Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

Was chatting with my son about my eventual next car. If I don’t get a pure sports car toy, or smaller beater PU, 2 best options seem to be a killer cheaper lease on an EV like a leaf, or some sort of smaller tall hatch or compact CUV. A Seltos or Kona sized. Maybe a Q3. I do like the XC40. In that general size concept.

Michaell

stickguy said:

Was chatting with my son about my eventual next car. If I don’t get a pure sports car toy, or smaller beater PU, 2 best options seem to be a killer cheaper lease on an EV like a leaf, or some sort of smaller tall hatch or compact CUV. A Seltos or Kona sized. Maybe a Q3. I do like the XC40. In that general size concept.

You should look into the Mazda CX-30, now available with the 2.5 turbo engine.

xwesx

stickguy said:

Was chatting with my son about my eventual next car. If I don’t get a pure sports car toy, or smaller beater PU, 2 best options seem to be a killer cheaper lease on an EV like a leaf, or some sort of smaller tall hatch or compact CUV. A Seltos or Kona sized. Maybe a Q3. I do like the XC40. In that general size concept.

Maybe a Miles Board. They don't take up much space, and they are all electric + fun to drive.

breld

roadburner said:

My dealer has a new M2 Comp in stock. Sunset Orange, Executive Package, and DCT(unfortunately). Still, if I hit the lottery I’d probably pick it up.

There’s one like that near by me in New Mexico. I love the color - it’s a BMW dealer that has it listed as a manual, which caught my attention, but the pics indicate a DCT. Plus, they’re pretty much asking a “new” price for it.

The small dealership that has the 2017 M2 I looked at weeks ago e-mailed me this past weekend to let me know they dropped the price. This is their e-mail to me...cute.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

My dealer has a new M2 Comp in stock. Sunset Orange, Executive Package, and DCT(unfortunately). Still, if I hit the lottery I’d probably pick it up.

How about this one, $200? Should be within the budget of even an honest politician although the custom graphic might be a dealer installed extra.

oldfarmer50

kyfdx said:

I assume none of those were for sale. Owner’s personal collection?

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

Was chatting with my son about my eventual next car. If I don’t get a pure sports car toy, or smaller beater PU, 2 best options seem to be a killer cheaper lease on an EV like a leaf, or some sort of smaller tall hatch or compact CUV. A Seltos or Kona sized. Maybe a Q3. I do like the XC40. In that general size concept.

As long as you’ve got it narrowed down.....

corvette

xwesx said:

qbrozen said:

corvette said:

Anyone want on the waiting list for the forthcoming Apple iCar?

So that they stop supporting it 2 yrs later when they make an iCar2? Pass.

Now, be reasonable, Q. They would support it for four years.

Apple has been doing better, lately, although I wish they would enact a formal written policy. Mobile devices generally get a current OS for five years, and two-ish years of security fixes following that. Laptops and desktops get seven years of current OS support, and two additional years of security fixes for the last supported OS. With the older Intel laptops and desktops, there is a workaround to enable you to install the current OS, so long as they are 64-bit processors, but it was buggy when I tried it. Not sure whether this will even be possible with the Apple Silicon machines.

explorerx4

@stickguy,
Found a nice, cheap, small pickup for you, maybe.
https://www.crestfordofniantic.com/used/Chevrolet/2012-Chevrolet-Colorado-d965df540a0e0ae85f3585a320e1a4ba.htm

mjfloyd1

andres3 said:

mjfloyd1 said:

andres3 said:

mjfloyd1 said:

Hey it’s working!

Strangely after driving it for 3.5 hours and hitting bugs, it did not look freshly detailed when I arrived back home. They call me Captain Obvious

You didn't have a big RAM truck 3 feet in front of you though

Wouldn’t the big RAM truck three feet in front of you end up taking most of the bug hits so your car would be less dirty??

Yes, I was happy to see the big truck shielding my S4 upon arrival on the truck trailer bed. It's those kicked up stones I worry about; not so much the bugs. I've had some bad luck with windshield nicks and chips in the past.

