Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

rayainsw

Some days I am just tired of being an Adult. Trying to always Do What's Right.

The only BMW M235i in the Atlanta area is calling to me...

= Ray

Resistance may be futile......

roadburner

rayainsw said:

Some days I am just tired of being an Adult. Trying to always Do What's Right.

The only BMW M235i in the Atlanta area is calling to me...

= Ray

Resistance may be futile......

I really like the M235i, but I'd have to order one to get a car I could actually see owning(sunroof delete, port-installed LSD, etc,). And that whole diff issue sticks in my craw. Why should I have to spend nearly $3k for one when they are standard or available for much less on the GTI, Miata, MS3, Mustang GT- to name but a few?

And after I've spent close to $50k I'd only have a car that my MS3 would still stick with once things get rolling.

Methinks if I do buy something I'm either going old school European(Jensen Interceptor, 928S4, M6), Redneck(Challenger SRT8), or true German Sports Car(Cayman S)

corvette

roadburner said:

And that whole diff issue sticks in my craw. Why should I have to spend nearly $3k for one when they are standard or available for much less on the GTI, Miata, MS3, Mustang GT- to name but a few?

Because they're almost as woeful as Porsche with the options list. Comfort Access is still an option, even though it's standard on almost every Nissan, Toyota, and many other marques at this point (even VW is making it standard on a lot of trim levels). Heck, they charge $400 for a car alarm on a 3-series. "Enhanced" Bluetooth is an upgrade.

Just poking around on the Build Your Own tool, why does the X5 need three different colors of black, two silvers, two greys, and two whites? I remember when they offered real colors on the E39 and E46.

sb55

I posted last week that I got a new truck. Here is a picture: (it isn't really as dark as the picture)

fintail

Are you thinking of buying it at lease end?

Oxidized trim (anodized metal?) seems to be an issue on some cars. Is yours a German built Regal? I see oxidized trim around the windows of 80s era MBs and some 00s+ model BMWs. Maybe it's a German supplier thing.

ab348 said:

fintail said:

etting the car. They know where I am. They are just worthless at dealing properly with customers. Amazing, really.

As a further illustration: about 5 weeks ago I took the Regal to them with a question about some hazing on the bright trim around the windows. Thanks to the internet I was aware that this was a known problem on some 2011s like mine. Their warranty guy looked at it and was not optimistic. But he elevated to GM and they agreed to replace them, imagine that. Parts ordered.

After 5 weeks I had not heard boo so I called and left a message. I got a call back saying the parts were ordered. D'oh, I knew that. Still waiting, not ETA, no follow-up. Who knows, maybe I'll get them for Christmas.

xwesx

*sigh*

I really need to stop hanging around this forum. It is difficult to be content with my own cars' faults!

ab348

fintail said:

Are you thinking of buying it at lease end?

Oxidized trim (anodized metal?) seems to be an issue on some cars. Is yours a German built Regal? I see oxidized trim around the windows of 80s era MBs and some 00s+ model BMWs. Maybe it's a German supplier thing.

Yes, I probably will buy it. It has been a pretty good car and only has about 24K miles on it. Aside from a creaky center console it's been fairly trouble-free, although I am keeping an eye on the driver's seat bottom cushion where I just noticed a seam is starting to look a bit funky. The buyout is $14K and change, and these are going for $18K-$20K on used car lots up here. If the dealer was to offer me something I might be interested of course, but they don't seem too enthused. So I am thinking I'll buy it, drive it over the winter, and next spring/summer see what I might want. I still would like a Benz, maybe the new C-class, or an E-class, though I am not a huge fan of the E's styling. With a new E coming for 2016 maybe I would be advised to wait.

Yes, it is anodized trim. I guess it is cheaper than stainless but I hate anodized aluminum. It has spots on it that look almost like detergent spots, but they won't come off. It is a Russelsheim-built car so maybe the Germans have trouble with that.

corvette

Nice truck, sb55! The cabs on the extended cab models have gotten big enough that I don't see a huge need for a crew cab, especially now that they have forward-swinging doors. I wish manufacturers would offer the extended cab with the short (5.5') box to make it more maneuverable (for people who use it as a "city truck" and don't haul a lot of cargo). I think Ford offered that at one time but doesn't any longer. BTW, I love your garage doors!

ab348, that sounds like a crazy low lease buyout number, but the numbers may be different in Canada. For instance, I know from watching Top Gear that the depreciation curves are far steeper in the United Kingdom than they are in the US.

