Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

Mr_Shiftright

breld said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

Getting a FWD car to handle really well AND be civilized in ride comfort isn't all that easy. No matter how you cut it, you're nose-heavy. It can be done though but it requires sophistication.

Like the Civic Type R I had. That's why I got all the stares..."Wow...that's a sophisticated car."

But it IS actually--just not in styling, but certainly in engineering.

tbirdmarco

Love all above

tbirdmarco

stick guy love reading all above and your testdrives today is my birthday I am 32Type your comment

Mr_Shiftright

Just a baby Marco!

sda

tbirdmarco said:

stick guy love reading all above and your testdrives today is my birthday I am 32Type your comment

Happy Birthday, Enjoy!

Michaell

Happy birthday, @tbirdmarco

The fact that you were born after I graduated from high school makes me feel very old.

carnaught

Happy Birthday @tbirdmarco !

28firefighter

Happy birthday, Marco! I'm only a couple months behind you - turn 32 in Feb.

jpp75

Happy birthday @tbirdmarco!

jpp75

nyccarguy said:

@jpp5862 - Did you take your Tacoma on any off roading adventures this weekend? Thoughts at the 200 mile mark?

Haha, no offroading adeventures yet. I was out of town last weekend so it got to sit at the airport.

Somehow I'm already close to the 500 mile mark though and I really am happy with the truck. It's a nice change from the Touareg, certainly has that more dependable feel. And while it drives like a truck it's certainly not a penalty box by any stretch of the means. Fuel economy is right about 20 mpg is mixed driving, and with unleaded running about 50 cents less than diesel here I think I'm actually saving a small bit in fuel.

Overall I can see why these are so popular, I certainly didn't need a truck but overall I love it!

xwesx

Happy birthday, Marco!

@jpp5862 , I'm honestly not sure I would enjoy driving a gasoline vehicle on a regular basis anymore. However, I would enjoy a truck! I've been passively eyeing the new diesel F150 and Silverado. I have this silly idea to own a 2019 Silverado just so that I can have one fifty years newer than my '69 C20. But, I like the F150 a lot more than the Chevy offering.

Oh, well. For now, my current stable is stable.

qbrozen

tbirdmarco said:

stick guy love reading all above and your testdrives today is my birthday I am 32Type your comment

Happy birthday, my friend!

breld

Mr_Shiftright said:

Getting a FWD car to handle really well AND be civilized in ride comfort isn't all that easy. No matter how you cut it, you're nose-heavy. It can be done though but it requires sophistication.

Like the Civic Type R I had. That's why I got all the stares..."Wow...that's a sophisticated car."

But it IS actually--just not in styling, but certainly in engineering.

Oh I know...and agree.  Driving that car was quite an experience.  

I would think Honda would eventually release a toned down version of the Type R.  Just removing the wing would suffice.  

tjc78

Happy Birthday Marco!

pensfan83

Happy Birthday @tbirdmarco !

qbrozen

Uh-oh. Alfa depreciation kicking in. I'm now $245 in negative equity compared to Carvana's offer. ;b

And, no, I'm not selling it. Just keeping tabs.

stickguy

that reminds me. I need to update my expired Carvana quote.

seem to have figured out what the real trade value of my car is. A dealer tonight hit it to the penny at what carmax offered yesterday. So at least I know I can ask for that! Got close to a deal, but it was getting late, and it was a black car. I really don't like black cars. Though they pulled one inside, and it looked OK clean and with some dew on it. But man they look bad dirty. My white car is filthy enough.

no worries about finalizing today. Nothing in stock in the right configuration and only one due in. So either that color, or have to try and finagle a swap, of course making the skinny deal possibility not quite as good.

will talk to the boss now. Might just get back to them in the AM, ask for a slight price adjustment to match my other offer (and Honcker), contingent on them finding a better color combo.

tbirdmarco

 thank you everybody for the birthday wishes, 20 firefighter wow I didn’t realize we were close in age that’s really cool. Stick guy what car is this you’re putting a deal together on, if you’re not crazy about the black exterior and black interior best to do a swap and get what you like I know the deal won’t be is good if they have to trade with another dealer but you want to be happy in the end. Tell us all the details, I hope when I come back in here tomorrow night you’ll have a new car you never know I’m here. We’re all rooting for you stick guy.    Have a good night all, went to a nice Mexican restaurant far from my house with the family for dinner what’s a good time. 

nyccarguy

xwesx said:

Happy birthday, Marco! @jpp5862 , I'm honestly not sure I would enjoy driving a gasoline vehicle on a regular basis anymore. However, I would enjoy a truck! I've been passively eyeing the new diesel F150 and Silverado. I have this silly idea to own a 2019 Silverado just so that I can have one fifty years newer than my '69 C20. But, I like the F150 a lot more than the Chevy offering. Oh, well. For now, my current stable is stable.

