Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

Michaell

The fleet in Colorado:

9 year old Outback - 64K
10 year old MINI - 67K

tifighter

@28firefighter said:
Tried to tell you, @tifighter. They rock. If my wife wasn’t vehemently opposed to vans, we’d have had a Pacifica hybrid. I still think now with two dogs we may end up with one.

Yeah, and it gets better than that. This is from the 41 mile drive home. This is an awd -

xwesx

nyccarguy said:

I've got to drop the Highlander off for service tomorrow. It needs an oil change and tire rotation. It is due for some fluid changes at 60K miles, but I want to get them done now. Front & Rear differential fluid as well as brake fluid. I asked if coolant and transmission fluid need to be replaced. The service advisor said no. "Those don't need to be replaced until 100K miles."

I'm going to go against the grain on what the service advisor says and recommend that you DO change the transmission fluid (drain and fill sufficient). Or, at least do before 100,000 miles. Especially with the congested driving scenarios you often encounter, 100,000 on that car represents a lot of stress on that fluid. I have 148,000 miles on the Q7, and I've changed the transmission fluid twice already. Also, if not done previously, power steering and brake fluid flushes are due.

tifighter

@au1994 said:
What left the fleet?

MDX.

So….
We have a 2024 Sienna Platinum AWD in some pearl metallic over brown leather. For anyone that’s been living under a rock the past three years, these are extremely hard to come by in this trim. This particular one was a trade in over the weekend at the Bellevue Cadillac dealer for a loaded Escalade. 5k miles. The ad posted Sunday night and I was there Monday morning. Condition was immaculate.

I paid what it stickered for new, I admit, even though it was used.. But a new one is a long wait, over a year. I was okay with that trade off. I found a new one way out of state for sticker, but it was an allocation, and by the time it arrived and shipped, it just wasn’t worth it. Also, I did a little better than expected on the trade, plus there was the tax credit, so I felt good about that. And we will be driving more regionally starting in August, and this will be great for mom and child on the road. I liked the MDX, but this is just better for our situation with a near one year old.

andres3

kyfdx said:

Our three cars are 6, 7 and 17 years old.. 37K, 75K and 41K mileage.

The last two cars we sold were 7 and 14 years old with 95K and 125K miles, respectively

I have 2 Audi's and 1 VW. The Audi's are 8 years and 65K miles, 9 years and 75K miles, and the VW is 5 years with low mileage.

2 of the 3 need a new water pump or thermostat housing. 1 of those 2 is covered by warranty.

I would say "FIRE" the water pump thermostat housing engineer... but the blame likely lies with some BS Accountant or BA Business major.

explorerx4

Current vehicle status:
23 Ford Explorer ST (9 months) 6K
22 Lincoln Corsair (16 months) 13K
91 Mustang GT (32 years 10 months) 42K

@nyccarguy,
Headed to Hatteras on Saturday.

andres3

ab348 said:

With the regular Golf being discontinued here the only version you can get aside from the R version is the GTI. Unfortunately the color selection is atrocious - white, black or red. I mean, really…

There might be an option to drop a suitcase full of money for a custom color, but that's pretty atrocious an option too.

laurasdada

Three cars, fairly new, have some miles. But does it really matter?
Isn't it time for a new car?

cdnpinhead

What! Actually accumulate mileage and lifelong memories? Oh, the horror!

The TSX has ~209K miles and the Forester has just over 100K -- turned over on our trip up to Granby this year.

stickguy

Bradd, doesn't the Highlander have a trailer hitch? If so, why not rent a smaller Uhaul cube trailer, and use that to tote the baggage. Drop it off when you arrive, and pick up a new one for the ride home!

andres3

A surprising amount of used Macan's I've been looking at have trailer hitches. In CA I see a Macan on the road every day, but I am not sure I've seen them towing things.

corvette

2022 Maverick - 20,400
2023 Ariya - 359

corvette

Picked up the check for the Volt this evening. Bank won't mobile deposit it because it's made out to my (legal) first name but my account is in my middle name, which is the one I use, and which they know, because it was on my ID when I opened the account. I guess I'll have to go in to a branch tomorrow to get it straightened out.

pensfan83

@tifighter said:

@28firefighter said:
Tried to tell you, @tifighter. They rock. If my wife wasn’t vehemently opposed to vans, we’d have had a Pacifica hybrid. I still think now with two dogs we may end up with one.

