Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

@roadburner said:
Nice car, Stick!

Thanks. It was almost odd to see a "real" color in a sea of black/white/gray variations. Pretty well equipped car too when you start looking into all the gadgets it has. This model has the touchscreen radio, keyless go, and all the latest connectivity features. Will give the kid something to do figuring it all out.

Oh, RB, looks like I may be heading to S.C. in April for admitted students day, since my daughter is still considering it an option. Not sure if it will be the final option, but still in the running, and always good IMO to see the place another time before making such a big commitment.

nyccarguy

Check out what this Plasma Green Subaru Crosstrek Hybrid did in the North Carolina Snow Storm.

nyccarguy

Here's a shot of my poor Prelude buried in the snow. That's not all from one day, but it is cumulative over the last week or so.

laurasdada

Well, my son has declared that when he turns 16 later this year, the XF is his! He said while on our way to lunch today, "This is luxury!" I think the rotating vents and rising gear shift knob amuse him. He liked the pulsing red starter button, too.

This will be a relief to my wife as prior to the XF, her 535 was to be his. Great, what do I drive??? Sounds like another punch in '14! Yeah, right. He'll learn to drive and use the '02 Lexus just as his sister did. Which will not please her, as it's "her" car. Of course, she didn't spring for the $1800 in repairs it just needed...

au1994

@stick...congrats on adding the Jetta to the fleet. I love the color and glad to see more manufacturers adding blues back into their offering. Seems that was a shade missing for a while.

au1994

@breld...congrats on moving 2 of your BMWs. Keep searching for that ZHP, the right one will turn up and despite snide comments from others it's worth it for a great driving car.

Thanks to the crazy weather here in the SE US I haven't had but a couple of days to enjoy the 'vert and but it does drive like a dream, top up or down. Tighter but not as quick as the 335i.

au1994

@ laurasdada...love the looks of the XF, I think it carries on the grace with pace mantra very well!

laurasdada

Thanks, au1994. Great color on your '05, Monaco Blue.

And, congrats on the Jetta, stick! My very first car, and love, was a VW Scirocco. Actually, my first choice in color for the XF was Indigo Blue, but couldn't swing the deal for the one left before the dealer put it into loaner service. My '05 TL was Abyss Blue, I too enjoyed standing out in a sea of black, grey and silver cars. Well, I'm back in the sea...

sda

Sandman, sorry for your minor misadventure. I have noticed that mirrors on cars and in general seem to stick out further on newer vehicles. Too easy to whack when pulling into tight clearances. I know I have to be extremely careful pulling our cars, especially the Pilot into our garage as we have two single narrow garage doors. Perhaps a buff with some scratch remover and some touch up paint will hide the wound. I bet once applied only you will be the wiser.

Michaell

Stick - congrats to the son for the new Jetta. Certainly sounds like a good deal. And, you now have the Acura back for your own use.

For now.

Might there be another punch later this year?

graphicguy

@stickguy said:
not the car, but this is the color. Really sharp looking in person. Black guts.

Stick....congratz....cool color. I like it.

stever

Great color. Like to see it in real life (right now all cars around here pretty much look like Nyccarguy's Prelude).

graphicguy

Watching "All Girls Garage". Something about females who can install cat back exhaust and headers on a V8 is really hot.

tjc78

+1 on that! GG!

Congrats Stick (for getting the TL back) and to your son on the Jetta. The deal seems pretty good to me. Great color, my 03 Avalon was similar. Which dealer? The one on BHP?

stickguy

@tjc78 said:
+1 on that! GG!

Congrats Stick (for getting the TL back) and to your son on the Jetta. The deal seems pretty good to me. Great color, my 03 Avalon was similar. Which dealer? The one on BHP?

No, Cherry Hill on 70. a little more convenient for us, and a bigger supply.

Plus you get to see all the Porsches out front. Better than Subarus or Mitus.

stickguy

@Michaell@Edmunds said:
Stick - congrats to the son for the new Jetta. Certainly sounds like a good deal. And, you now have the Acura back for your own use.

For now.

Might there be another punch later this year?

Oh, I have every intention of getting another punch in this year for myself. I really have no desire to keep the TL or Volvo for myself long term. So I am hanging onto my plan of selling them both at the end of the summer (when daughter leaves for College) and getting something interesting to replace them with (a 2 for 1 to free up parking spots).

stickguy

because you just can't spend enough time looking at cars, son and I went to the car show again this morning. Last week we rushed a bit, and my daughter did not want to see a lot of stuff. So, we went at a more relaxing pace, and spent more time with what interested us. and scoped out all the classics this time. Surprised at how many cars we missed last time. Plus it was way less crowded when we got there.

