Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

Traffic was a nightmare. The first 5 hrs covered a whopping 150 miles.

Anyway, it is 2am, so just a quick note that the Sprinter gets horrendous fuel mileage and is NOT a smooth ride.

Wait, you were expecting to get either? My diesel school bus got 10 on the highway at a constant 55mph. I rented a Winabago with a gasoline 440 and got 8. My Chevy Express with 4.3L V6 averages about 15.

So how does your compare?

corvette

@andres3 - I'm not sure. Even on an auction site with vetted bidders, I think the chance of someone backing out is much higher than a dealer offer.

andres3

tjc78 said:

@stickguy

When we moved we also bought a ton of new furniture and decor. Plus all the Homegoods, Marshall’s, TJX trips etc.

When I pad that CC statement off I nearly fainted clicking the submit button. Luckily we had the funds due to having a ton of equity in the old house, but wow.

A Vegas vacation can set a credit card on fire too.

andres3

corvette said:

@andres3 - I'm not sure. Even on an auction site with vetted bidders, I think the chance of someone backing out is much higher than a dealer offer.

They ought to pass a law that if someone backs out of a binding bid they should be able to be sued for 10 times the bid amount.

breld

Been shopping the new 2023 Palisade a little - something about it really intrigues me. I think it’s the idea of having something akin to the minivans we had back in the day…great functionality, comfort, etc.

But my point is more about the current shopping environment. I’ve spoken to three Hyundai dealerships:

• One was taken over recently by a “One Price” dealership network that used to have a great reputation in the Denver area. That reputation is waning. They do indeed have a simple no-haggle one price approach - $5,000 over MSRP on every Palisade (a bit more on higher trims). But no dealer handling.
  
• Another is not as bad - MSRP plus dealer handling ($599 I think), but they require you to go through them for financing, and I’ve heard they may require you to trade in a vehicle too.
  
• But there’s hope. A third dealership is very pleasant to deal with and is at MSRP, no dealer handling. And if anything sits on their lot at all, I’ve seen them provide dealer discounts accordingly.
  

I’d like to think that these predatory dealerships taking full advantage of the current environment will pay for it when the market calms, but I imagine they will simply adjust and no one will be the wiser (other than the few of us who shop non-stop).

corvette

So, I got a closer look at the red Maverick that has been taunting me this morning when I was walking my dog. It had an AWD badge, which means it's an EcoBoost, and appeared to have Lariat wheels. I couldn't tell for sure, but it looked like it had the radar sensor for the adaptive cruise, which I think means it is a Lariat Luxury package.

I also sort of have a chunk of change sitting in my checking account from selling one of my rental properties. This one was a complete nightmare during COVID, with the tenant applying for rental assistance, myself and the property manager waiting on months for the rental assistance which was promised and being strung along by the case worker, culminating with the tenant being denied for assistance and his appeal being denied. He was evicted at that point. Anyway, another investor bought that property, and I requested a paper check from the title company. My bank gave me the Nth degree about it and put a seven day hold on it.

I'm also a big fan of credit card rewards points and not carrying a balance (unless they offer 0%).

corvette

@breld - I just can't see how there is any way the predatory dealerships are maintaining their CSI scores high enough to get bonuses from the manufacturer. (Maybe they aren't worried about it because $5,000 over MSRP is better than a CSI bonus?)

oldfarmer50

greg128 said:

As a principal in a sign shop I had a previous customer come in today to have his Ford Transit Connect Lettered. He told me he paid $46K for it from Carvana (I hope that was with tax) . It is a red 2021 model
with only a bit over 1500 miles so basically almost brand new. He tried to buy new but there was a wait in addition to a $5000 upcharge over MSRP so he went with this as all of his other vans are red. He told me his monthly payment is over $900 per month (not sure of the down payment or term). Needless to say it was hard to believe these are that these things are commanding those prices.

