Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

breld

I took on my commute almost four years ago when I got remarried and moved north of Denver - 30 miles away from work and 35 miles away from my kids' school (and sport activities). I haven't kept great records of actual mileage on the cars like many of you, but I figure I drive around 24-26k miles a year.

I'd say that commute kinda took the "fun car" idea on hiatus for awhile, in favor of a comfortable ride for the 80-100 miles I drive a day. Much of it is on a non-busy tollway where I'm set on cruise control at 80 mph for 30-40 minutes - more conducive to something more like my "non-BMW" F30 than my "pure-BMW" E30.

Just don't get a chance to really enjoy a true sporty car as much anymore. But....the wheels are spinning....we'll see this year if I continue to enjoy my Sedona for the comfortable, family-hauling side of things. If that's the case and I let go of the "comfy" 5-series - I don't know....Civic Si, WRX, Mustang......

stickguy

Breld, at this point, in your real world use I doubt there is much difference between the Kia and BMW. So your plan, I like your plan!

I work from home. And my office that I used to be in (and wife still is) is a whopping 3 miles away. So not much use there. My sonata is almost 2 months old and nit quite at 1,200. Including the 600 mile Christmas trip. The RDX gets just about 12k/year, mostly trips though that will drop since I'll use the hyundai instead now for many if them.

stickguy

Speaking of gas, filled up the Acura last night. $2.36 fir Sunoco premium. Regular was 2.11. I like this. Gas light was on, bought premium, and less than $32.00. Nice.

slorenzen

Really sad what's happening in California regarding the 70 cents tax increase per gallon. All that money, which was being spent on "stuff", which helps the economy, is now being diverted to the gas tanks again.

And knowing Oregon, they'll say "what a GREAT idea! Let's kill the recovering economy for global warming!", and follow suit.

Can you imagine, filling a 35 gallon 1/2 ton truck, just went up by about $25.

Brilliant...
:@

nyccarguy

@stickguy‌

One of the reasons I'm content with my 175 hp, 4 cyl Legacy. I can't really drive THAT fast with the 55, 50, & 45 mph speed limits along with tons of cops hiding, and the traffic.

rayainsw

'Really sad what's happening in California regarding the 70 cents tax increase per gallon'
I had read that the increase was going to end up being
something closer to 10 - 15 cents?
It is currently close to the highest in the US...
- Ray
California taxes are [ um ] interesting...

Mr_Shiftright

There are so many different "Californias" that it's hard to make a blanket statement about whether motorists get much in return for these taxes or not---some do, some don't, is probably the best answer. Up where I live, decent roads, good highway maintenance, nice bike paths and a relatively benign police force---I can't complain too much.

But there are parts of California where I wouldn't even want to own a car.

graphicguy

qbrozen said:

graphicguy 

Suprised at that myself. So, you had all season rubber from the Mustang mounted on other wheels for the BMW, and they fit the CTS?

Exactly. Well, almost. I didn't have them already mounted. Had to remove my track tires from the aftermarket wheels first, then mount the all seasons from the mustang (and balance them of course). Whole thing took me a couple of hours, but not having to spend anymore money right at the moment (other than the lugnuts, because the stock nuts have a shoulder too fat for the aftermarket wheels) is nice.

Well....for only the cost of lugnuts, and an afternoon of swapping....that's better than a whole new set of tires just because you need to drive in the winter.

Still want to hear of your V-Sport experiences as you drive it more. IF my dealer would have offered me that same deal on a V-Sport, I'm not sure I wouldn't have ponied up the extra V Sport money.

Really like mine. And, it's quick. But, Mustang GT performance? In a refined luxury car like the CTS? For under $50K? I probably wouldn't have thought too hard on that one.

abacomike

corvette said:

Sandy, did yours come with Continental ContiProContact tires? I had those on an Audi A4 and a Nissan Altima, and never had any problems with them. Continental makes a very good tire, but it's still possible there is a tire problem. Can you actually feel the vibration, or is it just the empty seat shaking? In a lot of cars, the seats will vibrate slightly because the seatbacks aren't held perfectly tight. That said, mistakes happen. When I had new Goodyear tires put on my mother's Volvo, I knew something was wrong as soon as I drove it on the highway. Took it back to the tire shop and they agreed. One of the rear tires had a cord that had shifted, and it was shaking bad enough that you could feel it in the (front wheel drive) Volvo! They ordered another tire from Goodyear and that solved the problem. Dealers are often not tire experts, even if they have a road force balancer. It may be better for your sanity to have a professional tire shop check the thing out. One of the VW dealers here in the Louisville area overlooked a bent wheel on my dad's Beetle when he brought it in and complained of a vibration! The tire store caught it right away.

