For some reason I always liked the Zephyr version better than the Fairmont. I think it's because the Zephyr always had the quad headlight setup that made it look more upscale, while a lot of the Fairmonts just had the single headlights and looked kinda cheap in comparison.
They weren't terribly heavy cars, so even though the 200 only put out like 88-90 hp, I don't think they were as bad as it sounds. Ford would often at least give you a quicker axle ratio to make use of what little horsepower was there, whereas GM almost seemed to hold some of their engines back by putting in overly tall ratios. They had rack-and-pinion steering, too, which I guess was pretty progressive for that time in a domestic.
definitely, the steering was surprisingly light, even when sitting still. Certainly a HUGE difference between that and my CJ7 with the manual steering and 32"x12.5" tires. THAT was a workout beyond belief.
And, yes, I did feel it was a fairly quick car for what it was. But, not tach and I didn't track gas mileage in those days, so I'm not even sure what it was spinning at on the highway. I'm sure it wasn't good.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
I still have the Caravan and Sebring. I also still have the Mazda B2200 and a B2000 parts truck (a retired competition "tuff truck"). And last and surely least the Datsun 620 with 238,000 miles and counting. All but the parts truck have been in the family since new.
qbrozen
My Fairmont also had the 200 I-6 but with a 3-speed manual. Also, it was a wagon. I usually like wagons, but this car was bent on killing me. No kidding. Replaced the ingnition module and when I reconnected the battery, the car started. It was in gear and I was in front of it.
Loved that car. 350 4bbl, 4spd auto, bucket seats, rubber floor, search light, shotgun rack. I race an 89 Firebird GTA, and he beat me by .01. But just try to find parts that are exclusive to the 9c1 (like an engine management computer). I had major parts houses tell me the car didn't exist in their books.
After wrestling with what to buy...sports car?, or practical car?, cheap car? not so cheap car?, I at least did a tentative deal today, contingent on me sleeping on it and Mrs. Racer63 not making me get said shut-eye in the garden shed tonight.
How 'bout a leftover '05 Acura TSX 6 speed? No nav, since I think that feature is silly, especially for the $2k it costs. The one part I am a little wafflely on is the color: arrest-me Milano Red, which on the TSX is over the tan with wood trim interior. I really wanted silver over black, but you can't be choosy on color almost halfway through the next model year. I was able to get my target price of $25,000 + TTL, from the 2nd closest dealer to home. The local one had no '05 anything left.
If this deal happens, the car will be in my driveway tomorrow night. :confuse:
$2800 off MSRP and destination. By rough numbers, this is deep into holdback, though there are rumors of $900 in trunk money going towards moving old stock. I honestly wasn't expecting to find any around. My preferred color can be found, however I'm going to have to travel a little out of state to NY or PA to get it, and that involves also dealing with NJMVC directly, and not getting the benefit of a new car 4 year initial inspection period that MVC delegates to dealers.
I'm warming up on the idea of red. I had a "dark black" Jetta GLX with leather, and that interior was great for melting heinies on a hot sunny day. While silver outside would make this a little cooler, there still would be fried buns in July on those dark hydes.
The only absolutely wouldn't buy it this time color was white. Especially with gray guts. It has been the color combo of the last 4 new purchases (95 Ranger, 99 Explorer, 00 Celica, 04 GMC 2500HD). The Ranger looked good in that color, but was bought for it's options-4.0, stick, 2wd, limited slip, sport suspension. The Exploder was actually dealer ordered to replace the Ranger, and none of the other color combos looked right. The Celica was intended to be an autocross car from day one, and refrigerator magnet material comes in white, so it was easy to place the sponsor and contingency decals on that, and it all blends right in. You gotta look good to go fast you know. The Monster Truck just happened to be a decent options content at a great price. It just was white over gray. :mad: Hence, I'm ready for something different. At least it won't clash with the red shutters on the house when parked in the driveway. :P
This ultimately will come down to a late night discussion with the Mrs. once she gets home from work tonight, probably more to do with money than color.