That’s not silly at all.  My Dad has a ‘66 427 Corvette Roadster that will be mine one day.  I think it would be awesome to have a 2016 Corvette in the stable to join it as well.  Just because they’d be 50 years apart.

nyccarguy

breld said:

Mr_Shiftright said:

Getting a FWD car to handle really well AND be civilized in ride comfort isn't all that easy. No matter how you cut it, you're nose-heavy. It can be done though but it requires sophistication.

Like the Civic Type R I had. That's why I got all the stares..."Wow...that's a sophisticated car."

But it IS actually--just not in styling, but certainly in engineering.

Oh I know...and agree.  Driving that car was quite an experience.  

I would think Honda would eventually release a toned down version of the Type R.  Just removing the wing would suffice.  

It’s funny.  You can get an STi from the factory with a lip spoiler.

nyccarguy

I have a few vehicles saved in my Honcker favorites that I’m watching.  One of them (a Red/Black AWD V6 TLX w/ Tech) just had a flash sale (for 72 hours) price drop of close to $40 per month.  Effectively making it just $14 per month more expensive than a comparable 4CYL TLX Tech (in red).  Food for thought.

andres3

Might have to look at 350/370Z's from Nissan more closely. Saw a young guy behind me going into the twisties on the scenic drive home the other day, and though I would give him a run for his money in the All Track. Very little traffic so it was clear to go, go GO!

He seemed to keep up with my spirtited driving fairly easily. Finally, about 2/3rd of the way through, he showed me his mightier horsepower and passed me in a flash on a passable section of the twisty highway (I've passed people at that spot when driving my TTS).

I wasn't able to lose them, and they passed fast. Of course, I think his 370Z was modded, it definitely looked lowered for one. Still, I might need to test drive one of those.

I think I surprised him with how fast a wagon could go though, because around 1/3 of the way through there's a straight where I slowed down to allow him to pass, and he elected not to.

corvette

A very happy birthday to @tbirdmarco ! You and @28firefighter make me feel old - I'll be 37 in March.

corvette

xwesx said:

Happy birthday, Marco!

@jpp5862 , I'm honestly not sure I would enjoy driving a gasoline vehicle on a regular basis anymore. However, I would enjoy a truck! I've been passively eyeing the new diesel F150 and Silverado. I have this silly idea to own a 2019 Silverado just so that I can have one fifty years newer than my '69 C20. But, I like the F150 a lot more than the Chevy offering.

Oh, well. For now, my current stable is stable.

I haven't driven the V6 TDI, but have driven a couple of the 1.9/2.0 liter TDIs, and I have to say, they have very good torque at moderate throttle inputs, but if you floor it, you start to see the limitations of the diesel engine. The published 0-60 and quarter mile times of the gasoline vs. diesel versions of these vehicles (Jetta, Chevy Colorado, etc.) usually bear this out. The only issue for me is how they are tuned. If the gas engine is tuned to prioritize responsiveness over fuel economy, like my G37, it's absolutely no contest. If you have a platform like the old Jetta with the abysmal 2.0 normally aspirated engine, the adequate 2.5 liter inline 5, and the 2.0 liter TDI engine, I can understand the preference for the diesel.

With full-size trucks, I'd strongly prefer the 6.2 liter gas Silverado. The 5.3 liter would be okay. The F-150 Ecoboost engines are probably the best in class. The Tundra puts out some impressive performance numbers, at the expense of fuel economy, due to short gearing. It's a very dated platform but has more passive safety features standard than the competition.

corvette

breld said:

Oh I know...and agree.  Driving that car was quite an experience.  

I would think Honda would eventually release a toned down version of the Type R.  Just removing the wing would suffice.  

I doubt they will. Their corporate culture seems to be extremely stubborn. They still don't offer standalone options and generally make you bump up one or more trim levels if you absolutely have to have a certain feature. And it used to be you couldn't email them with any concerns or complaints--you had to either call or write. I'm not sure if that's changed. They used to offer "trim levels" like "Honda Accord LX w/anti-lock brakes" which were never stocked on dealer lots--I see the same thing now with "Honda Civic LX w/Honda Sensing."

stickguy

so, you people with black cars, how bad is it really to keep them looking respectable? Car looks real sharp clean though. Wife thought it was fine, and the princess found it to be snappy. So I am probably overthinking this!