Still have same favorites. Love the Volvo S60 and V60. especially the seats. really want a new style Golf when they show up. And added to the list, I really liked the 2 door Wrangler on the floor. That could be fun. For a while.

The A3 is still nice. but pricey. The convertible though. Hmm. also found the Genesis coupe to be tasty, and fairly comfortable for a couple with OK ingress/egress.

Looked at mid-size sedans. Really don't think I could ever live with a Camry. The Mazda 6 though was very nice. Ditto the Accord. Sonata has some nice features.

For compacts, the Jetta works well. The Elantra has to get consideration, and the Mazda 3 is still a winner.

Oh, also looked at the Chevys. Impala and Malibu are both vast improvements over the previous iterations. Low bar there of course. Impala is way too big, and I would never buy a Malibu, but if I eventually get one as a rental, I won't complain!

Michaell

@stickguy said:
because you just can't spend enough time looking at cars, son and I went to the car show again this morning. Last week we rushed a bit, and my daughter did not want to see a lot of stuff. So, we went at a more relaxing pace, and spent more time with what interested us. and scoped out all the classics this time. Surprised at how many cars we missed last time. Plus it was way less crowded when we got there.

Still have same favorites. Love the Volvo S60 and V60. especially the seats. really want a new style Golf when they show up. And added to the list, I really liked the 2 door Wrangler on the floor. That could be fun. For a while.

The A3 is still nice. but pricey. The convertible though. Hmm. also found the Genesis coupe to be tasty, and fairly comfortable for a couple with OK ingress/egress.

Looked at mid-size sedans. Really don't think I could ever live with a Camry. The Mazda 6 though was very nice. Ditto the Accord. Sonata has some nice features.

For compacts, the Jetta works well. The Elantra has to get consideration, and the Mazda 3 is still a winner.

Oh, also looked at the Chevys. Impala and Malibu are both vast improvements over the previous iterations. Low bar there of course. Impala is way too big, and I would never buy a Malibu, but if I eventually get one as a rental, I won't complain!

First things first - you need to update your signature line to include the Jetta.

Second, thanks for the quick rundown of your observations.

Third, you gonna go new or used on the 2-for-1 swap?

Denver auto show isn't until April. Now that I'm a moderator I feel I've gotta go to stay current. Wonder if I can submit my entrance fee as an expense? :-)

stever

Shoot, just try for a press pass.

stickguy

Michael, at this point, I say used. Tentative plans (heck, all my plans are always subject to change on a moments notice) is to make it "revenue neutral". That is, sell them both, and whatever they generate is my "mad money". I am thinking tentatively of something about 10K to spend, which should be enough to get something decent.

unless my situation changes before then (meaning I am commuting instead of working from home) I really won't have justification (or $, thanks to college) to get something new. Unless of course the new Golf comes out... Decenber sign and drive might be better for that!

stickguy

@tjc, sat in the new Highlander this time. It was actually pretty nice. Seemed better than the last version. the GM "big" CUVs are also nice, since you like barges.

oldfarmer50

@breld said:
Well, the 335 is theoretically sold. The buyer from SC agreed to my counteroffer this evening and is planning a trip out here in two weeks to personally inspect it and arrange for transport.

Wow! That's amazing that someone would travel that distance for a car. I'd be afraid of so any things going wrong that I could never do that. Are BMW drivers different?

I'd be worried about someone waiting in the bushes to rob me as well.

How did you establish trust between yourself and the seller? How did you arrange payment? I'm really in awe of you pulling this off.

tjc78

@stickguy said:
tjc, sat in the new Highlander this time. It was actually pretty nice. Seemed better than the last version. the GM "big" CUVs are also nice, since you like barges.

Thanks! I'll try one out when the time comes. Owning a Toyota is hugely convenient with the dealer so close. I'm still having issues with the front end, so as of right now the Enclave is the front runner. Based on the January numbers it leases pretty well. The wife wants one bad, so that's a major factor too as she will be driving it more than me.

Michaell

@Stever@Edmunds said:
Shoot, just try for a press pass.

Hmm, I might have to try that.

stever

Just think of the swag if you can swing that.

Michaell

OK folks, looking for a little assistance here.