Then I guess a big chunk o change off would be great. But there is a blue Civic EX that I test drove on my local dealers lot. It doesn't seem to be going anywhere fast. I thought that was the color that I wanted until I saw the galaxy grey or the black interior that comes with the silver. Now I don't think that I would buy that blue one no matter what kind of deal they offered. And since XM looks to be about $1000 instakked, I might as well go ahead and get that cool screen that comes with the NAV for just a bit more.
The 1978 Ford Fairmont! How come so many of us had one?
I acquired one to fix up and sell from one of my parent's friends when I was in college (late 80's). Agreement was I got half the sale price. Had to bumper push it home, as it sat for years. Once I got it there, I filled it full of stop leak (radiator, trans, etc), and took the carb off and totally cleaned it up. New plugs and a little tuning, and it ran great (well, as great as the 200 inline ever could run). It was an auto, lemon yellow with a yellow interior. I put on some good ole' Walmart seat covers. It would trundle down the highway like it wasn't turning over at all. I remember thinking it felt like driving a very low-to-the-ground F150. I think I got around $250 bucks for it. Kind of wanted to keep the silly thing after driving it around awhile. You should have seen my girlfriend's face when I pulled up to her house in that beast! Of course, I also pulled up in all manner of Fiat's, Volkswagens, Jeeps, and exploding Pontiacs.
I've heard that it costs around $600-$800 to get a dealer-installed Mercedes sat radio. $1k for a sat radio in a Civic, uh.. let's just say I would not be inclined to use that dealer's service department for future work. If they're going to ream you on something as easy to install as a sat radio, I can't imagine what the "hard" stuff costs.
I don't know that shade of red, but red with tan interior can look really sharp (like some volvos). Personally, I HATE black interiors. Not because of the looks, but the way they soak up heat in the summer, even in N.E.......I vote for the red, if you like it.
Well, I brought it home yesterday afternoon. Mrs. Racer thinks it looks really sharp. The color combo has grown on me (Milano Red over Parchment leather). As I think I noted, the price for the car was really good. $25k even + TTL.
Some minor entertainment in getting through credit insurance/mop and glow/extended warranty pitch in the F&I office. The "least expensive" option, purely warrranty, was presented as part of a new monthly payment, that by the math represented a $4000 bump in purchase price. And the more back-end gobbly-[non-permissible content removed] that got added on top of that the higher it went. Obviously no actual cost in upfront unfinanced dollars presented for any of it. :mad: Is the general car buying public that stupid and gullible? :confuse: Especially at what could be considered an upscale brand franchise? I guess they are.....that said, they did beat my credit union interest rate by .2%, which was better than I expected.
OK, rant mode off!
Back to the car....I'm happy. For only about maybe $2500 out the door more than a new Accord EX-L I get the additional warranty, extra bling and snob appeal associated with the name, a tighter and smaller chassis, and not the same car every 4th one going down the road, especially in this color!
Mrs. Racer is already angling to swap daily drivers. I could be cruising around in an '04 GMC 2500HD Crew Cab soon.
ALMOST came home with a new Civic. Got all the way into the F&I office and he just totally Pi##ed me off. Wanted to sell me a supposed Gap/Maintenance/service contract. I can get GAP through my insurance company for the year or so I'll need at for cheap. And what maintenance. Knowing my trading habits, it makes no sense buying long term service plans. But any way, we are there and he keep selling and I keep saying no and then we get into a discussion about even if I cancel the plan early, I've paid more interest on the initial principal cost of a plan that I don't need in the first place. So he tells comes back with some gobbelty goop about "interest is evenly distributed throughout the loan". Initially I though he was just feeding me a line. I mean come on, I used to be a customer service/collections rep for an auto finance bank. I can explain simple interest to an illegal immigrant who barely speaks english. I tried it from several different directions to show if nothing else, that I knew what I was doing but this guy kept pushing the point.
So then I ask him what the interest rate was. He quotes me a 9 1/2% figure. What a crackhead. My credit union has a 2.9% on a 36 month loan right now. I didn't expect them to beat that but I was still like "no friggin' way"!!!. I take a glance over at his screen and see that not only is my interest rate jacked up but he has also somehow added about $2000 to my initial amount financed like he just KNEW he was gonna take me for some extra crap.
