Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

If not, throw on a cheap O2 sensor. That’s easy.

Michaell

pensfan83 said:

In PA if you drive less than 5,000 miles/year you are exempt from emissions testing. I take it CA has no similar laws or emission exemptions?

There are, but none apply in this situation.

Michaell

28firefighter said:

Yeah - a good tank of premium, some techron, and a few hundred miles should go a long way.

Looks like the O2 sension and the ODB II aren't talking. A new sensor is not that expensive, but the repairs have to be done at a dealer.

roadburner

When BMW launched the Mini brand in the US they were adamant that Mini have only stand alone dealerships. That’s fine if you are moving a lot of metal over the curb, but not so much when the market shifts to SUVs/CUVs- hence the current push to establish Mini dealers in BMW centers. Mini of Louisville was selling 15 new cars per month. Mini offered the franchise to BMW of Louisville but they declined.

benjaminh

28firefighter said:

RIP https://jalopnik.com/killed-by-crossovers-the-volkswagen-golf-sportwagen-an-1836447514

I liked these wagons! Sorry to see them go. But great deals can probably be had for the next several months....

28firefighter

Since it seems they have resolved the images problem, here is a much delayed photo of the new "SubaDoo" as Sam has taken to calling it.

au1994

Love the Subaru. I'm a fan of the green, the wife not so much. I notice the Stelvio is gone from the sig. Did you complete the transfer?

BTW...I got a recall notice on our X1 last week. It notes that there is no known repair. Probably stuck with it for now for sure.

28firefighter

Just completed today - registration packet will take some time but I can release the car to him anytime.

au1994

Awesome! Now the countdown continues on the X1!

sda

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

28firefighter

I would have kept it the duration of the lease if it made sense (another 12 months) but it did not given our Subaru acquisition. A perfect car to lease for 24 months and cut loose before anything major can go wrong.

benjaminh

sda said:

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

If you're considering something like an Alfa maybe you should consider the TLX? Acura has incentives that are even higher than when I got mine a year ago. For the TLX Tech there's a 9k lease incentive....

".00215 MF and 48% residual
$9100 incentive"

With that residual you have the option to buy it out at the end of the lease for c. 18k.

Michaell

benjaminh said:

sda said:

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

If you're considering something like an Alfa maybe you should consider the TLX? Acura has incentives that are even higher than when I got mine a year ago. For the TLX Tech there's a 9k lease incentive....

".00215 MF and 48% residual
$9100 incentive"

With that residual you have the option to buy it out at the end of the lease for c. 18k.

We're finding a lot of folks will lease to get the incentive, then wait 90 days and buy the car out at that time.

au1994

@benjaminh - that is an incredible deal. Why am I not in the market?!?! Kidding aside we’re in the wagon SUV market.

RE: Alfa’s...completely agree, great cars to lease on a 24 mo if you can get it. I don’t think I’d even take a chance at this point. There was a dealer 20 min away with the Ferrari dealer but the Alfa side is gone now. Closest one is 45 min or more depending on Atlanta traffic and every mobile decision depends on Atlanta traffic :@ . Inevitably, it would need a trip or 2 and I simply don’t have the patience nor would my wife have the patience with some of the Infotainment foibles that have been described.

benjaminh

Michaell said:

benjaminh said:

sda said:

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

If you're considering something like an Alfa maybe you should consider the TLX? Acura has incentives that are even higher than when I got mine a year ago. For the TLX Tech there's a 9k lease incentive....

".00215 MF and 48% residual
$9100 incentive"

With that residual you have the option to buy it out at the end of the lease for c. 18k.

We're finding a lot of folks will lease to get the incentive, then wait 90 days and buy the car out at that time.

I didn't know that was an option. Interesting.

I love driving my TLX now, and I'm already at almost 15,000 miles because of all the little trips I'm taking in it, but I wonder if in two more years Acura will have some nice electric vehicle to lease? Or, if not, I think I can convince my wife to just let me buy out the TLX then.

laurasdada

sda said:

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

Received the August Car & Driver yesterday. Long term wrap up of their '18 ALFA Giulia QF, didn't read fully yet. But, from skimming, the moral of the story appeared to be, "Friends don't let friends buy Alfas."

kyfdx

laurasdada said:

sda said:

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

Received the August Car & Driver yesterday. Long term wrap up of their '18 ALFA Giulia QF, didn't read fully yet. But, from skimming, the moral of the story appeared to be, "Friends don't let friends buy Alfas."

But, but... what about leasing?

28firefighter

Received an email notice that the BMW car share service, ReachNow, is shutting down effective immediately. Trying to get to the blog post but the site has crashed.

laurasdada

kyfdx said:

laurasdada said:

sda said:

I find it interesting and not very encouraging that those of you that leased an Alfa Stelvio were quick to cut bait.

