Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

nyccarguy

28firefighter said:

Am I the only one who doesn't care about car payments? I like leasing because I know I don't keep cars long, it fixes the depreciation, and guarantees that I am in warranty for the duration of the lease.

I tell everyone who asks me about cars to lease for those exact reasons. I need to listen to my own advice.

corvette

tjc78 said:

Ha ha... there was a Sopranos episode based entirely in the Pine Barrens (It's even the episode name)

I just rewatched the whole series - it’s still good. That was one of the better episodes. 

“You’re not gonna believe this. He killed sixteen Czechoslovakians. Guy was an interior decorator.”

”His house looked like $&@!”

sda

With the exception of couple of short periods I have always had a car payment since I graduated college. I guess because I was making payments it was easy to justify trading and getting that next new car. My goal was to keep payments similar to what I was already paying so the change had minimal impact on the monthly obligations. We have the Accord and Pilot paid off for almost a year. I am surprised by the satisfaction and sense of freedom not having car payments has provided. It doesn’t mean I’m not always looking. I walk the local CarMax and car lots on a regular basis. I believe they recognize me as I am rarely approached by the sales folks.

tjc78

28firefighter said:

Am I the only one who doesn't care about car payments? I like leasing because I know I don't keep cars long, it fixes the depreciation, and guarantees that I am in warranty for the duration of the lease.

Couldn't agree more. With only six months left on the Elantra. I've got the itch... bad.

I'm really upset that I'm missing the April blowout that BMW has been doing. The deals I'm seeing over on LH are just awesome.

au1994

28firefighter said:

Am I the only one who doesn't care about car payments? I like leasing because I know I don't keep cars long, it fixes the depreciation, and guarantees that I am in warranty for the duration of the lease.

No. I decided a long time ago, actually when I got my first new car, I’d always have a car payment as long as I could comfortably budget for it. Also why I’ve leased more that I have bought for the exact reasons you listed. We had one payment for a while and that was very nice but I don’t know that we’d ever get back to that. It would take a reshuffling of the fleet and I don’t need to be tempted to do that. We’ll have a 3rd driver in 3 years so we might consider buying out the Crosstrek at the end of the lease. The timing will be within 1 month of lease expiration and the big birthday. As pokey as the Crosstrek is, he can’t get in too bunch trouble with it, can he? Wait don’t answer that.

Shoulda, woulda, coulda done something like this when we got the Crosstrek given our current driving patterns...a bigger SUV for my wife and to act as the family hauler and I should have paid cash for a serviceable but fun 2nd car. Now I could have justified just about anything from a Jeep to another convertible BMW to a GTI. All used of course as I would have been in the 10k or less price range but that doesn’t buy a lot these days.

tjc78

corvette said:
tjc78 said:
Ha ha... there was a Sopranos episode based entirely in the Pine Barrens (It's even the episode name)

I just rewatched the whole series - it’s still good. That was one of the better episodes. 

“You’re not gonna believe this. He killed sixteen Czechoslovakians. Guy was an interior decorator.”

”His house looked like $&@!”

Such good television... being Italian I can certainly relate to some of it. The one thing that always cracked me up was the Thanksgiving episode:

Major antipasta first, then the soup (meatballs and escarole), then the baked Manicotti.... then the bird.

This is more or less our dinner, for years!

Michaell

I've almost always had at lease one car payment - two, when married, and, when the kids came of age, had 3 for a short period.

What will be odd is that for the first time since high school, I won't have a car that's mine. Sharing the Outback is not the worst thing in the world (I mean, it's not a tatty '88 Corsica), but it will be strange to not have two cars for the two of us.

Trying to cut back on the monthly budget while we get the business up and running. Already getting registrations for summer camp - collected around $12K so far.

But, we haven't yet begun construction - hope to start in the next week or so, when the permits come in. Finally got the construction budget to a place where it's manageable.

One day at a time, one step at a time.

Oh, and the MINI will be paid off in a year, as well. Daughter has been paying more than the monthly payment on that.

Can't imagine what having those loans gone will do for my credit score.

suydam

28firefighter said:

Am I the only one who doesn't care about car payments? I like leasing because I know I don't keep cars long, it fixes the depreciation, and guarantees that I am in warranty for the duration of the lease.