Now i just bought my hoopty a week ago. I haven't even finish buying doo-dads off Ebay for it. So the last thing I really need is to buy another car right now. So I just got up and left. I told my salesman that his F&I guy just talked his way out of your sale.
On my way home they called me back. Once to ask me to come back and a second time to say they found the silver NAV coupe that I really wanted. I'm actually gonna call their bluff. If they can produce it for $21,500 OTD with my extras, I'll buy it.
I'm thinking, there's gotta be a way to buy a car w/o going into the "F&I office". You just know what you're gonna be in for. Actually, most of the cars I bought from dealers, I avoided that.......probably because I walked out every time a dealer tried the "F&I office" routine.
Sounds like an awesome car and that red color is a real eye catcher. Congrats. Am anxiously waiting till I can get my 1st Honda...which will eventually be a Civic EX. I am supposed to be inheriting about $28k from grandma in the next month, so one never knows. The wife wants me to put it into my Roth IRA and a small annuity, but I really wanna get that Civic. Probaly be a battle of the wills here...lol!
This might help you racer...My deal was for a 06 Civic EX coupe with 5 speed. I had added fog lights, cargo net, splash guards, steering wheel cover, and the matallic instrument panel cover. They gave me an OTD price of $19,888 and that included a 6% sales tax and a $299 DOC fee. It really was an exceptional deal IMHO. I just hate to have my very meager intelligence insulted like that.
Gee, I had a hissyfit right then and there, and was already halfway out of my chair, when the paper outlining all this got pulled back. The other cute thing was that the header had a number of digits dropped too, so there clearly was something to hide. It was really pathetic. I did only end up paying for the car, tax, licensing and the doc fee. But sheesh!
The other quirky thing was the AHFS Loan App form wanted nearest closest relative and 2 references. Huh? :mad: :confuse:
With 25 years of credit history, I've signed lots of loan apps, including five car loans, four mortgages, four home eq line of credits, and never had to fill in any of that doody at the bottom. I made such a stink that the salesman filled in one line, and used a friend in the business out of state who I called in the middle of the deal who said they were full of it too. He noted he had just gotten somebody approved with a 619 FICO without any of it. But, he did offer me to use him....
I compare all of this to when I bought the truck in '04, where there was absolutely no pressure, no games what so ever. Since this was a GM vehicle, that we were planning on keeping a while and using hard, I did want some kind of extended warranty on it. Price was reasonable and negotiable. I really wanted to buy a car there this time, but CTS-V aside, they didn't really have anything that I wanted.
If it's a great deal.....what about calling the G.M. or S.M. & telling them you'll take it, only if they have all paperwork ready when you show up, & you don't have to deal with this "F&I", uh, jerk? (Not that you need my advice).
I haven't shopped for Hondas much, but the Acura dealership closest to me is so sleazy & difficult that I never bought an Acura......even when an Acura would have been a better choice than what I bought.
$20K OTD sounds pretty darn good given all the good stuff I've read about the new Civic......
*$19,888 and that included a 6% sales tax and a $299 DOC fee*
Interesting article in Barron's 2/20/06 about good buys in Classic Cars, recent auction results, etc. One of the cars they mentioned as "Three Good Bets" was the 1984-89 Porsche 911s, especially Carreras.
I almost wish I hadn't read it--all I need is someone urging me to buy a Porsche--I've never owned one.....
The Milano Red is a great color! It never looks bad unless your car is covered in salt. It truly gleams when washed. I'm not one of these nuts who has their car washed twice a week and detailed every month. I still get many compliments on my '01 Milano Red Prelude Type SH. People often ask if it is an '04 or an '05 (even though '01 was the last year of production).
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
It was a great deal. It's just that I had already been there 2 hours too long. My purpose for being there was to get an air filter for my 96. It was the second time I had been there since they gave me the wrong one the first time. I don't think that car is going anywhere soon though. It was the same one I drove a while back when I was looking for the NAV equipped one. It has 60 more miles on it now.
