Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

qbrozen

breld said:

qbrozen said:

breld said:

Alright, well, prices and values on-line are all over the place on the Polestar. I've never seen KBB and NADA be so far apart on a vehicle. I thought an auction on BaT would be an ideal approach to getting to a market price. Since I was rejected , I'd welcome realistic thoughts on pricing (and trade Q?).

Year and miles? 

2016 V60 Polestar
Rebel Blue
All available options (probably doesn’t matter - they’re all equipped the same I think)
25k miles

None have crossed the block in a year.

i'll swap ya an '09 LR2 for it. Sounds like just what your wife is looking for.

corvette

Great looking deck, @nyccarguy! I'll try to post some pics of my house at some point. I just had the beat up, repainted aluminum siding replaced with Hardieplank.

stickguy

using cars.com (for whatever reason, the site I usually pull up!) there is a whopping 1 within 500 miles of me. Also a 2016, with more miles and a boring color. Is this price reality? If so, wow.

https://www.cars.com/for-sale/searchresults.action/?mdId=56208&mkId=20044&page=1&perPage=20&rd=500&searchSource=GN_REFINEMENT&shippable-dealers-checkbox=false&showMore=true&sort=relevance&stkTypId=28881&trId=30009247&zc=08043

well, if I go to any miles, doubles to 2. Of course, the 2nd one that just listed, looks oddly familiar.... 10k fewer miles, and a couple grand less money. But not CPO, though with such rarity, may not matter.

still not sure why BaT thought this one would not fit their site. oh well.

stickguy

Corvette, if I finally get to move and either build or rehab, I want to use Hardy board.

corvette

There have been a few hiccups. I had planned to install batt insulation in the exterior walls if the sheathing had to be replaced. The existing sheathing was (barely) adequate, so that wasn't an option, and the crew didn't have equipment to drill holes in the sheathing and do the blow-in kind. So my old house is always going to feel a bit chilly in the winter and I'll have to kick the heat up a couple degrees when it gets really cold.

Redoing the trim around the windows caused the trim and plaster on the inside to shift in some spots, which will need to be patched. My doggo has been staying with my parents while all of this is going on and I've only gotten to see her on the weekends. The house feels empty without her. And I leave on vacation in about a week!

stickguy

big remodels. always so much fun. If I can find the right place to build it, I would like to just build a place from scratch. Ideally selling the old place first and moving into a rental. Some hassle involved, but eliminates other stresses. Plan B is finding a house I like where I want to be, that is just tired, but cheap, then doing a major rehab on it. Basically treat it like a new build, on an existing shell!

though most likely is we find something that kinda works OK, moving, and doing stuff the hard way (piecemeal while we are living in it).

assuming of course, I can ever get the wife to go through all her "stuff" (keeping this PC) and agreeing to do it. I really should get an offer on the house first, then just let her know we gotta go!

corvette

New construction looks pretty unaffordable. Much cheaper to get something that’s close to what you want, and live with (or repair) its flaws. 

stickguy

which is the reason that is most likely! also the (by far) biggest inventory to pick from.

qbrozen

Just for giggles, I looked up what my Stelvio would go for at auction. Turns out I could actually trade it right now for a profit, if I so choose. I don't choose. Just find it interesting when that happens. Not a big profit, mind you.

henryn

qbrozen said:

roadburner said:

I would definitely pick up this car if it had 20k-30k miles on it; with only 900 miles on it the winning bid will likely be crazy.

Not sure I understand the hoopla. Seems to me a newer GT would be superior.

I agree, any rational person probably would agree. But what you're overlooking is the "uniqueness" (is that a word?)

Some people will pay a good deal to have something no one else has. Or at least very few have.

qbrozen

I guess. But you'd be the only one who knew. 99.99% of the people who see your car everyday would just think its an orange mustang with stickers.

henryn

corvette said:

New construction looks pretty unaffordable. Much cheaper to get something that’s close to what you want, and live with (or repair) its flaws. 

You are absolutely right, new construction is really high right now. There was a short piece on NPR this afternoon, on the market program. Talking about reconstruction after Hurricane Florence, it's going to cost more because of tariffs (tariff on Canadian lumber among other things).

I have never lived in a brand new home, something I kinda sorta wanted to do at some time. Although several of my friends who have had that experience down through the years tell me I should avoid it. Too many kinks, things not done correctly.

The fact of the matter is, if I ever do retire (again) and move away from the inner city, I will probably buy another old farmhouse like I used to have, or even possibly a mobile home sitting on a few acres in the country.

henryn

qbrozen said:

Just for giggles, I looked up what my Stelvio would go for at auction. Turns out I could actually trade it right now for a profit, if I so choose. I don't choose. Just find it interesting when that happens. Not a big profit, mind you.

