Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

nyccarguy

Here is a breakdown of today's charges:

Alternator:  $461.75
Replace Alternator:  $130
Interstate Battery:  $134.95
Battery Instsllation:  $25.00
Shop Supplies:  $24.15
Service Discounts:  ($13.00)

Sub-Total - $762.85 plus tax

nyccarguy

@xwesx - this is one of the shops that I explicitly trust.  They do high quality work.  I don't know if they are ge cheapest around.  It is closer to my house than any Honda dealer.  I dropped it off at 8:45 last night.  It was ready to go at 4:00 this afternoon without an appointment.  They got the part from Honda, have to pay overhead, and not to mention a mechanic.  I'm happy with the work.

It is supposed to snow tomorrow (light, maybe 2" - 4"), but my Prelude is UNDRIVEABLE with its Summer Rubber in even a dusting and my Infiniti's Winter tires are still up on the rack in the garage.  Plus my wife has made a few cross town drives with the 3 kids in the back of the Q40 and... let's just say it is easier with a 3 row SUV.

nyccarguy

So it is definitely cheaper than buying or leasing a new vehicle.  We've spent about $2,500 since it has been paid off in May 2016.  I'm anticipating spending close to $2,700 in the next 5K or so miles.  

qbrozen

Yikes! That is an expensive alternator.

rockauto sells remanufactured OEM units for $129. Maybe next time.

spark plugs are $5 each. Yes, transverse can be a pain, but having the right swivel extensions helps immensely. I'd rather fight with them for an hour than pay someone $350 to do it for me.

nyccarguy

qbrozen said:

Yikes! That is an expensive alternator.

rockauto sells remanufactured OEM units for $129. Maybe next time.

spark plugs are $5 each. Yes, transverse can be a pain, but having the right swivel extensions helps immensely. I'd rather fight with them for an hour than pay someone $350 to do it for me.

 I don't have the tools. And it wouldn't be fighting for an hour, I'd be fighting for four hours and only get five of them done.  

corvette

roadburner said:

corvette said:

I’m not a fan of the touchpad on the Audis. It can’t read my writing very well.  Give me an onscreen keyboard any day with a touchscreen.  

The pad on the BMWs reads my handwriting- that's something most people can't do!

The PalmPilot I had in 2001 did a better job than the Audi. It's still slower than an onscreen keyboard, which makes me cynically wonder whether they're building cars for people who are too old to text?

tbirdmarco

@nyccarguy outch outch! has to all be done can you bring it to your macanick for all of the other servaces that are doo but for the altanater or can just have it toed to your macanick that you use maby will be cheeper! an bit! just an taught! still cheeper than car payments! hoping from hear on out things are quiet for quite sum time now!

tbirdmarco

@nyccarguy o saw above altanater was done today! nice nice! see if your Macanick that you have bin using near whair you work can address all of the other neaded servaces that your car calls for at the current milage that it has on it. o and has the cabon filter and air filter bin changed? that is what getting my younger brother for cristmess air filter cabon filter and wind shield wipers what he wnts! simpal and rite up my ally!

tjc78

nyccarguy said:

@xwesx - this is one of the shops that I explicitly trust.  They do high quality work.  I don't know if they are ge cheapest around.  It is closer to my house than any Honda dealer.  I dropped it off at 8:45 last night.  It was ready to go at 4:00 this afternoon without an appointment.  They got the part from Honda, have to pay overhead, and not to mention a mechanic.  I'm happy with the work.

It is supposed to snow tomorrow (light, maybe 2" - 4"), but my Prelude is UNDRIVEABLE with its Summer Rubber in even a dusting and my Infiniti's Winter tires are still up on the rack in the garage.  Plus my wife has made a few cross town drives with the 3 kids in the back of the Q40 and... let's just say it is easier with a 3 row SUV.

