Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

That’s what Ab said.

pensfan83

Nothing fun about drywall.

nyccarguy

corvette said:

Looks like a bunch of five gallon buckets of drywall mud.

Very close:). They are 5 gallon buckets, of Joint Compound. I sell it at my store. Costs me $12.85 if I buy 12+ @ HD, then I sell it for $15.99. Except for 1 simple difference that NOBODY (not just here) picked up on. They used to be 5 Gallon Buckets filled with 5 gallons of USG Joint Compound. A few years ago, the compound started creeping up in price due to many circumstances (cost of manufacturing, packaging, distribution...). So instead of raising the price more, they give you LESS Compound for the same price. Each bucket now only contains 4 1/2 gallons of USG Joint Compound.

ab348

An old and time-honoured packaging tactic. My breakfast cereal of choice is Quaker Harvest Crunch, and every few years they reduce the size of the box without changing the price. One type is now down to a 400g size, down from 540g and even larger sizes years before that.

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

Very close:). They are 5 gallon buckets, of Joint Compound. I sell it at my store. Costs me $12.85 if I buy 12+ @ HD, then I sell it for $15.99. Except for 1 simple difference that NOBODY (not just here) picked up on. They used to be 5 Gallon Buckets filled with 5 gallons of USG Joint Compound. A few years ago, the compound started creeping up in price due to many circumstances (cost of manufacturing, packaging, distribution...). So instead of raising the price more, they give you LESS Compound for the same price. Each bucket now only contains 4 1/2 gallons of USG Joint Compound.

Yeah, they did the same thing with ice cream. Ten or fifteen years ago, those tubs of ice cream in the store were 1/2 gallons. Now, they are something like 1.25 quarts... at about twice the price of the old 1/2 gallons, and most people still call them 1/2 gallons. Some brands, like Dreyer's, even went so far as to keep the package looking the same as old on the outside, and just raising the bottom up to allow for less content. I noticed recently that they did away with that practice - same amount on the inside, but the containers look tiny now; I guess shipping costs must have gone up enough to not warrant taking up all that space just to deceive consumers.

Marketing at it's finest.

mjfloyd1

kyfdx said:

28firefighter said:

Well that is diametrically different from an RS7!

Same fuel mileage..

RS7 was much worse than Jeep in town (especially with Audi in sport mode), but much better on highway. Jeep has the aerodynamics of a brick and Audi has cylinder deactivation.

mjfloyd1

I was worried with the Audi 4.0T motors having turbos blow. They put a mesh screen in the oil line to the turbos and it can get obstructed and the turbos do not get lubricated and die a horrible death. Thankfully they buried these screens deep within the bowels of the motor and you have to take the front bumper off to get it into service position. It is like a 19 hour job. That coupled with a bad service department and the fact that I never drive it made want to say sayonara.

au1994

A 19 hour job? Classic German (over) engineering!

mjfloyd1

A lot of people are just removing the screens

andres3

I have to say my test drive of the B9 S4 left me totally unimpressed. For those not in the club, B9 is the '18+ current generation A4/S4 Audi model.

It's a Grandma-mobile with a lot of horsepower. The slush box automatic might as well be a CVT, because Grandma's don't care.

On the bright side, the massaging front driver's seat was impressively good; like something you could spend thousands on for a similar feature on a home chair. Never thought I'd see the day where you can get a massage on your commute to work.

Still, I think Audi has targeted poseurs and older Floridians with this new generation S4. The funny thing is, a lot of younger people seem to like it, so maybe that's the former group.

Give me a DSG, or a manual, or give me death!

au1994

So the Land Cruiser had a check-up at a place I trust today. A soft brake pedal was attributed to needing a fluid flush. They also recommended plugs, coolant flush and PS fluid flush. This is about what I expected and matched up with the Toyota maintenance records so I’ll do it and be very happy.

It drives great, solid not squeaks or rattles. Suspension still appears to be tight. The 5.7 is torque-y and thirsty but I knew that going in. I need to give it a good detail...wash, clay bar and wax. I ordered some Sylvania Silverstar Ultras to upgrade the stock halogens. Overall I am very happy. A Land Cruiser was a bucket list car for me for some reason. I just always liked the look of them and the legendary reliability doesn’t hurt.