Another one of my customers who could not find any Ford Transits bought 3 new Sprinters for $55K each and I thought that was high but that is a lot more van for the money. I'm also seeing a few new old style Chevy/GMC vans come in lately but not sure what they are paying. Anecdotally I have not seen a new large Ford Transit in quite a while and people are telling me they are hard to find at the dealers.

My basic Chevy van cost 23k and change in 2004 and the new ones I’ve driven at work haven’t changed much except for power windows. Sticker is now $33k for something that hasn’t changed in 20 years. Talk about inflation.

Michaell

@breld:

(1) Schomp
(2) and (3) are McDonald and Arapahoe, but I can't tell which is which

Unless I'm wrong ....

I didn't realize the Palisade had been given a mild refresh for 2023.

andres3

If I got a GTI first thing I'd have to do is tune it to stage 1 power. Also the DSG likely needs a stage 1 TCU tune. That's over $1,000 right there.

oldfarmer50

tjc78 said:

So I’ve said this before but my wife loathes using the credit card all month because she hates the huge chunk of money coming out at once. I do have it set to the middle of the month so at least it’s not near the two mortgages. Anyway, reluctantly she has moved away from the debit card because I’m paranoid.

Well… today proved my point. She went to a luncheon/conference at a hotel in Philly. She pulled up to park and handed the associate the CC for the parking fee. The associate stated she made a mistake and asked for the card back. She assured my wife she cancelled the transaction but apparently did not. I checked the statement this morning and see the $32 real charge but also a $667 charge. Hotel doesn’t want to do anything about it and until it posts I can’t can’t dispute it. He said if it doesn’t come off pending in 30 days it will drop off. If this was a debit card we would be without those funds until it was released.

Wow, that’s a pretty blatant scam. Was the parking associated with the hotel? I’d file a police report although from what I’ve heard of Philly you might just as well whistle in the wind.

28firefighter

Wow! Busy Saturday morning here.

@qbrozen - farewell dear Sprinter. My guess is you can flip that and make a lot of money.

@breld - my wife has been noticing Hyundai’s since we picked up my car and commented on the Palisade. They’re really nice!

@tjc78/others - I was a primarily cash business until I started working and got into the miles and points game. Our CC balances look high but it is literally every expense except the mortgage and cars. Pay it in full monthly. And for playing that game, we’re going to Iceland and London for free for our 10th anniversary later this year!

breld

Michaell said:

@breld:

(1) Schomp
(2) and (3) are McDonald and Arapahoe, but I can't tell which is which

Unless I'm wrong ....

I didn't realize the Palisade had been given a mild refresh for 2023.

Correct on 1 and 2. #3 is Planet. Kind of a haul from where we live, but they are very easy to work with.

oldfarmer50

kyfdx said:

I don't understand how I didn't impart basic financial wisdom to my son, even though he's very intelligent and a math whiz. One of my many failures, as a parent.

These kids figure they have rich parents so what does it matter. I made my kids work for money I gave them to give them perspective.

It didn’t work.😢🤬

fintail

Funny, I've never had a debit card. I got a secured credit card when I had my first part time teenage job, and started then.

tjc78 said:

So I’ve said this before but my wife loathes using the credit card all month because she hates the huge chunk of money coming out at once. I do have it set to the middle of the month so at least it’s not near the two mortgages. Anyway, reluctantly she has moved away from the debit card because I’m paranoid.

Well… today proved my point. She went to a luncheon/conference at a hotel in Philly. She pulled up to park and handed the associate the CC for the parking fee. The associate stated she made a mistake and asked for the card back. She assured my wife she cancelled the transaction but apparently did not. I checked the statement this morning and see the $32 real charge but also a $667 charge. Hotel doesn’t want to do anything about it and until it posts I can’t can’t dispute it. He said if it doesn’t come off pending in 30 days it will drop off. If this was a debit card we would be without those funds until it was released.

corvette

@fintail - I have a debit card that I occasionally use to get cash out of the ATM at my bank after hours or to make a deposit. I also have the Target debit card linked to my bank account (5% off store purchases, and you can withdraw up to $40 cash per transaction as well). I'm not sure why I went with the Target debit card over their credit card--probably because it's not really a separate account to keep track of since it's linked to my checking.

roadburner

oldfarmer50 said:

kyfdx said:

I don't understand how I didn't impart basic financial wisdom to my son, even though he's very intelligent and a math whiz. One of my many failures, as a parent.

