Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

tjc78

@stickguy said:
forecast for most of the 10 day is highs/low about 79/59. too many rain chances though. No humidity right now which is nice. feels more like mid-september out.

It’s stunning right now at the shore. Breezy and low humidity. Sitting out on our patio now.

roadburner

@jmonroe1 said:

@roadburner said:
The car was running rough and several warning messages popped up- then it died and would not restart. The number of warning lights and the no-start led everyone to believe that the problem was a weak/dead battery. Apparently that is not the case.

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Yikes, I take it that the car is out of warranty. Definitely doesn’t sound like it’s going to be a cheap repair.

jmonroe

Most likely.

nyccarguy

2007 Toyota Matrix

100,714 original miles. Car is from California, zero rust. I’m the second owner— purchased it from Toyota of Culver City, CA and brought it here when I moved to CT last year.

Only selling because I recently bought a new car, and don’t need this one anymore. Clean CT title in hand. Emissions good thru July 2024.

It is in perfect mechanical condition. Drives perfect/shifts smoothly, no lights of any kind. A/C and heat work great. Zero leaks. Has newer tires, battery, new spark plugs, newer floor mats. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto radio w/microphone installed.

Has some cosmetic imperfections— small areas on the driver side only where the paint is sun faded. Small dent on the front passenger door. Scuff mark on the front bumper. Otherwise it looks perfect.

Serious buyers only. Will not respond to “is this available?” If the ad is up, the car is available. Price is FIRM. Thank you

Looks promising - he’s priced it on the optimistic side. It’s 2 towns up from me.

nyccarguy

nyccarguy

Just a few more shots for your viewing pleasure:

sda

The dented door looks like it could be repaired decently by paintless dent removal. It still might be scratched but no dent. Spot clear coat repair and good to go.

stickguy

price aside, that is exactly the profile you want (assuming it is all legit, a big assumption these days!). Pay a little extra to not have rotted subframes and other nasties underneath.

corvette

*slaps roof* how much?

Lol... Sounds like a go if it checks out.

oldfarmer50

nyccarguy said:

2007 Toyota Matrix

100,714 original miles. Car is from California, zero rust. I’m the second owner— purchased it from Toyota of Culver City, CA and brought it here when I moved to CT last year.

Only selling because I recently bought a new car, and don’t need this one anymore. Clean CT title in hand. Emissions good thru July 2024.

It is in perfect mechanical condition. Drives perfect/shifts smoothly, no lights of any kind. A/C and heat work great. Zero leaks. Has newer tires, battery, new spark plugs, newer floor mats. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto radio w/microphone installed.

Has some cosmetic imperfections— small areas on the driver side only where the paint is sun faded. Small dent on the front passenger door. Scuff mark on the front bumper. Otherwise it looks perfect.

Serious buyers only. Will not respond to “is this available?” If the ad is up, the car is available. Price is FIRM. Thank you

Looks promising - he’s priced it on the optimistic side. It’s 2 towns up from me.

Did I miss the price on that one? Very few comps on Autotrader but a similar one with more miles was asking $7k.

nyccarguy

@oldfarmer50 said:
Did I miss the price on that one? Very few comps on Autotrader but a similar one with more miles was asking $7k.

He’s asking $6,500

jmonroe1

@nyccarguy, being this car is 2 towns away, that doesn’t sound like too much of an investment to make for a used car that appears to be in pretty good shape.

You don’t want to kick yourself if you wait too long and it’s gone.

jmonroe

stickguy

well, if you get a NE car for $4,000, put on tires and brakes, you will be over $5,000 before even factoring in one good smack over the railroad tracks and both subframes will snap in half from rust.

kyfdx

Super low miles for that year. Not bad

nyccarguy

I messaged the seller:

Hi Francisco. I’m interested in coming to take a look at your 2007 Matrix. I live in Stamford. You’ve taken really good care of the car and it shows. Impressive too that you drove it out here from California. Do you have records of any recent maintenance work? Would you be willing to bring it to a mechanic in Norwalk for a pre purchase inspection (at my expense obviously?). Thanks. I look forward to hearing back from you. Have a great day!

Bradd

He replied:

Hi Bradd, thanks for reaching out. I don’t have any records from the recent past because it just hasn’t needed anything done to it. Since I’ve had it I have always done the oil changes myself every 5000 miles with full synthetic oil. Yeah no problem, as long as it’s in Norwalk I just can’t drive it far because it’s not registered/insured anymore.

Take care

Francisco

nyccarguy

@stickguy said:
well, if you get a NE car for $4,000, put on tires and brakes, you will be over $5,000 before even factoring in one good smack over the railroad tracks and both subframes will snap in half from rust.