I feel even more justified in leaving now though. I found out Honda is running a 4.9% special on all 2006 Hondas this weekend. 9% my [non-permissible content removed].
All OTD prices should include language to the effect,"If F&I manager opens his big fat mouth the deal is off."
I know they are useful to some people, but not to me.If you have done your homework you already know what you wand and how much you want to pay for it.
The lovely Mrs. Lemmer bought a new 2006 Honda Pilot EX-L.
It is steel blue (kind of grayish) with dark gray leather. We still have our Odyssey in the garage. I guess I need to clean it up and take it back. The lease info from Honda says it has to be returned "clean" but I don't know if that means fully detailed or just remove the poopy diapers and McDonalds bags.
We like the Pilot. I used to be all for minivans over SUVs, but no more (when it comes to Hondas anyway). The Pilot feels geared to be more responsive, the steering is much better weighted and the handling feels tigher and more nimble. Frankly, minivans have just gotten too darn big for me - and they are still ugly.
I to almost came home with a new Civic once. I ordered the car, spend an hour arguing with the guy about the accessories I didn't want (Me;"I'm not paying $100 for floor mats when I can get them at G.I.Joes for $15". Him;"Yeah, but they wouldn't be covered by the warrenty"). Then they call me the day before I'm supposed to pick it up, and tell me they ordered the wrong car but will make me a deal on the one they got. I told them to call me back when they got the right car, and I never heard from them again.
And then my mother inlaw just went through the exact same thing on an '06 Accord, except she took the deal. (Different dealership).
Of course, you can buy a new Honda from any dealer w/in driving distance. It would almost be worth it to buy one from a further-away dealer if these people are that obnoxious. (And they can't even sell you the right filters!).
I did that when I bought my Saab 9000. A salesman at a major Saab dlrship gave me so much grief that I bought a used one somewhere else (closer to me, in that case). But I took it to the Saab dlrship for service, & the first time I did, I could see the pompous salesman glaring at me thru the window of the sales floor--he looked he was gonna have a heart attack!
I had a similar expierence when I baught my Chevy Silverado. I purposely drove it through the car lots that tried to screw me over and catch the attention of the salesman and salesmanagers.
Yeah, I'd obviously have to do a lot of research before buying a used Porsche. And, I presume, set aside a goodly sum for maintainence if I bought one that old, esp. It's a good fantasy, but I've paid my dues owning 10-15 y.o. German cars (bmw)--it's not fun for people like me who hate dealing with repairs. Maybe I'll go back to plan A: a used bmw e46 convertible......
Don't you dare have it detailed! If you do you are just throwing your money away. If the dealer plans to sell it they will clean it up, change the oil, etc. I'd do a quick vacuum on the inside and wouldn't even bother washing it.
Dealers are just people, and they are influenced by a nice-looking, clean car just like everybody else. It won't "fool" them if the car is a rat, but a good impression counts, like everywhere else.
Well, the guy I have to impress is Honda's inspector.
I pretty much did the full super duper cleaning inside. (Does anyone remember the Dolphins WR who legally changed his name to Mark Super Duper?) I am going to give the outside just a normal Saturday cleaning and be done with it.
I'm jealous, I want a Pilot. I looked at all the 8 passenger SUVs and the Pilot drove the absolute best (even better than the armada).
Makes sense, since the Pilot is more car than truck. An Armada is the SUV version of a Titan, while the Pilot is a dressed-down Acura MDX. Very smooth.
Did I post a few weeks ago about a lot of the new cars having these hideous, oversized grilles? Ford/Lincoln/Mercury trucks, Dodge trucks, VW and Audi cars, Subarus, the QX56, ...
By the 1990s, most cars had the main cooling intake from a slat under the bumper, making a large grille unnecessary for cooling purposes, so designers didn't include one. Now, they've gone back to using them as some sort of design statement. Yuck!