These kids figure they have rich parents so what does it matter. I made my kids work for money I gave them to give them perspective.

It didn’t work.😢🤬

At my son's last visit he confessed to me that so far this year he has netted $11k betting on sports. He's remarkably disciplined; he sets a specific amount to bet each week- and never more than $100 on a single wager. He must be good; he's a contributor to a couple of sports web sites- one for NCAA basketball and another for Premier League.

tjc78

@breld
The Palisade is definitely a nice package, but at 5K over MSRP I feel something like an XC90 or MDX is a step up.

I know you didn’t particularly care for your XC so I understand why you would want to try something different.

ab348

28firefighter said:

@breld - my wife has been noticing Hyundai’s since we picked up my car and commented on the Palisade. They’re really nice!

I know they're the same vehicle, but I find the Kia Telluride much better looking.

roadburner

Despite a couple of weeks of preparation my sex abuse case crashed and burned after four days of trial. I had conclusive DNA evidence and a young victim who was pretty compelling. The problem was the victim’s mother; the first time she met with the detective who was investigating the case she asked about hiring an attorney. The detective told her that she wasn’t a suspect. Her reply? “I heard on TV that if you have an attorney you get more money.” And of course she had found an attorney who filed a civil suit against the defendant- and the jury got to hear all of that.
The case hinged on whether the DNA evidence was left by the defendant or whether it was planted- and the defense attorney argued that the lawsuit was the motive for the mom and the victim to set the defendant up.
Even so, most of the courtroom watchers thought that I’d get a guilty verdict, but I did not. I don’t take losses personally, but it’s definitely frustrating to put a lot of time and effort into a case and wind up with nothing to show for it.

oldfarmer50

fintail said:

Funny, I've never had a debit card. I got a secured credit card when I had my first part time teenage job, and started then.

tjc78 said:

So I’ve said this before but my wife loathes using the credit card all month because she hates the huge chunk of money coming out at once. I do have it set to the middle of the month so at least it’s not near the two mortgages. Anyway, reluctantly she has moved away from the debit card because I’m paranoid.

Well… today proved my point. She went to a luncheon/conference at a hotel in Philly. She pulled up to park and handed the associate the CC for the parking fee. The associate stated she made a mistake and asked for the card back. She assured my wife she cancelled the transaction but apparently did not. I checked the statement this morning and see the $32 real charge but also a $667 charge. Hotel doesn’t want to do anything about it and until it posts I can’t can’t dispute it. He said if it doesn’t come off pending in 30 days it will drop off. If this was a debit card we would be without those funds until it was released.

I’ve never used a debit card either. I never saw the point.

oldfarmer50

roadburner said:

Despite a couple of weeks of preparation my sex abuse case crashed and burned after four days of trial. I had conclusive DNA evidence and a young victim who was pretty compelling. The problem was the victim’s mother; the first time she met with the detective who was investigating the case she asked about hiring an attorney. The detective told her that she wasn’t a suspect. Her reply? “I heard on TV that if you have an attorney you get more money.” And of course she had found an attorney who filed a civil suit against the defendant- and the jury got to hear all of that.

The case hinged on whether the DNA evidence was left by the defendant or whether it was planted- and the defense attorney argued that the lawsuit was the motive for the mom and the victim to set the defendant up.

Even so, most of the courtroom watchers thought that I’d get a guilty verdict, but I did not. I don’t take losses personally, but it’s definitely frustrating to put a lot of time and effort into a case and wind up with nothing to show for it.

That sounds like mom of the year making money off her daughter like that.

tifighter

@28firefighter said:
Well?

We’re chatting.

roadburner

@oldfarmer50 said:
That sounds like mom of the year making money off her daughter like that.