I’ve been checking prices on Autotrader, CarGurus, & Marketplace - the $6,500 doesn’t seem that bad

corvette

If they only "recently" bought a new car, why is it already no longer licensed or insured?

stickguy

switched the plates over seems like a good guess.

jmonroe1

@nyccarguy said:
I messaged the seller:

Hi Francisco. I’m interested in coming to take a look at your 2007 Matrix. I live in Stamford. You’ve taken really good care of the car and it shows. Impressive too that you drove it out here from California. Do you have records of any recent maintenance work? Would you be willing to bring it to a mechanic in Norwalk for a pre purchase inspection (at my expense obviously?). Thanks. I look forward to hearing back from you. Have a great day!

Bradd

He replied:

Hi Bradd, thanks for reaching out. I don’t have any records from the recent past because it just hasn’t needed anything done to it. Since I’ve had it I have always done the oil changes myself every 5000 miles with full synthetic oil. Yeah no problem, as long as it’s in Norwalk I just can’t drive it far because it’s not registered/insured anymore.

Take care

Francisco

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Just to be on the safe side, since the guy did his own oil changes, I’d ask to see his oil change log sheet. DIYers have been known to screw up those things. Good luck.

jmonroe

stickguy

look at the oil cap and shine a light into the valve cover, and swipe for gunk.

28firefighter

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

kyfdx

28firefighter said:

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

This right here... Plus, the car only has 100K miles in 16 years. What's the chances of no service history for half of that time? Is this a timing belt car?

nyccarguy

kyfdx said:

28firefighter said:

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

This right here... Plus, the car only has 100K miles in 16 years. What's the chances of no service history for half of that time? Is this a timing belt car?

Timing Chain

nyccarguy

28firefighter said:

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

10/4 Copy Copy on the checking for the title in his name. Usually every single car on FB marketplace is a curbstoner. I click on the seller details and see they have other cars listed/sold. I've been looking mostly on Autotrader & Car Gurus. He could be telling a story (trust, but verify), but the ad says he bought another car. I assume he transferred the plates and canceled the insurance to save a few bucks (although that is a scary proposition).

explorerx4

Might be worth investing $20 in a Carfax.
Over16 years, there should be some data.

28firefighter

I’ve become increasingly cynical the older I get.

stickguy

Wait until you actually get old! I don’t believe anybody about anything at this point.

nyccarguy

28firefighter said:

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

He says the title is in his name.

I found a repair shop close to him that will perform the PPI. He made an appointment to drop it off and have it looked at on Friday. If it passes the PPI, then I'll go take a look at it on Saturday. His asking price seems fair, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try and haggle:)-

stickguy

Surprised it’s still around. And more surprised he’s taking it to the shop. Nobody does that these days I though.

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

28firefighter said:

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

He says the title is in his name.

I found a repair shop close to him that will perform the PPI. He made an appointment to drop it off and have it looked at on Friday. If it passes the PPI, then I'll go take a look at it on Saturday. His asking price seems fair, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try and haggle:)-

Sounds pretty promising. I'm shocked at how few people keep good records on their cars, whether they do work themselves or not.

oldfarmer50

nyccarguy said:

@oldfarmer50 said:

Did I miss the price on that one? Very few comps on Autotrader but a similar one with more miles was asking $7k.

He’s asking $6,500

Sounds fair considering the market is still high. As someone said, if it’s a good car act fast. I once found what looked like a good car for my son as soon as it posted on Craigslist. I immediately called and went to see it. It was in good condition so I bought it on the spot. By the time I got it registered and plated the seller had had numerous calls with higher than asking price offers. If I had waited even a few hours I would have lost it.

oldfarmer50

corvette said:

If they only "recently" bought a new car, why is it already no longer licensed or insured?

Maybe because he transferred the plates and insurance to his new car? I always use the same plates so I don’t have to pay for new ones or go to the DMV to turn the old ones in. Once I have the new car, the old one is unlicensed and uninsured.

oldfarmer50

nyccarguy said:

28firefighter said:

Make sure this guy has the title in his name and isn’t curbstoning. No plates, no records? Ehhhh

He says the title is in his name.

I found a repair shop close to him that will perform the PPI. He made an appointment to drop it off and have it looked at on Friday. If it passes the PPI, then I'll go take a look at it on Saturday. His asking price seems fair, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try and haggle:)-

He sounds legit. Most curbstoners and scammers won’t take it for a PPI. That this seller will is pretty amazing.

Michaell

For the second time in 8.5 years, I've put a new windshield into the Subaru.

We had a massive hailstorm about 6 weeks ago, and I had inadvertantly left the Outback outside after mowing the lawn. Fortunately, there was no body damage, but a small crack on the drivers side right near the frame. I wasn't too worried about it, as it was small and not in the line of vision. Sadly the crack started to get larger, to the point where I had to file a claim.

Called State Farm yesterday, who connected me with their 3rd party glass administrator, who suggested a shop about 5-6 miles from me. The shop reached out yesterday afternoon and had an opening at the shop for this morning (can't do mobile because of the Eyesight system, which requires a calibration).