Yeah, and it gets better than that. This is from the 41 mile drive home. This is an awd -

At least double the MPG too.

Michaell

Any Porsche aficionados?

Member needs help deciding which model year Cayenne to focus on

nyccarguy

@xwesx said:
I'm going to go against the grain on what the service advisor says and recommend that you DO change the transmission fluid (drain and fill sufficient). Or, at least do before 100,000 miles. Especially with the congested driving scenarios you often encounter, 100,000 on that car represents a lot of stress on that fluid. I have 148,000 miles on the Q7, and I've changed the transmission fluid twice already. Also, if not done previously, power steering and brake fluid flushes are due.

I’ll ask him again when I drop it off tomorrow. He could’ve just said: sure. No problem. We’ll take care of that for you. I agree with you about the transmission fluid. I get the idea that they dont do drain & fills. They hook it up to a machine that extracts, then pumps new fluid in.

nyccarguy

@stickguy said:
Bradd, doesn't the Highlander have a trailer hitch? If so, why not rent a smaller Uhaul cube trailer, and use that to tote the baggage. Drop it off when you arrive, and pick up a new one for the ride home!

No, but the Jeep has the towing package and the Tacoma has a hitch. Towing something even light for all that time isn’t my idea of fun anyway.

explorerx4

With my last Explorer, we took a U Haul trailer 600 miles 3 times.
My wife had no problem driving across PA on I-80 with it.
When the kids were young, we used to vacation at Hawk's Nest.
Each year, we took more and more stuff with us.
By the last year we went, I needed a 6x12 double axle trailer to fit all the stuff.

jmonroe1

nyccarguy said:

@xwesx said:

I'm going to go against the grain on what the service advisor says and recommend that you DO change the transmission fluid (drain and fill sufficient). Or, at least do before 100,000 miles. Especially with the congested driving scenarios you often encounter, 100,000 on that car represents a lot of stress on that fluid. I have 148,000 miles on the Q7, and I've changed the transmission fluid twice already. Also, if not done previously, power steering and brake fluid flushes are due.

I’ll ask him again when I drop it off tomorrow. He could’ve just said: sure. No problem. We’ll take care of that for you. I agree with you about the transmission fluid. I get the idea that they dont do drain & fills. They hook it up to a machine that extracts, then pumps new fluid in.

————————————————
I agree with changing the tranny fluid sooner than 100K miles because of your driving conditions.

Just curious if your Highlander has a transmission dipstick. I’d want a way to check if they filled it properly. I’ve heard of a few horror stories when dealers and indie shops don’t fill it properly and the owners were worse off by having the fluid changed than if they left it alone.

I saw a video not long ago about how to check the transmission fluid on cars without dipsticks but you have to jack up the car and remove a plug on the top or side of the transmission to check the fluid level that way but it seems to vary by car. I’m not sure you’d, personally, want to do that but I know I would if I had a car without a dipstick.

jmonroe

explorerx4

@nyccarguy,
Look at page 46 under special operating conditions.
https://assets.sia.toyota.com/publications/en/omms-s/T-MMS-22Highlander/pdf/T-MMS-22Highlander.pdf

stickguy

I don't trust the manual for fluids. cut the miles in half is my usual rule of thumb.

pensfan83

I don't remember in which thread I panned watering the lawn but this is what it looks like after the past 2 weeks with relatively minimal precipitation and near daily use by the boys and their friends.

oldfarmer50

xwesx said:

nyccarguy said:

I've got to drop the Highlander off for service tomorrow. It needs an oil change and tire rotation. It is due for some fluid changes at 60K miles, but I want to get them done now. Front & Rear differential fluid as well as brake fluid. I asked if coolant and transmission fluid need to be replaced. The service advisor said no. "Those don't need to be replaced until 100K miles."

I'm going to go against the grain on what the service advisor says and recommend that you DO change the transmission fluid (drain and fill sufficient). Or, at least do before 100,000 miles. Especially with the congested driving scenarios you often encounter, 100,000 on that car represents a lot of stress on that fluid. I have 148,000 miles on the Q7, and I've changed the transmission fluid twice already. Also, if not done previously, power steering and brake fluid flushes are due.