fintail

That is a low buyout. I don't even know what it is for my car, but I am really trying to not get attached, so I think letting it go might be right, unless it was crazy cheap. It will be well under 20K miles, but oh well. It'll be a nice CPO car for someone else, and maybe next time around, I'll get an even better deal in return for producing a nice used car for the MB lot

I am not sure if the next E will be model year 16 or 17 - I haven't seen any mules of it yet. If it is out in 16, that might be a European launch, which tends to be many months before NA. I'd expect it to have styling derived from C and S - that seems to be the new theme. There will be blowout leases on the last of the W212s, whenever that line ends. I've already seen 2014 C leases on TV for $299.

The spots are exactly what I have seen on those MBs and BMWs. They are impossible to remove - you have to refinish or replace the metal.

I think Canadian resale values as a percentage are similar, with higher prices overall. I've noticed the steep depreciation curve in the UK, too - after several years cars depreciate to nothing, where here 10 year old popular models can still carry crazy prices.

ab348 said:

Yes, I probably will buy it. It has been a pretty good car and only has about 24K miles on it. Aside from a creaky center console it's been fairly trouble-free, although I am keeping an eye on the driver's seat bottom cushion where I just noticed a seam is starting to look a bit funky. The buyout is $14K and change, and these are going for $18K-$20K on used car lots up here. If the dealer was to offer me something I might be interested of course, but they don't seem too enthused. So I am thinking I'll buy it, drive it over the winter, and next spring/summer see what I might want. I still would like a Benz, maybe the new C-class, or an E-class, though I am not a huge fan of the E's styling. With a new E coming for 2016 maybe I would be advised to wait.

Yes, it is anodized trim. I guess it is cheaper than stainless but I hate anodized aluminum. It has spots on it that look almost like detergent spots, but they won't come off. It is a Russelsheim-built car so maybe the Germans have trouble with that.

ab348

I lucked into this lease. In addition to that buyout figure, it had a 0% rate and they started out with $5K on the hood which I got them to increase. At the time (Oct/11) you have to remember that GM had a ton of leftover 2011 Regals on the lot - they had an extended model year and after the initial buyers were satisfied they just did not sell. I was the beneficiary of that. I actually thought my buyout was $17K until I pulled my file out recently and looked at it. I must have remembered a number they offered on a 24-month deal. A nice surprise.

fintail

Sounds like an amazing deal. I remember I rented a Regal in 2011 - not a loaded car, but a nice enough machine, and I remember getting compliments on it - not something usual for a rented Buick. I suspect on new ones, they'd have to subsidize the residual value pretty strongly to match your deal.

ab348 said:

I lucked into this lease. A nice surprise.

oldfarmer50

fintail said:

I've been getting emails from MB about pull-forward, today I got an unsolicited letter from a third party company about arranging financing if I want to buy at lease end. I guess the time is coming...

If this was local, I'd seriously be looking at it

$18k for 141,000 miles? What am I missing? Some sort of rare classic?

oldfarmer50

qbrozen said:

We've already been getting trade-in letters from our Chrysler dealer. I think we've had the van a whole 3 months.

We get solicitations to trade my wife's PT Cruiser every few weeks because they are in "great demand". I'm happy to hear that.

kyfdx

oldfarmer50 said:

fintail said:

I've been getting emails from MB about pull-forward, today I got an unsolicited letter from a third party company about arranging financing if I want to buy at lease end. I guess the time is coming...

If this was local, I'd seriously be looking at it

$18k for 141,000 miles? What am I missing? Some sort of rare classic?

Yes... very rare. Porsche engine.

oldfarmer50

kyfdx said:

oldfarmer50 said:

fintail said:

I've been getting emails from MB about pull-forward, today I got an unsolicited letter from a third party company about arranging financing if I want to buy at lease end. I guess the time is coming...

If this was local, I'd seriously be looking at it

$18k for 141,000 miles? What am I missing? Some sort of rare classic?

Yes... very rare. Porsche engine.

Thanks for explaining that.

My wife asked me again last night when I was getting "your car" meaning the Mustang. That sounds like a green light to me. She actually seemed disappointed when I told her they weren't really in the dealers yet.

Now I'm worried, this is too easy.

stickguy

Sell that farm and get to florida already. Can unload the fleet before you go and drive the mustang. And buy a new fleet when you arrive.

graphicguy

rayainsw said:

Some days I am just tired of being an Adult. Trying to always Do What's Right.