As you all know, I spend a few nights a week delivering pizza. I've been asked about costs associated with the job, so I've been collecting data since I got the Hyundai in November. I'm ready to put pencil to paper to see if I'm making any money at this.

Data I'm collecting:

Miles driven per shift

Money earned per shift (tips + mileage)

Gas costs

Insurance costs

Monthly payment

So - looking for advice as to how to tally it up.

My gas costs are about 11 cents per mile, and I'm earning about 85 cents a mile. For insurance, I'm thinking I'll take the total number of miles I drive, divide it into my monthly premium and add that to the running costs. Same for the payment.

Am I missing anything?? I know a few folks here keep detailed logs of their costs, so I'm hoping to get some guidance.

Thanks in advance.

stickguy

missing the big picture? While your calculation makes sense, I think the only part that is relevant is the variable component. In this case, gas costs.

reason I think this is that you are leasing the GT. So, your monthly cost for that is fixed (lease payment, insurance). Unless your insurance company will lower your rates if you quit, the car will cost you the same whether you deliver with it or leave it in the garage (I am assuming you are not going over the mileage limit, and will not have an additional cost like new tires by lease end).

Maybe I am missing what you are trying to accomplish?

au1994

@oldfarmer50 said:

I don't know that BMW drivers are that different. @Breld's 335i is a bit of a unicorn (M-Sport, stick and AWD) so if that is THE car someone has to have you are not going to find it on every corner.

To me its no different that someone going cross country to find a certain classic car that scratches their itch.

kyfdx

@stickguy said:
missing the big picture? While your calculation makes sense, I think the only part that is relevant is the variable component. In this case, gas costs.

reason I think this is that you are leasing the GT. So, your monthly cost for that is fixed (lease payment, insurance). Unless your insurance company will lower your rates if you quit, the car will cost you the same whether you deliver with it or leave it in the garage (I am assuming you are not going over the mileage limit, and will not have an additional cost like new tires by lease end).

Maybe I am missing what you are trying to accomplish?

Tax deduction?

Michaell

I hadn't thought about taxes.

And, stick, you're right - monthly payment and insurance certainly aren't going down if I quit.

So, it's just gas costs that are variable. Like I said, I've been averaging about 11 cents a mile for gas and earning about 85 cents a mile in tips. So, I'm coming out ahead.

With 5600 miles in just over 3 months, I'm gonna be WAY over on my mileage allotment after 3 years. Should be an interesting conversation with Hyundai if they want me to lease something else from them at that time. I'm thinking that I'll just buy it out so as to avoid the penalty.

Either way, I'm loving the car. Just wish I was getting better mileage. Just a tick under 27 MPG so far. Which is exactly the EPA city number on the sticker.

oldfarmer50

@Michaell@Edmunds said:
OK folks, looking for a little assistance here.

I'll assume this is for tax calculation.

Well, the IRS gives you a fixed per mile allowance for business use of a vehicle. Multiply that times the miles you drive on your job.

You can also add up all expenses--gas, insurance, lease payment, repairs--and divide by your business use. That's what I do for my farm truck. One caution, when you declare the % of use for business, estimate high. Once you say you are using your car say 50% for business it's almost impossible to get the IRS to accept anything more. Believe me, I know.

Keep all your receipts in case of audit.

If this is just for your own piece of mind just add up everything you spent as I said above and compare that to your total cash received in wages and tips. The only intangible would be to ask yourself if you would have the car at all if not for the pizza job.

oldfarmer50

@au1994 said:
To me its no different that someone going cross country to find a certain classic car that scratches their itch.

Oh, now I see. For a rare car it's different.

Michaell

@oldfarmer50 said:
If this is just for your own piece of mind just add up everything you spent as I said above and compare that to your total cash received in wages and tips. The only intangible would be to ask yourself if you would have the car at all if not for the pizza job.

I don't claim anything for taxes .. more for my own piece of mind.

As to your last statement - my other two jobs (IBM and Edmunds) I work from home, so I'm kinda like stickguy in that I have a car to run errands with during the day.

Thanks to all for the feedback .. from what I see, it looks like I'm ahead of the game based on my earnings per mile vs. cost per mile (gas). I'm averaging about $650-700 each month in tips + mileage, against less than $200/mo in gas.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming ... we're now up to 5 (?) punches for the year. Who is next?

breld

@au1994 said:
To me its no different that someone going cross country to find a certain classic car that scratches their itch.