My truck only has 31k miles and I had the transmission fluid and coolant changed so I had a baseline to go by since I didn’t know if the previous owner towed with it.

myride

jayrider said:

Sandman, you can buy a brand new Verano with leather for less than 25K.

myride

Sandman, be VERY careful when contemplating a Nissan: they have TERRIBLE CVT transmissions.

ronsteve

@xwesx said:
How about that.... in perfect matching order between age and mileage. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised!

My curve was inverted in April, as we had 124k on the 15 RDX but just 88k on the 13 Jetta. Trading the Jetta on a 21 Tiguan (will hit 40k next time we drive it) puts things back in order.

xwesx

andres3 said:

A surprising amount of used Macan's I've been looking at have trailer hitches. In CA I see a Macan on the road every day, but I am not sure I've seen them towing things.

Don't be fooled by a hitch.... most cars with them have never seen a trailer; hitches are far more often used for accessories and trays.

xwesx

cdnpinhead said:

What! Actually accumulate mileage and lifelong memories? Oh, the horror!

The TSX has ~209K miles and the Forester has just over 100K -- turned over on our trip up to Granby this year.

Congrats on the milestone! You're quickly catching up to my Forester. I have 137,000 on it.

xwesx

pensfan83 said:

I don't remember in which thread I panned watering the lawn but this is what it looks like after the past 2 weeks with relatively minimal precipitation and near daily use by the boys and their friends.

Looks pretty darn great to me! I really like the Norway spruce and... black walnut (?)... on the neighboring lot in the background.

explorerx4

@pensfan83,
Yeah, I'd be upset too, if my lawn looked like that. HA HA!

pensfan83

@xwesx, correct on the black walnut.

nyccarguy

cdnpinhead said:

What! Actually accumulate mileage and lifelong memories? Oh, the horror!

The TSX has ~209K miles and the Forester has just over 100K -- turned over on our trip up to Granby this year.

That's fantastic you still have that TSX and it has over 200K! Very impressive! Well done!

breld

@tifighter - congrats on the Sienna. That's a great move to snag that...I think you'll appreciate it more and more as time goes on. We had our two minivans over 6 years and they just work so well.

Kinda sad to see the silver over blue MDX go though! Love that combo.

breld

I'll give VW credit for continuing to invest in the Jetta and keeping the GLI trim with a manual. Not a bad looking refresh.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a61242172/2025-volkswagen-jetta-revealed/

tifighter

@breld said:

Kinda sad to see the silver over blue MDX go though! Love that combo.

Well, you’re in luck - https://www.cadillacofbellevue.com/VehicleDetails/used-2022-Acura-MDX-Type_S_SH_AWD_w/Advance_Package-BELLEVUE-WA/5852340930

ab348

breld said:

I'll give VW credit for continuing to invest in the Jetta and keeping the GLI trim with a manual. Not a bad looking refresh.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a61242172/2025-volkswagen-jetta-revealed/

I was looking at the video intro from VW last night and concur. The GLI seems an appealing package and good value if you can put aside niggles about quality of the interior materials and overall reliability. I keep hearing that you need a good dealer to deal with warranty items.

nyccarguy

tifighter said:

@au1994 said:

What left the fleet?

MDX.

So….

We have a 2024 Sienna Platinum AWD in some pearl metallic over brown leather. For anyone that’s been living under a rock the past three years, these are extremely hard to come by in this trim. This particular one was a trade in over the weekend at the Bellevue Cadillac dealer for a loaded Escalade. 5k miles. The ad posted Sunday night and I was there Monday morning. Condition was immaculate.

I paid what it stickered for new, I admit, even though it was used.. But a new one is a long wait, over a year. I was okay with that trade off. I found a new one way out of state for sticker, but it was an allocation, and by the time it arrived and shipped, it just wasn’t worth it. Also, I did a little better than expected on the trade, plus there was the tax credit, so I felt good about that. And we will be driving more regionally starting in August, and this will be great for mom and child on the road. I liked the MDX, but this is just better for our situation with a near one year old.