Probably going to go ahead tomorrow and try to finalize if they shave a bit more off the payment.

then hope it arrives before Christmas, though not a big deal if it arrives after (why pay for something to sit in the garage for a week!)

roadburner

My M6 was black. Over the three years I owned it it looked clean for maybe a total of 20 minutes...

stickguy

but did it bother you?

qbrozen

Depends on the black. My cars with metal flake in the black tended to look better longer. I have yet to bathe my Alfa and it doesn't look that dirty.

corvette

I’d guess the answer is to take it to a car wash regularly and occasionally get a detail guy to buff out the swirl marks. 

28firefighter

My god what car are we talking here, @stickguy!?

28firefighter

Also for what it’s worth, the C was a non-metallic Black and looked great when clean and polished (free of swirl marks). Looked awful when dirty. 

suydam

My Encore is the metallic looking black and it always looks pretty sharp. It changed my mind about a black exterior. Now a black INTERIOR — that’s a no go with me. The Encore is a light grey which looks really good and doesn’t heat up inside on warm days.

ronsteve

corvette said:

A very happy birthday to @tbirdmarco ! You and @28firefighter make me feel old - I'll be 37 in March.

I'll be 48 next month, so all y'all need to just GET OFF MY LAWN!

ronsteve

stickguy said:

I think the QX50 is dead too. Was a good deal, but really didn’t “speak” to either one of us.

My MO however is to analyze, then over analyze, and do a spreadsheet to nail down a short list (3-4 tops).

Then randomly buy something not on the list because I felt like it.

I thought I was down to a short list, and then the RDX ended up on the list just before I started the active part of my shopping. Back in January I did sit in a new one at the local (read: most of the dealers trying to drum up new sales) auto show, but had written it off as out-of-budget. But it did speak to me.

tjc78

I had the metallic black on my LaCrosse. It was a chore to keep pristine, but like mentioned earlier not as bad as straight black. The navy blue and burgundy Enclaves have been every bit as bad as black.

If it’s leased, just get one of those monthly car wash passes and run it through often!

pensfan83

The Audi was a non-metallic black and garage kept so it looked good more often than not. I haven't run a car through a tunnel wash in years, leased or not, so I didn't have swirl marks, scratches, etc. to deal with. A yearly professional detail, hand washes, and some quick wax spray kept the paint glossy and looking great. Winter was obviously a different story and unless it was above freezing I didn't wash it until the temps were at least in the low 40s. If we had a cold stretch and the car was really bad I just took it to one of those self-service places to rinse as much grime as I could off.

As for the interior I would recommend a windshield sunscreen. That helped keep the seats, steering wheel, and shift knob less than scorching hot.

pensfan83

nyccarguy said:

I have a few vehicles saved in my Honcker favorites that I’m watching.  One of them (a Red/Black AWD V6 TLX w/ Tech) just had a flash sale (for 72 hours) price drop of close to $40 per month.  Effectively making it just $14 per month more expensive than a comparable 4CYL TLX Tech (in red).  Food for thought.

What's the payment on the AWD V6? Someone just picked up the same car for $421/month all in for a 36/12 lease with only first month due at signing. I thought that was pretty darned good.

sb55

I live 1.5 miles from pavement on a dirt road. So, it's either mud or dust and it's really hard to keep a car completely clean. I don't think that black is any worse than dark blue (or any other darker hues). For us, "medium" hues work the best. The wife's BMW is white, and this color is even OK after a power wash rinse.

nyccarguy

The Infiniti is my 2nd Black car and will most likely NOT be my last. It looks PERFECT for about 5 minutes after you wash it. It looks "5 feet away good" until the next time it rains. Black looks incredible at dusk. The key is to keep up with the detailing. Swirl marks make the paint look terrible once it starts accumulating dirt/dust/road grime. If the original dealership detail has swirl marks, then the car will constantly look like garbage.

Make sure you reiterate to them that if the car has swirl marks, you're going to want it re-done until it is PERFECT. You won't take delivery until it is 100% PERFECT!

ab348

It may just be me but I always find the metallic blacks never look clean, even when they are. The metallic component makes the car appear dusty even when it is spotless.