I pretty much view our lease as a car payment. And I’d like not to have one. I’m considering buying out the Volt at lease end, especially because I can’t get a new one.

corvette

I should have my HELOC paid off in the next month, after that, I can start paying extra on the G37. I’d love to have it paid off by the end of the year. 

laurasdada

Good luck, FF. Been there, I think it worked out for the best for me, the slacker.

No car payments now. But, as I've occasionally posted, I want new, but don't want to give up current. I like owning, being able to do what I want, when I want. Having equity in a horribly depreciating asset has led me to my current Elmer Fuddlian financial empire: I am a miwionaire; I own a mansion and a yacht. Well, not quite...no, just not.

Porsche Macan? Looks like Jag has upgraded the '20 XE nicely. Used Lexus LC? I'm sorry, I just have no clue. Chronic Car Shopper.

andres3

sda said:

Seems not much has changed over the years with Allstate. I got my first (and only) speeding ticket. I’ve been very lucky. It was an area where the speed limit had been recently reduced and a radar speed trap was set up. They pulled about 6 of us at once. I was ticketed doing 43 in a 30, the previous limit being 40. My driving record was clean yet Allstate sent me a letter that opened ‘Different cars and different drivers...’ and canceled my insurance. I was driving a Sunbird, hardly sporty. I’ve been with USAA ever since.

Dang... I thought speeding tickets were issued for safety reasons all this time!

andres3

xwesx said:

At first glance, it seems odd to me that these companies would want to discourage long-term customers. However, I suspect that they feel exactly the opposite: Assuming you have not had any claims to date, their exposure goes up the longer you are with them.

In other words, the risk thinking is that it is not a matter of *if*, but *when* a crash will occur. So, you have been claim-free for ten years? Wonderful! But, now how likely is it that you will end up being in a crash over the next ten years? Statistically, it is higher. So, if you - the customer - move on to another company that is willing to assume that risk to earn your premiums, then you lock in their profits and move your risk somewhere else.

Maybe *I'm* blowing smoke, but I can certainly see a bunch of actuaries thinking this way.

I'm pretty sure many of the actuaries are idiots because one of the biggest insurance empires took one of the biggest bailouts (AIG).

andres3

corvette said:

My neighbor had a nightmare experience with a wind/hail claim on her house with State Farm, then switched to Safeco after having to pay for a new roof out of pocket and bragged about how great they are. I asked her whether she had had a claim with Safeco, and she said no. So, all she actually knows Safeco is great at is taking her money!

If any of you are CR subscribers, their auto insurance ratings rank Amica at the top at 96 points, and MAPFRE North America at the bottom at 86 points... Not a large spread. Allstate is below average, which fits with those here who complained about them. Are they almost all equally crooked, or what?

I take CR's scoring system to mean that Insurance companies below 90 points are miserable, 91-94 is halfway decent, and 95+ is satisfactory.

andres3

stickguy said:

coin flips are random. getting into accidents and getting tickets is not (though of course, you can be involved in an accident totally not your fault).

so the trick is figuring out what having either event means. Are you a bad driver that will continue to get tickets and have accidents? Or will you, after the first one, be extra careful and drive slower to make sure you don't have another? I think if you went 10-20 years without an accident, you are a pretty good bet to not have more, even if you finally did have one.

I've personally found ticket acquisition to be very random. Just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Only way to avoid a ticket for sure is to not drive at all.

stickguy

Well, I know I will have a payment for at least another 2.5 years since it is a lease.

and I know that this is a great leap, but I don't consider a lease to be a payment. Since you didn't pay anything to get the car in the first place!

After this, probably 1 more payment to replace the TLX, and after that, should be done with them since that car will be a purchase, and the 2nd car is likely to be a cheaper buy also (will be the RDX to start with, and as long as that lasts). But definitely not 2 loans.