Congrats! I'm sure it was hard to part ways with that MDX Type S, but that Sienna is going to serve you very well. You did ok on the trade & you've got a vehicle that will not let you down. Is it wind chill metallic? When you want to let it all out, you've still got the Type R.

corvette

Looks like the 2025 Jetta/GLI is a "refresh." If they were going to kill off the GLI model, they'd probably do it when the car got a full redesign (or they could kill off the Jetta entirely).

oldfarmer50

xwesx said:

pensfan83 said:

I don't remember in which thread I panned watering the lawn but this is what it looks like after the past 2 weeks with relatively minimal precipitation and near daily use by the boys and their friends.

Looks pretty darn great to me! I really like the Norway spruce and... black walnut (?)... on the neighboring lot in the background.

Not to mention the sweep of Hemerocallis on top of that wall.

roadburner

Today my victim advocate asked if we were working on Friday July fifth. I told her no because the courthouse would be closed. My secretary then said, “See- I told you he wasn’t an a**hole ALL the time!”

ab348

oldfarmer50 said:

Not to mention the sweep of Hemerocallis on top of that wall.

That sounds like something a MD would need to give you a shot of something to cure.

28firefighter

My Dad’s wagon is up on Cars and Bids…
https://carsandbids.com/auctions/9eAyG58o/2007-bmw-530xi-sports-wagon

nyccarguy

28firefighter said:

My Dad’s wagon is up on Cars and Bids…
https://carsandbids.com/auctions/9eAyG58o/2007-bmw-530xi-sports-wagon

"Can you post a picture of a thermometer with the heated seat on so I know it functions properly?"

"Can you post a photo of the coolant hoses unhooked so I can verify the hose clamps are factory OEM?"

corvette

28firefighter said:

My Dad’s wagon is up on Cars and Bids…
https://carsandbids.com/auctions/9eAyG58o/2007-bmw-530xi-sports-wagon

Sharp looking car. I love that color combo!

au1994

ab348 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

Not to mention the sweep of Hemerocallis on top of that wall.

That sounds like something a MD would need to give you a shot of something to cure.

My dad had his removed and sat on a donut for a week.

mjfloyd1

My buddy just bought this 2001 911 cab. Blue with grey guts and 3 pedals.

https://www.carfax.com/vehicle/WP0CA29951S654117?partner=SBC_1&utm_source=criteo&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=Ver4_consumer&utm_id=329920&cto_pld=5l8VPMw8AABqY2se0YVzyQ&no_ul=1

andres3

ronsteve said:

@xwesx said:

How about that.... in perfect matching order between age and mileage. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised!

My curve was inverted in April, as we had 124k on the 15 RDX but just 88k on the 13 Jetta. Trading the Jetta on a 21 Tiguan (will hit 40k next time we drive it) puts things back in order.

Missed that you got a Tiguan 3 years ago. How do you like it so far?

jmonroe1

au1994 said:

ab348 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

Not to mention the sweep of Hemerocallis on top of that wall.

That sounds like something a MD would need to give you a shot of something to cure.

My dad had his removed and sat on a donut for a week.

————————————————
It’s a shame to ruin a good donut like that. Could be messy if it was a jelly donut.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50

ab348 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

Not to mention the sweep of Hemerocallis on top of that wall.

That sounds like something a MD would need to give you a shot of something to cure.

Sorry, common daylily.

nyccarguy

Not such a fun time to be a member of the nyccarguy household. My wife had knee surgery on Monday. The doctor extended a ligament, shaved behind the kneecap, & injected synthetic cartilage. She’s in excruciating pain as to be expected day 1 at home. I left for work this AM at 10:00ish thinking my mother in law was going to come up and be there by 10:30. Murphy’s law, she got stuck getting a state inspection at the car dealer because the machine broke, then hit traffic everywhere she turned. She didn’t get to my house until after 1:00. My wife was home by herself!

I started to not feel well and am trying my best to take care of my wife. I don’t know if it is Covid or a cold or a virus…. Then I got bitten by a yellow jacket! I found the nest under my deck and left a message with the exterminator for tomorrow AM.

I dropped off the Highlander for service this evening. Picked up a RAv4 XLE (gas) as a loaner. So far it was ok driving home from the dealership. I’ll see how it drives on the way to & from work tomorrow.