I had Continental ContiSportContact2's put on my new Mercedes along with the Mercedes Optional 19" rims for the E400.  Fronts are 245/35 R19 XL 96Y and the rears are 275/30 R19 XL 96Y.  They are super quiet and allow the car to handle beautifully compared to the All-Seasons that came standard with the car.

I've always had Continentals on my Mercedes cars and I have no complaints.

breld

stickguy said:

Breld, at this point, in your real world use I doubt there is much difference between the Kia and BMW. So your plan, I like your plan!

Wow! That statement may sum up the state of affairs of current BMW models for the enthusiast crowd, huh?

Seriously - you're exactly right. I bought that F30 knowing full well what is was, and what it wasn't. Very sharp looking, comfortable sport sedan with some sportiness sprinkled in. Now with a car that I like, is comfortable, and can fit the whole family as needed, it does indeed open the door for a fun car again - without adding another vehicle to the fleet. I've come to like only having one "extra" car (4 cars for 3 drivers).

stickguy

I'll be happy when the kid takes the Volvo back to school and we are down to 2 cars home to free up driveway clog.

Breld, I give it a week before the next punch. I smell it coming.

breld

Oh, I think it will take more than a week.

I need to let the sheen wear off the Sedona to make sure I still enjoy it as much as I do right now - and then I can start thinking about a fun car to join it in the stable.

I did spend some time on Ford's website today looking at and building Mustangs.

Michaell

breld said:

Oh, I think it will take more than a week. I need to let the sheen wear off the Sedona to make sure I still enjoy it as much as I do right now - and then I can start thinking about a fun car to join it in the stable. I did spend some time on Ford's website today looking at and building Mustangs.

And I played around building a 228xi, an A5, an ATS coupe and a C250 coupe. 

Only 22 months until the E-GT lease is up. 

qbrozen

breld said:

You have the equipment to do all that tire removal and mounting yourself?

Yup. Picked up a machine several years back from a shop going out of business. It has paid for itself many times over. My little bubble balancer is a hand-me-down from my dad, and I have yet to meet a wheel I couldn't balance with it.

qbrozen

It really is amazing how much more competent the Caddy feels compared to the mustang. It grips so much better and is slowly building my confidence in it. For instance, the mustang would step out at the slightest provocation, while the caddy just digs in and goes.

Sandman6472

Corvette, you are right, Continentals on them. The A3 has the exact size but Pirelli tires but won't be playing with those tires. Either they'll need to check each alloy for any defect or just take another set of 4 off another diesel model...this would help identify the problem since the wheels/tires aren't vehicle specific. That would probably be the easiest way right now, just drive another diesel Golf over and swap all 4 wheels/tires and see if the results are the same. if not, problem solved, for me at least, and then they can figure out what to do next as I do not like the original alloys that came on my Golf SE model and will not take another one with them, it's a deal breaker for me. And since they can't undo this deal, easiest way to go about this is just swapping out another set and see what happens.

The Sandman

Sandman6472

Got the new policy from Metlife yesterday and it went up a bit for me. I did tell them that i am working part time now, 3 days/week usually and I did get 4 points from tickets, so...! The spousal unit ain't happy, ain't happy one bit but it happened and we have to deal with the consequences of my actions. Also, they dropped our mature drivers discount but we are taking it on the 17th, so will have to fax them copies of our passing the class and let them recalculate the amounts...policy kicks in the 13th of February so we should be good. I knew those tickets would clobber us but, couldn't take driving school because of something else...I'll admit to nothing!!! Maybe it's a good thing I'm temporarily out of the long distance driving gig for now...but hoping to go back in a few more months.
Bottom line here folks, I love both vehicles...a lot!!!