The only BMW M235i in the Atlanta area is calling to me...

= Ray

Resistance may be futile......

Ray.....let me live vicariously through you. Buy it.

That's one of the two cars on my short list if I'm ever in the market, again!

rayainsw

graphicguy - 'Ray.....let me live vicariously through you. Buy it.'

Sure. I live to serve...

= Ray

Still considering the current offer - as my 'Thank you for driving our 4 series' test drive coupon expires in a couple of weeks...

Mr_Shiftright

you're missing the joy of putting a permanent open draincock on your checkbook.

qbrozen

So I wasn't really liking the odds of getting the Fit in the exact color I wanted, so I decided to go over to the dealer again and look at the colors that he could get for me, which were red, black, or silver. I did like the way it looked in red, so I took it. Will be picking it up tomorrow morning.

laurasdada

Now I'm worried, this is too easy.


Careful, could be a trap. My wife encouraged my purchase of my Jag XK, never expecting me to actually buy one. I did and the negative comments never stopped...

ab348

fintail said:

Sounds like an amazing deal. I remember I rented a Regal in 2011 - not a loaded car, but a nice enough machine, and I remember getting compliments on it - not something usual for a rented Buick. I suspect on new ones, they'd have to subsidize the residual value pretty strongly to match your deal.

No doubt. I was hoping that maybe they would try to unload one of the few CTS or ATS models in their inventory with a sweet deal. None of the ones they have really interest me - all in dull colors with black interiors, ugh - but if the deal was great, maybe. The Regal came to me when I wasn't really actively shopping for a new car. I happened to see it sitting on their lot one day and had never noticed it there before. I got out to look at it and liked what I saw - it being a Turbo, and the colors were right. When I drove it I liked it, and when I sat down to talk numbers the deal was really good. Bought it without a whole lot of thinking about it and it worked out well, except for the dealer experience since.

kyfdx

qbrozen said:

So I wasn't really liking the odds of getting the Fit in the exact color I wanted, so I decided to go over to the dealer again and look at the colors that he could get for me, which were red, black, or silver. I did like the way it looked in red, so I took it. Will be picking it up tomorrow morning.

Nice.. looking for a full report.

roadburner

The CPO Buick GS I mentioned months ago is still nailed to the Buick dealer's lot- 2012, 22k miles $24,125...

Nice car, but way too big and slow for me...

jayrider

qbrozen said:

So I wasn't really liking the odds of getting the Fit in the exact color I wanted, so I decided to go over to the dealer again and look at the colors that he could get for me, which were red, black, or silver. I did like the way it looked in red, so I took it. Will be picking it up tomorrow morning.

When I bought my 92 Plymouth Sundance, the dealer had 5 identically equipped cars on the lot. I drove all 5 and the red one shifted and braked way better than the other 4. That is the one I bought and it was fine for 133k miles. Back then, there was very little consistency in builds -- some cars were great and some weren't. I also never trusted the dealer to correct any drive issues after I bought. May not be a problem with a Honda in 2014 but it sure was for Chrysler in 1992.

nyccarguy

"We have clearance Clarence". "Roger. Roger."

My little sister spoke to her friend at Subaru Corporate today. So apparently I'm getting a good deal, so my price stands. The car they got for me has a rear bumper appliqué, splash guards, auto dimming mirror with Compass, & a cargo net which they are throwing in. I'm happy with the deal I'm getting, buying from a great dealership, an easy to work with salesman, & it looks like "new car day" will be Saturday afternoon. I'm so excited!

oldfarmer50

stickguy said:

Sell that farm and get to florida already. Can unload the fleet before you go and drive the mustang. And buy a new fleet when you arrive.

You're reading my mind. Wife just told me her sister and husband are selling their house and moving to Orlando only 75 mikes from where I want to go.

Write me a check and I'm outta here. Write it big enough and you can have the fleet.

oldfarmer50

laurasdada said:

Now I'm worried, this is too easy.


Careful, could be a trap. My wife encouraged my purchase of my Jag XK, never expecting me to actually buy one. I did and the negative comments never stopped...

I don't know if I mentioned it here but in an earlier Mustang discussion she stated that if I got to buy a $35k car she got to do whatever she wanted including getting a boyfriend on the side.