Wouldn’t that fall into “situational awareness” and you should have paid extra for enclosed transportation? Seriously??

mjfloyd1

qbrozen said:

tifighter said:

I saw online that many Ford dealers are adding $5-15K ADMs on the inbound Mach-E...even to those that were ordered. New tech, but same dumb games...

Who reported being charged ADMs on pre-orders? I’d like to see the agreement they signed because they’d be idiots for agreeing to pay whatever the dealership deemed fair rather than MSRP.

The dealers need to “pound sand” 😂

qbrozen

explorerx4 said:

@stickguy,
Found a nice, cheap, small pickup for you, maybe.
https://www.crestfordofniantic.com/used/Chevrolet/2012-Chevrolet-Colorado-d965df540a0e0ae85f3585a320e1a4ba.htm

If one can tolerate the looks of it, that’s actually not that bad. 4wd, AC, PW, very low miles, and a reportedly reliable drivetrain. $18k is nuts though. $9k trade TOPS! $12k retail would be end of the earth on it.

tjc78

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:

Was chatting with my son about my eventual next car. If I don’t get a pure sports car toy, or smaller beater PU, 2 best options seem to be a killer cheaper lease on an EV like a leaf, or some sort of smaller tall hatch or compact CUV. A Seltos or Kona sized. Maybe a Q3. I do like the XC40. In that general size concept.

As long as you’ve got it narrowed down.....

That is a @stickguy short list.

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

explorerx4 said:

@stickguy,
Found a nice, cheap, small pickup for you, maybe.
https://www.crestfordofniantic.com/used/Chevrolet/2012-Chevrolet-Colorado-d965df540a0e0ae85f3585a320e1a4ba.htm

If one can tolerate the looks of it, that’s actually not that bad. 4wd, AC, PW, very low miles, and a reportedly reliable drivetrain. $18k is nuts though. $9k trade TOPS! $12k retail would be end of the earth on it.

I thought that was steep too. I like the looks of those but hey, it’s a truck not a runway model. I thought I read that the 3.7L had some problems with heads and valves.

explorerx4

Price is way too high, but the oil has been changed 9 times.

stickguy

qbrozen said:

explorerx4 said:

@stickguy,
Found a nice, cheap, small pickup for you, maybe.
https://www.crestfordofniantic.com/used/Chevrolet/2012-Chevrolet-Colorado-d965df540a0e0ae85f3585a320e1a4ba.htm

If one can tolerate the looks of it, that’s actually not that bad. 4wd, AC, PW, very low miles, and a reportedly reliable drivetrain. $18k is nuts though. $9k trade TOPS! $12k retail would be end of the earth on it.

I’m cheap, but not going that low rent spec. And definitely not at that price.

stickguy

tjc78 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:

Was chatting with my son about my eventual next car. If I don’t get a pure sports car toy, or smaller beater PU, 2 best options seem to be a killer cheaper lease on an EV like a leaf, or some sort of smaller tall hatch or compact CUV. A Seltos or Kona sized. Maybe a Q3. I do like the XC40. In that general size concept.

As long as you’ve got it narrowed down.....

That is a @stickguy short list.

True. The prior list was anything from a 1984 celica or GTI. through a new Ram PU. Though prefer smaller than that. But not to expensive.

That should narrow it down a bit.

corvette

The later years of the first gen Colorado/Canyon were offered with an LS V8 as an option, if memory serves. Not sure how much it improved performance.

stickguy

Really? Was not aware of that. I’d take a 5 cyl manual early truck. Maybe.

stickguy

I kinda like this one. Cheap for one. But those miles, are steep.

Just need to budget for a stereo upgrade including a BU camera.

https://www.royaleasing.com/details-2006-honda-ridgeline-rt_automatic-used-2hjyk16246h550880.html

qbrozen

oldfarmer50 said:

qbrozen said:

explorerx4 said:

@stickguy,
Found a nice, cheap, small pickup for you, maybe.
https://www.crestfordofniantic.com/used/Chevrolet/2012-Chevrolet-Colorado-d965df540a0e0ae85f3585a320e1a4ba.htm

If one can tolerate the looks of it, that’s actually not that bad. 4wd, AC, PW, very low miles, and a reportedly reliable drivetrain. $18k is nuts though. $9k trade TOPS! $12k retail would be end of the earth on it.