The Sandman

Sandman6472

Seems like I have over 1500 pics on my HTC smartphone and phone says my phone storage is low. Will getting rid of a bunch of them help this situation? Am sending them over to my desktop and then laptop, so my thinking is I can get rid of a whole bunch of them to free up some space. Have an sd card also in the phone but I can't get them to go there...as we all know here, I am extremely tech challenged and always have been, so need some expert help here as my kids aren't home right now. My HTC One VX is a mid line device I've been told, very easy which is what I wanted at the time, but thinking of getting the Samsung S5 once the S6 comes out in April as it seems to be a very high quality smartphone, as good if not better than an Iphone.
Any thoughts, suggestions, help would be appreciated. Out of contract next month, finally, so would be buying an unlocked unit since AT&T no longer helps with the phone cost, no more subsidizing I was told and if I do upgrade, it'll add another $25/month to our bill, something that I will not do. Better to just get an unlocked unit at a pawn shop or discount store like Brands Mart or similar. Want a better phone with a bigger screen and my current phone has a lot of bloatware that can not be uninstalled. Also, it has a built in battery, can' pop it out for another one...once it dies, will need a new phone anyways.
Help!!!

The Sandman

corvette

breld said:

Wow! That statement may sum up the state of affairs of current BMW models for the enthusiast crowd, huh?

When BMW started dumping the normally aspirated straight six engine and working on hybrid/electric cars, they started playing the "efficient and sporty" marketing line. What really gripes me is that some of the writeups I've read basically say that BMW has always been extremely concerned about fuel economy, the environment, sustainability, etc.

That sounds like some revisionist history to me. In the distant past, they had models like the 528e and some diesels, but the whole "efficient and sporty" gimmick is new.

breld

qbrozen said:

breld said:

You have the equipment to do all that tire removal and mounting yourself?

Yup. Picked up a machine several years back from a shop going out of business. It has paid for itself many times over. My little bubble balancer is a hand-me-down from my dad, and I have yet to meet a wheel I couldn't balance with it.

Wow! That's cool. I'm always entranced at Discount Tire watching them dismount and mount tires with the equipment. Always wonder what kind of potential accidents could happen. Seeing as I sliced off the tips of two of my fingers with a mandolin slicer on X-mas morning, heavy auto equipment would probably not be a good idea for me.

stickguy

I guy I worked with on a summer warehouse job also worked at a repair shop, and I heard after I was not doing that job any longer that he did in an accident trying to mount a tire.

stickguy

Sandy, I am not familiar with that particular phone, but yes, pictures eat up a lot of space. if you have loaded onto your computer, delete them from the phone (usually that is an option when you download). Should help your space.

aps can also eat up room if you have a bunch. And music can really eat up room, so think about trimming that.

usually somewhere in the settings menus you can see what space is going where. But 1st move is to clean out the pictures.

not sure why you can't move stuff to your SIM card.

qbrozen

stickguy said:

I guy I worked with on a summer warehouse job also worked at a repair shop, and I heard after I was not doing that job any longer that he did in an accident trying to mount a tire.

That's a shame. It is not for the feint of heart, that's for sure, and no place for a lapse in focus. Fortunately for me, its not a daily thing where I might get overly confident/comfortable with it.

On the upside, I get to do whatever combo I want without having to convince a tech or salesperson (ex: squeezing a 255/40 onto an 18x8 wheel). I can also experiment without having to pay each time. On the downside, it ain't easy. For instance, putting those 255s on the 18x8 involved acts of physical exertion and crazy stunts that most people would never try. Too bad I can't get a pic of myself in the act, but just know that it involves standing on the tire on top of the machine and using a broom handle to push the floor pedal to turn the platform. And even that is no guarantee that it will work. The first one in such a situation has taken me as much as 90 minutes until I figure out the "trick" for that particular mounting. I'm certain there are far more expensive machines that can make it far easier, but I work with what I've got.

And I have injured myself several times, but usually just bruises, often resulting from a slipped prybar. I've gotten more careful with that piece of the puzzle. Where people have gotten seriously injured, so I've heard, usually involves failure of the wheel in some way. I'm religious about not standing in front of the wheel while inflating (if you've never witnessed what happens at this point, the pressure builds up until the sidewall very loudly and violently POPS against the wheel lip). It is of the utmost importance to not have that thing pointing towards you when it happens.

corvette

Most tires specify which wheel widths they are designed for, and I would avoid going outside those parameters for safety reasons.

fintail

I assume your phone has a Micro SD card slot, right? If so, move everything there, ensure nothing is saved to the phone, and change settings so new pics are saved to the card. I never save anything to my phone, always to the SD. You can't save pics to a SIM, they aren't made for that kind of data storage. I assume your phone is Android, so you can also save your contacts etc to your google account, and not worry about the SIM for that either. After you move things, you could reset the phone and see if starting fresh helps it.

