Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

nyccarguy

@breld - that white Prelude is beautiful.  It seems to be in better condition than my car (what year is it?).  That being said, I think you, me, the current owner, & @pensfan83 know that it IS NOT an $8,500 car.  White was my second color choice behind red (with Black being the 3rd) when I was car shopping back in 2002.

breld

@nyccarguy - first, your 'lude looks great! And yes, agreed. Pricing is so specific to the moment and situation I'd say - traditional valuation tools don't really apply. A seller wants that buyer who has to have the car, and knows there aren't many out there. A buyer is hoping for a seller who is at least reasonable if not a bit desperate, and doesn't put too much into the outliers on pricing.

I'd say somewhere in the $6k's would be somewhat fair on both sides - that's a premium for the seller and a nice car for the buyer with minimal if no depreciation going forward. Someone may bite in the $7k's.

Oh, and it's a 1999 model with 138k miles.

ronsteve

nyccarguy said:

fintail said:

I've seen more than one Infiniti G with Skyline badges. Audible eyeroll.

Debadged cars in Europe are often to hide that you bought a C180 or 316i, now and then to hide a tuned model, too.

I've seen G37x/Q40 Infinitis like mine completely debadged. I don't like it. I've also seen them with the Skiyline Badges (mostly coupes) and don't care for it either.

This afternoon, the Maxima in my rear view mirror just had the letters (not sure what they came from) "JAG" in the middle of the front grille.

28firefighter

Punch pending. Pickup won’t be until later this week. 

breld

Oooh! Fun! You're not gonna make us wait until pickup, are you?

28firefighter

2018 Stelvio Sport with convenience, Nav and forward collision. It’s not done until it’s done. But ridiculously cheap for what it is. 

mjfloyd1

https://www.alfaromeoandfiatofglendale.com/new-car-incentives-and-rebates-glendale-ca

It is on Slickdeals.net

Someone said Tinkey park Alfa (Bettenhausen)near Chicago could match and there was another Chicago dealer(Autobarn) that said they could beat it

https://slickdeals.net/f/11949967-299-plus-tax-for-base-alfa-romeo-giulia-or-stevio-higher-for-giulia-ti-sport-or-stelvio-sport-24-mo-10k-mi-yr?v=1&src=SiteSearch

ab348

The lease on that 124 looks great if you can fit into it. 

28firefighter

If mine goes through it’ll be first month, tags, and tax on incentives and $290/month after tax on a 49k MSRP

stickguy

well, if I was browsing and the dealer dropped that deal in front of my, I would be driving one too.

Mr_Shiftright

breld said:

@nyccarguy - first, your 'lude looks great! And yes, agreed. Pricing is so specific to the moment and situation I'd say - traditional valuation tools don't really apply. A seller wants that buyer who has to have the car, and knows there aren't many out there. A buyer is hoping for a seller who is at least reasonable if not a bit desperate, and doesn't put too much into the outliers on pricing.

I'd say somewhere in the $6k's would be somewhat fair on both sides - that's a premium for the seller and a nice car for the buyer with minimal if no depreciation going forward. Someone may bite in the $7k's.

Oh, and it's a 1999 model with 138k miles.

I would say $7200 is all the money for it, presuming it is very very nice.

28firefighter

I wouldn’t say it fell in my lap, but I definitely saw an opportunity and capitalized. 

breld

@28firefighter - wow! What a deal on a great vehicle! Certainly a perfect candidate for a lease.

breld

Mr_Shiftright said:

breld said:

@nyccarguy - first, your 'lude looks great! And yes, agreed. Pricing is so specific to the moment and situation I'd say - traditional valuation tools don't really apply. A seller wants that buyer who has to have the car, and knows there aren't many out there. A buyer is hoping for a seller who is at least reasonable if not a bit desperate, and doesn't put too much into the outliers on pricing.

I'd say somewhere in the $6k's would be somewhat fair on both sides - that's a premium for the seller and a nice car for the buyer with minimal if no depreciation going forward. Someone may bite in the $7k's.

Oh, and it's a 1999 model with 138k miles.

I would say $7200 is all the money for it, presuming it is very very nice.

Thanks for the input - that is good insight.

qbrozen

I was thinking if I went for a test drive and they threw $360 (0.75% of my theoretical ideal configuration) sign and drive at me, I'd be "forced" to take it.

problem for me is that I need the Lusso for the seat, and finding one of those without $5k of superfluous options is impossible, which means $360 would be impossible.

pensfan83

First of all thank you to @breld for taking a look at that Prelude, even with some of the warts he mentioned, that are all very fixable BTW, it's one of the cleaner examples of a 5th gen Prelude out there. As I mentioned to him I'd like to have my number start with a 6 but I'm fairly certain that would scare the seller off so barring a base Prelude that has a bit more miles, but has lived its entire life in NC, full maintenance records, and new tires blowing this one away I'll probably make an offer of $7K on the SH. A buddy of mine in Charlotte is going to look at the one there. That's another Ficus Green over tan combo, same as the one in California. I like that both cars are colors that don't seem very common. Most are red, black, or silver.