I thought that was steep too. I like the looks of those but hey, it’s a truck not a runway model. I thought I read that the 3.7L had some problems with heads and valves.

I’ve read some failures but also A LOT of people with 200k plus and no issues. So I’d venture to say the failures are no greater than standard stuff for most manufacturers, but the overall average longevity seems to be outstanding for a non-v8 GM. I’m not terribly well versed in them other than my high-level H3 research.

qbrozen

I still think Dakotas can be good value.
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/832984692/overview?aff=share_other

This seems pretty reasonable for a ‘yota.
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/833756557/overview?aff=share_other

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

I kinda like this one. Cheap for one. But those miles, are steep.

Just need to budget for a stereo upgrade including a BU camera.

https://www.royaleasing.com/details-2006-honda-ridgeline-rt_automatic-used-2hjyk16246h550880.html

Yikes! That looks like one that Auto Auction Rebuilds or Weird Beard would feature from Copart.

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

I still think Dakotas can be good value.
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/832984692/overview?aff=share_other

This seems pretty reasonable for a ‘yota.
https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/833756557/overview?aff=share_other

Those seem a good compromise between price and milage.

stickguy

Dakota does look nice but from out there, I want to see underneath to check for rust. I could live with that but the push bar has to go.

Toyota ad is gone. Makes sense, if it was really a good deal wasn’t going to last.

ral2167

I'd probably be more chronic but I don't understand cars that have the electronic parking brake BUT don't include the auto hold (or brake hold) feature. I have it on the 2018 CX-5, but now even many 2021's have the electronic parking brake but not the brake hold. Seems silly to me. I could be nuts.

tjc78

I honestly forgot they made that generation of Dakota. I haven't seen one in ages

kyfdx

oldfarmer50 said:

kyfdx said:

I assume none of those were for sale. Owner’s personal collection?

I know the M1 is the owner's vehicle. I've seen it a dozen times, over the years.

I assume the other two are his, as well, but I don't know. He opened that dealership in the late '70s, and still owns it. No other dealerships. I'd guess he is in his '70s, now. Started out as a mechanic. Guessing he had some family wealth to get that place off the ground.

The M3 is interesting, with the E46 M3 engine. That's around 330 HP! (vs. the 192 HP of the original M3 four cylinder).

qbrozen

stickguy said:

Dakota does look nice but from out there, I want to see underneath to check for rust. I could live with that but the push bar has to go.

Toyota ad is gone. Makes sense, if it was really a good deal wasn’t going to last.

Ah. Oh well. It was an ‘05 Tundra SR5 v8 with like 90k miles for $9k, IIRC.

ab348

tjc78 said:

I honestly forgot they made that generation of Dakota. I haven't seen one in ages

I liked the looks of them, but they did not seem long-lived. Never see any around here.

au1994

tjc78 said:

I honestly forgot they made that generation of Dakota. I haven't seen one in ages

I almost got one of those but the incentives were better on a regular cab full-size Ram and believe it or not, the Ram fit in the garage better length wise.

qbrozen

au1994 said:

tjc78 said:

I honestly forgot they made that generation of Dakota. I haven't seen one in ages

I almost got one of those but the incentives were better on a regular cab full-size Ram and believe it or not, the Ram fit in the garage better length wise.

Well, yes, if comparing a quad cab dakota to a reg cab short bed Ram. I don’t think they made a regular cab Dakota at that time.

One of the good things about the Dakota was that it had a longer bed than all the other mid-sized trucks, I believe.

28firefighter

Alrighty - so my car hunt saga, since I seem to have hit a wall....