Bottom breathers had a serious design flaw. A flaw that wouldn't be noticed unless you live in a region that has serious rain, and standing water issues. Begging the question, "how much water has to be scooped into your intake, before it will be sucked into your induction system?" Not as much as you think on some very low, perfomance machines.
starting to make the front-ends of cars taller and more blunt, in an attempt to make them more "pedestrian friendly"? If that's the case, with more area up front, I guess a grille just seems necessary again to fill all that space.
I meant the cooling system, I think the air intake doesn't require such a large opening. At least, people who install one of those pipes with a cone filter on it dispense entirely with any sort of ducting or airflow direction for the intake.
I've heard that an engine can seize with as little as a tablespoon of water, but I also know that slowly pouring water into the intake is a home remedy for removing carbon deposits.
If I'm not mistaken, the EU has drafted new regulations regarding 'pedestrian friendly' automobies, which stipulate some minimum height requirement for the grille and hood (excuse me, "bonnet").
I suspect that in the next year or so, we'll start to see those changes on cars that are sold both in Europe and the US -- I believe the new VW Passat is one of them.
the dealership that sold me my Intrepid now has this big brute on their used car lot.
I'd really be tempted, except for a few things. First, it's a 1993, so it only has the 185 hp 350, and not the sweet 260 hp LT-1. Even with 185 hp, I think they'll still do 0-60 in around 9 seconds, which ain't bad for a big beast like this, but it ain't the wolf in old man's clothes that the '94-96 was. Second, it's priced awfully high for the mileage IMO: $5995 and 135,000 miles.
I'd be tempted to go and offer them maybe $2500-3000 for it if I really had a need for it. I wonder if someone will snatch it up for close to asking price, and go a'pimpin' with it?
yeah, supposedly the Roadmaster, Fleetwood, and LT-1 Caprice really aren't worth much, while the Impala SS seems like they're worth a fortune!
I'd guess any of them would still be worth more than equivalent Ford, Mercury, and Lincoln big cars from that era, though.
And I dunno if this is true or not, but I think the '94-96 Roadmaster Estate and Caprice wagons were actually a bit QUICKER from 0-60 than the Impala SS, because even though they were a bit heavier, they had a quicker rear-end that was intended more for towing, but also helped out with acceleration. I'm sure you could order that same rear on the Impala SS, though.
Back in late 2004, I saw a '96 Roadmaster for sale at Carlisle, and I think it was marked down to around $4995 or $5995. It was really decked-out, though, with leather and a sunroof, and alloys. And I think it only had around 85,000 miles on it. At the time I was thinking about buying it and then selling my Intrepid, which had around 95,000 miles on it, but was just about paid off. This '96 Roadmaster was also a nice grayish green that I really like, similar to the "Magnesium" that Chrysler puts on the 300/Charger and other cars nowadays.
There's an older couple that goes to our church who have a Roadmaster from that era. Ed told me they get 27 mpg in the car. I personally just never liked the looks of the big Buicks and Chevys back in the early 90's. I do however like that color. The darker color makes it not seem quite so big and you don't see that plum/maroon color every day. One other observation is that a car that big just doesn't seem dressed without whitewall tires. $6K seems way steep.
the EPA ratings on the LT-1 V-8 are something like 17/26. The older 185 hp TBI 350 is rated at 16/25, which really ain't bad for something that weighs over 2 tons and can hit 60 mph in about 9 seconds. In comparison, I think my Grandma's '85 LeSabre was rated around 17/24. And it weighed considerably less (despite being just as big, and actually a bit longer) and 0-60 was more like 12 seconds.
I'm actually not that crazy about the looks of those big GM cars from the 90's, either, but they just seem to fit me better than the Ford products from that same era. And, well I just love big cars! IMO, the perfect big car would be one of GM's older, boxier styles from the 80's, but fitted with the more modern LT-1 350.
Of all places to get bit by the new truck bug, I was at a funeral. When I parked at the cemetery there was a bright red F150 Supercrew XLT parked right behind me. I don't know if it was brand new or an 05, but it had a temporary tag in the back window. I wanted so badly to go over and peer through the window, but that just didn't seem right considering the occasion. I don't know if it was the red color or what, but I found myself very drawn to this particular truck.