Took it in this morning and we're good to go. New windshield, calibration, and oh, by the way, a new EZ-Pass for the toll roads affixed as well.

Love the $0 deductible glass coverage we have. The invoice shows a total price of close to $800 for the parts and labor.

28firefighter

@nyccarguy said:
He says the title is in his name.

I found a repair shop close to him that will perform the PPI. He made an appointment to drop it off and have it looked at on Friday. If it passes the PPI, then I'll go take a look at it on Saturday. His asking price seems fair, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try and haggle:)-

That’s promising.

nyccarguy

28firefighter said:

@nyccarguy said:

He says the title is in his name.

I found a repair shop close to him that will perform the PPI. He made an appointment to drop it off and have it looked at on Friday. If it passes the PPI, then I'll go take a look at it on Saturday. His asking price seems fair, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try and haggle:)-

That’s promising.

I'm cautiously optimistic.

tjc78

@Michaell said:
For the second time in 8.5 years, I've put a new windshield into the Subaru.

We had a massive hailstorm about 6 weeks ago, and I had inadvertantly left the Outback outside after mowing the lawn. Fortunately, there was no body damage, but a small crack on the drivers side right near the frame. I wasn't too worried about it, as it was small and not in the line of vision. Sadly the crack started to get larger, to the point where I had to file a claim.

Called State Farm yesterday, who connected me with their 3rd party glass administrator, who suggested a shop about 5-6 miles from me. The shop reached out yesterday afternoon and had an opening at the shop for this morning (can't do mobile because of the Eyesight system, which requires a calibration).

Took it in this morning and we're good to go. New windshield, calibration, and oh, by the way, a new EZ-Pass for the toll roads affixed as well.

Love the $0 deductible glass coverage we have. The invoice shows a total price of close to $800 for the parts and labor.

Progressive was pretty easy to deal with for my windshield replacement on the S60. They had Safelight do it and I was actually surprised they did it in my garage along with the recalibration of all the rain sensors and safety features.

Michaell

tjc78 said:

@Michaell said:

For the second time in 8.5 years, I've put a new windshield into the Subaru.

We had a massive hailstorm about 6 weeks ago, and I had inadvertantly left the Outback outside after mowing the lawn. Fortunately, there was no body damage, but a small crack on the drivers side right near the frame. I wasn't too worried about it, as it was small and not in the line of vision. Sadly the crack started to get larger, to the point where I had to file a claim.

Called State Farm yesterday, who connected me with their 3rd party glass administrator, who suggested a shop about 5-6 miles from me. The shop reached out yesterday afternoon and had an opening at the shop for this morning (can't do mobile because of the Eyesight system, which requires a calibration).

Took it in this morning and we're good to go. New windshield, calibration, and oh, by the way, a new EZ-Pass for the toll roads affixed as well.

Love the $0 deductible glass coverage we have. The invoice shows a total price of close to $800 for the parts and labor.

Progressive was pretty easy to deal with for my windshield replacement on the S60. They had Safelight do it and I was actually surprised they did it in my garage along with the recalibration of all the rain sensors and safety features.

The last time I replaced it, I went through Safelite as well. The recommended shop was closer and since there was no cost to me, it didn't much matter.

Almost 4 years since the first replacement (8/29/2019).

explorerx4

Safelite did windshield replacement and calibration in my driveway.

jmonroe1

@Michaell said:
The last time I replaced it, I went through Safelite as well. The recommended shop was closer and since there was no cost to me, it didn't much matter.

Almost 4 years since the first replacement (8/29/2019).

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Amazing what some guys will do to make sure their Eyesight System is in calibration. You should have made an appointment for 4 years from now to get another windshield.

jmonroe

Michaell

jmonroe1 said:

@Michaell said:

The last time I replaced it, I went through Safelite as well. The recommended shop was closer and since there was no cost to me, it didn't much matter.

Almost 4 years since the first replacement (8/29/2019).

————————————————

Amazing what some guys will do to make sure their Eyesight System is in calibration. You should have made an appointment for 4 years from now to get another windshield.

jmonroe

I shouldn't have had to replace this one. Normally, the car stays in the garage when I'm home. I'll pull it out to get to the mower, and for some reason I forgot to pull the car back into the garage when I was done.

I'm a member of an Outback group on FB - lots of reports of cracked windshields, for no apparent reason. I feel lucky that ours has been pretty reliable.

houdini1

oldfarmer50 said:

Has anyone noticed the bump in gas prices? My local Gulf station which was at $3.39 a few weeks ago for RUG is now at $3.79. Other stations are creeping up close to $4.

I know the Saudis have cut back production but this seems awful sudden.