I always meant to only have 1, and rarely overlapped briefly to have 2. So not sure how I ended up for a couple years when daughter was in college having 3, plus tuition! Talk about being broke.

once the Heloc is fully paid off, plenty of money to buy the car of our retirement dreams to pay off the TLX.

stickguy

speaking of cars, you might recall a couple weeks ago that my father (just turned 90) took his Sentra in for service, and instead came home with a new Sentra (against my prior recommendations, probably why he did not call from the dealer for advice!). And I think (but need to confirm) that he leased it.

Well, I find out last week he needed to go in to get a pacemaker (and must have been having underlying issues when he got the new car.) At least that went well Tuesday, and by itself doesn't preclude driving. Then I find out this morning that he had another issue (seems to have been a mini-stroke). Thankfully seems that they caught it in time, and does not seem to have any impairment. But he was saying they may not allow him to drive (the Dr.) Not sure if for good, or just a while. But, the old guy was talking about how it would be a change if he can't again (his wife already gave it up).

As soon as I heard he got the car, I just knew he was tempting fate.

corvette

Trying to see whether either of my parents are eligible for USAA based on the possibility that any of their parents were members. It’s not looking promising. 

xwesx

stickguy said:

Well, I know I will have a payment for at least another 2.5 years since it is a lease.

and I know that this is a great leap, but I don't consider a lease to be a payment. Since you didn't pay anything to get the car in the first place!

Well, I suppose one can look at it as a "bill," sort of the same as paying your monthly cell phone or insurance cost (or even housing if you rent). You pay for a service for that period of time, and once the time is up, you have no more cost unless you choose to keep paying.

qbrozen

Transportation is an expense. You will always pay something and it will always depreciate (daily drivers, anyway). You can have a higher expense or lower expense, but never $0. 

laurasdada

And, if it brings you joy, money well spent.

graphicguy

28firefighter said:

I actually like Denver quite a bit. I think realistically, if we moved, it would be back east - Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Columbus etc.

We’d love to have you here. We like it!

28firefighter

This is on BaT right now - interesting one to watch for me.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2001-saab-9-3-viggen-5/

I would say cosmetically, this one is much nicer than mine - but mechanically there is a lot of information missing. Plus I'm slowly sprucing mine up.

I was able to get the BBS wheels for the Viggen down into my budget (I bought them before my wife was laid off) and then having the front end work done on Tuesday. That will be it for a while, but at that point, should be a really nice driver.

I honestly prefer it to the Alfa right now.

henryn

28firefighter said:

This is on BaT right now - interesting one to watch for me.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2001-saab-9-3-viggen-5/

I would say cosmetically, this one is much nicer than mine - but mechanically there is a lot of information missing. Plus I'm slowly sprucing mine up.

I was able to get the BBS wheels for the Viggen down into my budget (I bought them before my wife was laid off) and then having the front end work done on Tuesday. That will be it for a while, but at that point, should be a really nice driver.

I honestly prefer it to the Alfa right now.

Another happy Alfa owner. We're now at 0 for 2, if I'm counting correctly.

28firefighter

It drives incredibly well, but the fit and finish as well as the infotainment are starting to really bug me. I'll hold it for the duration of the lease though because the utility is valuable to me and it is the right price.

kyfdx

I was thinking about Stelvio leases, recently. With the sharp drop-off of Fiat and Alfa sales, I sort of worry about the local Alfa dealership actually being around for three more years.

28firefighter

I'm expecting at least one of the local 3 to fold - specifically the one where I got the Stelvio. The one where I take it for service isn't going anywhere because they do a "big" Maserati business.

pensfan83

Only Alfa one dealer in Pittsburgh and it's part of a large dealer group. Based on that fact I doubt they would fold however I can count on one hand the number of AR vehicles I have seen on the road.

au1994

pensfan83 said:

Only Alfa one dealer in Pittsburgh and it's part of a large dealer group. Based on that fact I doubt they would fold however I can count on one hand the number of AR vehicles I have seen on the road.

I’ve seen about a dozen on the road around here, including (you can’t make this up) 2 on a roll back.

It’s been mostly Guilia’s including a couple of Quadrofoglio’s. I kinda had my wife talked into considering a Stelvio before the whole lake house, renovations, boat extravaganza. She would not have tolerated the ‘quirks’ of Alfa ownership very well!