My 09 Genesis had Dunlop tires that barely passed for all seasons.  I got stuck at work one Saturday during a storm. I had to drive it right home in the middle of the snow storm.  Worst ride of my life.  I had a tough time keeping it on the  road. Some how I made it home. 

tbirdmarco

@sandman_6472 when the time is rite yes will be a lot of fun on witch car to choose! and all of the test drives to!

tbirdmarco

@sandman_6472 sounds good on the cupon for the owial change!

roadburner

xwesx said:

stickguy said:

On a spreadsheet. Which is useless when bradd gets a call from his wife sitting on the side of the Merritt parkway with a dead car. My wife has a 1 strike policy for that now. Her response would be new car for her, or she would take the Infiniti.

All cars are not equal. You can pay for a lot of things. New, nice, features, piece of mind, is reliability. Everyone has to decide what is worth how much to hem.

Just because it is new doesn't automatically make it reliable. In fact, in many ways, it is *less* trustworthy than your old-timer car because you have no history with it. And, if it does let you down, it lets you down a lot harder than an older car with a maintenance need but with 100,000 miles of built trust under its belt.

As you note, everyone has to decide how much peace of mind is worth, and it comes in different forms and different measures.

I'm willing to live a bit dangerously in order to drive cars that make me smile when I get behind the wheel. And in some cases-such as my 2er-there's absolutely no downside to buying a used model- with 30% off MSRP and powertrain coverage to June 2020 buying a new car for the same price I paid is a non-starter.
For me, anyway...

stickguy

my license plates and registration finally arrived today via UPS (since I bought out of state, the dealer does the DMV work and gets them, then sends to me). Somehow took over 6 weeks, but at least I got them before the 2 month temp tag expired (I thought it was odd that the temp was now 2 months, vs. the 1 month my last one was, but now I know why!). So I can put plates on today, and swing by the inspection station to get a sticker put in on Monday.

So, you know what this means. I can stop and shop on the way home to see what I can get on a trade-in for it I am good to go with inspection and registration for 5 years.

Though I have had brief thoughts about asking QB over on the RWTIV thread what a 2018 with 500 miles would fetch! I guess better to ask him than a Volvo dealer.

mjfloyd1

I did the timing belt, waterpump, thermostat, spark plugs, and shocks and struts on a 12 MDX with a friend in about 6 hours total. Rear spark plugs were a pain. Total parts excluding shocks and struts was about $300 plus new coolant. Local Honda dealer would have done timing belt, tstat/water pump and coolant for $750 but plugs were an extra $350.

I did have the alternator go out at about 82k miles IIRC but I had a zero deductible acuracare warranty. Seems like the most problems I had was side mirror actuators that became noisy and clicked.

stickguy

just curious, but with that many miles, and going through all the labor to strip parts off the front of the engine, why not just get the T Belt out of the way at the same time? I know the parts are pretty cheap, and you don't want to take the front end apart a 2nd time if can avoid it!

tbirdmarco

@stickguy nice nice! glad you got your plates and reg via UPS yes now you are good to go!

breld

My neighbor invited me to go along for a morning drive on some mountain twisties this morning In his ‘09 911 turbo.  Should be fun.  

stickguy

so I assume he is trying to sell it, and figures you would be an easy mark?

breld

I didn’t think about that - I’ll need to have my guard up!  

elias

thebean said:

fintail said:

How does push button start/keyless entry make a vehicle more vulnerable to theft? I don't think I have ever heard that before.

Multiple reasons. Some enumerated here already, such as the ones that get lots of press due to computer/radio/network hacking approaches.
It's probably not a good idea to more methods unless someone starts a forum for "best repo-person stories" or "easy car theft techniques which do not require electronic hacks".

The primary reason for pushbutton start is due to automotive design engineers doing the math to save lives (and reduce lawsuits) by eliminating ALL of the contributing failure modes/components that resulted in hundreds (thousands?) of fatalities over decades from:

-steering-wheel-ignition-interlock
- ABS-ignition-interlock
- arbitrarily-weighted-keychains.
- 100% of ignition cylinders wear out after enough time - sometimes triggering the now-well-known catastrophic failures and fatal results via above 'cofactors'.