Maybe she has one picked out.

stickguy

my wife kept telling me to spend the "big money" when I was agonizing on getting a 5 series back in 2001. My desire for the car fought hard against my "puritan heritage" (aka I'm cheap). I think she just wanted to stop hearing about it. plus she really wanted the car!

either that, or she knew I would back out, and it was her way of making sure I couldn't blame her!

rny421

oldfarmer50 said:

I don't know if I mentioned it here but in an earlier Mustang discussion she stated that if I got to buy a $35k car she got to do whatever she wanted including getting a boyfriend on the side.

Maybe she has one picked out.

Sounds like a win-win? You can get a Mustang, and a new girlfriend!
Completely kidding! Isn't there almost always a catch when a spouse agrees to you an expensive new toy or car?

stickguy

bought some new cabin air filters today for my TL (I know, odd since I plan to put it for sale this weekend!). That was the one thing flagged on my recent condition checklist. And until that, I was under the impression for some reason that my car did not have them.

so, the ones in there have been in for at least 6 years. plus however long they were in before I bought the car (I hope at this point they are not original 15 YO ones!). My wife and daughter always complained the car smelled a little. Considering since I have had it it spent a lot of time outside, and 3 years parked under trees when my son had it at school, I suspect there is a lot of crap trapped in that system.

who knows what mess I find when I open that baby up. though being cheap, I may just vacuum out the cavity, and bang the dirt out of the old ones, and stick them back in. Toss a little baking soda on maybe. Will have to see how they look.

corvette

I'm betting they will look pretty rough after six years. IMO, the 15-20k intervals specified by a lot of manufacturers are a little conservative, but once they start to clog, things get exponentially worse.

nyccarguy

"Yeah I'll pay your cab fare home. You can even wear my best cologne. Just don't be here in the mornin when I wake up."

The professionals have penned adjectives about BMWs so much over the past 3 decades that I'd be hard pressed to use one without violating some copyright law. So much so that the writers & editors have been accused of "being on Munich's payroll" on many occasions. We've all seen the ads touting THE ULTIMATE DRIVING MACHINE. Besides being Chronic Car Buyers, we're also car nuts. Off the top of my head, I can think of 5 (me, graphicguy, roadburner, rayainsw, & breld) of us in our group either own or owned some form of an E90 3 series.

Even though I leased my 2011 E90 338xi for only 2 1/2 years, I loved every second of it. There is just so much to love about this car. The perfectly weighted (heavy) and very communicative steering. I love the way the motor pulls and doesn't have a "dead" or "flat" spot.

The car's perfect balance, sophisticated suspension tuning, & RWD chassis were always willing participants whether I was bombing the back roads or just wanting to see how fast I can take an off ramp.

I've long said the the "B" in BMW stands for brakes. I think every country should sign a law into place to have BMW design & manufacture brakes & braking systems for every single car in production.

The AWD coupled with DSC (dynamic stability control) worked so well & was completely transparent that I never knew when the front wheels had power being sent their way.

The creature features were awesome. The auto climate control that was "set it & forget it.". The heated seats & heated steering wheel got warm quick and kept me toasty and comfortable on pre sunrise winter mornings when temps here were in the single digits. The swiveling "daylight bright" Bi-Xenon headlights were fantastic.

While far from the fastest car on the road, my 328xi made every singe drive fun & entertaining. I even dig the car's sexy and elegant styling.

There were a few things I didn't like. A NAV system that would not get me to the exact house I needed, a trunk latch that took close to 2 years to fix, & a TPMS that just said "low tire" while my wife's Pilot tells the exact PSI of each tire.

I do miss my E90. It is gone, but will never be forgotten.

corvette

Spot-on, nyccarguy. I also previously owned an E90 2006 325i with the Sport Package and a manual.

au1994

corvette said:

Spot-on, nyccarguy. I also previously owned an E90 2006 325i with the Sport Package and a manual.

Had to E92 prior to my F30 and yes, that is a spot on review. E9X was a great series.

stickguy

Speaking of gas (were we?) paid less than $3.00 last night with my Exxon card discount. Citgo was $2.97.9 per the sign. Good times!

But darn, biggest grade spread I ever saw. RUG was 3.01. Mid grade was 3.59, and premium was 3.79. Very odd.

graphicguy

roadburner said:

The CPO Buick GS I mentioned months ago is still nailed to the Buick dealer's lot- 2012, 22k miles $24,125...

Nice car, but way too big and slow for me...

Would it still be way too big and slow for you if it was $19,999?