As for dealerships, we’re down to one from three here in the Atlanta metro area. One was tied to the Ferrari and Maserati dealership so I’m a bit surprised it didn’t hang on.

mjfloyd1

28ff - sorry to hear about your wife’s job. 

One door our closes and another door opens. Good luck to you and your wife and your little one. 

nyccarguy

I do LOVE our Pilot.  It does JUST about everything we ask it to.  A weekend of skiing for 5 and hockey tournaments for 2 (1 of whom is a goalie)?  Check.  Road trip to Disney World for 6 including 1 mother in law and her corresponding luggage?  Check (in the 2011 Pilot we had).  You get the idea.

The 2 tasks that I’d grade the Pilot with a “C” have to do with hauling long, bulky, cargo.  A few months ago I picked up a 55” TCL TV from Costco with my 2 kids.  The TV was leaning on one of them the entire ride home.  It was a tight squeeze.

I’m going to reorganize my garage.  I can’t stand the 20 something (or older) peg board that just doesn’t hold the heavy items I need it to.  Plus it looks terrible.  So I bought some 2 X 2s and 3 Sheets of Plywood  4 X 8 cut down to 6’ at Home Depot.  The Plywood kinda fits (ish).  Time for a Ridgeline?

corvette

I had one of those multi-use gear racks (Gorilla brand or something) in the garage at my old place, and it worked well. I still have the hooks, and bought another piece of rack to hold them for my current garage, but have never installed it in the four years I've been here. Whoops!

ab348

nyccarguy said:

A few months ago I picked up a 55” TCL TV from Costco with my 2 kids.  The TV was leaning on one of them the entire ride home.

I bought one of those at Christmas. Great value and the Roku streaming works well too. Pretty impressed for the money.

nyccarguy

Last year before I took my Prelude to the Consumer Reports test track, I had the brake fluid changed, the coolant flushed, & the car aligned.  The place also told me the drive belts needed replacing.  The Good Year place called me and told me that I had a bent strut that needed to be replaced and the car would be difficult to align.  I told them to do the alignment as best as they could.  They even sent me this picture:

nyccarguy

Fast forward to Monday.  I decide to “Like” Koni on Facebook and send them a private message.  Instead of the standard issue “thanks for liking our page...” message, I get this:

”Both of your spring perches are clearly installed upside down and can be considered unsafe if you hit a bad enough bump, pothole, etc.  Whomever did the installation was not paying attention to what they were doing.  This will make the car sit wrong (too high and be hard to align) but more importantly a hard road impact can makle that corner of the car collapse in traffic. 

Nothing is bent and the good news it that it can still be fixed by taking it apart and assembling it right.  Pelase call me (Mr Koni) at XXX-XXX-XXXX very soon and we can discuss it.  You need to get this fixed ASAP.”

I called the guy on what turned out to be his personal cell phone.  We chatted for a while.  He explained to me what was wrong and how it needs to be fixed.  He has me take pictures of all 4 corners.  He then tells me to send my address to him on the company’s Facebook private message page.

This afternoon, I get a package at work.  He sent me 4 brand new spring perches for free.  If you guys are ever planning on any kind of suspension modification, Koni stands behind their products and have amazing customer service!

sda

How cool to go to the CU test track. I’ve been reading CU since 1969 when I was 10 and my parents first subscribed. I still get CU and often watch “Talking Cars”. I remember when they would count the number of defects each car had. Most had at least 10, and some 30+. These would be paint defects, rattles and squeaks, alignment, out of tune. Cars have improved so much that they discontinued that category, though they will chime in if something is significant. How was the experience at the CU track?

nyccarguy

sda said:

How cool to go to the CU test track. I’ve been reading CU since 1969 when I was 10 and my parents first subscribed. I still get CU and often watch “Talking Cars”. I remember when they would count the number of defects each car had. Most had at least 10, and some 30+. These would be paint defects, rattles and squeaks, alignment, out of tune. Cars have improved so much that they discontinued that category, though they will chime in if something is significant. How was the experience at the CU track?