Speaking of gas. Do you notice any difference between brands in how your car performs? The aforementioned Gulf brand seems to make my Kia run sluggish whereas Sunoco premium gives the Mustang a little more kick. Could there really be a difference or am I just feeling the actual difference between the too cars?

Biden has been replacing our strategic oil reserve.

stickguy

finally got curious about used prices, so ran my car through the usual C suspects. Like last time, Carmax said bring it in. So I checked the Acura. Down a lot. when I was selling my 1st truck (March) I got a $36k quote. Today, 5 months later (only about 2k miles more) it was $30,500. Hit up Carvana, and they were at $29,500. Seems pretty reasonable though for a 2020, just not compared to what it was 6-12 months ago!

The interesting one was the Maverick. Carvana quoted it at about $33,700. Nothing like the way over sticker days of the recent past (that is actually below MSRP). If there are still people expecting to flip them might be in for a shock. Though I should check because I doubt resale prices came down nearly as much!

actually curious now what Carmax would offer. Just not enough to go there and wait through the process!

good thing I was planning to keep the truck anyway, but the Acura tanking might put a damper on my plan to swap it for a fun car!

Michaell

stickguy said:

finally got curious about used prices, so ran my car through the usual C suspects. Like last time, Carmax said bring it in. So I checked the Acura. Down a lot. when I was selling my 1st truck (March) I got a $36k quote. Today, 5 months later (only about 2k miles more) it was $30,500. Hit up Carvana, and they were at $29,500. Seems pretty reasonable though for a 2020, just not compared to what it was 6-12 months ago!

The interesting one was the Maverick. Carvana quoted it at about $33,700. Nothing like the way over sticker days of the recent past (that is actually below MSRP). If there are still people expecting to flip them might be in for a shock. Though I should check because I doubt resale prices came down nearly as much!

actually curious now what Carmax would offer. Just not enough to go there and wait through the process!

good thing I was planning to keep the truck anyway, but the Acura tanking might put a damper on my plan to swap it for a fun car!

Uh, you can get a Carmax quote from right here at Edmunds....

stickguy

they wouldn't give me one. not enough data so need to bring it in.

I did it through Edmunds to see what happened. Gave me the same quote on the Acura. On the Ford, told me I had to bring it in still, but at least gave me an estimated range with a spread of $8,700!

Michaell

stickguy said:

they wouldn't give me one. not enough data so need to bring it in.

I did it through Edmunds to see what happened. Gave me the same quote on the Acura. On the Ford, told me I had to bring it in still, but at least gave me an estimated range with a spread of $8,700!

Given that it's a 2023 model, I can see why Carmax doesn't have enough data to give you a quote.

stickguy

Carvana has 6 2023 lariat hybrids right now. Listed between $41k-$45k

They are definitely looking for home runs.

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

finally got curious about used prices, so ran my car through the usual C suspects. Like last time, Carmax said bring it in. So I checked the Acura. Down a lot. when I was selling my 1st truck (March) I got a $36k quote. Today, 5 months later (only about 2k miles more) it was $30,500. Hit up Carvana, and they were at $29,500. Seems pretty reasonable though for a 2020, just not compared to what it was 6-12 months ago!

The interesting one was the Maverick. Carvana quoted it at about $33,700. Nothing like the way over sticker days of the recent past (that is actually below MSRP). If there are still people expecting to flip them might be in for a shock. Though I should check because I doubt resale prices came down nearly as much!

actually curious now what Carmax would offer. Just not enough to go there and wait through the process!

good thing I was planning to keep the truck anyway, but the Acura tanking might put a damper on my plan to swap it for a fun car!

Carvana is particularly bizarre in their offers. They send me regular offer updates from when I had run the Mustang through their system in 2021. At one point recently they had me at $27k but suggested I run it through the appraisal again. When I did they started a second tier of offers that didn’t match the first one. At one point the two appraisals were $3k apart.

nyccarguy

I know @abacomike has had a similar experience, but my best friend's Dad has been a Chronic MB S-Class owner over the years (the 1st was an '89 420 SEL) along with 2 or 3 GL & GLS, and (1) Audi A8L, and I think he still has an E-Class. He's driven the BMW 7 Series multiple times over the years every time and never thought it was "as good" as the S Class. He hasn't been happy with his very highly optioned (mid-high $80K range) GLS450 (MSRP almost as high as a GLS580 that he got a healthy discount recently. The S-Class has gotten too pricey for him. It also seems that he runs into similar issues every few years. Insanely high depreciation as well as maintenance, time at the dealer for covered warranty repairs, as well as the cost of out of warranty repairs. He bought a Genesis G90 yesterday.

roadburner

I followed this dipstick home yesterday; he’s not turning left- the frame is bent and the body is leaning about 15 degrees left to the direction of travel.

tjc78

I saw an Accord like that driving down 95 a few weeks back. I couldn’t get a good picture of it, but it was worse than that