Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

ab348

We need to get @fintail in here, stat, for an intervention.

stever

@henryn said:
The recent trend towards what I call "rubber band tires" has gotten completely out of hand,

Another day, another flat. My third since I got this van in July. (One was just a slow leak due to salty rims). Picked up a nail sometime and the TPMS light came on first thing this morning, but made it 7 miles to a shop okay.

I'm gonna rethink runflats.

nyccarguy

@roadburner‌

After my wife's Pilot is paid off (approximately 18 months) , I will be able to afford something for myself with (ARGH, ARGH, ARGH) more power! I'm sure a WRX would fit the bill

Mr_Shiftright

Hmm...that's going to be hard, but I'll try. I can't fault the miles or the condition, and while we don't know final price we can assume the usual massive deterioration for a 13 year old AMG S class--and this car will dance around any similar class BMW, and is no typical clumsy 2-ton porker (although it does weigh over 2 tons) ...so that leaves few areas of discouragement......gas mileage? Probably no better than 16 MPG on a good day and 12 if you're frisky. Not so bad, really. Repairs? Ah, there's my ace in the hole.

@qbrozen said:
Somebody talk me out of this

nyccarguy

Interesting point brought up by kyfdx & oldfarmer. So the base 2.0i CVT (impreza) I drove last night stickers for 20,190. It has all the basics: Power windows & locks, keyless entry, AWD, & 15" Steel Wheels with covers.

Now one step up is the 2.0i Premium CVT. MSRP of $22,090. So for and extra $2K you get 16" Alloys, Cruise Control, & an adjustable center arm rest, & heated seats (that's a $500 option included in the $2K.

I do use the cruise control so the premium model is most likely the way to go:)

Edit: Hmmm. Evil hosts just posted higher residuals and lower money factors for the "el cheapo" model. Things are starting to look up.

Michaell

@nyccarguy said:
Interesting point brought up by kyfdx & oldfarmer. So the base 2.0i CVT (impreza) I drove last night stickers for 20,190. It has all the basics: Power windows & locks, keyless entry, AWD, & 15" Steel Wheels with covers.

Now one step up is the 2.0i Premium CVT. MSRP of $22,090. So for and extra $2K you get 16" Alloys, Cruise Control, & an adjustable center arm rest, & heated seats (that's a $500 option included in the $2K.

I do use the cruise control so the premium model is most likely the way to go:)

Edit: Hmmm. Evil hosts just posted higher residuals and lower money factors for the "el cheapo" model. Things are starting to look up.

"Evil Hosts"? We're just answering the questions posed to us .. no judgement, no opinions (unless asked, of course)

henryn

Motor Authority, dateline Aug 28, 2014

>

2015 Ford Mustang Production Starts At Flat Rock Plant

>

Production of the all-new 2015 Ford Mustang got underway today at Ford Motor Company’s [NYSE:F] Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan. That means the cars will soon be heading out to dealers, where you’ll finally be able to book a test drive. Sales of the 2015 Mustang commence this fall but the very first Mustang GT has already been bought—selling for $300,000 at a charity auction back in January.

roadburner

I stopped by the BMW dealer yesterday; they had a CPO 2011 E92 335i. 7400 miles. Manual gearbox and every available option EXCEPT THE M SPORT OR SPORT PACKAGE!!!

What kind of idiot options a car that way?

I walked up to it, looked in and saw the base seats and immediately walked away. A green pea saw me and the following conversation ensued...

GP: Anything I can help you with? Any questions I can answer?

Me: Thank you, but I'm a repeat customer of Mr. XYZ; I liked the car until I saw it didn't have the SP.

GP: But it only has 7400 miles on it.

Me: That still doesn't turn it into an SP.

GP(in a dejected tone): I guess you're right.

fintail

Engine and transmission will be very solid if maintained - same unit from a period E55. But the rest of the car could be a money pit - airmatic and lots of electronics. You'd have to be brave. It's also at a location and age where some older MBs can get rust if neglected, so it needs inspection. I wouldn't touch it without a PPI from a competent shop.

