Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

breld

@rny421 - interesting write up on the Atlas. Thanks for sharing.

I’ve admired the Atlas since they came out, but your assessment doesn’t surprise me. Just sitting in them in the showroom gives me that impression. A poor man’s Audi it is not.

Michaell

breld said:

@rny421 - interesting write up on the Atlas. Thanks for sharing.

I’ve admired the Atlas since they came out, but your assessment doesn’t surprise me. Just sitting in them in the showroom gives me that impression. A poor man’s Audi it is not.

Makes me think of the difference between the Jetta and the Golf interiors

benjaminh

A 9-minute video of production at the Subaru factory in Lafayette, Indiana. The factory employs c. 5600 people in the production of an c. 370,000 Subarus annually. The Outback is one of the vehicles produced here.

http://subaru-sia.wixsite.com/indiana/about

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZ8d2eLEIac

benjaminh

Here's an 11-minute video from inside the Honda/Acura plant in Marysville, Ohio, where four of the cars my family has owned starting in 2002 have come from. All Acura TLX's are built at this factory, although they focus in this video just on the Accord.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zWh5nv-ePw

ab348

@rny421 - Thanks for that assessment of the Atlas. When it was introduced, replacing the Touraeg at a much lower price point, I thought VW would sell a boatload of them, but I have not seen many on the roads here. Turns out it is far different from the Touraeg in both engineering and materials quality. I think VW will need to do a major refresh on it and improve the engine and materials before it can take off.

ab348

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

stickguy

Mrs. stickguy tends to just ignore me a lot.

But I do enjoy the planning aspect. Fun stuff!

tjc78

The thrill of the hunt is the best part of it all.

My wife hates all parts of the process and wants nothing to do with it. With the Volvo she couldn't care less other than knowing what it cost. When I told her we had to drive 90 minutes to get it, she was less than thrilled.

She has admitted to enjoying driving it, but I think she still prefers the Enclave.... which is why late next year I'll probably just get her another one.

au1994

Nice write up on the Atlas and unfortunately confirms what I suspected. You’d have to opt for the top model to enjoy. As good as the 2.0 is, I bet the Atlas is a dog with that motor.

stickguy

tjc78 said:

The thrill of the hunt is the best part of it all.

My wife hates all parts of the process and wants nothing to do with it. With the Volvo she couldn't care less other than knowing what it cost. When I told her we had to drive 90 minutes to get it, she was less than thrilled.

She has admitted to enjoying driving it, but I think she still prefers the Enclave.... which is why late next year I'll probably just get her another one.

my wife gets a little interested, at least when it is for her! And is OK going to look when we are really in the market (like when a lease is coming to the end). She does not enjoy just looking because we are going by the dealer, and they have something i just want to scope out.

she absolutely wants to test drive and evaluate the car (and color options) if it is for her. But wants no part of the shopping process, once she says what she wants. I get to do that and just tell her when we are going to pick it up!

if it is my car, she is perfectly happy to let me do it all and surprise her, as long as she had a chance to sit in the passengers seat at some point, and I keep her general opinions in mind. the car show is actually great for that, since can see just about everything in a pressure free environment. Just not BMW now!

graphicguy

benjaminh said:

Here's an 11-minute video from inside the Honda/Acura plant in Marysville, Ohio, where four of the cars my family has owned starting in 2002 have come from. All Acura TLX's are built at this factory, although they focus in this video just on the Accord.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zWh5nv-ePw

Thanks....loved both videos.

I’ve actually been in that Honda plant, probably a dozen times given my company does business with them, and I’m relatively close to them. I hadn’t seen a good portion of the plant. But, I had seen final inspection. It’s amazing how much they inspect their work every step of the manufacturing process. They even have inspectors who inspect the other inspectors’ work.

breld

@mjfloyd1 -

It's been awhile, but earlier this year you had made a very well informed suggestion for wheel spacers on our A5 to accommodate the A4 wheels we purchased for our winter wheel set.