It was awesome!  I got to test out the Prelude on the skidpad, their road course, through the slalom, and test its emergency braking.  

kyfdx

That’s awesome service from Koni. Not so great from the installer.

corvette

Wow, yeah, very impressed with Koni, but I thought you had your trusted local mechanic to install the shocks? 

28firefighter

Excellent service from Koni. Will keep this mind for the future if I decide to do that work on the Viggen. 

stickguy

so, had another (unexpected) road trip in the TLX today. That car really enjoys being a road warrior. And I will say that I do too. up to 2,500 miles now, and it seems to be breaking in. About 100 miles up the NJ Turnpike and GSP, and back (with a nasty trip over the new Tappan Zee bridge to westchester in between). TC showed 37 up, and 36 back in various traffic and speed conditions (but mostly highway stuff). Not going to complain about that.

rides great, tech works great, quiet, amazing tunes. comfy seats. Range was calculating at about 550 miles. plenty of power for keeping up or ahead of traffic.

My 90 YO stepmom really seemed to like it. Loved the color, and how well it rode (she was in the back one way). Was also quite impressed by seeing google maps running through carplay (though she does have a flip phone with no idea how to retrieve her VMs).

Ruby is growing on me. Depending on values at the end of the lease, maybe I will keep her (probably not, but ya never know)

Only downside was my father had a heck of a time getting in and out of the passenger seat (RDX would have helped with that), but he is 90 and did just get out of the hospital after a mini stroke, so that probably did not help. The hospital stay being the reason for the trip. Thankfully, there seems to be no residual impact from it.

qbrozen

Sigh. Well, I’m not usually one to share very much, but here goes. I mention my father here quite a bit. As some may recall, he was always a car guy, raised me as such, taught me and trained me as a mechanic (not to mention all-around handyman). He was the smartest guy I have ever known, worked his way up to become a good father, and has been an amazing grandfather. He passed away yesterday afternoon in the ICU of the Veterans hospital in East Orange, NJ, with his 3 children, wife, son-in-law, and daughter-in-law at his bedside. What we thought was going to be a relatively low-risk surgery turned into a nightmare of complications. Thankfully, he did not have to suffer much. He will be deeply missed. So, if I’m not terribly communicative for the immediate future, you know why. We have a tremendous amount to deal with and plan for, especially concerning our disabled mother. 

28firefighter

So sorry for your loss, @qbrozen. Hang in there. 

ab348

Oh damn, @qbrozen , that is rough. So sorry for you and your family. He sounds like he was a great guy with a loving family. My most sincere condolences.

corvette

Sorry for your loss @qbrozen !

nyccarguy

@qbrozen - I’m so sorry to hear about your Dad’s death.  From what you have written, he sounds like he was a beautiful man!  Hang in there!

pensfan83

I'm so sorry to hear that, he sounds like a wonderful person who will be missed.

suydam

So sorry for your loss. It’s especially rough when unexpected like that.

nyccarguy

corvette said:

Wow, yeah, very impressed with Koni, but I thought you had your trusted local mechanic to install the shocks? 

So I did have them installed by my trusted mechanic the second time.  I bought them from an auto parts place (local, not a chain) whom I’ve been dealing with since I bought the car.  There is a guy there behind the counter who had a 5th generation Prelude.  He knows Preludes inside and out.  When I ordered the Koni Yellows & H&R Springs he asked me if I wanted to have his guys install the struts & springs?  He said they were good and I agreed.  They were the ones who installed the Spring Perches incorrectly.  

I had had my mechanic reset the springs.  He saw the perches were installed and put them back the same way (not knowing it was wrong).  I got new front & rear sway bar bushings.  I will have the mechanic reset the Perches correctly when he installs the sway bar bushings. 

stickguy

sorry to hear that Q. There really is no "minor" surgery. My dad had a pacemaker put in Tuesday (that at least seeems to have gone OK) but probably as a consequence of going off his Eliquis (blood thinner) he had the stroke. Just lucky he did it at a hospital, and it was a small one. He seems unaffected (mostly) but entirely possible there are aftershocks.

Being 90, is not for sissies.

henryn

So sorry to hear of your loss, @qbrozen. My father passed away in 1992, and I still miss him.