I have yet to verify it, but after the verdict was returned one of the jurors was supposedly heard to say that they wished that they could have sentenced the mom to jail.

laurasdada

oldfarmer50 said:

roadburner said:

Despite a couple of weeks of preparation my sex abuse case crashed and burned after four days of trial. I had conclusive DNA evidence and a young victim who was pretty compelling. The problem was the victim’s mother; the first time she met with the detective who was investigating the case she asked about hiring an attorney. The detective told her that she wasn’t a suspect. Her reply? “I heard on TV that if you have an attorney you get more money.” And of course she had found an attorney who filed a civil suit against the defendant- and the jury got to hear all of that.

The case hinged on whether the DNA evidence was left by the defendant or whether it was planted- and the defense attorney argued that the lawsuit was the motive for the mom and the victim to set the defendant up.

Even so, most of the courtroom watchers thought that I’d get a guilty verdict, but I did not. I don’t take losses personally, but it’s definitely frustrating to put a lot of time and effort into a case and wind up with nothing to show for it.

That sounds like mom of the year making money off her daughter like that.

Has worked brilliantly for the Kardashian mom. That, and marrying rich, successful men.

tjc78

@roadburner
That really sucks. I’m sure you were pretty ticked off.

stickguy

without an ATM (debit) card how do you get cash? walk into a bank and try to cash a check? that sounds horrible!

also comes in very handy for doing other transactions like depositing a check in the ATM. And banks now when you go in to do anything (get a bank check, or make a withdrawal) require you to put your ATM card in and enter the pin.

roadburner

tjc78 said:

@roadburner

That really sucks. I’m sure you were pretty ticked off.

Thanks. I honestly believe I put on the best case I could, but the mom's testimony created more than enough reasonable doubt to generate an acquittal. After my closing argument several attorneys complemented me on it, but them's the breaks.

28firefighter

@roadburner said:
Thanks. I honestly believe I put on the best case I could, but the mom's testimony created more than enough reasonable doubt to generate an acquittal. After my closing argument several attorneys told me they were sure that I'd get a guilty verdict, but them's the breaks...

That’s the system and exactly why we have the adversarial process. On to the next one though, right?

imidazol97

I don't consider my ATM only card to be a debit card. When my bank tried to turn the ATM cards into debit cards along with the ATM function, I had them turn off the debit ability, so it can't be used at businesses in place of a credit card.

"Often, we tend to mistake an ATM card and Debit Card to be the same. This is mainly because ATM and Debit Cards are quite similar in terms of their functions and use. However, what we must know is that they are two different cards. An ATM card is a PIN-based card, used to transact in ATMs only. While a Debit Card, on the other hand, is a much more multi-functional card. They are accepted for transacting at a lot of places like stores, restaurants, online in addition to ATM."
https://www.hdfcbank.com/personal/resources/learning-centre/pay/what-is-the-difference-between-an-atm-card-and-debit-card

roadburner

28firefighter said:

@roadburner said:

Thanks. I honestly believe I put on the best case I could, but the mom's testimony created more than enough reasonable doubt to generate an acquittal. After my closing argument several attorneys told me they were sure that I'd get a guilty verdict, but them's the breaks...

That’s the system and exactly why we have the adversarial process. On to the next one though, right?

Exactly; I don't blame the system at all- I blame the victims mother- that's what screwed the pooch.

ab348

imidazol97 said:

"Often, we tend to mistake an ATM card and Debit Card to be the same. This is mainly because ATM and Debit Cards are quite similar in terms of their functions and use. However, what we must know is that they are two different cards. An ATM card is a PIN-based card, used to transact in ATMs only. While a Debit Card, on the other hand, is a much more multi-functional card. They are accepted for transacting at a lot of places like stores, restaurants, online in addition to ATM."
https://www.hdfcbank.com/personal/resources/learning-centre/pay/what-is-the-difference-between-an-atm-card-and-debit-card