That and the Armada/Q56 are about the ugliest vehicles built currently. I would fire those designers.
This is off topic, but I think the worst looking new vehicle built today is the Subaru B9 Tribeca. I say in jest sometimes that something is "hideous" such as a Kia Amanti, but with that Tribeca I mean it. I actually wince when I see one, the front clip is so atrocious.
Comments
They weren't terribly heavy cars, so even though the 200 only put out like 88-90 hp, I don't think they were as bad as it sounds. Ford would often at least give you a quicker axle ratio to make use of what little horsepower was there, whereas GM almost seemed to hold some of their engines back by putting in overly tall ratios. They had rack-and-pinion steering, too, which I guess was pretty progressive for that time in a domestic.
And, yes, I did feel it was a fairly quick car for what it was. But, not tach and I didn't track gas mileage in those days, so I'm not even sure what it was spinning at on the highway. I'm sure it wasn't good.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
qbrozen
My Fairmont also had the 200 I-6 but with a 3-speed manual. Also, it was a wagon. I usually like wagons, but this car was bent on killing me. No kidding. Replaced the ingnition module and when I reconnected the battery, the car started. It was in gear and I was in front of it.
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
How 'bout a leftover '05 Acura TSX 6 speed? No nav, since I think that feature is silly, especially for the $2k it costs. The one part I am a little wafflely on is the color: arrest-me Milano Red, which on the TSX is over the tan with wood trim interior. I really wanted silver over black, but you can't be choosy on color almost halfway through the next model year. I was able to get my target price of $25,000 + TTL, from the 2nd closest dealer to home. The local one had no '05 anything left.
If this deal happens, the car will be in my driveway tomorrow night. :confuse:
I'm warming up on the idea of red. I had a "dark black" Jetta GLX with leather, and that interior was great for melting heinies on a hot sunny day. While silver outside would make this a little cooler, there still would be fried buns in July on those dark hydes.
The only absolutely wouldn't buy it this time color was white. Especially with gray guts. It has been the color combo of the last 4 new purchases (95 Ranger, 99 Explorer, 00 Celica, 04 GMC 2500HD). The Ranger looked good in that color, but was bought for it's options-4.0, stick, 2wd, limited slip, sport suspension. The Exploder was actually dealer ordered to replace the Ranger, and none of the other color combos looked right. The Celica was intended to be an autocross car from day one, and refrigerator magnet material comes in white, so it was easy to place the sponsor and contingency decals on that, and it all blends right in. You gotta look good to go fast you know. The Monster Truck just happened to be a decent options content at a great price. It just was white over gray. :mad: Hence, I'm ready for something different. At least it won't clash with the red shutters on the house when parked in the driveway. :P
This ultimately will come down to a late night discussion with the Mrs. once she gets home from work tonight, probably more to do with money than color.
I acquired one to fix up and sell from one of my parent's friends when I was in college (late 80's). Agreement was I got half the sale price. Had to bumper push it home, as it sat for years. Once I got it there, I filled it full of stop leak (radiator, trans, etc), and took the carb off and totally cleaned it up. New plugs and a little tuning, and it ran great (well, as great as the 200 inline ever could run). It was an auto, lemon yellow with a yellow interior. I put on some good ole' Walmart seat covers. It would trundle down the highway like it wasn't turning over at all. I remember thinking it felt like driving a very low-to-the-ground F150. I think I got around $250 bucks for it. Kind of wanted to keep the silly thing after driving it around awhile. You should have seen my girlfriend's face when I pulled up to her house in that beast! Of course, I also pulled up in all manner of Fiat's, Volkswagens, Jeeps, and exploding Pontiacs.
:surprise:
I've heard that it costs around $600-$800 to get a dealer-installed Mercedes sat radio. $1k for a sat radio in a Civic, uh.. let's just say I would not be inclined to use that dealer's service department for future work. If they're going to ream you on something as easy to install as a sat radio, I can't imagine what the "hard" stuff costs.