I have a Note 4, it's a beast, but pretty expensive.

sandman_6472 said:

Seems like I have over 1500 pics on my HTC smartphone and phone says my phone storage is low. Will getting rid of a bunch of them help this situation?

The Sandman

Sandman6472

Tried moving as much as I could to the micro sd card but not much help. Naturally, our go to guy at ATT left the company last month so we're basically screwed. More than ever now, think I'm going to actively pursue getting a new Samsung S4 or S5 and got from there. Have been having these kind of issues for awhile with my HTC One VX and just ready for a change. Heard the newer phones have quite a lot less bloatware that can not be removed and having a battery that can be taken out and another one put in is a real plus. Just need to find an unlocked one that's compatible with the ATT operating system. Will enjoy the search I think...luckily there's no rush either.

The Sandman

suydam

I'm an iphone person, photos sync across all devices, so can't help you.

qbrozen

corvette said:

Most tires specify which wheel widths they are designed for, and I would avoid going outside those parameters for safety reasons.

What can I say? I live dangerously.

seriously, though, what I have done doesn't hold a candle to what I have seen on other vehicles. The "stretched" look is particularly troubling to me. I just go for as wide as I think I can get away with, which is usually all of 10 or 20mm beyond manufacturers recommendation.

stever

If you got a great lease deal in 2014, a reporter wants to talk with you. Please email PR@edmunds.com no later than Wednesday, January 7, 2015, and include your daytime contact info and the make and model you leased.

xwesx

I'm not sure that I ever threw in a 2015 guess, Corvette; I'm going to go with 31 for this year.

henryn

My guess for punches in 2015: 41

jayrider

henryn said:

My guess for punches in 2015: 41

That sounds about right for Breld. What about the group as a whole.

stever

LOL, sounds a bit ambitious (for the group and for @Breld). But ask me again next week when the market flip-flops back the other way.

jpp75

Finally got moved and somewhat settled in, congrats to @breld and @sandman_6472 on the new rides! Both seem like great choices.

Working on my next punch sometime this year, we're back to 2 cars now and at some point the Pathfinder will once again be relegated to beach/dog/Home Depot duty. Although I have to say it's still a champ, right before we moved I swerved to miss a deer one night and messed up the wheels on the Q50 It spent 3 weeks in the shop waiting on parts so the Pathfinder was our only vehicle for a while. 2,500 miles in 3 weeks is probably more than we drove it in the last 6 months, but it was up to the task. I had forgotten we declined rental car coverage because we had 3 cars, so no rental while it was being fixed. I have to give kudos to Infiniti of Charlotte who fixed the car, they gave us one of their loaners for a few days even though it was my fault, definitely my best service experience ever. The car is back and good as new now.

As for 2015 punches, we love, love, love the Q50, but the only wrinkle is there's no Infiniti dealer here, the closest is about 2 1/2 hours away, so not sure what we will do about that. I'm actually surprised they don't have one, we have every other dealer here. The Nissan dealer said they would do routine maintenance like oil changes, tire rotation, etc. but they won't do any warranty work or recalls, and they weren't too keen on working on a hybrid, and not sure I'd trust them with it. So we'll have to figure that out.

Glad to be back and catching up here, happy new year (well a belated one at least!).

xwesx

Congrats on getting settled in! That's quite an accomplishment all by itself!

graphicguy

The "anti-CCBA".......

http://blog.caranddriver.com/now-thats-cheap-transportation-75-pickup-got-minnesota-man-back-and-forth-to-work-for-38-years/

rayainsw

heresy

jpp75

xwesx said:

Congrats on getting settled in! That's quite an accomplishment all by itself!

Thanks Wes! It was quite a feat but glad to be here.

On the short list for a new car:

VW Touareg TDI (Love it but pricey for what it is and reliability scares me)
CPO Lexus GS 350 (Great car but do I really want a big sedan??)
Volvo XC60 (Great looks, but reliability eh, probably better than the VW though)
Volvo S60 (Something different, reliability....see above)
Subaru Forester (Checks all the boxes but don't love it)
Acura TLX (Meh, don't love it but it will run forever)
Mazda 3 Hatch (Best value for the money by far, need to drive one)
Mazda CX5 (If I want to stay with a CUV probably the best value for the money)

ab348

@jpp5862 - My unsolicited advice would be not to buy a car you do not love.