I may well be out of the loop but we have had debit cards here in Canada for decades. When they were first introduced no distinction was made between using them to transact with an ATM machine for cash withdrawals and other account transactions or using them in stores to pay directly from your bank account. AFAIK that has not changed here and we do not have any distinction between ATM cards and debit cards.

corvette

Picked up the Q5 this afternoon. I have only ever previously driven it for a few miles at a time, so these are my first impressions driving it on a longer trip. It's amazingly quiet to the point that you can sometimes hear the tires resonating with grooves on the road. The BLIS is very nice and will warn you of quickly approaching vehicles as well as vehicles actually in your blind spot. I had forgotten that there is no lane departure warning. I had also forgotten that the DSG does not have any idle creep and you have to tap the gas before it will take off in drive or reverse. The DSG also sometimes seems to be overly aggressive with selecting a higher gear, and then there is a delay as it kicks down, but this paid off in a MPG reading in the high 20s on the trip up here. The B&O sound system, combined with the quiet cabin, is really notable as being outstanding, and I normally don't pay much attention to audio quality in cars unless it is really bad. It should be an enjoyable companion for the next few months.

corvette

Michaell

corvette said:

Love that green color.

Enjoy your time with it.

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

without an ATM (debit) card how do you get cash? walk into a bank and try to cash a check? that sounds horrible!

also comes in very handy for doing other transactions like depositing a check in the ATM. And banks now when you go in to do anything (get a bank check, or make a withdrawal) require you to put your ATM card in and enter the pin.

None of my banks require that. As for cash, I keep plenty in my sock drawer.

corvette

@roadburner - sorry about the loss. My favorite "third party screwing up a case" was a civil case where we represented an insurance carrier. The carrier had hired a very large, respected engineering firm to prepare a report stating that the cause of an insured's barn collapse was structural (not covered by insurance) and not the wind which occurred on the day of the collapse (which would be covered). The engineer spent most of the report making fun of the plaintiff's expert for having the cardinal directions wrong in his report and going on to explain that, because the direction of wind hitting the barn was vastly different than what the plaintiff's engineer incorrectly believed, his conclusions were invalid and there was no way the wind could have caused the barn to collapse.

The day before trial, I got a phone call from the engineer, sheepishly explaining that he was reviewing his own report and that he now realized that he was the one who had the cardinal directions wrong. He stammered something about the barn being difficult to get to and how that thew him off. I informed my law partner, and he got the case settled.

oldfarmer50

I’m watching the Mecum Monterey auction and they sold a pre-production Ferrari prototype for $1.9 million. The kicker was, that since it was a test bed car it couldn’t be driven on the street.

Why would you want to pay that much and only be able to use it on the track? Maybe my world is too limited but I don’t get the attraction.

https://www.mecum.com/lots/CA0822-520671/2014-ferrari-laferrari-prototype-ps1/

oldfarmer50

corvette said:

That’s a beautiful color green. You don’t see that much any more and I could never figure out why.

tifighter

I think the Roadster will be going onto the market.

28firefighter

@tifighter said:
I think the Roadster will be going onto the market.

Now we’re talking.

Michaell

oldfarmer50 said:

corvette said:

That’s a beautiful color green. You don’t see that much any more and I could never figure out why.

Like everything, colors come in and out of fashion. Remember when it was real popular on Hondas in the 90s?

Michaell

tifighter said:

I think the Roadster will be going onto the market.

Wish I was in the market for something like this.

corvette

Michaell said:

Like everything, colors come in and out of fashion. Remember when it was real popular on Hondas in the 90s?

I think Audi only offered it a couple of years. I know they offered it on other models, because I've seen them in that color.

stickguy

I love that green. just don't see nice greens any more.

jmonroe1

roadburner said:

Despite a couple of weeks of preparation my sex abuse case crashed and burned after four days of trial. I had conclusive DNA evidence and a young victim who was pretty compelling. The problem was the victim’s mother; the first time she met with the detective who was investigating the case she asked about hiring an attorney. The detective told her that she wasn’t a suspect. Her reply? “I heard on TV that if you have an attorney you get more money.” And of course she had found an attorney who filed a civil suit against the defendant- and the jury got to hear all of that.

