your wifes car but like any thing it is not for everyone!

tbirdmarco

@sb55 nice nice cant wate to hear all about it!

kyfdx

sb55 said:

I pick up my non-motorized (but still a vehicle) punch tomorrow. 30' Airstream Flying Cloud trailer. The walkthrough at the dealer is supposed to take 4 hours! I'll post pics if I get home before sunset.

You must be the reason that Thor stock is way up, today!

tjc78

breld said:

Nope - no new car for me, Mini or otherwise! Funny story from lunch today - I took my accounting team out for a nice lunch as a "thank you" for their hard work this year. Came back to our work garage, I parked the Durango next to my wife's Volvo. One of the accountants exclaims, "that is the ugliest color on a Volvo I've ever seen!" I reply with a genuine smile, "Uh, Rita, that's my wife's car." Oh boy, she was so embarrassed, though I assured her that it was absolutely hilarious. Everyone got a good laugh out of it. And someone made the good point that the new temp tag should have been a dead giveaway that it was one of our cars.

A few years back I was walking out with a manager of one of our locations and I made a comment about the burnt orange Aztec that was parked near me.   Yep you guessed it, said Aztec was hers.   Her response was priceless.. yep it’s ugly and I love it.  

stickguy

hey, that's what my wife says about me!

corvette

Those Aztecs were a screaming bargain on the used market if you wanted a vehicle that "checked the boxes" in terms of options and didn't care about styling (or reliability). AWD, leather seats, sunroof, side airbags... I think the later models even had ESC.

cdnpinhead

"What would the neighbors think" is a more powerful thing than many are willing to admit. The Aztec was a perfectly useful vehicle, but, OMG, what would the neighbors think?

Off topic, but that's part of why the election predictions (yeah, a year ago) were so far off.

suydam

What would I think, is more like it. I would not want to drive something that ugly. Also I find that ugliness usually extends into the inside of the car. We test drove a Nissan Juke a couple of years ago. To me it looks like a cartoon. Inside was a lot of hard plastic, and the seats were very uncomfortable.

cdnpinhead

Ugliness is in the eye of the beholder. Form often follows function, and given that, many people may hate how something looks, but it may work really well. No problem, but "what people think" often has an impact on what people buy.

Or not.

fintail

The Aztek was a no doubt functional vehicle, and definitely ahead of its time. It is also really awkward looking, definitely styled by committee. That with the typical depressing old GM interior would make it a hard sell for me (that and I do not need a CUV "activity" rig). Not very concerned with what others think, the design is just a bit irksome.

Mr_Shiftright

So aside from the colors, styling, reliability, ergonomics, interior and powertrain, what's wrong with the Aztek? Stop nitpicking!

iluvmysephia1

Lol, shifty. The Pontiac Aztek or the Hungarian-built Yugo - which one is the worst?

Mr_Shiftright

Hey, I'd take one if someone gave one to me. I have no shame.

breld

Someone with more posting skills than I have - post up side by side pics of the Aztek and Tesla Model X, particularly from the back end, and tell me there's not a similarity there.

iluvmysephia1

I'd take the Yugo before I'd grab me some Aztek.

roadburner

breld said:

Someone with more posting skills than I have - post up side by side pics of the Aztek and Tesla Model X, particularly from the back end, and tell me there's not a similarity there.

The only difference I see is that one is an orphaned vehicle and the other one soon will be...

breld

I want this.

https://cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/717972788/overview/

But no, I wouldn't spend that kind of money for it. It does go to show how much I genuinely like my Durango, since the object of my lust is simply a different version of it.

Truthfully, I don't care all that much about the increased performance over the R/T, I just like the cosmetic changes for the 2018 model - the more aggressive hood and grill and the replacement of the transmission shift knob with a more proper lever. And for what it's worth, those styling enhancements on the SRT are shared on the R/T model too.

Michaell

breld said:

I want this.

https://cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/717972788/overview/

But no, I wouldn't spend that kind of money for it. It does go to show how much I genuinely like my Durango, since the object of my lust is simply a different version of it.

Truthfully, I don't care all that much about the increased performance over the R/T, I just like the cosmetic changes for the 2018 model - the more aggressive hood and grill and the replacement of the transmission shift knob with a more proper lever. And for what it's worth, those styling enhancements on the SRT are shared on the R/T model too.

I almost fell out of my chair with that $75K price tag.

Though, I suppose that is equivalent to the Grand Cherokee SRT.

But, now you can get the GC Trackhawk, with the 707HP engine from the Hellcat.

Where will it end?

iluvmysephia1

$75,000 for a Dodge Durango? What am I missing?

stickguy

About $60,000?

iluvmysephia1

That would be correct. Tell him what he's won, Bob. Which just reminded me that The Price is Right is in Wenatchee soon! Drew Carey? I don't know about that. I think that would be kind of cool ta go to but I think they're wanting $54 for "tickets" to the Wenatchee filming of the show.