Received the August Car & Driver yesterday. Long term wrap up of their '18 ALFA Giulia QF, didn't read fully yet. But, from skimming, the moral of the story appeared to be, "Friends don't let friends buy Alfas."

But, but... what about leasing?

Loaner cars are your friend. Unless, the loaner is an Alfa?

mjfloyd1

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a23145269/alfa-romeo-giulia-quadrifoglio-reliability-update/

mjfloyd1

@28firefighter, hopefully these weld issues do not affect your outback.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1030316

corvette

Michaell said:

Cats on the Sonata would run roughly $1K, which is 50% of the value of the car.

Seems out of line... I had a generic aftermarket cat installed on my Yukon and it was something like $250. I didn't expect it to last as long as the OEM, but it got the CEL to shut up.

28firefighter

mjfloyd1 said:

@28firefighter, hopefully these weld issues do not affect your outback.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna1030316

They should not! I have a call in to confirm, but the build dates affected are May 31 to June 6. Her car was built in May and given when it arrived at the dealer, it is very unlikely to be involved. Which is good, because if I have to take it away from my wife to have it replaced (even with the same car) she will end me.

mjfloyd1

jmonroe1 said:

andres3 said:

jmonroe1 said:

@andres3, waay late on the congrats but I like your color combo. A beige interior is better looking than black but it takes a little work to keep it looking good but it's worth it in my opinion.

How did you decide to go with Carvana? Did any of us in here talk you into it. I know I sure liked them. Don't know how they beat my dealer by more than $2200 but I'm glad I gave them a try. I damn near gave myself a bald spot trying to figure that out.

Give us a report after you give it the ole @andres3 break in or after the first ticket, whichever comes first.

jmonroe

Can't afford any more tickets right now, as I have one pending "nasty" one where the CHP caught me during a momentary burst of acceleration zooming away from the clog of a left lane camper (think Mel Gibson screaming "Freedom!!!!!" in Braveheart). Apparently the Alltrack's tune got me into big trouble as I was told I was going faster than I thought. Fast enough where the State wants me to appear the 25th in front of a Judge, and not just take my money over the internet or phone.

I also need to do traffic school for the minor sign violation the cheap $99 lawyer lost. $325 already paid to the State on that one.

The plan for the "Nasty" ticket is to plead to the lesser charge at arraignment. For some reason the Officer wasn't confident in his spurious radar reading, only 2 MPH over a threshold, so he wrote me up for exceeding 65 MPH MAX (standard max speeding ticket VC as a 2nd code violation on the same ticket), in addition to the higher charge/speed. Good (not cheap) lawyer's great advice is to plead not guilty to the higher charge, and plead guilty on the lower charge to adjudicate the matter that same day, and get it over with, and offer to pay off the State without a trial. The judge might be hip to the plan right off the bat, because if he accepts, I cannot be tried on the higher charge any longer as I was already found "guilty" for the crime due to his acceptance of my guilty plea on the lower charge. Double Jeopardy and all that jazz. Therefore, by accepting my guilty plea, he has to throw out the higher charge that I plead "not guilty" to.

So the judge might say he doesn't accept my guilty plea on the lower charge, so that'll force me to dig in and set both for trial with a not guilty plea. That's when I'd have to officially hire my lawyer, who will go all-out full-tilt and try a Keller precedent defense which indicates being charged two codes/violations for the same crime is improper and unacceptable. Given the ridiculous nature of the Court's rumored attitude regarding speeders, the full-tilt defense has been decided by me to be absolutely necessary.

I'm told my CHP Officer is "TOUGH" and likely won't plea deal much. I'm told Kearny Mesa isn't the Court it used to be 10 years ago or more when I used to fight my own cases. Their reputation is now that of the Courts where I've had the worst experiences. They want their money, and they don't care how many rules, regulations, or laws they have to break to get it (remember the ignored letters case?). Funny, when I fought so hard for my change of venue in that "ignored letter" case, I did so under the stale belief that the Kearny Mesa Court was much better than El Cajon. Things change, and my anecdotal data is outdated by those in the "know." Can't believe it's been so long since I got my "motion" granted in that Court. The only Court I've succcessfully gotten any Motion to the Court granted while defending myself in a Traffic Case. The same EXACT motion that other Courts would deny for what I consider frivolous reasoning with the same circumstances.

