Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

stickguy

roadburner

Light-years away from how I'd option one, but to each his own...

imidazol97

stickguy said:

OK, I decided I want this for Christmas. Feel free to group up to get it if too pricey individually. Just let me know when I can run over an pick it up.

I don't think that's going to have a limo like back seat like the Sonata. But would be
a lot of fun to drive.

iluvmysephia1

The Mustang looks so much beefier now than it did in 1978 when I bought my first car, a 1965 Ford Mustang. Wow. This one looks good!

imidazol97

I'd like to see my 1967 Mustang coupe next to that one to compare size.

slorenzen

imidazol97 said:

I'd like to see my 1967 Mustang coupe next to that one to compare size.

I think the '67 would look downright petite compared to the new one...

tommister2

stickguy said:

OK, I decided I want this for Christmas. Feel free to group up to get it if too pricey individually. Just let me know when I can run over an pick it up. http://echelonford.com/Stratford-and-South-Jersey/For-Sale/New/Ford/Mustang/2016-GT-Premium-Red-Car/44023712/

Oldfarmer and I agree with the color. If you get it there will be three GTs in this group with the same color!

carnaught

A new GT passed in front of me going down the street perpendicular to me. Don't know if it was modded, but the frickin' thing was major loud, and not in a good way. I would think that driving it would get old real fast, plus the likelihood of hearing loss.

I'm not sure that the stock one is that loud, but it is quite intrusive, and would not appeal to most of us. I suspect the older we are, the less appeal. If anyone is contemplating one, take it for an extended test drive to see what you think.

Mr_Shiftright

You have to be careful with exhaust systems, especially aftermarket ones. I put a fairly expensive system on my Porsche 928 and it sounded GREAT until hour after hour on the highway. I finally just ate the cost and put a much tamer muffler on it. Maybe on a convertible it wouldn't have been so bad as the sound wouldn't resonate so much.

ab348

I've never found a loud exhaust to be in anyway appealing. I just don't understand why people think they're cool or in any way desirable.

Mr_Shiftright

I think it's the "look at me" factor. Or maybe Boy Racer fantasy.

stickguy

I'll settle for the 128i convertible too. I'm not greedy. that is a stick shift with all the sport options. Perfect!

Parked next to a bright red A3 convertible today. Really sharp, though a bit too bright. Very nicely proportioned car.

corvette

ab348 said:

I've never found a loud exhaust to be in anyway appealing. I just don't understand why people think they're cool or in any way desirable.

Agreed! The factory exhaust in the Denali is too loud for my taste, but not nearly as loud as a lot of aftermarket ones.

nyccarguy

stickguy said:

Those are the wheels I like on the Mustang

Sandman6472

Yes, have to agree that the A3 is the perfectly proportioned vehicle and really do like the wife's white over black one. A bit longer than my Golf but just has that extra something...looks good driving down the road. Finally got the Golf washed and waxed Thursday and it looks great...just need to get the A3 done in the next couple of weeks. The place I go raised the price by $8.00 but well worth it as they now clean and dress the dash top and steering wheel. Was pretty messy with all the kids being home and my son and his lady taking it for some small trips last weekend. Besides dealer folks, he's the only other family member to have driven it in the year that we've had it.
Sat in a 2014 white over beige X1 yesterday and really did like it, seemed not as tall as the Tucson was and liked the interior proportions. Could very well see one as my d d in the next few years...like a more luxurious vehicle now as I am getting older. And I do deserve something nicer to drive since I really do enjoy driving.
Saw a new red Golf at the dealer a few weeks back and it was really really red, very similar to the Audi red. Am glad I went with the blue over beige, the interior is staying a lot cleaner than I had thought but I am pretty careful inside.

The Sandman

Michaell

I'm stuck at the tire shop right now. Jumped in the E-GT to run some errands and the TPMC warning was on. Came to the tire store and found that the left rear was at 25PSI. 

of course, being Saturday, the place is packed so here I sit. 

Michaell

A small bolt was the culprit. Fixed and on my way. 

stickguy

bad news people. My wife liked the outside of the 1 series, but hates the red seats.

so concentrate the crowdsource funding on the Mustang.