Michaell

jpp5862 said:

xwesx said:

Congrats on getting settled in! That's quite an accomplishment all by itself!

Thanks Wes! It was quite a feat but glad to be here.

On the short list for a new car:

VW Touareg TDI (Love it but pricey for what it is and reliability scares me)
CPO Lexus GS 350 (Great car but do I really want a big sedan??)
Volvo XC60 (Great looks, but reliability eh, probably better than the VW though)
Volvo S60 (Something different, reliability....see above)
Subaru Forester (Checks all the boxes but don't love it)
Acura TLX (Meh, don't love it but it will run forever)
Mazda 3 Hatch (Best value for the money by far, need to drive one)
Mazda CX5 (If I want to stay with a CUV probably the best value for the money)

VW Touareg TDI (Love it but pricey for what it is and reliability scares me) - Head over to the "What would it take for you to drive a diesel" thread; one of the regular posters has a Touareg TDI and loves it

CPO Lexus GS 350 (Great car but do I really want a big sedan??) - guess you'd have to drive one to know for sure - and, is it a big sedan?

Volvo XC60 (Great looks, but reliability eh, probably better than the VW though) - wife is thinking about an XC70 as her next car, but I'm starting to think seriously about Volvo's long term prospects in the US, given how few cars they sell. Not sure I want to drive an orphan

Volvo S60 (Something different, reliability....see above) - see above

Subaru Forester (Checks all the boxes but don't love it) - agreed

Acura TLX (Meh, don't love it but it will run forever) - agreed

Mazda 3 Hatch (Best value for the money by far, need to drive one) - nice car, good value, lots of features

Mazda CX5 (If I want to stay with a CUV probably the best value for the money) - see comments for Mazda 3, just substitute CUV for hatch

jpp75

ab348 said:

@jpp5862 - My unsolicited advice would be not to buy a car you do not love.

@ab348 I appreciate the advice, I wouldn't have posted my thoughts if I wasn't looking for input from those who know this topic best.

When I bought my first car on my own in 1997, I went with the practical, reliable, affordable Honda Accord. It was a great car but I never liked it. My other option at the time was a 1996 used Grand Cherokee that was off lease, it was $30 more per month so I went with the Accord. I know the Grand Cherokee would have been a nightmare to keep up, but I never enjoyed driving the Accord.

The Touareg is my first choice by far, but not sure I'd be happy with the reliability and $50k for a VW is just hard to swallow. That's what leads me to the Mazda, most of the driving fun but half the price.

jpp75

Michaell said:

jpp5862 said:

xwesx said:

Congrats on getting settled in! That's quite an accomplishment all by itself!

Thanks Wes! It was quite a feat but glad to be here.

On the short list for a new car:

VW Touareg TDI (Love it but pricey for what it is and reliability scares me)
CPO Lexus GS 350 (Great car but do I really want a big sedan??)
Volvo XC60 (Great looks, but reliability eh, probably better than the VW though)
Volvo S60 (Something different, reliability....see above)
Subaru Forester (Checks all the boxes but don't love it)
Acura TLX (Meh, don't love it but it will run forever)
Mazda 3 Hatch (Best value for the money by far, need to drive one)
Mazda CX5 (If I want to stay with a CUV probably the best value for the money)

VW Touareg TDI (Love it but pricey for what it is and reliability scares me) - Head over to the "What would it take for you to drive a diesel" thread; one of the regular posters has a Touareg TDI and loves it

CPO Lexus GS 350 (Great car but do I really want a big sedan??) - guess you'd have to drive one to know for sure - and, is it a big sedan?

Volvo XC60 (Great looks, but reliability eh, probably better than the VW though) - wife is thinking about an XC70 as her next car, but I'm starting to think seriously about Volvo's long term prospects in the US, given how few cars they sell. Not sure I want to drive an orphan

Volvo S60 (Something different, reliability....see above) - see above

Subaru Forester (Checks all the boxes but don't love it) - agreed

Acura TLX (Meh, don't love it but it will run forever) - agreed

Mazda 3 Hatch (Best value for the money by far, need to drive one) - nice car, good value, lots of features

Mazda CX5 (If I want to stay with a CUV probably the best value for the money) - see comments for Mazda 3, just substitute CUV for hatch

Thanks Michaell, you're comments echo my thoughts. I follow the "What would it take for you to buy a diesel" thread, it keeps me coming back to the Touareg.