The components for pushbutton start may fail inevitably after time but their failure modes do not result in fatalities - that's the big difference compared to the keyed/ignition-cylinder approach. Big Win all around to replace ignition cylinders & keys with pushbuttons.

Insurance industry wonks have some data now via which to analyze if pushbutton-start cars are in fact stolen at a higher rate than ignition-cylinder cars, and it will reflect in insurance cost per vehicle if so. If you are curious just call your insurance and compare prices between a model which is offered both with & without pushbutton start (give them specific VINs of the cars on the lot, with & without the pushbutton option, to see if the price for theft insurance is much different?)

elias

stickguy said:

so, tire people. Anyone use the Contie DWS06? Wondering if it is worth the premium price for the RDX (looks like about $240 more than the Coopers). Sounds like a really good performance tire, but not sure if really suited to the car. Plus I am cheap...

yes, stickguy i have Conti DWS06 on back of my 015 non-gas-guzzler stickshift chevy SS. I don't generally like Contis but am amazed by the DWS06 on dry & wet, so quiet, smooth, and linearly warning/forgiving if pushed near the edge - so little tendency to 'snap oversteer' - if the tires are going to let go, they let go smoothly without a sudden snap. So far, I have zero experience no snow with the SS with DWS06 on rear and michelin AS3+ on the front. I probably won't take the SS on long distance cruise again until i solve the no-spare-wheel problem - maybe santa will bring me spare wheel/tire/jack option from tire-rack.

It snowed here yesterday but I elected to take cruze diesel on its factory all-seasons rather than SS. Reports on ssforum indicate the contis are OK in snow but not as good as real snow/ice tires.

elias

btw sandman that 2-shot policy you mentioned is fascinating.

Here's one of the more tame applications of "2 shot policy".
For better or worse, drinking and driving remains legal in all 50 states for adult drivers.
So "2 shots" reminds me of the 1980s and 1970s where drunk driving was not merely tolerated but actively encouraged, in some circles.
The tradition in at least one rural new england state was to ensure that a driver about to leave a party drank MORE alcohol just before departing. Not kidding. It was called "one for the road" or "two for the road". This is fact - 100% non-metaphoric and 100% non-figurative.
It seems crazy but thats how it was. None of my 35 or 40 roadside detentions have ever been due to suspicion of impaired driving. But for some friends and coworkers who were so detained in the 1980s, this was the result: "breathalyzer indicates you are drunk but you are behaving fine and performing sobriety tests amazingly well for how drunk you are, and you are close to home. Get back in your car and drive home slowly i will follow you home and make sure you get their safely."

ab348

@elias , I had never heard of that 2-shot business. Certainly one for the road, but not that.

It is remarkable how much things have changed regarding drunk driving over the years. I remember as a kid in the '60s and early '70s that it was very common. My parents would host house parties and I recall people staggering out the door and getting in their cars. Of course back then the ad campaigns and media attention were non-existent compared to today. When I got my license in 1973 it was still pretty common and as a young idiot I remember a few occasions where I drove when I should not have, but fortunately never had an incident. After about the mid-80s that stopped for me.

Now of course in many places there is close to a zero-tolerance policy. Up here you lose your license for a week if you blow .05 on the breathalyzer, which can be as little as one drink. If you blow .08 or more it is all that plus much more. Probably a good thing but the zero tolerance laws made for a big change in the restaurant and bar business here. A couple going out to a nice dinner are much more reluctant to order a good bottle of wine. With the acceptance of use of drugs other than alcohol by the current generation there is a great need for law enforcement to come up with new tools to assess impairment from those substances.

kyfdx

breld said:

My neighbor invited me to go along for a morning drive on some mountain twisties this morning In his ‘09 911 turbo.  Should be fun.  

I have a friend with a ski condo in Keystone. It has a 2-car garage, and he rents one side to another condo owner with a 911 Turbo. We were out there at Spring Break in 2010/2011. Can't remember the year of the Porsche, but guessing it wasn't too far off of 2009.

You really need the turbo at altitude.

Mr_Shiftright

breld said:

I didn’t think about that - I’ll need to have my guard up!  