Sandman6472

Got to drive a very low mileage Elantra GT this week and found it enjoyable, especially liked the seats as they were nicely bolstered and I fit in real snug like. Something about Hyundai/Kia engines but I just seem to like the power and the effortless shifting of them. They all know at work if it's H/K or anything German, I'm the guy who wants to run them. Also anything really big, do not come anywhere near me, if possible. Funny how we all have our likes and dislikes and we work well together as a team. Has been a busy week with the store locking the doors at 6 with folks still inside waiting to rent. Now that vacation is on, hear these next couple of weeks are going to be hectic and naturally, they gave one guy off! Incredibly dumb move and I just hope they figure out the man hours needed. Have decided that I won't switch my n/s days and if they want me to report Wednesday and Thursday, they will need to give me more hours. Thursday I hear will a shortened day, 3 p m closing, but am available to work both days and have already let both lead drivers know this. Said I'd come in both days and if not, will enjoy the 5 days off...they both got the message as we had a good laugh and they also agree, give me the extra hours not being used so we have coverage. With only one driver, we have to leap frog all day while moving only one vehicle at a time unless it's a bad one and they give us a replacement. With two drivers, we can do twice as much and the revenue gained by having available iron to rent more than pays for those extra hours they would be paying me to come in.
Seems it's best to rent cars while having enough staff to get this job done. And in reality, am only asking for an additional eight to ten hours extra these next couple of weeks. If not, am happy to stay home but want to make a certain amount this year and these next couple of weeks can get me where I want to be.

The Sandman

nyccarguy

http://www.bmwofmamaroneck.com/detail-2014-bmw-5_series-535d_xdrive-used-14243975.html

Anybody interested in a diesel 5er? 2014 with 14K miles and a $41,998 asking price. I wonder what they're cyber Wednesday sale price will be?

tommister2

nyccarguy said:

http://www.bmwofmamaroneck.com/detail-2014-bmw-5_series-535d_xdrive-used-14243975.html

Anybody interested in a diesel 5er? 2014 with 14K miles and a $41,998 asking price. I wonder what they're cyber Wednesday sale price will be?

Much better carfax than the 1 series that was posted recently. That one is a good example of why I will most likely never buy a BMW. Too many trips to the dealer for me. I sure do like driving them but don't want the potential hassle.

Mr_Shiftright

oof! Already $20K depreciation on that one. Brutal.

fintail

E-class depreciates the same. So many of these are put into leases that the used market becomes saturated. This is the pitfall of the sales war.

Mr_Shiftright

Yeah, but I'm a bit surprised here since a 535d is rather scarce on the used car market. If the supply and demand equation is actually working here, then a buyer is rarer than the car.

corvette

Diesel anything is probably perceived as risky right now.

The Yukon had a CEL for the past month or so with a P0420, which usually indicates a bad catalytic converter. Took it to the exhaust shop this morning (tiny little waiting room in a bad part of town), they looked at it and said half the time they don't need a new cat when they have that code, and the cats looked fine. Did a throttle body cleaning, cleared the code, and sent me on my way. We'll see whether that fixes it.

The CEL itself doesn't bother me other than:
- Importantly this time of year, remote start won't work with the CEL on, and
- If the CEL is on for some dubious emissions issue, you may not know if a code is thrown for a more serious issue, because the CEL is already on.

fintail

Yep, low supply lower demand. With cheap gas and affluent buyers, only the die-hards see the the attraction.

This is at an auto broker, so it probably spent half its life submerged in a Florida swamp and was glued back together with liquefied cornflakes, but it shows the same thing - I can see this is really well equipped for a diesel, would have stickered at 65K. 14 was an early model run for the E so this could be as old as a spring 2013 build, but still.

Mr_Shiftright said:

Yeah, but I'm a bit surprised here since a 535d is rather scarce on the used car market. If the supply and demand equation is actually working here, then a buyer is rarer than the car.

stickguy

well, that depreciation curve (along with being too damned expensive new!) is why any of the luxo European iron on my shopping list will be a 2 YO off lease with modest miles. Even an Infiniti or Volvo likely the same way.

stickguy

the whole getting in and out of a sporty car does give me pause. Probably the smart move is to get one as a spare toy, and have a more practical daily driver. Even for a convertible like the BMW I posted. keep it inside in the lousy weather!

Michaell

stickguy said:

the whole getting in and out of a sporty car does give me pause. Probably the smart move is to get one as a spare toy, and have a more practical daily driver. Even for a convertible like the BMW I posted. keep it inside in the lousy weather!

My wife rode in the E-GT tonight. She had minor knee surgery last month and is still hobbling a bit. She found it pretty hard to get in and out due to the height.

It's possible my next lease will have easier access to accommodate her.

Mr_Shiftright

It's funny. Some small cars have easier entry than some larger cars. It's all about the roofline and the door sill width and the seat height.

slorenzen

The easiest vehicle I've ever had for ingress/egress was my '02 Tacoma 4WD.

Neither climb up or fall down, just pivot and sit.