And @nyccarguy wow, your car looks great. I see so many Milano Pink Red cars that are oxidized and faded beyond belief but yours looks fantastic.

au1994

We were able to get a few test drives in this weekend. Here’s a quick review:

- Pilot Ex-L AWD. I was a fan but the wife was not. Drove to ‘trucky’ for her. I thought it had great pick up and was smooth and quiet on the road. Good use of space as well. Cavernous with the 2nd and 3rd row folded. We drove a gray with black interior and the black was too dark for our liking. Sat in a white with tan that looked much better to us. The EX-L is our target model for the Pilot and at around 40k sticker its pretty well equipped. The lack of nav is a bit annoying though.

- CRV EX-L AWD. This was a surprise drive, kind of a while we are here decision. At 31k on the sticker, this is a huge bargain. We drove a white over tan and the interior is simply stunning at any price point much less 30k. There is also a lot of functional space here especially with the 2nd row folded down. The 1.4 is up to the task but certainly doesn’t hurry off the line. Once moving I found it fine. If we really wanted to economize, this is a realistic choice. It’s a Honda so I’m gong to assume it would lease well.

- Subaru Ascent Limited. This was the one we were most interested in and were not disappointed. We drove a black over ivory with the bench instead of captains chairs in the second row. Stickered at 41k and did not have the only option pkg available on the Limited which adds an upgraded stereo, nav system and the pano sunroof. That adds about 2500 to the sticker. Like the Pilot a little disappointing that something as simple as nav isn’t standard at 40k. But, it drives like a dream. Boxers can normally be a little loud and harsh but it is well masked here. Plenty of power too, never felt like it was struggling to move the vehicle. It’s about 196” but drives much smaller and felt nimble cornering and parking. The interior fit and finish is outstanding. My wife commented that she did not feel that she would be downgrading from the X6 to this in terms if the interior. The cargo area strikes a nice balance between the Pilot and CRV.

The Subaru is the leader but given that they are so new, I don’t know how much wiggle room there is and it doesn’t look like they are leasing particularly well at the moment.

We’re going to go back and drive a 3.6R Outback in Limited or Touring trim. Looks like better deals to be had there.

nyccarguy

tjc78 said:

Car looks great!! 

Wow, no AC on?  I don’t think mine has been off since before Memorial day.

Thanks! We actually turned it on last night. If it isn't too humid out, we LOVE to keep the windows open.

stickguy

AU, did you try a Mazda CX-9? If you want a better driving experience and upscale interior, should like that one.

stickguy

nyccarguy said:

tjc78 said:

Car looks great!! 

Wow, no AC on?  I don’t think mine has been off since before Memorial day.

Thanks! We actually turned it on last night. If it isn't too humid out, we LOVE to keep the windows open.

Same here. I would prefer to never turn it on. Only if humid enough to sweat at night in bed! Or if the dog is hot. I won’t turn it on for the wife, but will for the dog!

au1994

stickguy said:

AU, did you try a Mazda CX-9? If you want a better driving experience and upscale interior, should like that one.

Not yet, but it will be on the list as well as a Highlander.

stickguy

Pens, have you looked at the RSX? Same concept as a prelude. I always liked these. Here’s a rando from a quick search. Manuals are out there.

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/740371641/overview/

stickguy

au1994 said:

stickguy said:

AU, did you try a Mazda CX-9? If you want a better driving experience and upscale interior, should like that one.

Not yet, but it will be on the list as well as a Highlander.

My bet is, if your wife thought a Pilot drove too trucky she is going to hate the highlander.

28firefighter

My wife’s uncle has a 1964 Porsche 356SC that he just started working on after having it in storage for 20 years. First step was getting the engine rebuilt. He let me take it out for a drive. Absolutely phenomenal and a surreal bucketlist experience. 

nyccarguy

Anybody willing to take a chance on Frankenstein:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2003-bmw-330i-3/

qbrozen

nyccarguy said:

Anybody willing to take a chance on Frankenstein:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2003-bmw-330i-3/

Not at that price!

stickguy

Yeah, car looks fun. But gonna be expensive. And man that engine bay is tight.

Mr_Shiftright

stickguy said:

au1994 said:

stickguy said:

AU, did you try a Mazda CX-9? If you want a better driving experience and upscale interior, should like that one.

Not yet, but it will be on the list as well as a Highlander.

My bet is, if your wife thought a Pilot drove too trucky she is going to hate the highlander.

My friend bought a new one recently and I rode as a passenger---I agree with you about that.

nyccarguy

Thanks guys for your kind words about my Prelude

au1994

nyccarguy said:

Anybody willing to take a chance on Frankenstein:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2003-bmw-330i-3/

No thanks. The E46 is one of the most perfectly balanced cars BMW built and I can’t imagine that it’s able to maintain that character with a big ol’ Murrican V-8 up front.