Yup - this buyer from SC really wants the AWD, and it's been difficult to find that closer to where he lives. So yeah, you combine the AWD, manual trannie, m-sport package and exclusive color combo, and there are only so many out there. So if the buyer really wants/likes this combo...

You know what's really funny? I have yet to actually speak to this person - we've just been exchanging e-mails to work everything out. He had someone he met through a forum come and check out the car in person last week. He's now talking about just having it shipped out to him without coming out in person. So we're working out the logistics of that.

He said if I pay for the shipping up front and send him the car, he can then make arrangements to pay me back once he receives the car - I just have to give him my bank account information up front.

I'm just kidding.

jpp75

@nyccarguy said:
Here's a shot of my poor Prelude buried in the snow. That's not all from one day, but it is cumulative over the last week or so.

Wow, great pic! What a winter this has been.

xwesx

@Michaell@Edmunds said:
back to our regularly scheduled programming

Well, at least this isn't too ancient of history. I just can't keep up with you guys, only logging in every few days and whatnot!

I think I'd look at it as including incremental costs associated with the pizza delivery job. That surely includes fuel, but also maintenance costs associated with the delivery mileage, penalties on your lease if you exceed the mileage allotment, etc. And, if you primarily purchased the car on a job-related basis (isn't your "main" work based at home?), then it might not be far fetched to include the full cost of the vehicle (including insurance), less incremental costs associated with your other uses of the vehicle. In other words, prorate the entire vehicle cost by activity.

If you had purchased, your calculations might be a little different from the lease. I think depreciation is built into your monthly payments, so you shouldn't need to consider that separately.

As far as the data you're collecting, it seems spot on. Be sure to include maintenance/repair in that. Since those are periodic costs, I would also pro-rate those on a per-mile basis and work that into your cost-per-mile calculation (on top of gasoline). Things like wipers, bulbs, tires... estimate cost of replacement and replacement mileage, then prorate. In other words, you won't spend money on those things until some time in the future, but you're working them into the costs now as you use up the current equipment in order to recover the costs associated with the investment later on.

If you want to go a little deeper, you might consider opportunity costs related to your time....

Sandman6472

Since I was an independent contractor all last year and at one of my current gigs now, I plan to take mileage when I do our taxes. Since the wife is a CPA, I'll let you know how we figure my expenses out. Right now for 2014, I have a separate business credit card that I've been using for all business related expenses except the car insurance, which we paid from my pension account, and my new Cumberland Farms card which lowers the price/gallon by a dime but they deduct the cost right from my personal checking account which I use for business payments. Going to be interesting to see how much I really make after expenses are deducted...it does get me out of the house and I enjoy some of the folks I work with so still, a win/win here. Think I'd get depressed staying home as much as I did for those couple of years after I left the post office...better to get up and go to a job for me. But I just have to learn how to pull it back a bit and not hurt myself again...I tend to limp my way through work even when the chronic pain is overwhelming and I really need to just say no, stay home and relax.

Hit 3750 miles on the Tuscon today and have decided to wait till about 5k to do the first oil change/rotation even though the manual calls for7500...i feel that is a bit too long for the first change on a new vehicle. Not sure if they use special break in oil in the Tuscon like Honda did in the Civic. Any new Hyundai owners, what mileage did y'all do your first oil changes at?

The Sandman

stever

Honda adds moly to their break-in oil (supposedly) but I think that's really a ruse that Honda uses to keep owners from changing the oil early. My theory is that Honda figures a little extra wear right off the bat makes their engines last longer and run better.

Edmunds asked Blackstone about it a few years back:

Top 7 Urban Legends About Motor Oil

oldfarmer50

@Michaell@Edmunds said:

"...looks like I'm ahead of the game..."

If you just count gas you might be getting a skewed view. Take all costs related to the car and pro rate it for your job use.

oldfarmer50

@Stever@Edmunds said:
Honda adds moly to their break-in oil (supposedly) but I think that's

really a ruse that Honda uses to keep owners from changing the oil early. My theory is that Honda figures a little extra wear right off the bat makes their engines last longer and run better.

Edmunds asked Blackstone about it a few years back:

Top 7 Urban Legends About Motor Oil

Just saw an episode of Fast n' Loud where they rebuilt a Shelby Mustang engine. They used a break-in oil without enough zinc and the cam burned up in minutes.