I just placed the order for those spacers from ECS, and I would have had a much tougher time without your input.

Looking forward to putting on the winter wheel set in a couple months and having them look a bit more proper. Thanks!

tifighter

My wife hates all parts of the car-buying process, and prefers that I just deal with all of it. She went with me once maybe five years ago, and was mortified by the back and forth on just getting a trade value. She has never wanted to participate since. Funny enough, the Tesla process is perfect for people like her, but she sat that one out too. Loves the car, though.

nyccarguy

Loves the car, though

That makes it all worth it

Michaell

My wife used to participate in the process, but not so much anymore.

On the Outback, we plunked down $500 to reserve the color she wanted, that was coming in from the factory. I did all the research and did the negotiating on my own; she joined me afterwards to sign paperwork.

The Jetta I just returned was my deal, start to finish. Her name wasn't on the paperwork.

Speaking of which, got the bill for the disposition fee - $350 + tax.

28firefighter

My wife wants to participate in the process to the extent she wants to drive her options. She also knows that sometimes what we end up with may be #2 or #3 on her list, if it hits a lower price point. In the case of the Outback, I gave her a range of what the lease could be, and when I told her it was available for less than that - she jumped.

Michaell

28firefighter said:

My wife wants to participate in the process to the extent she wants to drive her options. She also knows that sometimes what we end up with may be #2 or #3 on her list, if it hits a lower price point. In the case of the Outback, I gave her a range of what the lease could be, and when I told her it was available for less than that - she jumped.

Agreed on that, too. No way would my wife allow me to pick her DD without at least a test drive.

One of the odd tendencies my wife has is to test the turning radius. I really don't know why, because it's not something she does a lot of in her normal driving.

tjc78

The Jetta I just returned was my deal, start to finish. Her name wasn't on the paperwork.


My wife hasn't been on a car since her 2008 Elantra she bought right before we started dating.

thebean

ab348 said:

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

@stickguy = @iluvmysephia?

pensfan83

Same here, test drives are the extent of our combined involvement. Once we decide on a vehicle the negotiation process is entirely on me to handle, she just shows up to sign the paperwork.

ab348

thebean said:

ab348 said:

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

@stickguy = @iluvmysephia?

That's cold, man. :laughing:

28firefighter

We keep one car in her name and the others in mine - the reason being that I want her to continue to maintain a strong credit history. Having an auto loan or lease is a part of it.

28firefighter

thebean said:

ab348 said:

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

@stickguy = @iluvmysephia?

I still feel like a part of me is missing not having seen him buy a car.

thebean

ab348 said:

thebean said:

ab348 said:

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

@stickguy = @iluvmysephia?

That's cold, man. :laughing:

Only joking. It’s fun to do that occasionally. 👍

Michaell

28firefighter said:

We keep one car in her name and the others in mine - the reason being that I want her to continue to maintain a strong credit history. Having an auto loan or lease is a part of it.

We are both on the Outback.

xwesx

My wife says she doesn't want to have anything to do with car buying, maintenance, etc., but then she tries to make me feel guilty about "doing everything for her." No worries here; my give a damn broke a long, long time ago.

tifighter

My wife takes awhile to adjust to a new car, so test drives aren't that illuminating for her. Plus I tend to be more critical about cars, so it sorta works out. After I drove test drove the 3 and really liked it, her input was basically "okay, can we get it in blue?"

Funny enough, we have only had two cars she ever cared about. First was our Miata (06 GT PRHT) which was blue with that caramel leather interior. Pretty easy car to like. And now the 3, which is more fun than I think she imagined. She recently said that she thinks she looks good in it, so that is basically the gold seal of approval. Might be hard to get out of this one...

thebean

28firefighter said:

thebean said:

ab348 said:

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

@stickguy = @iluvmysephia?

I still feel like a part of me is missing not having seen him buy a car.