Actually the 2009 version is a lot easier to handle at limits I've read. You'll probably survive

omarman

Ha! My former supervisor in 1989 got the same "drive home safely" drill after failing the breathalyzer during a stop around Reynoldsburg. Maybe 2 years later a local sportscaster was only briefly detained and then released after driving under the influence. A newspaper reported that officers released the TV personality without charges as a "professional courtesy."

Wish I had saved that paper. They actually printed it like that and nobody got fired, demoted, banned, etc.

fintail

You should come to the PNW, it aint just the young ones imbibing in the wacky tobacky

I agree though, there definitely needs to be a standard of impairment for that substance (and others), and it needs to be enforced just like alcohol. There was a fatality accident not more than a mile from me involving our new tax revenue generator, and it seems the eventual verdict was kind of swept under the rug, meaning it was likely a slap on the wrist - especially easy when the news media can be complicit with moronic courts,

ab348 said:

Now of course in many places there is close to a zero-tolerance policy. Up here you lose your license for a week if you blow .05 on the breathalyzer, which can be as little as one drink. If you blow .08 or more it is all that plus much more. Probably a good thing but the zero tolerance laws made for a big change in the restaurant and bar business here. A couple going out to a nice dinner are much more reluctant to order a good bottle of wine. With the acceptance of use of drugs other than alcohol by the current generation there is a great need for law enforcement to come up with new tools to assess impairment from those substances.

fintail

There was something like that in my area involving a cop, who was allowed to be picked up and taken home by his wife rather than sent to the local lock up to post bail as would have been the case for a normal civilian. The news media initially ran with it, then it vanished into thin air.

omarman said:

Ha! My former supervisor in 1989 got the same "drive home safely" drill after failing the breathalyzer during a stop around Reynoldsburg. Maybe 2 years later a local sportscaster was only briefly detained and then released after driving under the influence. A newspaper reported that officers released the TV personality without charges as a "professional courtesy."

Wish I had saved that paper. They actually printed it like that and nobody got fired, demoted, banned, etc.

ab348

fintail said:

You should come to the PNW, it aint just the young ones imbibing in the wacky tobacky

I agree though, there definitely needs to be a standard of impairment for that substance (and others), and it needs to be enforced just like alcohol. There was a fatality accident not more than a mile from me involving our new tax revenue generator, and it seems the eventual verdict was kind of swept under the rug, meaning it was likely a slap on the wrist - especially easy when the news media can be complicit with moronic courts,

I wasn't just thinking of that though it is the largest segment. But there are many young'uns in my social networks online who seem to think that most drugs should be legal and indulge in them quite openly. I find it quite scary.

stickguy

finally had my first chance to take the new car on something passing for a trip. Had a holiday party over in PA, about an hour each way. So even though I knew it would get dirty (and it did), I took the Elantra to give it some exercise. And finally got to use it in its element.

trip was about 1/2 highway, then local/back country roads (a couple of lights, and a few stop signs). Not bad on the highway. Certainly not the cushy/floaty ride of the Sonata, but cruised along happily at 75. But it was really nice on the back roads. The road I took most of the way was narrow, windy, and quite hilly. The car loved it. It certainly is nice on a road like that having a fairly compact car that is not too wide, with an engine that always seems to have pull on tap (and the trans is a willing participant), combined with a well set up suspension and really grippy tires.

quite a bit of fun, no worries about getting too close to the edge and the bushes, and unlike the former car, having to yell at it to stop lugging and downshift already.

as a bonus, per the TC, it averaged right at 35 for the day. Not going to complain about that. And tomorrow, should finally hit 600 miles (or get real close) so will be out of the break-in period, so I can see how it does if I wind it out a bit!

Sandman6472

An older guy passed out in class and had a slight heart attach. Luckily the class was inside the police station and next door to a fire station. His wife noticed him losing balance and falling over. Two nurses in class jumped into action and lowered him on the ground with his feet up. All very quick and surreal! Lots of old folks down here so expected I guess.
After the commotion, class picked up again like nothing happened. Never a dull moment I guess!!