I actually did that one time. Back in 2013, a new Silverado 1500 Crew Cab, very nice. One month in, under a thousand miles, circumstances changed on me, and I sold that truck to CarMax for about $1k more than I paid for it. There were really big incentives at that time on the Silverado.

breld

stickguy said:

using cars.com (for whatever reason, the site I usually pull up!) there is a whopping 1 within 500 miles of me. Also a 2016, with more miles and a boring color. Is this price reality? If so, wow. https://www.cars.com/for-sale/searchresults.action/?mdId=56208&mkId=20044&page=1&perPage=20&rd=500&searchSource=GN_REFINEMENT&shippable-dealers-checkbox=false&showMore=true&sort=relevance&stkTypId=28881&trId=30009247&zc=08043 well, if I go to any miles, doubles to 2. Of course, the 2nd one that just listed, looks oddly familiar.... 10k fewer miles, and a couple grand less money. But not CPO, though with such rarity, may not matter. still not sure why BaT thought this one would not fit their site. oh well.

Yup - only two 2016 models on cars.com nationwide.  I do think that black CPO one is overpriced, but hey, I figured I'd use it as a comp for now and go a whole $2,000 lower!  I know it's high, but there's just nothing else to compare it to - and while KBB is lower, NADA is much higher.  Fact is, it's the cheapest example available right now.  

As polarizing as it is, the Rebel Blue seems to hold a lot of appeal.  And I do think the 2015-2016 models will retain a certain following since they switched from the I-6 to the 4 cylinder (albeit super and turbocharged) starting in 2017.  

breld

qbrozen said:

Just for giggles, I looked up what my Stelvio would go for at auction. Turns out I could actually trade it right now for a profit, if I so choose. I don't choose. Just find it interesting when that happens. Not a big profit, mind you.

Nice position to be in. 

Drivingfool

We've had a new townhouse and then this new home and there's nothing like new. My kids house in the Orlando area is getting the sheet rock installed today, finally. And her 4/2 is quite affordable. So much so that we're going up to look there and possibly buy which also means selling our current abode. Sure, there's always a punch list with new but things do get fixed and hey, nothing like being the first to use everything!!

The Driving Fool

tbirdmarco

 To be did you strike again get an alpha male have to read back a few pages. Anyway happy Friday everyone. 

stickguy

yeah, there are a few things to punch up on a new build, but on an older house, there is a constant stream of stuff wearing out, breaking, needing help, etc.

nyccarguy

stickguy said:

yeah, there are a few things to punch up on a new build, but on an older house, there is a constant stream of stuff wearing out, breaking, needing help, etc.

Yes. I agree. Say your house was built in 1955. You gut and redo the kitchen, have the hardwood floors refinished, have the basement gutted and refinished, have the exterior of the house sanded and repainted, Have the interior of the house painted twice, have a new deck built, and STILL there is work to do.

suydam

That’s pretty old for buying a house. I’ve never lived in a brand new house. Each of ours has been 10-20 years old when we bought it. I like being in established neighborhoods myself.

nyccarguy

suydam said:

That’s pretty old for buying a house. I’ve never lived in a brand new house. Each of ours has been 10-20 years old when we bought it. I like being in established neighborhoods myself.

You've obviously never lived in Southern Fairfield County, CT

ab348

nyccarguy said:

stickguy said:

yeah, there are a few things to punch up on a new build, but on an older house, there is a constant stream of stuff wearing out, breaking, needing help, etc.

Yes. I agree. Say your house was built in 1955. You gut and redo the kitchen, have the hardwood floors refinished, have the basement gutted and refinished, have the exterior of the house sanded and repainted, Have the interior of the house painted twice, have a new deck built, and STILL there is work to do.

The thing is, you have to recognize both sides of the equation.

My house was coincidentally built in 1955. When I bought it, it was perfectly OK and did not need any immediate attention but I knew that I would want to change things as time went on. So I did some of those things you mention over the next 20 years - redid the kitchen and the bathroom, changed the basement, replaced the deck, redid the roof. However all of those things were originally redone in the '70s/'80s, so in that respect it was not much different than buying an '80s house. If you bought something built new in the '70s/'80s you would still have to do all those things. However what I got was a lower purchase price in a well-established, stable neighborhood that was not way out in the suburbs. The location is the biggest asset.

Buying new when I bought mine would have been twice as much. It would have been nicer in some ways but even further outside town and by the time I paid it off I suspect I would need to redo things all over again anyway. There is no free lunch in home ownership.

suydam

nyccarguy said:

suydam said:

That’s pretty old for buying a house. I’ve never lived in a brand new house. Each of ours has been 10-20 years old when we bought it. I like being in established neighborhoods myself.