C'mon man, that was a mouthful for sure. If I were you in addition to slowing down, I'd be all over your cars looking for a signal beeper that the CHP is homing in on as soon as you start your cars. With your driving record your DMV probably has them installed when you register your cars. Now you know why it takes so long for you to get your cars registered.

jmonroe

I’m confused. Was the ticket the fault of the APR tune or the “other bad drivers”?

xwesx

Michaell said:

I just got the test results sent to me - the failure reason is:

Your vehicle failed the Smog Check inspection due to the fact that the vehicle's on-board computer system has not completed the emission system's self checks

So, looks to be an issue with the ODB II (oxygen sensor), as everything else shows "Pass" or "Not applicable"

If it did not complete the self check, then it likely has not gone through a full "driving cycle" (from a computer routine perspective) recently enough to have that set as complete. This is something that is in there to prevent people from doing the old "just clear the codes and take it in" routine on vehicles that had chronic and/or intermittent lit "CEL" issues.

I imagine that just taking it out for a nice long drive (and hour or so) within a few days of the test should set it right in that regard.

Michaell

xwesx said:

Michaell said:

I just got the test results sent to me - the failure reason is:

Your vehicle failed the Smog Check inspection due to the fact that the vehicle's on-board computer system has not completed the emission system's self checks

So, looks to be an issue with the ODB II (oxygen sensor), as everything else shows "Pass" or "Not applicable"

If it did not complete the self check, then it likely has not gone through a full "driving cycle" (from a computer routine perspective) recently enough to have that set as complete. This is something that is in there to prevent people from doing the old "just clear the codes and take it in" routine on vehicles that had chronic and/or intermittent lit "CEL" issues.

I imagine that just taking it out for a nice long drive (and hour or so) within a few days of the test should set it right in that regard.

Which is what we were told after each failed test. Problem is, there isn't anybody available to do that.

Guess I'll need to do it when I'm there in August. Certainly less expensive than a trip to the dealer!

corvette

You should be able to complete a drive cycle by driving 30 minutes or so.

mjfloyd1

28firefighter said:

Since it seems they have resolved the images problem, here is a much delayed photo of the new "SubaDoo" as Sam has taken to calling it.

Happy wife, then you at least have a chance at happiness...

You have an eclectic mix of houses around you- modern and log home-ish

28firefighter

Seattle lot subdividing. My house and the other you don’t see look nothing like the other two.

corvette

28firefighter said:

Seattle lot subdividing. My house and the other you don’t see look nothing like the other two.

@Michaell, @breld, and @jpp2422 have probably seen similar in Denver. IIRC, they recently changed a lot of areas to allow 4-5 story residential, so I've seen a lot of groups of, say, three adjacent houses purchased by a developer and bulldozed in order to build condos at the maximum permissible height.

BTW, one of the things I like about Subaru is that they don't put "special," grotesquely oversized wheels on their premium trims. They definitely prioritize function more than a lot of manufacturers.

mjfloyd1

Yours is craftsman based solely on the column base...

28firefighter

mjfloyd1 said:

Yours is craftsman based solely on the column base...

Very good.

stickguy

an update on the great house rebuild project. Now, with pictures!

stickguy

top picture is the 1958 vintage bathroom. We put vinyl down over the tired blue mini tile floor. The big hole was uncovered when I took down the nasty medicine cabinet (surface mount). Turns out it originally had a recessed one, and when they "upgraded" they just slapped a bigger one over the hole. I will be covering that shortly with plywood and hanging a mirror over it! New vanity waiting to go in until that project is done.

bottom 2 are the kitchen. Shot of the "archaeological dig" excavating to the subfloor. That corner was covered by a built in table of some sort (that they took with them) and apparently the cats liked to pee under it. That top brown layer is engineered wood. The corner pieces came up like soggy bread, and stank. had to peel back that much to get to "solid ground" A really stupid idea putting that product in a kitchen, even without cats.

Under the wood was sheet vinyl (we had the same exact pattern in our house when we got it in the early 90s). much of it discolored and separated from the paper backing. Under that was the original tile squares (the yellow). Was careful with that, not knowing what it was. The white is Kilz oil based that we sprayed on after treating the subfloor and everything left to get rid of all traces of cat pee. We used some left over peel and stick tiles from the bathroom to fill in the gaps to make it all level, then pulled the rest of the brown wood, scrubbed it all down, but down waterproof underlayment, then snap together vinyl planks. Bottom picture through the door shows the end product. I need to get a better picture of the full field. Looks 1000 times better. Smells better too!