A little hard to say goodbye to the little Subaru. It is a great car and someone will enjoy it. It just does everything right, albeit slowly when it comes to accelerating. Between it and the X1 we just need something bigger to get back and forth to the lake. Despite best efforts, we still take a lot stuff back and forth.

If I could have gotten an even offer on the X1, it would have been gone instead of the Crosstrek. Unfortunately due to flipping an E Class convertible quickly a few years ago, there was some negative equity rolled in, just about the amount I’m upside down.

28firefighter

Congrats! Update that signature line.

I love the Land Cruiser/LX570 - they bring absolutely crazy money.

breld

Not exactly unexpected, but certainly wasn’t a given.

New teaser from Nissan confirms a 6 speed manual on the new Z.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a33979643/nissan-z-engine-rev-manual-transmission-teaser-video/

explorerx4

Vroom sent me an email that there was a problem with the POA, so they were sending a new one.
Last time, they included a return envelope, bit not this time.
Resealed the envelope I got and sent it back.
Just got another email that they are looking for a carrier to pick up my truck. ?
Already got the check, loan payoff letter and my truck was picked up.

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

stickguy said:

they have a nice bright blue one much closer to me! ... it says it is a POS

Probably not a good way to sell one. lol.

oldfarmer50 said:

qbrozen said:

Here is a Bullitt
https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/share/273975281

I think those stickered for $51k.

That’s seem a pretty substantial price drop for 2,000 miles. I’d be wary.

I drove a 5.7Hemi Challenger on Monday and it was a dog. Certainly didn’t feel like 380 something horsepower. Only 17k miles but it must have hard miles.

The Bullitt is appropriately priced.

I like driving my Charger. Not the most engaging I have owned, and not a sportscar by any means. But it is roomy and comfortable, beautiful, gets lots of looks and compliments, makes great noises, and can leave long rubber stripes on the road. It is simply a fun car that makes me feel like a goofy teenager.

I wasn’t knocking your car, just remarking that sports cars don’t lead easy lives in the rental fleet. I delivered a similar Challenger to a dealer last year that was in much better shape. One of the best factory exhausts I’ve heard. Ford for some reason slapped an OEM exhaust off a Focus on the Mustang I believe.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

qbrozen said:

stickguy said:

they have a nice bright blue one much closer to me! ... it says it is a POS

Probably not a good way to sell one. lol.

oldfarmer50 said:

qbrozen said:

Here is a Bullitt
https://www.cargurus.com/Cars/share/273975281

I think those stickered for $51k.

That’s seem a pretty substantial price drop for 2,000 miles. I’d be wary.

I drove a 5.7Hemi Challenger on Monday and it was a dog. Certainly didn’t feel like 380 something horsepower. Only 17k miles but it must have hard miles.

The Bullitt is appropriately priced.

I like driving my Charger. Not the most engaging I have owned, and not a sportscar by any means. But it is roomy and comfortable, beautiful, gets lots of looks and compliments, makes great noises, and can leave long rubber stripes on the road. It is simply a fun car that makes me feel like a goofy teenager.

I have to admit that this Charger tempted me.

485hp is nothing to sneeze at but “destroyer” grey? Is that meant to be intimidating or is it covered with left over naval paint?

oldfarmer50

nyccarguy said:

corvette said:

Looks like a bunch of five gallon buckets of drywall mud.

Very close:). They are 5 gallon buckets, of Joint Compound. I sell it at my store. Costs me $12.85 if I buy 12+ @ HD, then I sell it for $15.99. Except for 1 simple difference that NOBODY (not just here) picked up on. They used to be 5 Gallon Buckets filled with 5 gallons of USG Joint Compound. A few years ago, the compound started creeping up in price due to many circumstances (cost of manufacturing, packaging, distribution...). So instead of raising the price more, they give you LESS Compound for the same price. Each bucket now only contains 4 1/2 gallons of USG Joint Compound.