Not a fan of the Miata LS swaps either. Guess this either makes me dull or a purist.

stickguy

If you really need to go faster, plenty of S/C or turbo options available.

qbrozen

Everything is better with an LS. ;b

Anyway, from what I have read, the LS3 would only add about 50 lbs or so.

Mr_Shiftright

au1994 said:

nyccarguy said:

Anybody willing to take a chance on Frankenstein:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2003-bmw-330i-3/

No thanks. The E46 is one of the most perfectly balanced cars BMW built and I can’t imagine that it’s able to maintain that character with a big ol’ Murrican V-8 up front.

Not a fan of the Miata LS swaps either. Guess this either makes me dull or a purist.

So 200+ more HP with stock driveshaft diff and axles?----well, good luck with that...and no cruise and no traction control and whimpy AC.

Frankenbimmer.

pensfan83

stickguy said:

Pens, have you looked at the RSX? Same concept as a prelude. I always liked these. Here’s a rando from a quick search. Manuals are out there.

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/740371641/overview/

I've thought about them because unlike it's predecessor you can still find clean stock examples that won't break the bank. However if there's one concrete decision I've made it's that I'd like a Prelude, I prefer the coupe style over hatchback.

breld

@au1994 - agreed on the CX-9 recommendation. I've taken a few test drives of them and have always been impressed. Sounds like the Ascent hits the right buttons though.

Like @pensfan83, I prefer the Prelude - I like the styling of it, and since I had a 1993, it's also nostalgic. But I'd consider a nice RSX too, particularly since they offered them through 2006.

corvette

nyccarguy said:

Anybody willing to take a chance on Frankenstein: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2003-bmw-330i-3/

I’d be interested if all the electronics worked and if it were much cheaper. 362i, lol... 

kyfdx

One of our local BMW mechanics is a hot-rodder at heart. He did an LS swap on an E36 M3 BMW. It's pretty amazing. He is a real craftsman.

kyfdx

nyccarguy

breld said:

@au1994 - agreed on the CX-9 recommendation. I've taken a few test drives of them and have always been impressed. Sounds like the Ascent hits the right buttons though.

Like @pensfan83, I prefer the Prelude - I like the styling of it, and since I had a 1993, it's also nostalgic. But I'd consider a nice RSX too, particularly since they offered them through 2006.

The RSX Type S is what I was going to focus my efforts on if I couldn't find a leftover Prelude with a stick. The RSX is lighter, faster, & with the 6th gear gets much better gas mileage.

breld

Alright, now I'm getting a little obsessed with this Honda search (thanks @pensfan83!)

I'm gonna go over my lunch hour to take a look at this.

2000 Integra GS

Not as exciting as a Prelude or an Integra GS-R, but the miles and condition are enticing. Priced high though, particularly for not being one of the more performance-oriented models. If it's as clean as the ad claims, could be charming though.

kyfdx

breld said:

Alright, now I'm getting a little obsessed with this Honda search (thanks @pensfan83!)

I'm gonna go over my lunch hour to take a look at this.

2000 Integra GS

Not as exciting as a Prelude or an Integra GS-R, but the miles and condition are enticing. Priced high though, particularly for not being one of the more performance-oriented models. If it's as clean as the ad claims, could be charming though.

That's just a Civic.... zzzzzzz

stickguy

looks just like the one I had. Though that was an LS I think. same color and year. Not as good shape, and 100K more miles. but only $2,500 at the time! Fun to drive, but I did not fit too well.

stickguy

I found the holy grail (relatively speaking). A manual wagon! I love it. Pretty cheap, miles not terrible. And 5-10 minutes from me. I just am skeptical it is legit (the seller), and really have no need for it. but if I was carless and just looking for cheap wheels, would go take a look.

https://southjersey.craigslist.org/cto/d/mazda-6/6673486659.html

tjc78

I was just there yesterday, I could have checked it out!

stickguy

yeah, I like it when I can tell from the pictures exactly where the car is (or probably was if just there for a "photo op".)

nyccarguy

breld said:

Alright, now I'm getting a little obsessed with this Honda search (thanks @pensfan83!)

I'm gonna go over my lunch hour to take a look at this.

2000 Integra GS

Not as exciting as a Prelude or an Integra GS-R, but the miles and condition are enticing. Priced high though, particularly for not being one of the more performance-oriented models. If it's as clean as the ad claims, could be charming though.

NICE, but nowhere near $8K nice.

tjc78

I would hope they could find a better spot than a closed Kmart! The rest of the stores there do very well.

pensfan83

nyccarguy said:

NICE, but nowhere near $8K nice.

Agreed, but that's the market right now for early to late 90's Hondas/Acuras.

nyccarguy

pensfan83 said:

nyccarguy said:

NICE, but nowhere near $8K nice.

Agreed, but that's the market right now for early to late 90's Hondas/Acuras.

Too bad mine's an early 2000

nyccarguy

I think @breld mentioned something about one side of the rear bumper cover being mis-aligned. I swear this is of ALL 5th generation Preludes. Hit or not (mine has been replaced).