Sandman6472

Well, still not convinced that I should go to 7500 for my first change and it is cheap insurance, so I think I'll go to 5k and then get 'er done. Have a coupon for a $14.99 one with a free rotation so think it's worth it. Eventually I'll do one at my Hyundai store but their prices right now are pretty outrageous and it doesn't include the rotation. Every so often they send a coupon for all this at a reasonable price so I'll do one once I get one. With the Accent they threw us a couple free ones but this time...nothing and I even asked about getting one. Guess they thought I paid a low enough price for their product but still, goodwill should've dictated a different course of action.

The Sandman

suydam

Oh I think most cars have been at 7500 for years now. My '01 Maxima had that schedule. It's still running beautifully with over 150k. With the new Hondas you wait till a little wrench shows up on the dash. Just had my first oil change at 8400 miles.

Sandman6472

Yes, I liked Honda's system when I had my Civic, they made the whole process very easy and a shame all the other manufacturers don't have the same system. The easier they make this stuff, the better for the consumer and it really takes all the guess work out of this stuff. Some things in life should be a no brainer...this is one of those things!

The Sandman

stickguy

sandy, the VW has a reminder, but the oil change interval is 10K or 1 year, whichever comes first. At least they pay for the first 2 of them! I agree with you though, I would not go that long. Our Acura (RDX) and former odyssey have the maintenance minder system, an both tended to hit 15% (time to change) at right about 7,500 miles. I do our Volvo I think at 5K, with the schedule maybe being 7,500 or 12 months (we would hit the time first anyway).

stickguy

Speaking of VW, the new Jetta is in the driveway. Picked it up tonight. superb buying experience. Not sure if the service department is any good, but the sales side is great. And heck, the service department is in the porsche building next door, so how bad can it be?

to the car, after an exhaustive demo from the salesdude, has a whole bunch of slick features, especially with the fancy touchscreen stereo and connectivity stuff. Paired right up, imported his phone book instantly, etc. Also set up the carnet (VW version of onstar). Cool ap he loaded on his phone too (you can see how much gas you have, and will guide you back to the car).

on the drive home, son said that it drove nice and really would run quick if you did not keep an eye on it. Quite peppy for a small engine that gets good MPG. Turns out too that the 1.8t made it on Ward's latest 10 best engine list. Only other normal gas engine was the Corvette motor.

Put the new monster mats (came with the car) in. They look good. Just need to finish tweaking settings, but pretty much good to go. Looks really sharp all cleaned up. Too bad it is not going to stay that way. But for now, very attractive. Can't wait to see the blue clean in sunlight (heck, I can't wait to see sunlight at this point!)

stickguy

To the numbers. Odd experience to me negotiating a lease. But, I could live with it (must have been not having to do the painful part of a delivery, giving them money!).

selling price was ~22.2K off of a 24.5K MSRP. residual of 54% (~$13,276) after 3/36 if he wants to buy it out. MF of .00034, so about .8%. Rolled all taxes, fees, etc. + 1st payment in, for $285/mo for 35 payments by the kid. Overall, we are happy. Maybe could have shopped the heck out of it and knocked a few bucks off, but we liked the place and wanted to buy there, and I was not putting more time into this!

only mop&glow he bit on was the tire and wheel protection. Given how bad the roads have gotten here, I don't blame him (there was an identical Jetta dropped off this AM with 2 blown tires, one peeled right off the rim. a good sales tool for this protection!) Most likely he won't come out ahead on this deal, but at least he does not have to worry about it, or be paranoid about every pothole.

stickguy

anyway, so far, very impressed with the Jetta. Making me antsy to see the Golf (and I will be getting a call as soon as one shows up!) I could enjoy driving one of these.

stever

@oldfarmer50, I've always enjoyed the debate that new motorcycle owners have. There's a pretty significant group of them that believe you should hop on the bike and ignore the manual, and aggressively break in the engine. No synthetics and change the oil four times in the first 1500 miles.

These days break-in is just done at the factory for most passenger cars and the owner's manuals often don't have any specific instructions, although some may tell you not to exceed the speed limit the first 1,000 miles or so. Factory builds and tolerances are probably a bit better than that bench rebuilt Shelby. Or they may have planned it that way for the plot.

corvette

After considering all possible options, including continuing with my current arrangement, as well as the 7-series, 5-series, and 3-series, I took delivery of a 1-series this morning. No sport package on this one, but it has an upgraded seat, two great cup holders, automatic transmission, and an electronic clutch system:

stickguy

what would you do with one of those? Seems vaguely familiar. Maybe you drive it around on the snow outside your house?