You haven’t missed anything. I bet he’s still driving the ‘11 Soul. 😄

stickguy

If for her, my wife wants to test drive to make sure she likes it and pick out the color. That’s it. One car is always in her name, the other in mine. But not always the one we drive.

And bean, I think you were being mean, but I’ll let it slide. Not likely catching me in a Kia dealer, though the telluride is very nice. I’m just not shopping in that jumbo size class. And at least, I do eventually buy something!

stickguy

Oh, and once it’s home, she wants me to do everything. Gas it up, wash it, service, etc. she just wants to drive it.

benjaminh

stickguy said:

Oh, and once it’s home, she wants me to do everything. Gas it up, wash it, service, etc. she just wants to drive it.

I sometimes get gas for my wife and get her car washed too. And like some others here, she wants to be involved in the buying process as little as possible. Once she said she liked the new CR-V, I found a good deal with the color that was her favorite. I did ask her to come down and test drive it before I signed all the paperwork. But once she drove it and liked it, I told her she could take off while I did the paperwork, which ended up being another couple of hours. But she's told me several times how much she loves her car, which makes me glad I got exactly what she wanted.

But back to your challenge. Do you think that she could somehow see the Subaru Outback as an SUV rather than a station wagon? If so, the Outback really does seem like a good alternative in terms of performance, luxury, features, and price. But if it's still just a station wagon to her, maybe the RDX is still a possibility? Since she's had her current RDX for 6+ years it certainly seems like she's gotten a lot out of it in that time. What kind of miles are on her RDX?

I'm a believer in the new auto technologies like CarPlay/AndroidAuto, adaptive cruise, etc, and it seems like for her long commute they might be useful....

tjc78

If someone doesn't want a wagon, the Outback (no matter how nice it is) is a tough sell.

@stickguy
Get her behind the wheel of a new RDX and I'd bet she would be willing to pull the trigger.

au1994

nyccarguy said:

I had dinner with a friend tonight. He picked me up in his new 2018 lifted JL Unlimited Rubicon with massive 37” tires. It’s also green. Not dark green, THAT green. Subtle it is not. After dinner, he let me drive home. I can really see the appeal of these Jeeps. It was a beautiful summer night, on the chilly side. We had the soft top down and the windows up. I was impressed. The 37” tires are a little much for my tastes & you can feel their weight when you brake & turn. Besides that, it was a nice, solid ride. I’d definitely take a look at one of these at some point.

He took it Off Roading somewhere in PA and said it was incredible. He even said the ride wasn’t that bad getting there, but after a full day of off roading and then a 3 hour drive home he said it was rough.

Good assessment of the Jeep. I’ve only ridden in a JL and while improved over the JK (which was light years ahead of the TJ) you still know your in a Jeep. And that’s not a bad thing. The appeal is very strong and that’s why in my area the resale is incredible. Truly better off just buying new in most cases. The 37’s wouldn’t be my choice but wouldn’t mind a mild lift and tire combo. I love them, my wife loves them and of course the 13 year old LOVE’s them. My problem is practicality. It’s still too rough around the edges to be my wife’s DD. They don’t particularly haul a lot of stuff well, even the UnLTD wouldn’t tow the boat and with the soft top (my preference) you have to be very conscious about what you carry with you and the mpg is about what you would expect from pushing a brick through the wind.

But I still want one...

Michaell

The reason we have an Outback was because the wife wanted something more "wagon-y". At the time, the only choices were the Outback and XC70. Outback was more than $10k cheaper.

stickguy

We’ve driven the RDX. No question she likes it. Depends though how $$ she likes it!

I’ll try to sell the outback. Cheaper, better mileage on regular gas (I really want to avoid PUG required), and I bet the tech will be easier to use. She gets intimidated by my car, and that doesn’t have a track pad or push button shifter! But need to drive it first.

The current RDX turns 7 in 1-2 weeks. I think it’s sitting right about at 57k miles.

thebean

stickguy said:

If for her, my wife wants to test drive to make sure she likes it and pick out the color. That’s it. One car is always in her name, the other in mine. But not always the one we drive.