@qbrozen said:
Somebody talk me out of this

jpp75

@stickguy said:
NYC, what I talked you into it? I should just hire you to find my screamer. Heck, do it in rockland since I am up there for the week, and likely back quite often for a while.

I started looking at some used options. 2012 fusion SEL, all loaded up, miles in the 20s, CPO for probably around 17k. Just an option. And with lots of goodies.

Need to do some looking this week.

I always liked that generation of the Fusion, I drove several on long trips as rentals. They are no frills but competent and honest. It's definitely a lot of car for the money, I'd pick one over a Camry for sure.

slorenzen

I thought of Andre or OldFarmer for this one:

http://eugene.craigslist.org/cto/4635930391.html

ab348

@slorenzen said:
I thought of Andre or OldFarmer for this one:

http://eugene.craigslist.org/cto/4635930391.html

That looks quite nice for the asking price.

roadburner

I could see myself driving this sled...

stickguy

Q, the focus doesn't resonate with me and fiesta way too small.. Since potentially my daughter could drive this down 95 from Philly to NC I want something a little more substantial.

stickguy

Bradd, the new imprezza is nice. I parked next to a steel blue last gen legacy yesterday. I really like those. A 13 CPO could work.

roadburner

Anybody fancy the world's ugliest Bimmer?

corvette

@roadburner said:
Anybody fancy the world's ugliest Bimmer?

Come on, RB, it's RWD. Your favorite!

oldfarmer50

Talk me out of it...

350 hp BMW 7 series killer. Expensive to fix. Gas guzzler.

In other words....buy it.

oldfarmer50

@henryn said:

oldfarmer50

@slorenzen said:
I thought of Andre or OldFarmer for this one:

http://eugene.craigslist.org/cto/4635930391.html

Wow, hard to imagine they ever made bumpers that big. My Mark VIII is really just a tarted up T-bird so I'll pass.

oldfarmer50

@roadburner said:
I could see myself driving this sled...

Possible collectible seeing that Ford discontinued the Boss. How would you verify that those 29k miles weren't all on the track?

roadburner

@oldfarmer50 said:
Possible collectible seeing that Ford discontinued the Boss. How would you verify that those 29k miles weren't all on the track?

I really wouldn't care all that much; track time mainly affects the brakes and tires. If my 1995 four cylinder BMW can take a few dozen track days and still be problem free at 135k miles then that Boss should be more than fine...

fintail

My mom had one like that when I was a little kid. It was white on white. Very nice when new, but kids, lots of outside parking, and malaise quality didn't help it live long. I know it was off the road by 1985, given to a family friend who wanted the rear end or engine block maybe. I think a timing chain or transmission made my dad give up.

That one does look nice for the money. Three grand, if you're into land yachts, why not?

@slorenzen said:
I thought of Andre or OldFarmer for this one:

http://eugene.craigslist.org/cto/4635930391.html

nyccarguy

@stickguy‌

If I'm going for a punch, I'll go "all in" and buy new. Besides, the price delta between a CPO 13 and a new 14 can't be that much.

stickguy

@nyccarguy said:
stickguy‌

If I'm going for a punch, I'll go "all in" and buy new. Besides, the price delta between a CPO 13 and a new 14 can't be that much.

Makes sense, but I gave not been able to shop yet. Maybe I take a mental health break and sneak out for a bit tomorrow.

My issue with new vs. used at the budget, is equipment. Basically a strippo vs. loaded, plus still costs less.

nyccarguy

I'll take a look. The 2.0i Sport Limited is pretty nice (leather, hot seats, moonroof, 17" gunmetal colored alloys…)

Mr_Shiftright

If that Ford 302 were really abused on the track its drivetrain would be dead already. My friend races his newish Corvettes (Silver State Classic is his favorite) and he's blown up 2 engines in the past 3 years and he's working on the 3rd. It doesn't sound all that good.