As most of you know I have been pining for a GTI - a 2018/2019 Manual SE with Fender Audio and DCC. A fairly rare bird and seemingly non-existent in my region unless I want to cough up for a used Autobahn which seems to add, even used, $4k for stuff I don't want. I decided to revisit the GLI because they (seemed) more plentiful and dealers are discounting them steeply up my way. For 2021 it seems like they made a lot of incremental upgrades that fixed many of the shortcomings from 2019 and 2020. A GLI Autobahn is about $6k less than the comparable GTI Autobahn new, plus for my purposes, infinitely more practical which contributes to marital bliss.

I found a manual S to test drive, just to refresh my memory and really like it, so no issues there. Started speaking with the dealers to find out what was incoming because apparently manual GLI Autobahn's are not as plentiful in the PNW as I thought. My top choice color is Pure Gray. There is one (1) Pure Gray Autobahn with a manual coming into WA this week and it is pre-sold to another customer. The next one? April. I'm being offered a choice of white or black at a discount of anywhere from $4000-$4500 after my supplier discount with financing through VW at 2.9% for 60 months. Not terrible, but I had my heart set on Gray.

I tried reaching out outside of the area to a couple dealers (Southwest, Midwest) that had what I was looking for. Unfortunately each of these dealers is unwilling to discount as much as the dealers up here (perhaps regional incentive related) and the cars have nonsense accessories installed adding $1000+ to the price of the car. Plus the cost of shipping.

So my choices...

(1) Pay extra - well above market in the end - to get exactly what I want now brought in.

(2) Settle for a different color.

(3) Pivot to a DSG. There are plenty of vehicles in my area that have the DSG in Autobahn trim, in gray. My wife is pushing me not to do this because, and man do I love her for this, she doesn't want me to get bored with it.

(4) Do nothing and see what happens over the next 4 weeks (which is when the i3 should be departing).

tifighter

If I were advising a friend, I would say hold out for what you want. But all of my friends keep cars until they are driven in the ground. For you, as a card carrying CCBA member, I'd honestly go for a different color (white for me, given that or black, BTW). Why? Because when you want to trade this thing towards something else within 18 months, you'll be $4k-5k ahead on the trade value thanks to that big discount, and the color won't count for anything then. But really, how long do you really think you'll keep this car? Given you already have a manual sedan in the fleet? Take the discount and run...

nyccarguy

tifighter said:

If I were advising a friend, I would say hold out for what you want. But all of my friends keep cars until they are driven in the ground. For you, as a card carrying CCBA member, I'd honestly go for a different color (white for me, given that or black, BTW). Why? Because when you want to trade this thing towards something else within 18 months, you'll be $4k-5k ahead on the trade value thanks to that big discount, and the color won't count for anything then. But really, how long do you really think you'll keep this car? Given you already have a manual sedan in the fleet? Take the discount and run...

+1 except I say go for the black, not the white. I know you keep your cars exceptionally clean. I can tell you from experience that there is NOTHING that shines like a black car for 5 minutes after you wash it

My feeling is too that you aren’t going to keep this car all that long. 2 years maximum? This Jetta GLI is a fun, sporty, daily driver rather than a car you’ve been dreaming about for years that you HAVE to have in a certain color. Sounds like the stick & autobahn trim are more important to you than the color combination. When you are ready to part ways with it, you could sell it on Cars & Bids: THIS is a 2021 Volkswagen Jetta GLI Autobahn with a rare 6-Speed manual transmission...

ab348

I would get the gray DSG version and keep madame happy, esp. since you already have a car with a stick there.

kyfdx

@28firefighter

Just wait until you find the used SE that you want. What's the hurry?

(though, I like the idea of the Golf R)

28firefighter

The hurry is that the ZHP is on summer tires and temps are in the upper 30s/low 40s for the foreseeable future, so not a safe daily driver. And the i3 should be gone within a few weeks. So will need a vehicle by the end of January or sooner...

The Golf R is a wildcard and should minimize the hit financially when I inevitably get bored...

breld

I like the GLI and I know you’ve had your eye on them for awhile, so I think it’s a fine “compromise” over the GTI. As long as the color choices are within my top few choices, I find I tend to not care so much after the fact that I didn’t get my first choice color as long as it’s a good deal. Me? I’d go for the white, but that would actually be my first choice.