Some minor entertainment in getting through credit insurance/mop and glow/extended warranty pitch in the F&I office. The "least expensive" option, purely warrranty, was presented as part of a new monthly payment, that by the math represented a $4000 bump in purchase price. And the more back-end gobbly-[non-permissible content removed] that got added on top of that the higher it went. Obviously no actual cost in upfront unfinanced dollars presented for any of it. :mad: Is the general car buying public that stupid and gullible? :confuse: Especially at what could be considered an upscale brand franchise? I guess they are.....that said, they did beat my credit union interest rate by .2%, which was better than I expected.
OK, rant mode off!
Back to the car....I'm happy. For only about maybe $2500 out the door more than a new Accord EX-L I get the additional warranty, extra bling and snob appeal associated with the name, a tighter and smaller chassis, and not the same car every 4th one going down the road, especially in this color!
Mrs. Racer is already angling to swap daily drivers. I could be cruising around in an '04 GMC 2500HD Crew Cab soon.
So then I ask him what the interest rate was. He quotes me a 9 1/2% figure. What a crackhead. My credit union has a 2.9% on a 36 month loan right now. I didn't expect them to beat that but I was still like "no friggin' way"!!!. I take a glance over at his screen and see that not only is my interest rate jacked up but he has also somehow added about $2000 to my initial amount financed like he just KNEW he was gonna take me for some extra crap.
Now i just bought my hoopty a week ago. I haven't even finish buying doo-dads off Ebay for it. So the last thing I really need is to buy another car right now. So I just got up and left. I told my salesman that his F&I guy just talked his way out of your sale.
On my way home they called me back. Once to ask me to come back and a second time to say they found the silver NAV coupe that I really wanted. I'm actually gonna call their bluff. If they can produce it for $21,500 OTD with my extras, I'll buy it.
Am anxiously waiting till I can get my 1st Honda...which will eventually be a Civic EX. I am supposed to be inheriting about $28k from grandma in the next month, so one never knows. The wife wants me to put it into my Roth IRA and a small annuity, but I really wanna get that Civic. Probaly be a battle of the wills here...lol!
The Sandman
The other quirky thing was the AHFS Loan App form wanted nearest closest relative and 2 references. Huh? :mad: :confuse:
With 25 years of credit history, I've signed lots of loan apps, including five car loans, four mortgages, four home eq line of credits, and never had to fill in any of that doody at the bottom. I made such a stink that the salesman filled in one line, and used a friend in the business out of state who I called in the middle of the deal who said they were full of it too. He noted he had just gotten somebody approved with a 619 FICO without any of it. But, he did offer me to use him....
I compare all of this to when I bought the truck in '04, where there was absolutely no pressure, no games what so ever. Since this was a GM vehicle, that we were planning on keeping a while and using hard, I did want some kind of extended warranty on it. Price was reasonable and negotiable. I really wanted to buy a car there this time, but CTS-V aside, they didn't really have anything that I wanted.
I haven't shopped for Hondas much, but the Acura dealership closest to me is so sleazy & difficult that I never bought an Acura......even when an Acura would have been a better choice than what I bought.
$20K OTD sounds pretty darn good given all the good stuff I've read about the new Civic......
*$19,888 and that included a 6% sales tax and a $299 DOC fee*
I almost wish I hadn't read it--all I need is someone urging me to buy a Porsche--I've never owned one.....
2001 Prelude Type SH, 2022 Highlander XLE AWD, 2025 Camry SE AWD
I feel even more justified in leaving now though. I found out Honda is running a 4.9% special on all 2006 Hondas this weekend. 9% my [non-permissible content removed].
My one and only Porsche, was an '84 911 Targa.. I bought it used in 1990, and sold it in '94...
regards,
kyfdx
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I know they are useful to some people, but not to me.If you have done your homework you already know what you wand and how much you want to pay for it.
It is steel blue (kind of grayish) with dark gray leather. We still have our Odyssey in the garage. I guess I need to clean it up and take it back. The lease info from Honda says it has to be returned "clean" but I don't know if that means fully detailed or just remove the poopy diapers and McDonalds bags.