Mr_Shiftright

Once again I'm taking the vicarious pleasure of spending other people's money. This time helping a friend buy a 2013 Mini Cooper. Super clean car, ex-rental, runs great, looks great. The biggest surprise, though, is that they offered her $6K trade for her 2006 Scion xA, with broken outside mirror and banged up rear bumper. I was really surprised, given that we hammered pretty good on the asking price of the MINI. My only conclusion is that they got into the MINI really really cheap.

breld

nyc - just make sure you get some good seat time in varying conditions (including some inclines) on that Impreza. I took a good hard look at them a while back and I just remember one instance during a test drive where I was coming from a stop, turning left to a moderate incline, and the car really struggled. It was quite disconcerting.

I later test drove the Forester with the 2.5l and (not surprisingly) had no such issues. A base model Forester or Legacy may be a nice upgrade.

I do like the Impreza body style though - too bad there isn't an engine upgrade for you to consider. Oh wait...

breld

I want this bad, but don't have the appetite for spending the money right now.

ZHP Vert

Not priced all that bad considering the miles and presumably good condition - it's at the dealership where three of our BMWs have come from. If they price gets reduced to somewhere in the $15k's, I'd be tempted, but I don't think it will last that long (its' a one-price dealership).

Mr_Shiftright

Seems to me you could buy a "normal" 330ci for $12K and just add a few of the sport package options that aren't cosmetic, like a short shifter, really good shocks and bushings, special alignment specs, etc for a lot less than the $5K premium the dealer is asking for the ZHP. Not even sure I'd want a short shifter on a car like this. They can be very annoying in traffic. And I'm sure the governor could be disabled by a tune shop.

kyfdx

@Mr_Shiftright said:
Seems to me you could buy a "normal" 330ci for $12K and just add a few of the sport package options that aren't cosmetic, like a short shifter, really good shocks and bushings, special alignment specs, etc for a lot less than the $5K premium the dealer is asking for the ZHP. Not even sure I'd want a short shifter on a car like this. They can be very annoying in traffic. And I'm sure the governor could be disabled by a tune shop

As the owner of a ZHP, I'll disagree. Konis, CABs, and alignment came to $1600 with labor on my car. You still wouldn't have the 18" wheels, sport exhaust, ZHP specific body kit, or short shift and 10 extra HP. (and a bunch of other small things).

Actually, what's nice about that vert is the low miles and stick. You'd be hard pressed to find that in a sport pkg, let alone a ZHP. Very few stick shift 330 convertibles, and '06 is the newest one you can get.

That doesn't make it worth the price, but it's pretty hard to find, if that's what you want.

breld

If I could find a "normal" sport 330ci with a manual for $12k, I could be pretty happy with that, and wouldn't bother to add any of the enhancements to mimic a ZHP. In fact, I was quite fond of my '04 330ci with sport I had purchased last year for $12.5k - but things changed and I'd want a manual now (not having one at all in the fleet anymore).

It seems you have to be a little lucky to get a nice ZHP for a fair price - there are owners out there who aren't part of the enthusiast group and simply ask "book value." This dealership certainly knows what they have and are asking all the money for it - and will probably get it.

kyfdx

@breld said:
If I could find a "normal" sport 330ci with a manual for $12k, I could be pretty happy with that, and wouldn't bother to add any of the enhancements to mimic a ZHP. In fact, I was quite fond of my '04 330ci with sport I had purchased last year for $12.5k - but things changed and I'd want a manual now (not having one at all in the fleet anymore).

It seems you have to be a little lucky to get a nice ZHP for a fair price - there are owners out there who aren't part of the enthusiast group and simply ask "book value." This dealership certainly knows what they have and are asking all the money for it - and will probably get it.

Yeah. Super low miles on that one. Someone will pony up for it.

nyccarguy

Thanks for the tip @breld. I'll definitely take the car for a longer spin.