Spot on with the Volvo, I can't see how they stay around much longer and it's not like buying a Mercury or Oldsmobile where a dealer can still work on it, finding an independent mechanic would be tough.

So really it comes down to pay extra for the Touareg TDI or save money and get the Mazda.

Sandman6472

Ditto, don't do it!!! I speak from experience on this subject. My Tucson was a good vehicle and did everything I wanted it to do but I didn't love the looks or the interior to be honest. Think if I had gotten something I liked better, I'd have kept it a lot longer...maybe I should've just gone with the Mitsu Outlander Sport to begin with and not looked back. But I do love my Golf and hopefully tomorrow, they will finally fix the tire issue and stop it from shaking. They are giving me another loaner and hope they figure it all out either by switching out the rubber or the alloys from another diesel model because I will not except the stock wheels that came on it, maybe should've just gone with the TDI to begin with as I'm sure there are plenty of stations that carry diesel fuel down here.

The Sandman

rny421

@jpp5862‌:

I understand your hesitation about Volvo, but I wouldn't be too worried. If you go used, some models like the S60 are a steal in my opinion. I picked up a 2012 T6 AWD for my fiancé in August for $25k with 23k miles. So far it's been a great car. Very fast, and gets pretty good mileage, although who cares now that gas is $2.75 though! (what we consider cheap for us in upstate NY. Don't get me started about how everyone else in the US that has <$2/gal. and we still have [non-permissible content removed] roads).

I bet the prices have come down even more for them, and the T5 model was always relatively cheap. For some reason they aren't selling real well, but I think it's a great car. I think Volvo sales will definitely pick up with the new XC90 coming out this year. It's supposed to be a real show-stopper.

Also, regarding reliability: My mom had a 2005 T5 AWD Volvo XC90. She traded that one in with about 88k miles for a new 2010 3.2 AWD. The 2010 now has ~94k miles. The 2005 did have a fuel pump failure, and the 2010 just had a steering angle sensor go, but pretty minimal repairs out of warranty (~$500 each). I wouldn't be worried about keeping a Volvo out of warranty as much as I would a BMW or Mercedes. The 5 cylinders have been around forever, and the 6-cylinder has been out for a while. The new Drive-e 4-cylinders might need some time to iron out the issues, but I'm not sure if they've had any yet.

stever

Besides @gagrice, there's another new TDI owner around the forums.

Diesel sales are down a bit (at least at VW) so you might be able to work a bit of a deal right now, until gasoline climbs back up.

xwesx

I've really enjoyed most of my Subarus. I suspect we will keep our 2010 Forester for a good long while to come (it's in line to hit 80,000 on the odometer later this week, so it's still a youngin'!), but I'm eyeballing replacements for the Fiesta all the time.

Nothing in Subaru's current lineup fits the bill for likely future purchases, though.

jpp75

stever said:

Besides @gagrice, there's another new TDI owner around the forums.

Diesel sales are down a bit (at least at VW) so you might be able to work a bit of a deal right now, until gasoline climbs back up.

Thanks Steve, I was thinking this is the time to buy a diesel. Gas prices will go up eventually, and probably sooner than we think.

@gagrice made a great post about buying a TDI Passat wagon on the cheap and selling it a few months later.

stever

I'm thinking this is a good time to buy a hybrid too.

Then when gas hits $4 a gallon in six months, profit.

roadburner

@rayinsw

Seen this? 2015 Charger R/T test

Somewhat slower than I'd prefer(Standing ¼-mile: 13.6 sec at 105 mph), but still a little tempting. Think I'd have to get the Scat Pack or SRT 392...

Sandman6472

Golf going in at 7:30 tomorrow and getting a loaner, again. Told them they can have it till Thursday it to please get it right this time. Got the service manager involved now since it's been in twice with no difference and she said they want me to be happy. Happy will be making the vibration and shaking go away permanently so swap out the wheels/tires or any combo and let's move on here. I told her our '15 A3 has the same tire size and alloy rim size and is smooth as glass at every speed up to 85, the highest I got it so far. Checked to see if hers shook like mine but no, smooth as glass so there is a solution to this issue. Easiest thing to do is just get another diesel car and swap the alloys and if the problem is gone, great. Send me on my way and deal with the defected products, if any later on. All I know, this issue is not normal. And I know they will test drive it before I get it back because last time, there was a good bit of petrol used when I got it back, almost a quarter used.
i am very optimistic that come Friday morning on my way to work, all will be fine!

The Sandman