Sandman6472

We had an electrician come over this weekend and install a new kitchen fixture over the table that blew up about 6 months ago. Changed out the laundry room lighting as only one bulb worked. Got a fixture with l e d lights and it's amazingly bright, but in a good way. Also replaced the outside coach lights on each side of the garage with motion activated ones that will stay on for 10 minutes which is long enough to light up the driveway when pulling in/out of the garage or taking out the garbage. We still are the only house on the block that parks any car in the garage, we park both. The old fixtures were too complicated to swap out bulbs. Had to take out 4 little screws on the top piece, take it off, then go in from the top to change each bulb. Fine when we moved in 32 years ago when I was younger but worsening eye sight and the inability to climb a big ladder made changing these fixtures a no brainer. The new ones are open on the bottom so to change a bulb, just need to reach up and screw them out/in...easy peasy. Not as fancy but so much easier. Let the next owners change them if they so choose. Emotionally, I'm gone from here. Give me $400K, and it's yours, lol!!
Slowly but surely, am doing small things that must be done before we sell the joint. Have set my sights on 2021 as a possible move date. Things have quieted down here as we're both trying to get back on track after 38 years of marriage. I truly believe a new house in a new city would do wonders for both of us to get back to being happy again. Gotta give it a shot here as I'm not a quitter and think the relationship is worth fighting for. It's really in G-d's hands now!!

xwesx

Yes, that is one upgrade that needed to be done!

Sandman6472

Still thinking of sending VW corporate a letter about how outrageous I think the price of the door lock repair was just to get some closure here. I know it worked both times with Honda who paid half both times I went this route. Worth the paper, stamp and time just in case I get someone sympathetic to my plea here. Ya don't get if ya don't ask!! And if they say "no", so be it. But I at least gotta try here.

stickguy

the new light fixtures installed so far (bathroom, dining area, and hallway) have made a huge difference. The house was way underlit. Not that many fixtures, and the ones there were old, with weak or dead bulbs. New ones with LEDs and you can actually see where you are going! a few more left. also took about 60 years off the place.

fintail

Nice color on that Subaru, not a common one either, I think.

Don't get me started on Seattle "architecture" nor the market around here in general.

Michaell

fintail said:

Nice color on that Subaru, not a common one either, I think.

There are two in this thread!

28firefighter

I dunno, @fintail. Given the number of Outbacks I pass in a half mile drive, I’d say the market is pretty well saturated with ALL the colors they offer.

mb_enthusiast

My dad ended up back in the ICU a couple of weeks ago. Thought he was going to die again. Today marked one month in the hospital. He's supposed to be discharged to a rehab facility tomorrow.

I live close to an Alfa dealership. I borrowed a Ti Sport for almost two days. I really liked it. It had one problem after I took it to 136 mph. It went into limp mode on the expressway. It eventually resolved itself. Dealer owner tried to deny that it happened. I thought about leasing one before going with my heart on the Q8.

I don't know anyone with them, but the reviews on their dealership's Yelp are pretty good.

nyccarguy

mb_enthusiast said:

My dad ended up back in the ICU a couple of weeks ago. Thought he was going to die again. Today marked one month in the hospital. He's supposed to be discharged to a rehab facility tomorrow.

I live close to an Alfa dealership. I borrowed a Ti Sport for almost two days. I really liked it. It had one problem after I took it to 136 mph. It went into limp mode on the expressway. It eventually resolved itself. Dealer owner tried to deny that it happened. I thought about leasing one before going with my heart on the Q8.

I don't know anyone with them, but the reviews on their dealership's Yelp are pretty good.

Thanks for the update on your Dad's condition. Hopefully he will get better and pull out of this.

tjc78

Thanks for the update on your Dad's condition. Hopefully he will get better and pull out of this.

+1

carnaught

@mb_enthusiast, hope your dad is on the mend. Best wishes.

fintail

I seem to see mostly grey, black, white here - the most common colors for all cars I guess. Maybe a blue one here and there. Saturation sure is true though, sometimes it seems like every other car in the workplace garage is an Outback or maybe Forester of some type. Half with a roof/ski rack on all year for outdoorsy cosplay, which has become a PNW stereotype now.

28firefighter said:

I dunno, @fintail. Given the number of Outbacks I pass in a half mile drive, I’d say the market is pretty well saturated with ALL the colors they offer.

stickguy

Great feature of my TLX. The red makes it really easy to find in a crowd!

marcogallo1986

@MB enthusiast, thank you for giving us an update on your dad, praying that all goes well with him, and praying for you and your family.

marcogallo1986

Hopefully will go with the neighbor a lot the next couple of weeks to look at a bunch of different cars, police on their CRV is up in September sometime I think, they were talking about getting a pilot I said let’s go look at things don’t just settle on one car go look at a bunch of different models I think they’re looking for something bigger even though they only have one child but whatever that’s their business and I’m good friends with him not going to persuade him but I said let’s go look at a bunch of different makes and models before you go with the pilot. But the husband is very stubborn and you probably do his own thing no matter what I say, well don’t most people ha ha. I know this topic is been discussed in here, but the wife’s more open for listening so I have a chance there. And also to go sit in things just cause I can. I said don’t talk numbers until you find a car that you like to waste your time if you don’t like a car just walk away and that’s it. Am I wrong for saying that?

marcogallo1986

The neighbors are in Indian couple by the way, they’re known to be stubborn specially the man.