You've obviously never lived in Southern Fairfield County, CT

True! However, our very first house was built around 1910. It was a great house and so basic it never needed much, a good thing because we had no $$. I’m just saying That the choice isn’t always between New and Really Old.

qbrozen

@breld
odd. my offer to you that I thought I posted seems to have vanished.
I'm willing to do your wife a huge favor and let her have my wife's LR2 in exchange for the Polestar.

nyccarguy

ab348 said:

nyccarguy said:

stickguy said:

yeah, there are a few things to punch up on a new build, but on an older house, there is a constant stream of stuff wearing out, breaking, needing help, etc.

Yes. I agree. Say your house was built in 1955. You gut and redo the kitchen, have the hardwood floors refinished, have the basement gutted and refinished, have the exterior of the house sanded and repainted, Have the interior of the house painted twice, have a new deck built, and STILL there is work to do.

The thing is, you have to recognize both sides of the equation.

My house was coincidentally built in 1955. When I bought it, it was perfectly OK and did not need any immediate attention but I knew that I would want to change things as time went on. So I did some of those things you mention over the next 20 years - redid the kitchen and the bathroom, changed the basement, replaced the deck, redid the roof. However all of those things were originally redone in the '70s/'80s, so in that respect it was not much different than buying an '80s house. If you bought something built new in the '70s/'80s you would still have to do all those things. However what I got was a lower purchase price in a well-established, stable neighborhood that was not way out in the suburbs. The location is the biggest asset.

Buying new when I bought mine would have been twice as much. It would have been nicer in some ways but even further outside town and by the time I paid it off I suspect I would need to redo things all over again anyway. There is no free lunch in home ownership.

I totally agree with everything you are saying. The people we bought the house from bought it in the mid 1980s. They said the 1st thing they did was the kitchen. They finished 80% of the basement. They re-did the hallway bathroom & added a master bathroom onto the bedroom. They put a new roof on & had to have a new septic system installed.

My home is in a well established, stable neighborhood. That's the reason it cost so damn much in the 1st place. If it was new construction, I wouldn't even be able to afford my edmunds dues.

breld

qbrozen said:

@breld
odd. my offer to you that I thought I posted seems to have vanished.
I'm willing to do your wife a huge favor and let her have my wife's LR2 in exchange for the Polestar.

But wait - that would mean I'd have to deal with the horrid service department at my local LR dealer again!

qbrozen

breld said:

qbrozen said:

@breld
odd. my offer to you that I thought I posted seems to have vanished.
I'm willing to do your wife a huge favor and let her have my wife's LR2 in exchange for the Polestar.

But wait - that would mean I'd have to deal with the horrid service department at my local LR dealer again!

Nah! Its just an XC90 under it all.

xwesx

corvette said:

Bought an air filter for the G37 (I don't trust the K&N that the previous owner installed), popped the hood and started to install it. Thought to self: "Gosh, that's a really tiny air filter for such a large engine." Then saw the second air intake and second air filter housing on the other side of the engine bay. D'oh!

Don't fear the K&N. They work very well. I have used them for years on all my vehicles, and I do used oil analysis on extended change intervals, and there's nothing that should cause you alarm with them.

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

So one of the reasons I won’t be punching the card this year (or until this HELOC & my Q40 are paid off) is:

Wow! What an excellent improvement!

What did they use for the decking?

nyccarguy

xwesx said:

nyccarguy said:

So one of the reasons I won’t be punching the card this year (or until this HELOC & my Q40 are paid off) is:

Wow! What an excellent improvement!

What did they use for the decking?

Southern Yellow Pine I believe. Thank-you!

kyfdx

nyccarguy said:

xwesx said:

nyccarguy said:

So one of the reasons I won’t be punching the card this year (or until this HELOC & my Q40 are paid off) is:

Wow! What an excellent improvement!

What did they use for the decking?

Southern Yellow Pine I believe. Thank-you!

That's what it looked like to me, too.

I used AZEK decking. 100% PVC. But, it was a lot smaller job, so material cost wasn't as important.

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

Southern Yellow Pine I believe. Thank-you!

How exotic! Hey, it's an Alaskan perspective.

Drivingfool

So sorry for the folks dealing with Florence, it really is a mess. Not sure I could go through one of those. But hopefully clean-up will be easy and things will get back to normal. Am sure all our prayers are with them.
But honestly, what part of the country doesn't have their issues. But, watching a hurricane come directly at ya for a few days is just horrible. We had something similar when Andrew hit back in 1996 but it was a fast moving storm, thank G-d. Still, we lost power at 5 am and got it back at 8:30 that night. With Wilma, almost 9 days of no power was just the worst, a real nightmare for us all. With Irma last year, power was down almost 4.5 days but we left on the second day and found a hotel in Miami with power. I want no more hurricanes!!
May G-d be with our fellow Americans who've been hit with this storm!!