The Sandman

(P.S. Got down to 44 last night after that cold front went through. A bunch of rain and wind and then the temps dropped...fast. About time I'd say and hopefully we'll have a cold winter for a change!)

fintail

I think a lot of oldsters got it out of their system back in the day. Now it's the new generation's turn.

I have no issue with legalized drugs, there just needs to be a standard of intoxication or being under the influence. Prohibition and related "wars" have produced zero viable results at virtually every point in history. I know there's a big fondness for the 80s right now, but it seems in the US anyway, some want to embrace the failed economic and drug policy of the era. We don't need it.

Just imagine if the wacky tobacky industry had the same lobbying power as booze and normal tobacky.

ab348 said:

I wasn't just thinking of that though it is the largest segment. But there are many young'uns in my social networks online who seem to think that most drugs should be legal and indulge in them quite openly. I find it quite scary.

fintail

Stopped by the MB dealer while out cruising in the fintail. A few things caught my eye:

A bit rich for my blood, but if someone gave it to me, I'd take it -Seldom-seen color combo

Strong depreciation here, I suspect a retired loaner - I like the color combo and luxury trim, but options are moderate at best.

I stopped to look at this, always double check ad data for accuracy - this car has a quite rare Designo Platinum interior, not "black" - high option car (but not absolute full load, odd that it has a basic steering wheel), same unusual color as my Bluetec. I like it, but I suspect it is too dear.

ab348

fintail said:

I think a lot of oldsters got it out of their system back in the day. Now it's the new generation's turn.

I have no issue with legalized drugs, there just needs to be a standard of intoxication or being under the influence. Prohibition and related "wars" have produced zero viable results at virtually every point in history. I know there's a big fondness for the 80s right now, but it seems in the US anyway, some want to embrace the failed economic and drug policy of the era. We don't need it.

Just imagine if the wacky tobacky industry had the same lobbying power as booze and normal tobacky.

I can't speak for the situation in the US but up here the cannabis industry is a huge friend of govts. All pols are chasing the perceived pot of gold. But that isn't what I was talking about. Rather, coke, meth, opiates. I was that age in the '80s and while there was a lot of coke around then the other stuff was pretty fringe.

Also again cannot comment on the US but here the tobacco industry has absolutely zero political influence. They are seen more like public enemy #1. They cannot advertise or market their product, it is taxed to the hilt, and even cannot be displayed on store shelves.

fintail

State governments here like it for cash flow, but the Feds are where it counts, and they are still supporting some substances while fighting others - all with someone else's money. In an oligocracy, you get the laws and enforcement you pay for, and with our weasely Keebler Elf of an AG, some are fought while others ignored. I am not usually a real libertarian, and cringe at the babble of people like Rand, but when it comes to substances, I think the public sector fails when it comes to enforcement, and personal responsibility is key.

Cigs are taxed hard here too, but marketing isn't really necessary - those who want it will do it. And the profits still exist elsewhere - even in developed Europe, smoking is much more common, at least for now.

ab348 said:

I can't speak for the situation in the US but up here the cannabis industry is a huge friend of govts. All pols are chasing the perceived pot of gold. But that isn't what I was talking about. Rather, coke, meth, opiates. I was that age in the '80s and while there was a lot of coke around then the other stuff was pretty fringe.

Also again cannot comment on the US but here the tobacco industry has absolutely zero political influence. They are seen more like public enemy #1. They cannot advertise or market their product, it is taxed to the hilt, and even cannot be displayed on store shelves.

nyccarguy

@fintail - what's your take on the GLS450/GL450?  Any potential disasters (besides the air suspension inflators that have a failure rate of 100%).  How are the MB twin turbo V6s holding up?

fintail

Big sleds for suburban mommies? Nice rigs, but a little off my radar.