Mt worst was a 914 from days gone by. You would literally open the door, and place your hand on the ground to assist in getting out.

kyfdx

stickguy said:

the whole getting in and out of a sporty car does give me pause. Probably the smart move is to get one as a spare toy, and have a more practical daily driver. Even for a convertible like the BMW I posted. keep it inside in the lousy weather!

My 3-series coupe has very easy entry/exit, as long as you have room to open the door wide. Much easier than having to maneuver around the B-pillar in a sedan.

128i convertible is an easy daily driver with winter tires. My wife drove her E46 convertible for 3 years, and didn't even know it was RWD.. lol

kyfdx

Advice needed here, please.

http://forums.edmunds.com/discussion/38618/general/x/used-car-for-3-months-under-3000?new=1

corvette

The Yukon has an exit button on the memory seats. I did not notice this until yesterday and don't really have any use for that feature. Between that and the flat seats, it truly is designed for wider American waistlines. 

tjc78

Our Enclave has that.  I disabled it, I sit all the back and the wife saw no value in it. 

stickguy

I think my Sonata has the feature where the seat moves back when you turn the car off. If so, it was the first thing I turned off. I would not own a car where it did that but could not be disabled.

corvette

Mine isn't automatic, just a little E button next to memory settings 1 and 2.

The E39 did a neat trick where the electronically tilted steering wheel would move up a couple of inches when you turned the key off to allow you to get out easier. Of course, mine would occasionally get off of its index and the wheel would move in a position where I couldn't see the gauges.

stickguy

that would drive me nuts if the steering wheel did that.

berri

Easiest vehicle for egress into the driver's seat is probably a minivan - seriously

stickguy

minivans are high, though sometimes you do have to step up, and the footwell/entry can be kind of tight. At least from what I remember of mine.

a small CUV like a CR-V is probably best for hip point. Slide right in! Often even get a nice big grab handle.

stever

Footwell entry hasn't been an issue with my minivans but some people do find the seats a big high.

stickguy

I just recall mine having relatively short doors and footspace getting in. Probably not explaining that well, but you get the gist.

stickguy

a few people here have their eye on compact CUV/wagon thingees. The auto columnist for the Philly paper (not sure if he is syndicated) just did a 4 way comparison of them. He reviewed the HR-V, CX-3, Buick and Kia Soul (yes, he knows that one is a little different).

Logic on including the Soul was that other than offering optional AWD, it really functionally was very comparable.

winner? The Soul (yeah, not what I was expecting). He was much less high on the Mazda than most reviewers (liked handling, interior and space issues killed it). And the Buick had dynamic, space and serious quality issues. I forget his issues with the Honda. Probably the drivetrain!

The soul though, really tested out well. assuming (like 99% of the people that buy these) you don't need AWD, it gave the most practicality, comfort, and even drove real nice (similar to the Mazda).

stever

I've tested all those and the Soul is my fav too. My wife gave the edge to the Buick. Right now the Prius is in first place though.

The lack of AWD gives you that nice "flat" floor in the Soul and thus more cargo room. I have that 61 cubic feet of cargo space number memorized. The Prius 54/50 estimated mpg has stuck in my mind too though.

Re minivan egress, just how big are your feet?

stickguy

just the way the doors are cut and the front wheels encroach in the footwell. Plus they are fairly short.

also an issue that my wife is much shorter and always had the seat pulled up.

tjc78

corvette said:

Mine isn't automatic, just a little E button next to memory settings 1 and 2. The E39 did a neat trick where the electronically tilted steering wheel would move up a couple of inches when you turned the key off to allow you to get out easier. Of course, mine would occasionally get off of its index and the wheel would move in a position where I couldn't see the gauges.

I have the button as well.  In the options menu for the ca you'll most likely find an auto setting for it too. 

My Genesis had the power wheel that would rise when you shut the car off.  Worked great when it wasn't being wonky. Dealer relaxed the limit switches quite a few times.  

corvette

Any last-minute punches for 2015? Any predictions for 2016?

Michaell

corvette said:

Any last-minute punches for 2015? Any predictions for 2016?

I predict I'll have one punch in 2016, as the lease on my Elantra GT is up next November.

@breld is probably good for 1 or 2 (or 3 or 4, depending on how quickly he and the missus get over the S3 and S4...)

I figure 25 for the year.

stevedebi

ab348 said:

I've never found a loud exhaust to be in anyway appealing. I just don't understand why people think they're cool or in any way desirable.

Well, originally there was a reason. Aftermarket stystems were supposed to be more efficient - the loudness was a by product of the way they were built. Not like today, when folks buy for the sound rather than because it makes the car run better.

Mr_Shiftright

You might get 6 or 8 more HP by spending $1000 on a deluxe cat-back system. That's expensive HP, compared say to adding a turbo.