The case hinged on whether the DNA evidence was left by the defendant or whether it was planted- and the defense attorney argued that the lawsuit was the motive for the mom and the victim to set the defendant up.

Even so, most of the courtroom watchers thought that I’d get a guilty verdict, but I did not. I don’t take losses personally, but it’s definitely frustrating to put a lot of time and effort into a case and wind up with nothing to show for it.

————————————————-
There should be a law that allows the prosecution to sue a jury that can be easily swayed resulting in delivering the wrong decision.

jmonroe

Michaell

jmonroe1 said:

roadburner said:

Despite a couple of weeks of preparation my sex abuse case crashed and burned after four days of trial. I had conclusive DNA evidence and a young victim who was pretty compelling. The problem was the victim’s mother; the first time she met with the detective who was investigating the case she asked about hiring an attorney. The detective told her that she wasn’t a suspect. Her reply? “I heard on TV that if you have an attorney you get more money.” And of course she had found an attorney who filed a civil suit against the defendant- and the jury got to hear all of that.

The case hinged on whether the DNA evidence was left by the defendant or whether it was planted- and the defense attorney argued that the lawsuit was the motive for the mom and the victim to set the defendant up.

Even so, most of the courtroom watchers thought that I’d get a guilty verdict, but I did not. I don’t take losses personally, but it’s definitely frustrating to put a lot of time and effort into a case and wind up with nothing to show for it.

————————————————-
There should be a law that allows the prosecution to sue a jury that can be easily swayed resulting in delivering the wrong decision.

jmonroe

More trials clogging up our justice system?

roadburner

corvette said:

@roadburner - sorry about the loss. My favorite "third party screwing up a case" was a civil case where we represented an insurance carrier. The carrier had hired a very large, respected engineering firm to prepare a report stating that the cause of an insured's barn collapse was structural (not covered by insurance) and not the wind which occurred on the day of the collapse (which would be covered). The engineer spent most of the report making fun of the plaintiff's expert for having the cardinal directions wrong in his report and going on to explain that, because the direction of wind hitting the barn was vastly different than what the plaintiff's engineer incorrectly believed, his conclusions were invalid and there was no way the wind could have caused the barn to collapse.

The day before trial, I got a phone call from the engineer, sheepishly explaining that he was reviewing his own report and that he now realized that he was the one who had the cardinal directions wrong. He stammered something about the barn being difficult to get to and how that thew him off. I informed my law partner, and he got the case settled.

I love it when an "expert" is anything but. I take some comfort in the fact that-based on the quality of the defendant's attorney, DNA expert and jury consultant-his final bill had to be north of $50k.

jmonroe1

Michaell said:

jmonroe1 said:

roadburner said:

Despite a couple of weeks of preparation my sex abuse case crashed and burned after four days of trial. I had conclusive DNA evidence and a young victim who was pretty compelling. The problem was the victim’s mother; the first time she met with the detective who was investigating the case she asked about hiring an attorney. The detective told her that she wasn’t a suspect. Her reply? “I heard on TV that if you have an attorney you get more money.” And of course she had found an attorney who filed a civil suit against the defendant- and the jury got to hear all of that.

The case hinged on whether the DNA evidence was left by the defendant or whether it was planted- and the defense attorney argued that the lawsuit was the motive for the mom and the victim to set the defendant up.

Even so, most of the courtroom watchers thought that I’d get a guilty verdict, but I did not. I don’t take losses personally, but it’s definitely frustrating to put a lot of time and effort into a case and wind up with nothing to show for it.

————————————————-
There should be a law that allows the prosecution to sue a jury that can be easily swayed resulting in delivering the wrong decision.

jmonroe

More trials clogging up our justice system?

————————————————
Should be more like sports in that instant replay and challenges can get it right.

jmonroe

28firefighter

@Michaell said:
More trials clogging up our justice system?

A trial about trials. How meta.