I haven't heard of any engine issues - not that there aren't hiccups here and there, but I think modern MB powertrains are generally very solid. It's the attached bits (like complex suspensions) that sometimes go awry. For any air suspension by any maker, always budget in time or money for a failure.

nyccarguy said:

@fintail - what's your take on the GLS450/GL450?  Any potential disasters (besides the air suspension inflators that have a failure rate of 100%).  How are the MB twin turbo V6s holding up?

tjc78

My Grand Marquis was 12 years old with 100k still riding on all original air suspension components.  

fintail

I don' know if those had a full active air suspension like the law-tee-daw European cars. It was just a load leveler in the Panthers, right?

tjc78

fintail said:

I don' know if those had a full active air suspension like the law-tee-daw European cars. It was just a load leveler in the Panthers, right?

Yeah, I’m just busting stones..  rear air springs in the Panthers.  Not even close to what the Mercedes has

stickguy

hey, back in the 70s Gabriel HiJacker air shocks were all the rage.

suydam

stickguy said:

finally had my first chance to take the new car on something passing for a trip. Had a holiday party over in PA, about an hour each way. So even though I knew it would get dirty (and it did), I took the Elantra to give it some exercise. And finally got to use it in its element.

trip was about 1/2 highway, then local/back country roads (a couple of lights, and a few stop signs). Not bad on the highway. Certainly not the cushy/floaty ride of the Sonata, but cruised along happily at 75. But it was really nice on the back roads. The road I took most of the way was narrow, windy, and quite hilly. The car loved it. It certainly is nice on a road like that having a fairly compact car that is not too wide, with an engine that always seems to have pull on tap (and the trans is a willing participant), combined with a well set up suspension and really grippy tires.

quite a bit of fun, no worries about getting too close to the edge and the bushes, and unlike the former car, having to yell at it to stop lugging and downshift already.

as a bonus, per the TC, it averaged right at 35 for the day. Not going to complain about that. And tomorrow, should finally hit 600 miles (or get real close) so will be out of the break-in period, so I can see how it does if I wind it out a bit!

I really liked my Elantra rental these past 4 days for all the reasons you mention. I was on some freeway but mostly 2 lane highways and Country roads. Averaged 36 mpg. Great little car. If I were in the market for a compact gas engine car, it would be on my list.

fintail

Zoom right over my head.

It is a funny thing that complex suspensions are still toyed with, and seldom free from issues. MB has been into air suspension off and on for almost 60 years, and no versions are trouble-free.

tjc78 said:

Yeah, I’m just busting stones..  rear air springs in the Panthers.  Not even close to what the Mercedes has

corvette

IDK what exactly it had (air something or other, not sure if it was just leveling or full air suspension--maybe just the front or rear), but the suspension in my 2008 Yukon Denali was much smoother than the 2009 Tahoe Z71.

tjc78

corvette said:

IDK what exactly it had (air something or other, not sure if it was just leveling or full air suspension--maybe just the front or rear), but the suspension in my 2008 Yukon Denali was much smoother than the 2009 Tahoe Z71.

Isn’t the Z71 a “sport” package with firmer springs? 

ab348

There's a Baruth article over at TTAC (which means it needs to be taken with a large grain of salt) discussing what he calls "fake luxury". That aside, the interesting part is that he throws out a few examples of lease payments (no idea of source, he doesn't say):





This one, on an Acura NSX, is really interesting:




Dunno if these are accurate, and you'd never find deals like this on Canada where I am, but if true it explains a lot.

fintail

Hilarious discount on the Volvo, wow. Sounds like a deal. I've read of lots of S90 in fleets, so I suspect there's some leftover stock in dire need of selling. I'll take TTAC over Jalopnik for accuracy, anyway.

In Canada, the cars would have weekly payments

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah, that S90 lease seemed pretty good!

corvette

tjc78 said:

corvette said:

IDK what exactly it had (air something or other, not sure if it was just leveling or full air suspension--maybe just the front or rear), but the suspension in my 2008 Yukon Denali was much smoother than the 2009 Tahoe Z71.

Isn’t the Z71 a “sport” package with firmer springs? 

Yes, sort of. Off-road package. 

28firefighter

Those lease examples were lifted from a lease hacking website that I follow. They're legitimate and I believe I saw actual scans of the deal sheets to support them.