I owned one black car, the GTI. That was enough for me.

stickguy

thanks as always for feedback. As usual, opinions on both sides. I am not sure how to qualify the paint as metallic, but I think they refer to is as "pearl"

wife and daughter thought it looked classy (from pictures). I just like to obsess.

not a huge issue for me since the car lives in the garage so doesn't get terribly dirty. And my cars never, ever go through a car wash tunnel with anything that touches the car. Hand wash in the driveway, and in winter, spray it yourself of the touchless automatic until it is warm enough to do it by hand.

hey, it's only 3 years, so might as well try something new!

nyccarguy

stickguy said:

thanks as always for feedback. As usual, opinions on both sides. I am not sure how to qualify the paint as metallic, but I think they refer to is as "pearl"

wife and daughter thought it looked classy (from pictures). I just like to obsess.

not a huge issue for me since the car lives in the garage so doesn't get terribly dirty. And my cars never, ever go through a car wash tunnel with anything that touches the car. Hand wash in the driveway, and in winter, spray it yourself of the touchless automatic until it is warm enough to do it by hand.

hey, it's only 3 years, so might as well try something new!

Welcome to the dark side young Skywalker

stickguy

one thing about the concern some people have with dumping a car after a short time(and one reason I grabbed the Elantra last year).

With what I will be trading it in for, I calculated the total cost to own for 14 months. Treating it like a lease, and factoring in all costs (tax lost, and DMV sunk fees) it roughly comes out equal to a true sign and drive lease at ~$230/month. So if anything, I saved money driving cheap for a year!

benjaminh

The paint on my TLX not surprisingly seems nicer than on the 4 Accords we used to own, although I don't know how well that shows up in this pic....

fintail

Does that have the same system as a Grand Cherokee? I remember a quirk in my rental is that it wouldn't save presets if you turned the car off. As long as it was on, the presets were there, but turn it off, all gone. A little irksome.

Regarding black cars, I can't do it in the rain here, I'd end up losing it. Maybe a truck, as they can get away with being dirty, but I like to keep my cars clean, and all it would take is a 5 minute drive on a wet day to ruin that.

28firefighter said:

I love the Alfa and will happily flog it for the next 20 months, but it is becoming apparent after 2000 miles that it is just built like crap. Starting to rattle a bit, the infotainment is completely on the fritz (it created 25 extra presets of a radio station I like), and I've noticed some panels that aren't perfectly aligned.

I don't see how Alfa lasts here if this is what they're building...

qbrozen

28firefighter said:

I was thinking about what you posted, @qbrozen, about the X2 vs. the Alfa and I actually think it largely holds true for the X1 as well. The X1 beats the Alfa in just about everything except driving dynamics - build, appearance, interior quality, ride comfort, technology, and utility. The Alfa walks all over it in terms of engine, transmission, handling etc.

I love the Alfa and will happily flog it for the next 20 months, but it is becoming apparent after 2000 miles that it is just built like crap. Starting to rattle a bit, the infotainment is completely on the fritz (it created 25 extra presets of a radio station I like), and I've noticed some panels that aren't perfectly aligned.

I don't see how Alfa lasts here if this is what they're building...

I'm at about 2400 miles. Not a single rattle. But, based on reports I've read, including yours, it would seem the quality is extremely inconsistent.

Terrible mileage, though. Granted, I flog it A LOT, but was not expecting 20 mpg.

tjc78

stickguy said:

thanks as always for feedback. As usual, opinions on both sides. I am not sure how to qualify the paint as metallic, but I think they refer to is as "pearl" wife and daughter thought it looked classy (from pictures). I just like to obsess. not a huge issue for me since the car lives in the garage so doesn't get terribly dirty. And my cars never, ever go through a car wash tunnel with anything that touches the car. Hand wash in the driveway, and in winter, spray it yourself of the touchless automatic until it is warm enough to do it by hand. hey, it's only 3 years, so might as well try something new!

I’d never run a car I owned through a car wash, but on a lease?  Who cares, by the time it’s swirled enough to bother me it’s going back. 

stickguy

once I know it is for sure going back, maybe.

I still try to avoid it. Partly because it costs money. And they just offend me.

graphicguy

qbrozen said:

kyfdx said:

Alfa: RWD based, longitudinal engine layout.

BMW: FWD based, transverse engine layout.

That tells you all you need to know about handling.

Eh, I don't find it that simple. A GTI outhandles a Lexus GS. Or what about a Civic R? Depends more on the engineers' goals than the platform. BMW has grown soft, period.

I don’t track her, but I gotta say, Acura has done a yeoman’s job with the suspension of my TLX. I was driving around last night....some twisties, some highway, some suburban. It will do everything I want it to, and well. Plus, you push it, and it will play. Comfy on the highway. Everytime I spend more than a few minutes in it, I wonder why I keep looking around.

It’s a sickness!