And bean, I think you were being mean, but I’ll let it slide. Not likely catching me in a Kia dealer, though the telluride is very nice. I’m just not shopping in that jumbo size class. And at least, I do eventually buy something!

@stickguy, I apologize if you thought I was being mean. I was really just trying to catch up to @jmonroe1 in the LOL category. I really do think iluv is still driving that Soul he had when he was on here.

xwesx

@thebean Just helping you toward your goals....

jmonroe1

thebean said:

ab348 said:

I love it when the red mist of car-buying frenzy descends upon @stickguy. It is always entertaining to see him posting about all his various schemes and the never-ending plethora of possible alternatives. Somehow I get a mental picture of the fast-talking 3-card monte dealers and "find the pea" operators that used to be (maybe still are) on NYC streetcorners with their nonstop chatter. Mrs. Stickguy must be a saint.

@stickguy = @iluvmysephia?

WHOA...thems are fighting words.

jmonroe

stickguy

I wasn't serious. I took it the way you meant it.

thebean

xwesx said:

@thebean Just helping you toward your goals....

Thanks. 👍

andres3

Michaell said:

breld said:

@rny421 - interesting write up on the Atlas. Thanks for sharing.

I’ve admired the Atlas since they came out, but your assessment doesn’t surprise me. Just sitting in them in the showroom gives me that impression. A poor man’s Audi it is not.

Makes me think of the difference between the Jetta and the Golf interiors

Agreed, it's the cynical side of VW that thinks American's will pay more because "bigger is better," even when it's not (cheaper price too). The Toureg, if reliable, is a better buy.

roadburner

thebean said:

You haven’t missed anything. I bet he’s still driving the ‘11 Soul. 😄

And I'm certain he's still suffering unrequited love for a Sentra...

benjaminh

About 17 minutes in Alex on Autos says that the Volvo V60 is "definitely more fun to drive than the Subaru Outback"....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMPQ-WIi4pI

jpp75

I just had an Outback for a rental up in Boston, I can definitely see the appeal. This was a lower optioned model but had Eyesight which I loved. The 4 cyl was more than adequate although I get the love for the outgoing 3.6R. The CVT wasn't bad, but I didn't love it either, however for an all around does everything right car it's hard to beat.

sda

Has anyone heard from our friend Henryn from Houston lately?

mjfloyd1

breld said:

Thanks all for the kind words on our newly acquired Alltrack.

I’ve had fun today driving my “new” A5. 😀

Achtuning just transplanted a S3 motor into an Alltrack. That should scoot.

No problem on the spacer sizing. It can be confusing

stickguy

not that I recall.

stickguy

I do love the new style V60.. The snazzy interior might be an easier sell. Need to show her one. the problem with that is, the prices are still way too high. Maybe 2 years from now? But if spending that kind of money, might just get another Acura.

ronsteve

My wife didn't want to be part of my most recent car buying process either. I brought her in at the very last bit to give her veto power over the color, as what I had found was potentially controversial. Fortunately Acura's Kona Coffee Metallic is one of the nicer brown colors you'll find on a car, so it passed. Had I seen a white car, I would have been looking for a different copy, and if I had seen black with tan interior I wouldn't have even taken her in.

Now we're at 11 months and 1 day and she still hasn't yet driven it. I had planned to hand off to her on part of our trip to St Louis this past weekend, but a gator-gagger of a storm over Illinois made me think better of that. Our November trip to Richmond (about 8 hrs driving time) may be her first time behind the wheel of Obi-Wan. I'm enough of a troglodyte that I usually let the "targeting computer" (Nav display) turn itself off but it hasn't yet told me to "Use the Force, Luke."

tjc78

My wife is the opposite with the Volvo. I have barely driven it and it’s supposed to be my car. I’m stuck with the bus (Enclave).