The candy bar rip off all over again.

oldfarmer50

mjfloyd1 said:

I was worried with the Audi 4.0T motors having turbos blow. They put a mesh screen in the oil line to the turbos and it can get obstructed and the turbos do not get lubricated and die a horrible death. Thankfully they buried these screens deep within the bowels of the motor and you have to take the front bumper off to get it into service position. It is like a 19 hour job. That coupled with a bad service department and the fact that I never drive it made want to say sayonara.

So a whole weekend of fun? No wonder Audi has such devoted fans.

oldfarmer50

breld said:

Not exactly unexpected, but certainly wasn’t a given.

New teaser from Nissan confirms a 6 speed manual on the new Z.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a33979643/nissan-z-engine-rev-manual-transmission-teaser-video/

The 3.0L turbo in the Infinitys is very quick. Should be better in the lighter Z. What are they going to call it, the 300TTZ maybe?

qbrozen

I know, it is probably a dumb idea, but I keep toying with the idea of giving the wife a convertible for our anniversary. An SLK would probably get the biggest “ooh-ahh” but when she realizes it is only 2 seats, that could be a problem. An SL is not totally out of the question, but I think a more recent hardtop vert is preferable, yet I read the reliability is awful. So then I’m thinking C70 hardtop vert. Hmmmm....

As an example (and, yes, I see it had an accident 8 yrs ago)
http://atcm.co/S2PVDP/21522ac6

corvette

nyccarguy said:

Each bucket now only contains 4 1/2 gallons of USG Joint Compound.

Many "gallons" of paint are no longer 128 oz... I guess they leave some headroom for adding color?

stickguy

Q, that C70 link shows broken when I try to launch. But I am a big C70 fan!

ab348

oldfarmer50 said:

485hp is nothing to sneeze at but “destroyer” grey? Is that meant to be intimidating or is it covered with left over naval paint?

Heh. I saw a Challenger yesterday in that exact color. It looked like something you would see on a ‘49 Plymouth, or yes, a USN warship, but shinier. Really a dull shade of non-metallic gray. Someone thought it was a good idea I guess.

qbrozen

Let’s try it this way:

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/818505910/overview/?aff=share_text

breld

That’s nice looking.

Michaell

breld said:

That’s nice looking.

Ditto

stickguy

that is a nice looking one. even better if it had a stick!

tjc78

au1994 said:

So the Land Cruiser had a check-up at a place I trust today. A soft brake pedal was attributed to needing a fluid flush. They also recommended plugs, coolant flush and PS fluid flush. This is about what I expected and matched up with the Toyota maintenance records so I’ll do it and be very happy.

It drives great, solid not squeaks or rattles. Suspension still appears to be tight. The 5.7 is torque-y and thirsty but I knew that going in. I need to give it a good detail...wash, clay bar and wax. I ordered some Sylvania Silverstar Ultras to upgrade the stock halogens. Overall I am very happy. A Land Cruiser was a bucket list car for me for some reason. I just always liked the look of them and the legendary reliability doesn’t hurt.

A little hard to say goodbye to the little Subaru. It is a great car and someone will enjoy it. It just does everything right, albeit slowly when it comes to accelerating. Between it and the X1 we just need something bigger to get back and forth to the lake. Despite best efforts, we still take a lot stuff back and forth.

If I could have gotten an even offer on the X1, it would have been gone instead of the Crosstrek. Unfortunately due to flipping an E Class convertible quickly a few years ago, there was some negative equity rolled in, just about the amount I’m upside down.

We bring a lot of stuff to the shore every weekend too. A big basket of clean towels/linens, food, clothes for a week and whatever else. It can be a real stretch getting it all in the Volvo.

au1994

tjc78 said:

au1994 said:

So the Land Cruiser had a check-up at a place I trust today. A soft brake pedal was attributed to needing a fluid flush. They also recommended plugs, coolant flush and PS fluid flush. This is about what I expected and matched up with the Toyota maintenance records so I’ll do it and be very happy.