We like the Pilot. I used to be all for minivans over SUVs, but no more (when it comes to Hondas anyway). The Pilot feels geared to be more responsive, the steering is much better weighted and the handling feels tigher and more nimble. Frankly, minivans have just gotten too darn big for me - and they are still ugly.
And then my mother inlaw just went through the exact same thing on an '06 Accord, except she took the deal. (Different dealership).
I did that when I bought my Saab 9000. A salesman at a major Saab dlrship gave me so much grief that I bought a used one somewhere else (closer to me, in that case). But I took it to the Saab dlrship for service, & the first time I did, I could see the pompous salesman glaring at me thru the window of the sales floor--he looked he was gonna have a heart attack!
A good way of rubbing it in.
Rocky
*All 84-89 911s are designated as Carrera..*
That is not a good idea.
Dealers are just people, and they are influenced by a nice-looking, clean car just like everybody else. It won't "fool" them if the car is a rat, but a good impression counts, like everywhere else.
-Mathias
I pretty much did the full super duper cleaning inside. (Does anyone remember the Dolphins WR who legally changed his name to Mark Super Duper?) I am going to give the outside just a normal Saturday cleaning and be done with it.
Makes sense, since the Pilot is more car than truck. An Armada is the SUV version of a Titan, while the Pilot is a dressed-down Acura MDX. Very smooth.
By the 1990s, most cars had the main cooling intake from a slat under the bumper, making a large grille unnecessary for cooling purposes, so designers didn't include one. Now, they've gone back to using them as some sort of design statement. Yuck!
I've heard that an engine can seize with as little as a tablespoon of water, but I also know that slowly pouring water into the intake is a home remedy for removing carbon deposits.
I suspect that in the next year or so, we'll start to see those changes on cars that are sold both in Europe and the US -- I believe the new VW Passat is one of them.
I'd really be tempted, except for a few things. First, it's a 1993, so it only has the 185 hp 350, and not the sweet 260 hp LT-1. Even with 185 hp, I think they'll still do 0-60 in around 9 seconds, which ain't bad for a big beast like this, but it ain't the wolf in old man's clothes that the '94-96 was. Second, it's priced awfully high for the mileage IMO: $5995 and 135,000 miles.
I'd be tempted to go and offer them maybe $2500-3000 for it if I really had a need for it. I wonder if someone will snatch it up for close to asking price, and go a'pimpin' with it?
So, in general, is the 94-96 Roadmaster less desirable than the Impala SS from the same era, even though both had the LT-1 engine?
I'd guess any of them would still be worth more than equivalent Ford, Mercury, and Lincoln big cars from that era, though.
And I dunno if this is true or not, but I think the '94-96 Roadmaster Estate and Caprice wagons were actually a bit QUICKER from 0-60 than the Impala SS, because even though they were a bit heavier, they had a quicker rear-end that was intended more for towing, but also helped out with acceleration. I'm sure you could order that same rear on the Impala SS, though.
Back in late 2004, I saw a '96 Roadmaster for sale at Carlisle, and I think it was marked down to around $4995 or $5995. It was really decked-out, though, with leather and a sunroof, and alloys. And I think it only had around 85,000 miles on it. At the time I was thinking about buying it and then selling my Intrepid, which had around 95,000 miles on it, but was just about paid off. This '96 Roadmaster was also a nice grayish green that I really like, similar to the "Magnesium" that Chrysler puts on the 300/Charger and other cars nowadays.
I'm actually not that crazy about the looks of those big GM cars from the 90's, either, but they just seem to fit me better than the Ford products from that same era. And, well I just love big cars! IMO, the perfect big car would be one of GM's older, boxier styles from the 80's, but fitted with the more modern LT-1 350.
I like big cars and I cannot lie!
All you other brothers can't deny!
:P :shades:
As the sign in the background says, it's on clearance Clarence. Make 'em an offer, they just might bite.
This is off topic, but I think the worst looking new vehicle built today is the Subaru B9 Tribeca. I say in jest sometimes that something is "hideous" such as a Kia Amanti, but with that Tribeca I mean it. I actually wince when I see one, the front clip is so atrocious.