Mr_Shiftright

Just put better brakes on it--that's worth 50 HP

@kyfdx said:

nyccarguy

Now I'm in trouble. In addition to putting some emails out to a few Subaru dealers, I started checking out SWAP-A-LEASE. I found a 2012 MazdaSpeed 3 (with the grin the @roadburner detests). Black/Black currently with 45K miles - cork sport intake & manga flow exhaust. The guy has a $345 payment that he's throwing a $3100 incentive at to make the payment $245 per month. It's a long lease (31 months left) with just under 1000 miles per month to use. End of lease buyout is less than $13K.

roadburner

Now THAT would be fun, nyc...

oldfarmer50

@nyccarguy said:
Now I'm in trouble. In addition to putting some emails out to a few Subaru dealers, I started checking out SWAP-A-LEASE. I found a 2012 MazdaSpeed 3 (with the grin the roadburner detests). Black/Black currently with 45K miles - cork sport intake & manga flow exhaust. The guy has a $345 payment that he's throwing a $3100 incentive at to make the payment $245 per month. It's a long lease (31 months left) with just under 1000 miles per month to use. End of lease buyout is less than $13K.

Forgive me for sounding like a broken record but how would you know that the current driver didn't beat the car to death and that's why he wants out?
I'd worry that at return I'd get socked with all sorts of charges for excessive wear.

kyfdx

@nyccarguy said:
Now I'm in trouble. In addition to putting some emails out to a few Subaru dealers, I started checking out SWAP-A-LEASE. I found a 2012 MazdaSpeed 3 (with the grin the roadburner detests). Black/Black currently with 45K miles - cork sport intake & manga flow exhaust. The guy has a $345 payment that he's throwing a $3100 incentive at to make the payment $245 per month. It's a long lease (31 months left) with just under 1000 miles per month to use. End of lease buyout is less than $13K.

How can you have a 3 year old car with 31 months left on the lease? This sounds like a bad deal, in the long run. Out of warranty at some point?

jayrider

@nyccarguy said:
Now I'm in trouble. In addition to putting some emails out to a few Subaru dealers, I started checking out SWAP-A-LEASE. I found a 2012 MazdaSpeed 3 (with the grin the roadburner detests). Black/Black currently with 45K miles - cork sport intake & manga flow exhaust.

You don't make those modifications to drive to church on Sunday.

roadburner

I wouldn't be worried if the only mods are the intake and exhaust; you are only talking 280-290 hp. The chances of blowing an MS3 motor increase exponentially once you get into larger turbos and downpipes, meth injection, and ECU tunes that were developed by amateurs.

kyfdx

Opinions needed.. anyone got a spare opinion?

http://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/19937/general/x/first-car-under-10k

oldfarmer50

@kyfdx said:
Opinions needed.. anyone got a spare opinion?

http://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/19937/general/x/first-car-under-10k

First, I'd like to know where a 16yo comes up with $10k.

Putting that aside I'd say an old Mustang for the sports car. A 2005 V6 manual should be right around his price.

He'd be hard pressed to find a Wrangler made in this century for under $10k but I see some late 90s Jeeps on Huston CL for $8-9k.

He could get a Geo Tracker/Sidekick for about half that.

http://houston.craigslist.org/cto/4613501159.html

slorenzen

@oldfarmer50 said:

Plus, he said reliable.

Never seen a reliable Jeep, even newer ones that don't get abused off road.

I agree about the V-6 mustang...

roadburner

I recommended that he buy a Mustang GT and save up to add a supercharger and Nitrous.

Just kidding.

slorenzen

@roadburner said:
I recommended that he buy a Mustang GT and save up to add a supercharger and Nitrous.

Just kidding.

I'd hate to see his insurance quotes on a car like that...

roadburner

I stopped by the local VW dealer and, as I had read, for some reason VW won't be offering the Performance Pack on US GTIs until December or so. Based on the reviews I am a bit intrigued, but I want to spend some serious seat time in one before I consider one. I still think it would be primarily a lateral move if I bought one to replace the MS3. It would be nice to get some back-to-back track time in both, but I know that isn't going to happen...

stever

@oldfarmer50 said:
I'd say an old Mustang for the sports car

Don't tell us - tell him.

(well, it's okay to tell us too. )

roadburner

I recommended an older Miata; inexpensive to buy/own/maintain and a true sports car to boot.