It drives great, solid not squeaks or rattles. Suspension still appears to be tight. The 5.7 is torque-y and thirsty but I knew that going in. I need to give it a good detail...wash, clay bar and wax. I ordered some Sylvania Silverstar Ultras to upgrade the stock halogens. Overall I am very happy. A Land Cruiser was a bucket list car for me for some reason. I just always liked the look of them and the legendary reliability doesn’t hurt.

A little hard to say goodbye to the little Subaru. It is a great car and someone will enjoy it. It just does everything right, albeit slowly when it comes to accelerating. Between it and the X1 we just need something bigger to get back and forth to the lake. Despite best efforts, we still take a lot stuff back and forth.

If I could have gotten an even offer on the X1, it would have been gone instead of the Crosstrek. Unfortunately due to flipping an E Class convertible quickly a few years ago, there was some negative equity rolled in, just about the amount I’m upside down.

We bring a lot of stuff to the shore every weekend too. A big basket of clean towels/linens, food, clothes for a week and whatever else. It can be a real stretch getting it all in the Volvo.

yep, that’s what does it is laundry and food. We are 30 min from town and don’t go through there on the way up so I pack a lot of food. So a large cooler and laundry basket or 2 starts to fill up quick. We had a rack which helped but obviously had to be careful what went up there depending on the weather.

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

Let’s try it this way:

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/818505910/overview/?aff=share_text

I like that but aren’t we running out of summer? I guess you could drive it to Florida and sell it if you get tired of it since their convertible season is just starting.

roadburner

My wife likes the 4 Series convertibles as well as some SL droptops. No enough to buy one, fortunately.

I almost bought a 1990 Mustang LX 5.0 convertible In 1992 when I thought I might have opposition in the 1993 election. I could only find an automatic. It was incredibly slow- and it made me realize that the times I thumped a 5.0 with my wife’s 740 Turbo weren’t outliers.

In 2007 I had an E90 335i Sport press loner for almost a month(BMW forgot I had it and they had issues scheduling a pickup). In the story I wrote about it I opined that BMW had built a better ponycar than the domestics.

qbrozen

stickguy said:

that is a nice looking one. even better if it had a stick!

Not according to my wife!

oldfarmer50 said:

I like that but aren’t we running out of summer? I guess you could drive it to Florida and sell it if you get tired of it since their convertible season is just starting.

IMHO, convertibles suck (even worse than normal) in the summer. They are Spring/Fall cars. Now, granted, our anniversary is 10/14, so definitely running short by then. But, hey, it is a hardtop vert!

au1994

qbrozen said:

stickguy said:

that is a nice looking one. even better if it had a stick!

Not according to my wife!

oldfarmer50 said:

I like that but aren’t we running out of summer? I guess you could drive it to Florida and sell it if you get tired of it since their convertible season is just starting.

IMHO, convertibles suck (even worse than normal) in the summer. They are Spring/Fall cars. Now, granted, our anniversary is 10/14, so definitely running short by then. But, hey, it is a hardtop vert!

I agree, especially depending on where you live. Top down, stopped at a light in the blazing July sun in Georgia is not exactly refreshing. Now a top down drive in the middle of October, that’s a different story.

tjc78

Now, granted, our anniversary is 10/14

Very close to mine, the 12th!

My wife's anniversary gift is a 4,000 SF house lol.

One thing is sure, the Enclave is going nowhere until we are settled in the new house. Picking that up from the body shop today. In true Anti-CCBA fashion I may extend that a month or two to give me some time.

stickguy

oops. I was supposed to make a reservation at the fancy steak house for tonight (my anniversary is Monday). Completely forgot about it. Daughter decided to come home though and wants to join for dinner, so I am not including her on that. Maybe tomorrow! Or next week would work too.

roadburner

I’ve never really cared for convertibles save the TJ as well as some classic sports cars. Since convertibles aren’t allowed in most of the HPDEs I instruct at I have never considered a newer droptop for even a nanosecond.

explorerx4

Here are the pictures of the truck I sold to Vroom.
https://www.vroom.com/inventory/ford-f-150-2017-1FTEW1EG5HFC43408

mjfloyd1

explorerx4 said:

Here are the pictures of the truck I sold to Vroom.
https://www.vroom.com/inventory/ford-f-150-2017-1FTEW1EG5HFC43408

How much did VROOM give you for the truck?