The Driving Fool

suydam

Hmm, I think you might want to live somewhere other than Florida!

omarman

Just a couple days ago local TV station ran a story reflecting on the damage from the effects of hurricane Ike back in 2008 - here in Columbus Ohio. We lost a shade tree in the back yard and one of our cars was totaled from another tree. Insurance covered but ten years later I still notice the difference in the changed landscape around the neighborhood. Nothing like Florida or the Carolinas but when it comes to bad weather it's like the old saying, "Wherever you go, there you are!"

Edit: Found a link to the channel 4 story Hurricane Ike, 10 years later.

kyfdx

omarman said:

Just a couple days ago local TV station ran a story reflecting on the damage from the effects of hurricane Ike back in 2008 - here in Columbus Ohio. We lost a shade tree in the back yard and one of our cars was totaled from another tree. Insurance covered but ten years later I still notice the difference in the changed landscape around the neighborhood. Nothing like Florida or the Carolinas but when it comes to bad weather it's like the old saying, "Wherever you go, there you are!"

Edit: Found a link to the channel 4 story Hurricane Ike, 10 years later.

Weird... we had the same subject in the Cincinnati Enquirer, today.

ab348

This will be an interesting BaT item to watch:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2017-chevrolet-ss-sport-sedan/

kyfdx

They took that, and not the Polestar?

Might be my own biases, but sheesh.

tbirdmarco

 So it was you to be the new Alpha nice with car could you get rid of instead the old Dodge? 

tbirdmarco

 And congratulations Corvette on the new G 37. Try to look back pages for your posting and which one ended up getting couldn’t find it spent some time. I should really try to come in here at least once a day. 

qbrozen

ab348 said:

This will be an interesting BaT item to watch: https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2017-chevrolet-ss-sport-sedan/

If it wasn't in Maine, shifty would just HAVE to bid.

qbrozen

tbirdmarco said:

 So it was you to be the new Alpha nice with car could you get rid of instead the old Dodge? 

The F150 is taking a hike. I have someone who applied to take over the lease.

Mr_Shiftright

qbrozen said:

ab348 said:

This will be an interesting BaT item to watch:

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2017-chevrolet-ss-sport-sedan/

If it wasn't in Maine, shifty would just HAVE to bid.

I would like to own that car, yes, but I wouldn't like to pay for it. I'm always looking for that "sweet spot" when interesting cars depreciate to their lowest level and just before everyone catches on to them. I think the SS has a way to go yet in terms of depreciation.

qbrozen

Forgot to mention, I HATE the autostop in the Alfa. It is very intrusive and messy. The Ford's is far far superior. 

Had one, maybe two glitches today. The big one just happened a few mins ago. The infotainment went totally dead. Black screen. Then it slowly restarted itself like 2 mins later. This was while driving.

The other may not be a glitch, but it is terrible programming if not. The front object sensor will continue to screech at me even when not in Drive. So I had used the remote start and when I came out to the car, you could hear the alarm squealing away. Got in and hit the start button and it didn't go away. It wasn't until I put it in reverse and backed away from the wall that it stopped. So, in other words, if you park this in a garage, you'd have that to look forward to ALL THE TIME! 

sda

qbrozen said:

Forgot to mention, I HATE the autostop in the Alfa. It is very intrusive and messy. The Ford's is far far superior. 

Had one, maybe two glitches today. The big one just happened a few mins ago. The infotainment went totally dead. Black screen. Then it slowly restarted itself like 2 mins later. This was while driving.

The other may not be a glitch, but it is terrible programming if not. The front object sensor will continue to screech at me even when not in Drive. So I had used the remote start and when I came out to the car, you could hear the alarm squealing away. Got in and hit the start button and it didn't go away. It wasn't until I put it in reverse and backed away from the wall that it stopped. So, in other words, if you park this in a garage, you'd have that to look forward to ALL THE TIME! 

Are you able to turn off the Auto-Stop? Perhaps the sensors are dirty. I've read where some are more sensitive than others.

Michaell

@jpp5862 and I invaded @breld’s garage this morning to spiff up our rides. Got a picture of the “after”. 

breld

C’mon, it’s kinda cool looking.  

kyfdx

So, is it a done deal?

I vote for the Macan

carnaught

Hmm, not black over black.

qbrozen

breld said:

C’mon, it’s kinda cool looking.  

To each her own. I think the squareback is far more attractive.