Sounds like the dealer put too much into it and is holding out hope for someone to miraculously fall in love with it.

roadburner

corvette said:

Spot-on, nyccarguy. I also previously owned an E90 2006 325i with the Sport Package and a manual.

Maybe I'd feel differently if my wife's E90 was an M Sport with three pedals, but it's usually the last car I pick when I want to go for a drive. In hot summer weather it moves up one spot because the '02 lacks A/C.
Not to say that it's a bad car- far from it, but nothing about it makes me want to drive it.

rayainsw

re: BMW

The M235i is the one that checks most all of the important boxes, for me.

I have an appt. for Friday PM - to see if a deal can be reached.

= Ray

We shall see.....

qbrozen

Fit is in the garage now. Drive home was just fine. It is a pretty pleasant car. A bit noisy at highway speeds, but that's certainly not a surprise. Pairing the phone was a breeze and it worked flawlessly all the way home. Drove about 35 miles before the gas gauge dropped off the full line. It is a comfortable car and has a lot of great features for $16k.

Dealer, of course, tried to push all kinds of add-ons. The extended warranty was her big sell. That dropped from $2400 to $1800 real quick, but I was not at all interested anyway. I at least felt compelled to let her know that the 6-yr warranty on my Mustang was far less than that. She said "well, Honda parts are more expensive." Really? ummm... yeah, no. My reply was "I have no idea why that would be true with both being made in Mexico, but whatever." (although I know the stang isn't from Mexico, but I more wanted to make the point that Honda isn't exactly an exotic import.)

Hopefully all goes well tomorrow. Buyer for the Benz is supposed to meet me at the train station (where I already left the Benz before driving the Fit home today), and an inspector is coming for the Leaf in the afternoon.

breld

Great long-term wrap-up on the E90 NYC. Wife and I had three of them - her '08 328xi sedan (sport, auto) and then our "twins" - my 335xi m-sport manual and her 328xi m-sport wagon manual. We were just reminiscing about her wagon on the way into work this morning. She likes the newer tech stuff in her GTI, but I she's definitely feeling the nostalgia (if not a bit of remorse) for her wagon.

The nice thing is there are a lot of used E90's out there that will just get more and more affordable. A good thing since nice E46's are getting scarce.

breld

rayainsw said:

re: BMW

The M235i is the one that checks most all of the important boxes, for me.

I have an appt. for Friday PM - to see if a deal can be reached.

= Ray

We shall see.....

Ooh! Fun! Good luck.

roadburner

Want: 1985 Alpina B7

breld

Congrats on the Fit Q!

breld

Don't know much about these - no doubt some of you (roadburner) can weigh in on it.

M roadster

Not sure how interested I am - would probably prefer a 330ci with its rear seats. The Z3 looks a little rough, and this isn't exactly at a BMW dealership. But the miles are nice.

breld

I'm picking up these wheels this evening for the wife's GTI.

GTI Wheels

I much prefer the look of these (on certain trim levels from the previous gen) to the more cartoon-like stock ones.

Michaell

Sales story by proxy ....

Was seeing my family physician a couple weeks ago and mentioned that I do some work here at Edmunds helping folks obtain lease numbers and reviewing deals.

Out of the blue last week I get an email from him with a couple of attachments. He was looking at leasing either an A6 or A7 TDI Prestige, but the quote was almost $1200/mo. (!)

Reviewed the deal and found that the numbers were pretty spot on ... base MF, but not much of a discount from sticker.

I wrote up a somewhat detailed reply, telling him that Audi's tend not to lease as well as other brands, explaining how MSDs work to lower his MF and payment.

Today, he emails me about the Infiniti Q50. Still lots of bells as whistles, just not the $75K price tag of the Audi. Tells me his budget is $600/mo, give or take. Which I think should be easy to accommodate.

We'll see where things go from here.

qbrozen

Thanks. Just a couple pics. It is raining, so this is the best I got so far. Looks a bit pink in this pic, but its definitely not in reality.

xwesx

qbrozen said:

Fit is in the garage now.

Congrats, Q! Your fleet is looking to make quite the transformation this week!

roadburner

breld said:

Don't know much about these - no doubt some of you (roadburner) can weigh in on it.

M roadster

Not sure how interested I am - would probably prefer a 330ci with its rear seats. The Z3 looks a little rough, and this isn't exactly at a BMW dealership. But the miles are nice.

The M Roadster has the US "quasi-///M" motor, so maintenance is equivalent to a non-///M car. The key is the condition of the top and how it operates. Looks nice.