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

stickguy said:

that is a nice looking one. even better if it had a stick!

Not according to my wife!

oldfarmer50 said:

I like that but aren’t we running out of summer? I guess you could drive it to Florida and sell it if you get tired of it since their convertible season is just starting.

IMHO, convertibles suck (even worse than normal) in the summer. They are Spring/Fall cars. Now, granted, our anniversary is 10/14, so definitely running short by then. But, hey, it is a hardtop vert!

In Spring-Fall you can’t put the top down in the morning because it’s too cold. In summer you can’t put it down in the afternoon because it’s too hot. On any day that it’s between 70 and 80 degrees it’s heaven and all the impracticality goes out of your mind.

Our flipping philosophies are very different. I buy a car for what I want to do with it over the next few decades until I die and am buried in it. You probably will drive it until it’s too chilly and then send it on it’s way.

Nice anniversary present.

oldfarmer50

au1994 said:

qbrozen said:

stickguy said:

that is a nice looking one. even better if it had a stick!

Not according to my wife!

oldfarmer50 said:

I like that but aren’t we running out of summer? I guess you could drive it to Florida and sell it if you get tired of it since their convertible season is just starting.

IMHO, convertibles suck (even worse than normal) in the summer. They are Spring/Fall cars. Now, granted, our anniversary is 10/14, so definitely running short by then. But, hey, it is a hardtop vert!

I agree, especially depending on where you live. Top down, stopped at a light in the blazing July sun in Georgia is not exactly refreshing. Now a top down drive in the middle of October, that’s a different story.

By the middle of October up here You might need to put the chains on the tires before putting the top down. That’s why if I had any money or ambition I would start a business buying convertibles cheap up north in November and selling them in Florida. In May I’d do the reverse.

oldfarmer50

explorerx4 said:

Here are the pictures of the truck I sold to Vroom.
https://www.vroom.com/inventory/ford-f-150-2017-1FTEW1EG5HFC43408

I forget exactly what they gave you for it. It wasn’t close to that though.

stickguy

I think my son might be related to RB. He just texted me to say he found his next car (current lease, up in November 2021). Carmax has some year old M2s for only $55,000!

I mentioned the winter aspect, and suggested an M240. He countered with an RS3, since Quattro.

28firefighter

stickguy said:

I think my son might be related to RB. He just texted me to say he found his next car (current lease, up in November 2021). Carmax has some year old M2s for only $55,000!

I mentioned the winter aspect, and suggested an M240. He countered with an RS3, since Quattro.

Someone I know just picked up an RS3 - ended up buying it, but ended up getting about $12k off MSRP after incentives for a brand new one. Purchase, of course.

tjc78

stickguy said:

oops. I was supposed to make a reservation at the fancy steak house for tonight (my anniversary is Monday). Completely forgot about it. Daughter decided to come home though and wants to join for dinner, so I am not including her on that. Maybe tomorrow! Or next week would work too.

Chophouse? Nice place, we used to take all our customers there. Many excellent meals.

Happy Anniversary.

tjc78

Enclave is back to looking good.

Small mark on the trim, but they won't ding me for that.

stickguy

tjc78 said:

stickguy said:

oops. I was supposed to make a reservation at the fancy steak house for tonight (my anniversary is Monday). Completely forgot about it. Daughter decided to come home though and wants to join for dinner, so I am not including her on that. Maybe tomorrow! Or next week would work too.

Chophouse? Nice place, we used to take all our customers there. Many excellent meals.

Happy Anniversary.

Thanks. And yes, that’s the place.

pensfan83

I liked the manual M240i I drove a lot.

breld

pensfan83 said:

I liked the manual M240i I drove a lot.

When was that, and what did you end up getting instead?

kyfdx

breld said:

pensfan83 said:

I liked the manual M240i I drove a lot.

When was that, and what did you end up getting instead?

ZHP..

stickguy

This could be a fun little knock around toy.

https://carsandbids.com/auctions/rGJoVBgK/2018-ford-mustang-shelby-gt350r