If there’s a Golf R available, I wouldn’t hesitate on the incremental upfront cost of one...as you pointed out, you’ll recover that just fine on the other side.

And kudos to your wife for encouraging you on the manual vs DSG.

breld

By the way, did you ever end up checking out the used JCW hardtop?

kyfdx

28firefighter said:

The hurry is that the ZHP is on summer tires and temps are in the upper 30s/low 40s for the foreseeable future, so not a safe daily driver. And the i3 should be gone within a few weeks. So will need a vehicle by the end of January or sooner...

The Golf R is a wildcard and should minimize the hit financially when I inevitably get bored...

I've got a set of winters...

Just swing by the house...

Michaell

GLI vs. GTI - Test drove both, and while I've lately been a fan of sedans (steering into the skid, as nobody seems to want sedans any more), I prefer the GTI.

The interior of the GLI just seems a bit, shall we say, "low rent" when compared to the GTI. Not sure if it's the quality of the materials (I know both are assembled in Puebla, Mexico), or what, or maybe that the GLI looked way too similar to my Jetta SE, but the GTI seemed to exude a more quality experience.

My .02, FWIW.

28firefighter

All great feedback everyone, I appreciate it.

The GLI is, unsurprisingly, going to depreciate like a rock - roughly $10k based on what I'm seeing for used 2019s and 2020s for sale. I don't hate the white though, and it is available...

The Golf R is interesting - would be about $4k-$5k more, BUT, I think I'm likely to recoup much more of it. Not sure if I'd get a DSG or manual there - almost everyone seems to say "DSG" on that model.

The last wildcard here would be perhaps trying to snag a lease on an outgoing 2020 S3 which is just effectively a Golf R sedan...

Michaell

28firefighter said:

All great feedback everyone, I appreciate it.

The GLI is, unsurprisingly, going to depreciate like a rock - roughly $10k based on what I'm seeing for used 2019s and 2020s for sale. I don't hate the white though, and it is available...

The Golf R is interesting - would be about $4k-$5k more, BUT, I think I'm likely to recoup much more of it. Not sure if I'd get a DSG or manual there - almost everyone seems to say "DSG" on that model.

The last wildcard here would be perhaps trying to snag a lease on an outgoing 2020 S3 which is just effectively a Golf R sedan...

I’ve said this before - not a fan of the DSG, as it’s been some years since I drove one. Did enjoy the heck out the Golf R @breld owned; he was gracious enough to let me drive it.

28firefighter

Also, for @breld - I did not drive the JCW - it sold before I could get over to the dealer to drive it. I did try and put my son's car seat in the back of a friend's regular Cooper and it was....tight. So a non-starter there.

mjfloyd1

28firefighter said:

All great feedback everyone, I appreciate it.

The GLI is, unsurprisingly, going to depreciate like a rock - roughly $10k based on what I'm seeing for used 2019s and 2020s for sale. I don't hate the white though, and it is available...

The Golf R is interesting - would be about $4k-$5k more, BUT, I think I'm likely to recoup much more of it. Not sure if I'd get a DSG or manual there - almost everyone seems to say "DSG" on that model.

The last wildcard here would be perhaps trying to snag a lease on an outgoing 2020 S3 which is just effectively a Golf R sedan...

You should buy what makes you happy. If you get something that you really do not like, you will end up selling or trading for something else that you like. And loose money all along the way.

Life is short. Get what you really want and keep it longer because you really like it.

Says the guy who traded his Wrangler after 2.5 ish years. Hey I thought I liked it...so learn from my mistakes

tifighter

Pfft...2.5 years IS liking it in this group.

28firefighter

I held my last GTI 2.5 years and it was the longest I've held a vehicle.

nyccarguy

Last week our Pilot turned 3. 60K miles so far. 2 years to go to pay it off @ 0.9%

tjc78

You put some miles on that thing.

Our XC90 is six weeks old and still hasn’t crossed 800, including about 180 I put on it yesterday.

The S60 is almost 18 months old and hasn’t crossed 8,000 yet.